As I mentioned in my last post, we had other sojourners join us at the B&B on Saturday. While I was sitting enjoying the bottom level patio, the owner of the B&B asked me if I would mind pulling the little car up as far as it would go because there would be others needing to share the parking space. Instead of doing it myself, I offered the car keys and she thanked me.
As it turned out, when we were making our egress for supper Saturday evening, we met the two families with the SUVs attempting to make their ingress to the B&B. By the time we had returned from our afternoon nourishment, we found that they had filled completely the parking space directly behind the little black bug KIA without having to move our rental vehicle one iota. But, by the time we had decided it was time to retire for the night, I realized that there might be a problem with the two SUVs behind me because we were planning on an 8:00 a.m. departure early on Sunday in order to get our vehicle back for check-in at Hertz to avoid paying for an extra day. As in most of the Latin American countries where I have traveled, Guatemala is not much different in that Sunday mornings many folks sleep in and even cities are far quieter and realize less stressful activities on the Lord's day.
Before I was able to talk with the owners, I noticed that they were leaving for the evening. So, later I checked to see if there might be any light in their apartment but found it dark. Well, the owner still had my car keys and, as far as I knew, there was no knowledge of our intent in the minds of the drivers of the two SUVs so I was concerned that we might not get out as quickly as we had planned. While our time to turn in the car was around 1 p.m., we were unsure of travel time between Xela and Antigua. We had heard anything from four hours to a low of 3 so we did have some time to play with.
I finally wrote an e-mail to the owner and shared my concern with her. Her response was immediate so they apparently did make it back. She had told the other folks of our need to exit by 8 and she had turned the car key over to the cook and with thanks, bid us good-bye in the event she was not up in the morning. So I could go to bed with no problems stored in the head. And that I did soon thereafter. I was lulled to sleep by some fine music which was fed directly into my ears via my Bose Quiet Comfort 15 headphones. Just before I lost consciousness the last time, I pulled them off, turned the iPod and headphones off and fell asleep.
We awakened shortly after six and I peeked outside the window. December through February are some of the chilliest months in Xela and the rains come predictably in the month of February. Although we got no rain during our brief visit to Quezaltenango, there was always a sense of dampness in the atmosphere and even the bed linens felt damp or dank until our body heat served to warm the enclosure in which we were encapsulated for the night. As happened the night before, all covers were welcome at first but as the night deepened, they were eliminated until only one remained.
We got our things packed and went outside to check out the cool morning temperature. There was fog which obstructed views on all sides of the patio. Not one of the mountains surrounding the city was visible as we ascended the stairs to the patio for breakfast.
Instead of one table set for breakfast, there were three. We opted for 7:30 serving and we could already see evidence that the cook had been there. The frying pans were smoking and ready for the eggs that we had both ordered. The cook soon appeared and we heard the eggs being scrambled and the blender making the licuados. The eggs were served with refried black beans and a very mild tomato sauce. We also got a papaya licuado and fresh fruit. Remember what I told you in the last post about the odor of fresh bread? Well, we each got two slices of that and it was great. John resurrected the New Zealand butter together with his freshly prepared blackberry preserves to enhance something which hardly needed either. But it was good and a splendid treat. Top that off with coffee and tea and you know what we enjoyed together this morning before our journey.
Going back to when we left our room, we noticed that the two doors were ajar where the newcomers had spent their night. And, at least one of the drivers was already out and making the alarm go off in his car. So, I figured that they had in fact received the word and we had a great chance of leaving on time. We knew that they had breakfast scheduled at 8 so that was another good sign. Very few of us intentionally stray from the feeding trough when the odor and aromas find our nostrils. We may even be enticed from slumber to satisfy such desires and poke our snouts into the mash.
The cook did indeed have my keys and turned them over to me. So, when we finished feeding ourselves, we descended to the area of our room and car. It took only about 5 minutes for us to get packed and, even before 8, the two drivers had the door to the garage open and were backing their vehicles. Our little KIA was securely packed, we jumped into the front seats and I started the engine and backed out. We said our final good-byes and headed out of town. The owner had told us that she lived in Antigua previously and that the drive between the two cities never took her more than three hours so we figured we were in pretty fair shape since the clock in the KIA indicated that we were under way by 8:07.
It took us about 15 minutes to reach the Pan American highway on which we traveled until the last handful of miles. For the most part and excluding two or three very short areas of construction, we traveled on gorgeous four-line highways. Of course we had no option other than to pass through Chimaltenango where the thoroughfare narrowed down to two-lanes and very busy and full streets. Though once through that city we had only about a dozen kilometers until we reached the sign to Antigua.
Our time expended from Xela to the Camino Real Hotel in Antigua was a very abbreviated two hours and thirty-five minutes. We did stop to refuel and also to unload the vehicle before we turned it in at the hotel. The Hertz rental clerk was not surprised that the refueling only required two and three-quarters gallons. That was from Panajachel-Xela-Antigua. We liked that aspect of the rental about as much as anything else. The car is a little underpowered but drives well and easily accommodated two portly gentlemen with substantial girth and gear. Most larger cars zoomed by us in the mountains and, of course, the chicken buses gave me more than a good run for our money. They had no problems revving up their engines and flying past us even on the steepest inclines. But, we out-foxed them with regard to their brake pads: ours are pretty much intact but theirs will be needing replacement far more quickly. They use their brakes much of the time instead of permitting the motor to do the braking for them on the declines. The stench of noxious burned brake shoes is not nice nor is the odor of the smoke that the burning produces. Putrid to say the very least.
The Pan American Highway leads through some of the most fascinatingly gorgeous terrain in the part of Guatemala where we found ourselves. The fog that had obstructed our view as we arose from our beds that morning cleared away within less than an hour of our return trip’s inception. This was exactly as the cook had predicted when we asked about the fogs. There were some spectacular views and ready and easily accessible miradors (lookouts) along the way but the camera was securely resting behind my legs and had absolutely no desire or bent to leave the comfort of its nido (nest). Sorry to say, I just was not driven or given to stop, compose and shoot. Sorry for you and regretful as the results might have been fantastic. I leave it for you to rue my decision. But, for now, they are secrets implanted firmly in the heads of John and me. It is a geographic area that I would welcome showing to anybody willing to expend time and resources to come for a visit. You will be rewarded and then you can decide whether or not you want to shoot an image on your memory stick, on your grey matter or perhaps both. Another and easy tell-nothing answer I shall steal from the vocabulary-challenged children of today - “it was awesome“.
So, having reached our destination, we turned in the unblemished KIA and walked the four or five blocks to McDonald’s where we ordered coffee and tea before we walked the balance of the way back to the Philippis where we are presently relaxing. The temperature here is t-shirt and Levi weather and doing absolutely nothing is absolutely delightful and a superb idea..
We had a great experience in Xela and John and I have already decided that we need to invest in more time in the area of Xela. Maybe a longer rental. Or, possibly some school? Did I say that? Ouch! I know some of you may wonder just how Quetzaltenango and Xela are pronounced. My closest take on the names of that town are kate-saul-ten-ongo with accent on the ongo for Quetzaltenango. For Xela just try shay-lah with accent on the shay. There you have it. They might even think you are from here if you pronounce it that way.
So, we have a down week now to make ready for our up-coming trekking with Don and Nance in El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica in about a week from now.
Scheduled at 7 sharp tomorrow morning is our normal walk about the Cerro de la Cruz. I am looking forward to it and to seeing our regulars along our trekking route. Very good for the mind and spirit. And, the body!
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