The Molar

This morning I "slept in" until about 8:30. Now normally I wouldn't consider that sleeping in, but since I've woken up between 5:50 and 6 AM every day this past week, 8:30 is definitely sleeping in! At 9:30 I met up with 6 other teachers at Parque Central to hike a mountain called La Muela. Instead of walking to the base of the mountain, we took a taxi. Here you have to bargain and agree upon a price for the taxi ride before the trip begins or the driver will try to charge you a lot of quetzales. So, one of the more seasoned teachers (this will be her fourth year teaching at IAS) took care of that for us. We took a quick ride in this station wagon looking taxi. Two of the teachers that are married had to cram in the trunk of the taxi so we could all fit. We paid the driver half after he got us to the bottom of the mountain and paid the other half after he brought us back to the park. I like hiking, however this hike was probably one of the more intense hikes I've done. It wasn't too long, but it was steep! All I have to compare it to is hiking in Bastrop/Austin and in Colorado. At times, I felt like I needed a harness and a rope! La Muela means the molar, which pretty much describes the shape of the mountain. On the way up, we passed a natural sauna. I know this sounds weird, but basically we could feel hot water vapor coming out of rocks. Once we made to the top, we got to enjoy an incredible view! Too bad I forgot to bring my camera...oops! Xela is in a valley, so we got to look out over the entire city. We could also see where some of the indigenous people worship their gods. We couldn't have asked for better weather...lots of sun and no rain! Actually, I think I sweated more today than any other day this week. Once we got back to the park, we all went to Pollo Campero (the Guatemalan version of KFC) and got a cono de helado. My ice cream was dipped in chocolate, and it was delicious! I just finished eating lunch that consisted of spaghetti, avocado, and a small, but thick corn tortilla. The lady that I'm staying with is always telling me how I need to eat more. She says that if I don't eat more, I'm going to have to get shots...in my butt! Sometimes I don't eat a lot, because I don't really like the food, but other times, I am really not hungry! She wants me to make a list of foods that I like. Well, I think it's siesta time!