Saturday we woke up really early...why you may ask...
Well, let me tell you
We were to meet in Central Park at 6:30 for an hour or more bus ride to a volcano. Once we were at the bottom, or more like a part of the way up, we piled out of the van and started climbing with 2 trusty guides. The first part wasn’t too bad because we were able to climb in a path that had some what been made for us. However, it was all uphill, so that was a bit challenging for me and also because we were changing altitudes relatively quick. So breathing was a little difficult as well.
Soon we started exiting out of the trees and grassy area and we began to run into volcanic rock, that was once lava but had dried over into black, lava rock. Then we began to climb into total volcanic rock/sand. About 5 years or more, Pacaya, the volcano, had erupted and had deposited a whole bunch of lava further down the volcano. So we began choosing our footsteps very carefully because some of the hard lava would shift underneath your feet. The amazing thing was that the lava rock was still hot or warm. In spots our guide started a fire by moving a branch around in some rocks. I never thought that that lava would still be hot enough to start a fire, but it was. We climbed over those rocks for probably 30 minutes and then we encountered....
Yes, believe it or not, real, live, moving lava.
We were probably within 5 feet of that lava!! It was amazing, but it was also really hot! And it was somewhat windy, so the wind blew the hot air towards us, which made it even hotter. Let me tell you, my feet were so warm. Oh and you’ll never guess what the boys from our group brought....that’s right, marshmallows. We ate marshmallows that were roasted over lava. It was amazing! After about 10 or 20 minutes near the lava, we began to make our way back down the volcano.
This was a new challenge in itself because you were moving downwards and had to still choose your footsteps carefully. There were about 5 people, if not more, who ended up cutting their ankles on the rocks because they were sharp. Me, well, I thought I was going to fall to my death a couple times, but nope, I survived with just a blister on my ankle that ended up bleeding a lot. But I’m fine.So we managed to get off the rock and went to find some shade where we could eat our lunches. After lunch we climbed back down the path to the bottom, which was really quite nasty at this point because they had horses that could take someone a distance if they couldn’t make it up the first part. Well, the horses left their trademark on the path. So not only did you have to control yourself from running down the hill, but you also had to watch out for the presents from the horses. I won’t lie, I experienced a close encounter with one of those presents. I almost fell once and it was almost into one of those lovely surprises, but luckily I caught myself...
Well, we all reached the bottom in one piece, with just some scratches, nothing horrible. And then we made the hour or hour and a half trek back to Antigua. We all fell asleep on the way back because we were so tired.
When we got back to our houses, we all found lovely surprises on our ankles and toes...lots and lots of dirt. Overall, it was a really unique and fun experience that I’ll never forget.
Oh and then Sunday night we were able to go to Fernando’s house, our leader, and eat pizza. There was a group of us who went over to his house before and help make the pizzas. Now you may be thinking, pizza big deal? Well, actually yes, I don’t remember the last time I ate pizza. It’s not too common here. And it was amazing pizza and it was fun to help make the pizzas also. So it was a full weekend, but enjoyable also. I think that just about covers all of it.
I have language school for this week and then next week and then we move to Magdalena again for 3 weeks and then 3 days in Guatemala City and then home...it’s gonna go fast. So now it’s time to focus on making the most out of everyday that I’m here.
Love you and miss you all!!!
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