First day: Antigua
Note: This blog was written yesterday (Thursday, March 6), but we were unable to post it until Friday because of a lack of internet access.
Hey everyone! Thanks for checking out our blog! Believe it or not, this is actually a class – we are History/Political Science 233, co-taught by Anita Isaacs and Alex Kitroeff. They have brought us to Guatemala, where we will spend the next eight days traveling and studying its history. We hope to bring you a taste of what we’re experiencing here in Guatemala; we will be updating the blog every night, so please check back daily!
We know some of our fellow students are probably pretty stressed out about your exams right now, so we wanted to send you all a therapeutic image. Imagine yourselves in a beautiful, tropical garden, surrounded by chirping birds and listening to a gentle fountain. Oh wait – we just described our current surroundings. Sorry to make you jealous!
We’re currently enjoying lovely weather in the beautiful, colorful city of Antigua. We left Haverford at 5:45 AM and arrived this afternoon in Guatemala City, which we saw only briefly as we drove to Antigua. After checking into the hotel, we had a little time to explore the city; some of us went to the market close by with our guides Jenn and Laura, Haverford grads who have worked extensively in Guatemala with Anita in the past. Then we met up for dinner at Frida’s, a Mexican restaurant. At dinner, Anita and Alex introduced us to their close friend Jorge Morales, and his family. Jorge is a Mayan survivor of Guatemala’s civil war who is currently working on his law degree. He has devoted his life to justice and Guatemala’s future. He told us a little about the current state of Guatemalan political affairs, as well as about the country’s history of discrimination and inequality. These powerful words will stay with us throughout our week here, as we try to confront the problems facing Guatemala and think about how they can be tackled.
Most of us are exhausted from waking up so early, so we’re having a quiet night tonight. Tomorrow we’re waking up early to travel to Santiago de Atitlan, where we will spend the next three days of our trip.
Buenas noches from Antigua, Guatemala,
Becca Varon ’10 and Luke McKinstry ‘10