...the best laid plans...

On Friday, I awoke early and attended an outdoor yoga class amidst the incredible bird calls, under the shade of beautiful trees. I planned to shower and get on my way to Santiago, another lakeside village, where it was market day. Upon arriving back at my hotel, I learned that I was locked out of my room because the lock/door/something was jammed!

I went to get help from the girl working at the hotel...She came to help me but to no avail....She informed me the manager was at his other job and would return in about a half hour....Well, we waited, together, talking the whole time in Spanish and it was a great opportunity for me to practice. She asked me about Hawaii and my travels and whether I was for Obama or Hillary. Wow. Didn't think I'd hear those names for a few months (but who was I kidding?!?)

We watched television together in the office - Kirk Cameron in a cheesy, Christian-themed made-for-tv-movie w/ Spanish subtitles, CNN Espanol which was covering the flooding in Iowa, and other random stuff...When the manager finally returned, he opened the door in a jiffy....It was time to get lunch, and hopefully catch the lancha to Santiago.

Food service takes longer in some Guatemalan restaurants than in the States (no instant gratification here) so I ended up missing the boat to Santiago...BUT I did get to meet Alex, who was selling his beautiful dreamcatchers (which are extremely popular around the lake)...We chatted for a bit and once again, more practice time for me!

It was a very good thing, too, that I missed my boat to Santiago because something else was in store for me...