Xela - Week 3

Another packed week in Xela. Spanish is going suprisingly well as we enter our last week before we set off for another part of Guatemala. Katie still has the edge but I think i´m not too far behind!!

The highlight of the week was climbing the volcano behind the city. Santa Maria is 3770m high so a mile´s worth of vertical climb - it was liteally rock hard!! We left at midnight with a full moon - not that that helped much in the trees - and spent the next 5 hours in the cold rain climbing up to arrive in thick freezing mist. Needless to say we were a bit pissed off after all that climbing. After 45mins waiting in the freezing cold (about -10C with the windchill) the clouds burnt off leaving these views...

The best bit though must be watching the eruption of Santaguito. It is the little volvano that was left after the major eruption of Santa Maria. Its only 2700m but it is one of the most active volcanos in the world as it lets off a toxic gas cloud every 30mins.

And finally a blog wouldn´t be complete without some comedy packaging and signs...

It seems my friend Scott has released a new line of bum wiping products

Books we read: When Night Falls - excellent book about a gay man living in Cuba in '60s and 70's but can't remember his name...
100 Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez - brilliant.