Lessons

Last semester I took a course called “Travel Writing in Global Context” and one of the main topics it focused on was the concept of authenticity. I was reminded of this when I sat down to write this post and realized I had two options- one being to write what everyone wants to hear. The other, to write the truth.

When it comes to travel writing it seems to me that people tend to embellish the good and omit the bad. Writers possess the unique ability to write things that are technically true, but still imply something different. The point is, I could sit here all day and write beautiful anecdotes about tropical rainstorms and walks through the jungle, but that wouldn’t be the whole story. The truth is that it has been really hard to live here already. That isn’t to say that the difficulty and challenge isn’t worth it, because it is, I just want to acknowledge its presence.

In the past week I have been dealing with basically every traveller’s worst nightmare- a stolen purse. This means I have no passport, no phone, and no debit card. It’s crazy to realize how much importance those three things have, especially when lost together. But I’m choosing to use this as a learning experience, and I’m just grateful that it happened at the beginning of my trip while I have plenty of time to fix the problem. Had I had lost my passport closer to departure who knows what I would have done.

Losing the phone is unfortunate mainly because of the lost pictures. I had had it for a few years and it would have needed replacing sometime soon anyway. What I’m beginning to learn (albeit in an extremely hard way) is that material items are just that- material.

(Learning how to bartend)

I like to think that I’ve always been a fairly resourceful person but this is the first instance where that resourcefulness has been truly challenged. I work five days a week at a hostel, which covers my food and living expenses, but if I want to do anything extra I’ve had to find other ways to earn money. The main one has been cooking! Basically how it works is I cook whatever I feel like for breakfast or dinner, and if anyone else wants it too I ask for a little money to cover the extra ingredients and time. To my own surprise, I’ve actually been able to save money through doing this since my own food ends up being paid for.  

In a really weird, unconventional way this week has been fun. I’m learning the bare minimum that I’m able to live on, while also relying on my creative nature as a resource. I use local markets for my needs whenever possible since the prices are much lower, and I know exactly where the money is going. My typical breakfast so far has been two or three eggs (Q1 each), a mango (Q2 each), and a loaf of local bread (Q1). This means that I pay about Q5 (roughly 75 US cents) for a healthy, delicious, and local meal. Which is pretty awesome.

These are the things that make San Pedro magical. How despite all the lost items (and the bug bites) I still feel beyond fortunate to be here.

In other news, my most favorite person ever, Brian, is coming to visit me in about two weeks!!! Which is just one more thing to be grateful for. Also he's bringing my new debit card. 

Cheers from Guatemala, 

-Kaelin

Arrival!

Just a quick little "I made it safely, I'm not dead" post. No pictures today, sorry!

I never cease to be amazed at the ease of airport security/customs in other countries. No matter how many times I travel, I find myself leaving hours of wiggle room just in case I’m stuck waiting in lines. One method that really, truly works though is refusing to let anyone check your bag. The flight attendants will always word it very carefully, so it seems as if they’re going out of their way and it’s so nice of them to do- “If you bring your carry-on luggage up to the front desk, we’re willing to offer complimentary checking to your destination!”

And they tried, hard, to get my backpack. I stubbornly declined, even placing it in their little metal box to prove its size. I’m glad I did, because eight hours later a Guatemalan customs officer stamped my passport without any questions, and hardly a glance, while the rest of the passengers were still waiting for their luggage.

Normally, I don’t mind lines. But my flight landed at 7:20PM and I knew that shuttles to Antigua, a small colonial town about 45 minutes away from Guatemala City, stop running regularly at 8:00PM, so I was in a bit of a rush. Not to mention, I wasn’t too keen on walking around alone, with a backpack, after dark. Believing that I would run short on time, I was shocked when I was dropped off in front of my hostel barely more than an hour after my plane had landed.

This sort of system, where very few things are planned in advance, suits my sporadic and spontaneous personality well but has its drawbacks. I like having the ability to wake up in the morning and decide what I want to do that day, knowing that I can walk into any tour agency and set up a shuttle on the spot, for very little money. But if that shuttle just happens to be full, and sometimes they are, you’re pretty much out of luck. Hotels and hostels work the same way!

The point is, if you’re coming to Guatemala, or Central America in general, be prepared to not have plans. Embrace it! It will get a bit stressful at times, but you’ll also have some of the most incredible adventures and experiences that no guidebook could have ever shown you. 

-Kaelin