An airport security breach

Going through security in Guatemala, my rucksack caused the lady monitoring the x-ray machine to shout for a bag search. I was puzzled. I was pretty sure there were no guns, drugs or illegal immigrants in there. Anyway, to cut a long bag search short, she found a pair of tweezers that must have been at least two inches long, maybe more, and confiscated them.

What was I going to do…threaten to pluck the pilot’s monobrow unless he let me fly the plane? Or perhaps I was going to hold up the passengers… “I want all your purses, wallets and watches or somebody gets nipped!”

Well, it’s all part of the fun of travel I suppose. (There was no need for her to wag her finger though!)

La Antigua, Guatemala

So eventually we did get to La Antigua Guatemala and it was absolutely stunning. A couple of the local team offered to take us to dinner with another colleague from Honduras. After a 40 minute drive from Guatemala City we arrived at the Santo Domingo convent, inaugurated in 1530, and now a unique hotel and restaurant. Before dinner we went for a short walk through the candle-lit grounds of the convent (below) which, although in ruins, were impressive all the same.

The guidebook I bought at the airport tells me that La Antigua Guatemala was the first planned capital on the American continent and remained the most important city in Central America for the next 200 years. In 1773 a series of earthquakes which lasted months left the city in ruins and in 1776 the Spanish Crown decided that Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción (now Guatemala City) would be the new capital. La Antigua is now a tourist destination with lots of cafes and restaurants but still has many of the beautiful colonial buildings. It’s a gorgeous city and has now been added to the ever-growing ‘places to visit with Anna’ list.

The next day flight to Nicaragua was spectacular as the plane wasn’t flying too high and we were able to see some of the volcanoes that form part of the ring of fire.
More on volcanoes later.

A lighter note...from Billy Connolly

After my last post I stumbled across Billy Connolly's Desiderata (as you do!) and thought it might make some of you smile. I particularly like the one about walking a mile in somebody else's shoes.

Tread gently on anyone who looks at you sideways.
Have lots of long lie-ins.
Wear sturdy socks, learn to grow out of medium underwear and if you must lie about your age, do it in the other direction: tell people you're ninety-seven and they'll think you look f****** great.
Try to catch a trout and experience the glorious feeling of letting it go and seeing it swimming away.
Never eat food that comes in a bucket.
If you don't know how to meditate at least try to spend some time every day just sitting. Boo joggers. Don't work out, work in.
Play the banjo.
Sleep with somebody you like.
Eat plenty of Liquorice Allsorts.
Try to live in a place you like.
Marry somebody you like.
Try to do a job you like.
Never turn down an opportunity to shout, 'F*** them all!' at the top of your voice.
Avoid bigots of all descriptions.
Let your own bed become to you what the Pole Star was to sailors of old ... look forward to it.
Don't wear tight underwear on aeroplanes.
Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes. After that, who cares? ... He's a mile away and you've got his shoes.
Clean your teeth and keep the company of people who will tell you when there's spinach on them.
Avoid people who say they know the answer and keep the company of people who are trying to understand the question.
Don't pat animals with sneaky eyes.
If you haven't heard a good rumour by 11 a.m., start one.
Learn to feel sorry for music because, although it is the international language, it has no swearwords.
If you write a book, be sure it has exactly seventy-six 'fuck's in it.
Avoid giving LSD to guide dogs.
Don't be talked into wearing a uniform and salute nobody.
Never run with scissors or other pointy objects.
Campaign against blue Smarties.
Above all, go to Glasgow at least once in your life and have a roll and square sliced sausage and a cup of tea. When you feel the tea coursing over your spice-singed tongue, you'll know what I mean when I say: "It's good to be alive!".

Initial impressions - Guatemala

I don't think I'm going to see as much of Guatemala as I'd like to, as we only have one week on this project and on Saturday we'll fly to Nicaragua. It's a hard life, I know!
It's a pity though, as I'd love to see Antigua Guatemala or some of the Mayan ruins around here.
Even though I'm only going from the hotel to the plant and back and out to the local restaurants, I'm still enjoying being somewhere so different. Last night we went for dinner with one of the locals and enjoyed lots of discussion about cultural differences. (I'm on this project with two Brazilians.) I mentioned that I thought the Central Americans were generally very open, friendly and helpful. Our colleague said that this was probably true for most Central Americans except Costa Ricans - the common perception is that they think they're superior. I heard an interesting perspective on the UK too...that average salaries are the highest in Europe but the quality of life is one of the lowest. I'm not sure how true that is. What do you think?
I'm really enjoying the food here - lots of fresh guacamole, refried beans and meat dishes. And, like the Hungarians, they like to start a meal with soup - perfect! Maybe I'll set myself a new goal....to discover the world's best soup!
One thing that has really struck me, as it did in Mexico and Honduras, is the terrible traffic and the subsequent pollution. It seems that these major cities are so over-populated but still many people have cars and many more ride the bus. The trouble is that the cars are generally older and poorly maintained, creating a lot of noxious fumes, and the buses (yellow school buses imported from the US) are 20-30 years old and equally polluting. The roads are completely jammed during rush hours and the government probably doesn't have the funds to improve the infrastructure.

For me, it's a real pity as all three of these countries are really beautiful (as I'm sure are countless more with the same problem). The cities are often surrounded by mountains, rain forests and lakes. I read somewhere that Guatemala has around 15 different eco-systems - swamps, mangrove forests, lagoons, ocean front etc. From just outside the plant we can see the Pacaya Volcano - it's beautiful and dominates the skyline.
I suppose that until these countries are better developed economically (difficult with corrupt governments etc.), protecting the environment isn't too high on the priority list. I think that the people, some of the warmest I've met on my travels, deserve better and I wonder what we can do.
Hmm...heavy stuff...I promise to end the next post on a more upbeat note. Hasta luego!