Gemma enjoyed her day of snorkeling, and I enjoyed having a day dozing in the hammock. It's an easy life in Caye Caulker, but unfortunately the time came when we had to get back on the road. We got up early one Morning to catch the 7.30am boat back to Belize City, and from there we caught a bus back to Flores. The return voyage was less eventful than before and by 3pm we were safely back in Flores.
We trawled the various travel agencies for a bus to Antigua, and eventually decided against the cheapest option - figuring that for an overnight bus we would prefer a bit more comfort. We returned to previous haunts, bumped into a few old faces and made plans to watch the grand prix qualifying the following day. Unfortunately when we woke up the following day we discovered we had been the victims of another robbery!
During our previous time in Flores there had been a period when all the cashpoints had failed. We had tried to withdraw cash to pay for our trip to Tikal and our bus to Belize and had tried to use 3 of our 4 cards. All three were cloned, and had suffered several different withdrawals. Fortunately as we had been in Belize during the time they were used, and had the passport stamps to prove so, we have been able to claim back the funds from our banks. But being our second robbery in a few weeks it had a very negative effect on our moods.
We jumped on a minibus to the Santa Elena bus station and boarded a large double decker to Guatemala City. The seats were surprisingly huge, and the roads pleasingly well maintained, but the bus was freezing! We'd been warned about the cold buses ever since we entered Mexico, and every time it had been an exaggeration, but this time it proved true. And I was in shorts. Bugger.
By the time we arrived in Guatemala City we were both frozen solid. The bus raced through the deserted streets, refusing to stop for smaller vehicles or red lights. The streets were deserted at this time in the morning, so I couldn't figure out whether we were rushing out of concerns for our safety or because the driver needed the bathroom. Either way, from our view at the front of the upper deck it felt desperately unsafe.
Residents of Preston will be delighted to learn that I have discovered a worse bus station than theirs (I once had the misfortune to have to wait for three hours for a connection in the early hours). Guatemala City station was genuinely awful, I was convinced we were the only people not carrying a personal arsenal of serious weaponry, so I was delighted to be bundled onto our connection within minutes of arrival, despite desperately needing a bathroom.
We drove out of the city, and I can only say that if anything it looked progressively worse. Fortunately we were soon out of the worst of it and making our way around the hilly countryside towards Antigua. Only about 30 miles apart, the two cities are a world away from each other in style and atmosphere. Where Guatemala City felt frenetic and dangerous Antigua feels tranquil and safe. The minibus ignored our pleas to be dropped near our hostel, instead proceeding to drop us at an affiliated hostel. On the pretence that we were interested I finally made it to the bathroom, before swiftly departing.
We picked up our bags and made our way slowly through deserted cobblestone streets, past ruined churches and colourful shops. Our hostel was easy to find, the city centre works on a grid system, although there is a lack of signage protruding out onto the street - something for which the leaders of Antigua should be congratulated. If they can protect their towns integrity by refusing the likes of McDonald's or Subway the right to put up bright tacky neon signs which hang out over the street, you have to question why the UK can't do more.
We checked into our hostel and promptly went back to sleep, this time in comfy warm beds. Normally I feel the urge to rush around a new city like a headless chicken, but we were both so tired and annoyed that we couldn't rustle up the enthusiasm for a wander. When we did eventually rise we discovered that our hostel had a fantastic kitchen, and a dining table - what a treat. In fact, partially as a result of circumstances we haven't yet spent much money eating out, preferring to shop at the market for vegetables and the supermarket for staples. It's been quite a nice change to cook for ourselves.
We had to spend our first day dealing with more serious matters however, spending several hours on the phone (thank God for Skype) with our banks. They have been quite good so far, returning the money taken from my current account without question, and putting the money back into my credit card account and Gemma's bank account on the condition that we complete a legal form to indicate which transactions we did not make. Despite the banks being helpful, it has been a very stressful time, it's not easy to sort these things out when you are so far from home. Fortunately my mother was able to send us some money by Western Union to keep up afloat for a while.
While we weren't busy on the phones we walked around town, checking out the options for language schools. We've been in Spanish speaking countries for several weeks, and although we are picking up new words every day, we both felt we'd benefit from more structured learning. We walked into one school, La Union, which was just down down the road from our hostel, and both knew right away it was a good place. The security guard on the door welcomed us like long lost friends, and took us through the garden to the office. Ervin, a staff member, sat us down and spoke to us in Spanish about the school - we were both surprised at how much we could understand - although he was speaking slowly for our benefit. Then Leidi gave us more information in English before taking us upon a tour of the school - and their beautiful apartment which was available for rent. We said we would have a talk and decide, but walking away from the school we knew we didn't have to look at any more options!
To celebrate our success we decided to cook a nice meal, an as Gemma had cooked the previous two nights I volunteered. When Ben and Steff, an English couple in our hostel, heard that we were planning to make an Asparagus soup they suggested joining us and providing the bread and wine. Before I knew it I was cooking a dinner party! Whereas Gemma, a very good cook, has the ability to throw together a nice meal out of anything to hand, I have to be a bit more methodical - so I jumped on the internet and found a Jamie Oliver recipe for Asparagus soup with poached egg on toasted ciabatta!
We headed out to the supermarket and bought all the ingredients. On the walk back I suddenly realised we didn't have access to a blender. Despite the rather lumpy nature of the soup, it actually turned out rather well, and we had a nice evening in the hostel, eating, drinking and playing chess. Although I have to give Gemma most of the credit - grating most of the asparagus was a great idea in the circumstances - and for poaching the eggs, a job too delicate for my clumsy approach to cooking!
The following day we moved into the Spanish School, so our morning was spent packing and then unpacking. Fortunately we didn't have far to go, La Union is located on the same street as our hostel, a quiet area about 5 minutes away from the central square. We took our belongings across and for the first time in ages have been unable to unpack. The apartment can sleep up to five people, so for the two of us it's quite roomy, and we have a large balcony next to our bedroom with table and seats and a view of the three volcanoes which surround Antigua.
Our first two days of Spanish school were a lot of fun. I was assigned a teacher called Willy, fluent in English, French and Spanish. Every time I have racked my brains for the right word and ended up inserting a French word in error we've been able to have quite a laugh about it. I never thought I would describe going back to school as fun, but so far Willy has really made the experience "muy divertido". I have the concentration span of a gnat, so breaking up the lessons with a joke has really made the difference, and I'm a lot more confident with trying out a few words in a shop or on the street.
Gemma has also been enjoying her lessons, albeit without so much laughter. On her first day her teacher Carla took her on a chicken bus ride, and on her second day she returned from the market with three avocados. Both having private lessons is really paying off as we are learning different things. Gemma's lessons have been more practical whereas mine have focused more on the grammar. Soon we'll be the linguistic equivalent of Jack Sprat and his wife, licking the "plato" clean. And when you consider that we are paying just $95 each, it's really been worthwhile.
The only downside to the last few days is that, after all the stress of sorting out new bank cards and refunds, we've both been feeling under the weather. Saturday night witnessed huge celebrations as the towns Christmas lights were turned on. Unfortunately we missed it as I was tucked up in bed by 6pm, aching and moaning. During the night some cad rang the church bells at unusual times (I fail to see what significance 9.34pm or 4.17am hold to the teachings of the Christian church - perhaps someone can enlighten me) so the one night we've desperately needed a good sleep has been interrupted continually. Gemma isn't feeling too bright either, so we are dosing up on Vitamin C and hoping to find a warm bar where we can watch the football later.
Meanwhile we are planning to stay at La Union for a second week - we've only had two days so far but can feel the difference already. We'll book in soon enough and hopefully the apartment will be available to stay in again. We've been promised that Volcano Fuego erupts at night, but we've not seen it go yet, only the occasional puff of smoke but no lava yet, so I'm going to take a blanket out onto the balcony and wait with camera poised until it does blow off!
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