Ruins and Rivers

Two hours, three buses and a ride in the back of a mini-truck brought us to Iximche just outside of Tecpan. These are the ruins of the first capital city for they Kakchiquel nation. The ruins are set up on a hill, with a beautiful view of the outlaying rolling hills. We enjoyed lunch there, checking out the ruins and then just relaxing on the grass, imagining what life was like there 400 years ago.
This morning I awoke to a hot sun. I washed my clothes and ate breakfast while watching cartoons on an 8 inch black-and-white TV with Stefani. Irma made the best oatmeal I’ve had in Guatemala yet. After breakfast, I headed out the door, machete in hand to meet Don Juan who owns land in the mountains. We hiked for about 2 hours, bushwacking through dense jungle-like forest for about half that time to reach “the birth of the river”. It was a small but deep pool, only about three feet across, full of clear water. Surrounding it were banana trees and wild-growing hydrangea with blooms the size of my head. The little pool spilled over a trickle that is one of the main water sources for Sta. Maria Cauque.
On the way down, we stopped in a small gorge, covered in moss that looked like seaweed. At the head of the canyon there was a small door. Don Juan entered first, then myself and the other brave ones followed. It was a natural cavern, carved out by the little trickle we had seen an hour before. We walked up the cavern, barely squeezing through at some points, about 40 feet where we encountered the head of the canyon. We had a small, hand-cranked flashlight that provided a little bit of light, but when the people in back had the flashlight, Don Juan lit match after match so he could show me the minerals accumulating on the sandstone faces. All the while, the spring flowed beneath our feet.
Outside, Don Juan pointed out a bamboo like tree that hold water in its stalks. He said if you put the water on your head it will make your hair grow. I’ve started documenting the results. He said in a year my hair will be to my butt.
Upon returning to town we stopped at the garden to weed as we will be neglecting it the next week as we leave for Field Based Training in Solola. When I opened the door to my house, Stefani came running, as she always does, but this time she was naked from the waste down and hair wild on her head. When I left, only 4 hours earlier, she was freshly washed and dressed, hair neatly pulled back. Tonight, I will cook for my family again as I round out another eventful week in Guatemala.
(Pictures will have to wait. Internet is completely slow in Sta. Maria Cauque. I will post some new ones, and have new tales in about 10 days, after field based training.)