Guatamala reaches from the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific, with a range of mostly active volcanos dividing the country into western and eastern parts. Guatemala City is the capital and Antigua is the 'Old' capital.
The ship docked at 06:00 at the largest western port Puerto Queztal, named after the colourful bird of the same name. The Queztal bird is a symbol of freedom, as it does not survive in captivity. Guatemala prides itself to be a democracy since quite some time, although the country still experiences some political hick-ups.
Guatemala's claim to fame for archeologists and tourists alike is Tikal, a large complex of Mayan pyramids still in the process of being unerarthed. As well coffee, sugarcane and fruit and vegetables make their way into grocery stores all over the world.
Tical being a little too far away for a day excursion (although some guests visited it via air-lift) I opted for a shuttle ride to Antigua, the old capital of Guatemala. It is one of the most famous destinations in Mezzo America due to the fact that it is an absolutely charming and beautiful small city in a spectacular setting. It is situated at about 5000 feet altitude between a number of volcanos, one of which blew it's top that very morning. Apparently quite a ho-hum experience for the local population. Antigua retains has been declared a Unesco World Heritage site, and thus retains an almost unchanged traditional aspect. It has been destroyed several times through millennia by earthquakes and flooded by mudslides emanating from the ever present volcanos, but the local population rebuilds each time. Some of the large Spanish Colonial convents, cathedrals and governmental edifices are in ruins, but past splendour of impressive colonial architecture is still plainly visible. Residential houses are mostly one story high, downtown still with tiled roofs, but in the poorer barrios outside the City of 25,000 the roofs are made of tin. Reason: falling tin does not kill as many people as tiles and abode do when the next inevitable earthquake will hit the country.
The population is mostly of Mayan descent, although Spanish influence is clearly evident in many people. Traditional dress and Mayan customs survive to this day. About 20 dialects of the old languages are still common, although Spanish is the official unifying language.The Catholic religion is no longer the State Religion, and Evangelical beliefs have made inroads, but Mayan religious traditions have a strong foothold in the population, albeit human sacrifices have been discarded for other rites...pretty lucky for locals and tourists alike.
Weaving and embroidery still show Mayan designs and colour schemes. Goods offered for sale in the numerous Artisan Markets offer a plethora of brilliant cloths crafted into dresses, bags, table cloth and wall hangings. I did not buy a thing, though, difficult as it was
About 22 old Guatemalan families own most of the wealth (sugar plantations) and poverty is widespread. However, education is free, and so is healthcare.
A university degree may take a poor Guatemalan 16 years to achieve, as he also has to work to support a family, and studies at night.
The health care system is free, even if foreigners or expatriats require medical attention. There are of course 'levels' of healthcare, as many private clinics cater to the wealthier patients. The major problem in healthcare is the fact that most doctors open practice in Guatemala City or Antigua, and the rural population in remote corners of the rugged and tropical country has great difficulty to get to medical help via whatever transport is available.
Driving to and from Port Quetztal to Antigua first through the coastal plains (sugarcane) one reaches the foothills about an hour later. Lush vegetation covers the valleys and even reach almost to the tops of the towering cones of the vulcanoes, 9000 feet and higher - Mount Fujis without the snow hat.
Amongst the collection, one peak is called Vulcan de Fuego and another Vulcan de Agua. Obviously the fuego one is the constant fire spitter and has a ragged looking top, and the agua one just has a few glowing lava streams. From a distance, the lava streams look like streaky clouds meandering down the mountain side by day, and red shiny ribbons at night. Jaguars and Ocelot live on the slopes, after the have been 'chased' out of their natural habitat by agricultural activity.
Almost all the all the valleys are developed into one vast coffee plantation. Coffee grows on bushes, but only in the shade. So all the plantation have forests which provide a canopy of shade, and underneath amongst the trunks are millions of coffee bushes.
Coffee harvest is almost continuous, as only the berries who have turned red are ready to pick. The ones still green wait for a later picking. Thus, the harvest is done by hand by a huge workforce of native Mayans, as - luckily - no machine has been invented that can distiguish a red berry from a green one. Coffee plantation are thus providing employment and sustenance wages to a large number of people. Guatemala only has about 3 Million citizens, however the country being small, one of the highest population densities. Again luckily most are concentrated in the two major cities, so the country remains wild and untouched in those areas, which are either to arid or too far away to use for agriculture. Overall, the country is almost as wild as it was in Mayan times.
Last day of the year....the ship is decorated with hundreds of balloons. Everyone wears glam and glitter (or whatever people call 'formal' in the early 21 century - which maybe a ruffled t-shirt and sandals, or the whole sequined bit accompanied by a formal tux). Dancing all over the ship, champagne all over the ship, even on the show stage. For the occasion the ships engineers have rigged a railing, so happy revellers don't fall off the stage. Many of the crew and staff turn up in mess jackets or gowns, and give the scene a bit of a romantic maritime flavour. The count down starts to minutes before midnight - ship's time - the ballons are released in the ballroom, toasts, Auld Lang Syne, more dancing, Father Time appears almost covered with a frothy white beard, and Baby New Year appears dressed in what looks like oversized Pampers...and then it's 2010.
Happy New Year!
