Day Four

We spent the morning in Spanish class. In addition to working on my verb tenses, I pressed Flora to tell me more about herself and her life in San Pedro.

Like practically everyone there she would like to come to the United States. She told me a number of stories about friends and acquaintances who had successfully made the trip to the US. To illegally be transported costs the equivalent of $5,000, which takes about 2 years to save up. The journey takes 18 days, culminating in the Arizona desert where only the coyotes know the way. The 'coyote' system is complexly organized and is reminiscent of the underground railroad. Once an illegal reaches Phoenix, a ride is arranged to the final destination - anywhere in the country. Another way for an attractive young woman is to accept a gringo's hand in marriage. Many older men scour the country side in search of a bride. I mentioned to Flora that Caleb had 2 friends who were adopted from Guatemala, representing another immigration option, for children that is. Guatemalans, by the way, are extremely displeased with Obama's stand on immigration. Don't get me started.

That afternoon to Caleb's delight, I received homework. Elena and Juan were amused as well. After lunch I refused to return again to San Marcos and insisted on a different destination. Flora had told me about a thermally heated pool on the far side of the lake, not far from Panajachel. A boat captain at the San Pedro dock offered to take us there for $50. It sounded expensive, so we opted for public transport. We ended up on a 'local' boat to Pana, stopping at every single village around the lake. Although I found the foreign owned luxury vacation homes interesting, and the verdant hillsides beautiful- the trip took forever. At Panajachel there was no other option than to hire a private boat, which cost $30 to go 15 minutes.

Upon arrival we were informed that the 'aguas thermales' were best visited in the morning. Shade, wind, and water currents significantly diminish the heat in the afternoon. We jumped off the boat and swam over to the shore where a family was bathing. The water was freezing! We clung to the warm rocks and dug our hands and feet into the steaming crevices as we were bombarded with cold choppy waves. We should have gone to San Marcos. On the way back I talked to the boat's captain, who it turns out was Juan's cousin and who lived next door to where we were staying. A captain on the Pana docks recognized Caleb from the San Marcos rocks and called out to him by name. We headed into Pana for a soda and a beer where I haggled with a woman for beautiful fabrics to pass the time. We caught an express boat back to San Pedro. Caleb rode standing on the boat's bow with open arms like the scene in Titanic. It was freezing. He should have been wearing a jacket.

The sky was getting dark. A storm was approaching. That night we returned to the Buddah where we met Tom, a school teacher by day and a pool shark by night. By week's end we had befriended all of San Pedro's pool sharks.