Hi!
Today was a simply beautiful conclusion to a fantastic week! This morning we were able to sleep in a half hour, and then loaded the Nissan and Mercedes up by 8:30 AM to head out for todays journey. It was a 45 minute drive out to Antigua, but the nice part of the trip was that we went in a completely different direction out of Guatemala City than the rest of the week, so we were priveledged to see more parts of Guatemala's scenery! You must have read how beautiful Guatemala's natural landscape is in previous blogs so this will be a repeat, but the hills, valleys, and volcanos were simply breathtaking! After winding through the hills and advancing in elevation our hungry tummys reached our destination: Las Palmas (aka The Palms) in Antigua. We entered the restaurant and were greeted by beautiful decorations, warm colors, and many exotic flowers placed all over the room. The deco here is of the half moon- half sun type. Luckily, coffee was free =], and some of us took that free offer! Others enjoyed cappucinos, tea, orange juice, and I and Ellen enjoyed the fresh papaya juice! The group ordered different dishes such as pancakes, veggie omelets, bacon omelets, or scrambled eggs with beans and fresh salsa. The cool part of the dish, to me, was that everyone received some watermelon, pineapple, a strawberry, amazingly flavorful plantanes, and bread! That restaurant definitely knows how to make a well balanced meal, with proper portions, and a great price!
After breakfast we headed over to the Central Park of Antigua. There was a very.. interesting.. fountain to say the least. While in that area we entered a cathedral and saw how the altar and all other pieces used in the services were beautifully gold-colored.
While walking over to another cathedral we passed an enclosed area where you can peek in and see really cool float pieces from their parade. But, the cool part, was that they were the stations of the cross! I think it'd be really cool if Chicago did that.............
We walked into another cathedral called La Merced. It was a beautiful yellow cathedral with white intricate detail on the outside. As we approached the cathedral, we noticed a bride and her husband climbing into a red pick-up truck; they were just married! The next wonderful piece to this scene is that as we entered the cathedral, we saw a young girl in a green ballgown. She was preparing for her quinceanera! We saw two confession booths (I don't think those specific two are used though), and many scenes of saints throughout the cathedral. For the wedding and quinceanera there was a band that sounded both spanish and tropical at the same time. There wasn't an organ playing, but rather a cello, some flutes and some xylophones! Not wanting to disturb this young girls celebration we left and got back into our vehicles to head to our next destination: Cerro de la Cruz, aka, The Hill of the Cross.
It was a windy and steep journey up to where we needed to go, but the view was spectacular. You park on a hill, and walk a very short way to the cross. You can tell that the cross is pretty old.. the stone was wearing away, but, what a great piece to have over-looking a city! Imagine Chicago with a huge cross where everyone could see it.... The view was magnificent. It was of all of Antigua. We saw where we ate breakfast, the trees of Central Park and La Merced! Not to mention all the roofs of the rest of the buildings in Antigua! It was a spectacular sight, and you all need to look at our photos to capture the beauty behind the view we experienced.
We then drove to the enclosed shopping area known as El Mercado. This enclosed area guaranteed us a good price for items, and it was big! There were three separate areas to shop at; one being centered around a beautiful fountain and flowers. Kevin and Ginny introduced us to three vendors that they are friends with. They not only gave us a discount, but they were wonderful Christians to meet and support! At this market were all sorts of items to buy: clothes, slippers, post cards, beautiful bowls and cups, scarves, blankets, belts, purses, chocolate, bookmarks, nativity scenes- everything! Not to mention, we got to practice our bartering skills! We all were able to experience a taste of tourism shopping in Guatemala. After about two hours of shopping, we decided to walk over to dinner. It was non other than the tasty.... dun, duhn, duhhn, duuuhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnn......... (drum roll please...).... McDonald's! Yes, McDonald's. But, this wasn't your ordinary McDonald's. You walked in and it seemed fairly normal. We ordered (in Spanish), then quickly (I mean, QUICKLY--like, within 25 seconds) received our food. And, you're only given one napkin and one tiny cup for ketchup, but, the next thing you did was walk around the corner to the dining room. This was the most wonderful dining room I have ever been in for a fast-food joint, and it was all outdoor. There were paded seats that resembled a couch surrounding a table, there were patio chairs neatly arranged around an open garden area with two fountains, and there was a pleasant covered area surrounded by beautiful plants. If there were any McDonald's in the States that resembled this one in Antigua, I would hang out there for fun. Not to mention that there was a complete separate section for the McCafe and McInternet! The McCafe had scrumptious looking cakes and coffees all ready to be bought. We in the States should look into this.. And, just for fun I bought a Queso Pastle.. or something like that. Regardless, instead of an apple pie, it was a cheese pie. It was delicious! Sweet cheese in a pastry might not necessarily be popular in the States, but they should temporarily bring it so that you can all try it!
We returned home safely, where we have enjoyed seeing the beautiful aftermath of a rain shower- a rainbow. For me though, this wasn't an ordinary rainbow. This was the brightest rainbow I have ever seen in my life. All of the colors were showing brightly. Maybe this is becuse of the higher altitude, but I have never seen one more phenomenal in my life. Not to mention, it was a double raindow! How wonderful God's creation and promises are!
We're about to start a movie- The Emperor's New Groove with Ruth and Ceasar, two of the Guatemalan missionaries, before we go to bed (though I'm thinking some may pull an all-nighter so that they will sleep on the plane).
Today was a wonderful day where we were able to reflect on what God has allowed us to see and experience this past week while enjoying a little more of Guatemala.
Though it has been a week, it has flown by quicker than I ever could have imagined. Though I personally am excited to have my cell phone and texting back this time tomorrow, I am also deeply saddened by the fact that I will have to say goodbye to the wonderful people I have met here in Guatemala. The proper explanation would have to be bittersweet.
But, all of us believers know that it is not "goodbye", but rather "I'll see you later, whether it be this life, or the next".
With Christs' Love,
Aleen E Carr
No comments:
Post a Comment