©2021 Snapping the Globe, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
DIA TRES
Today I woke up eager to return to my classes and show off my stuff! I was feeling pretty good about yesterday!
I guess the day had other plans for me. First of all, my stove top wouldn’t heat up my pan and it took me about 20 minutes to cook my eggs, causing me to have to run to school, sans mask, getting a few dirty looks and making me arrive about a minute late. One minute late doesn’t sound so bad to most people but the flight attendant in me was freaking out…this “plane” was late and I hate making anyone wait.
My lessons began and I started out telling Heydi about my day yesterday. I was able to describe in Spanish, in pretty good detail about my trip to San Jeronimo, the supermarket, what I bought and what I had for dinner as well as what I watched on Netflix.
After this, she insisted on trying to teach me some verbs I didn’t know. The nerve! These verbs had very different endings and I was so confused. This led me to continually make simple mistakes…mistakes on things I actually knew which was completely frustrating!
She gave me homework and told me that I really need to study. Of course, I knew that I was going to have to study, but I just felt very degraded after class.
I returned to my Airbnb, made some mini quesadillas and eyed my cerveza…in that moment I felt like I really could use a beer! Later. There were things to see in the city!
The sun was out and it was warmer than usual, so I decided that I needed a little field trip and some exercise. Walking toward the north of the city, I began the climb to the top of Cerro de la Cruz, the hill that overlooks the city and sports a large cross. A few hundred steps later, I was sitting on the wall, gazing over the city and praying that the clouds would part a little more so that I could see the top of the Volcan de Agua, the volcano that towers over the area.
While gazing over the city, I had spotted the ruins of the convent, Santa Maria Teresa De Jesus and decided that this would be my next destination. As I headed down the hill, I first stopped at the remains of the Church of Candelaria, captured a few photos and then walked to the convent. It had been one of the first ruins that my son, Ian, and I had visited two years ago and we had enjoyed its beautiful cloister and fountain. I spent some time meandering through its many rooms and was just about to leave when the gentleman who sold me my ticket asked me a question (in Spanish).
“Did you see the crypt and the basilica?”
Um, no.
He showed me on the map, adjacent to the door, the layout of the building and pointing to a set of stairs in a room, that I had not entered as I thought it to be a storage room.
I followed his directions and amazingly, there was a set of steps leading down into a room which also led to the ruins of the basilica. In the far corner, there was also a set of stairs leading to the old crypt.
There was nothing much in the crypt, but as I headed back up and into the basilica, I was simply amazed. Not just because you could still see much of the workmanship being restored, but because it is baffling that visitors are allowed in this area of construction…scaffolding, tools, bags of cement and goodness knows what else filled the space. In the United States, this would have been condemned and no one allowed near, much less in the building. Despite the mess, it was wonderful to see this space up close, as I had only spied it from the street, behind the gate.
Thanking the gentleman, we exchanged pleasantries (in Spanish, of course) and I explained that I was in Antigua for Spanish school. He asked how long I had been there and I said it was my second day. He told me I was very smart for learning that much in just two days! Lol! I got a good laugh out of that but I went on letting him believe I was muy inteligente!
Continuing my explorations, I admired the architecture of the area and the unique doors and doorknockers and then headed over to the El Carmen market, pausing to snap a few photos of the ruins of El Carmen church next door.
I had vowed not to buy anything early in my trip, but next thing you know I was walking out with a table runner. Okay, I am a bit of a sucker sometimes…it was Father’s Day in Guatemala, after all, and he hadn’t had a sale all day!
As I exited the market, I heard a large boom! Praying it wasn’t one of the nearby volcanoes, I realized that I was feeling a few raindrops!
Time to go home.
What do you do when it’s pouring outside?
Have happy hour!
That was a good ending to the day that didn’t start so well!
What I learned: There are many hidden treasures in Guatemala, you just have to talk to the right person, in the right language, to find them!
Photo of the day: The Cloister of Convento Santa Teresa de Jesus
Check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.
Cerro de La Cruz
- Address: Al final de la 1ª Avenida Norte, Antigua, Guatemala 03001
- Hours: 0700-1800, daily
- Admission: free
Convento Santa Teresa De Jesus
- Address: 1era calle Oriente y 4a Avenida sur. Antigua Guatemala
- Hours: 0800-1700, daily
- Admission: Q40 (about $5.50 US)
Mercado de Artesanias El Carmen
- Address: Avenida 3ra, 3ra Calle Oriente, Antigua 03001
- Hours: 0800-2000, daily