Sunday, March 29, 2009

A beautiful day at the beach



This says it all -- Daddy and Zane enjoying the waves and the sun.

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Dave took Zane to wash him off in the water, and after that Zane just put his head down and fell asleep for 45 minutes while Dave stood in the ocean and enjoyed the crashing waves.

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Beautiful black volcano sand.

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Lunch time. Dave ordered fish, and thought it was some of the best he has eaten. Although the food was good, we learned later that the servers had a sneaky way of over-charging if you didn't double check your bill! Although the pictures make this look like a lovely "resort," it was really a restaurant with some hotel rooms on a strip of beautiful beach. This lovely beachside hotel and restaurant was an interesting mix of having the elements of an American resort, but lacking the craftsmanship and professionalism that Guatemalan things often do. I'm not trying to be critical, but things aren't always as perfect as they look on the pictures. It isn't a place that would be attractive to tourists, but it is fine for Guatemalans and those who can go with the Central American flow.

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Fresh coconut anyone?

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Although the waves weren't fun for Zane, he LOVED the sand.

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Zane wasn't too crazy about the waves. Danaya convinced him to splash his feet in the shallow waves, and within the first two minutes, a huge one came crashing in. His hat went flying and he was scared off for the rest of the day.

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This is Mike who runs Crossroads Cafe. The first thing he did when we arrived at the "resort" is fall asleep in the hamock. He worked like crazy filling coffee orders this week, and that usually means starting to roast coffee around 5:00am.

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On the bayou. Reminds me of down south in the USA.

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Crab fishing in the bayou.

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Pelicans



There are many interesting animals and plants to see in the more tropical section of Guatemala!

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on the way to the "resort"



The beach front "resort" is only accessable by boat. It literally felt like we were on the bayou in Louisianna.

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Our big day going to the coast!



The coast is about 3 hours from our house. We went with a big group, organized by Mike and Adele of couse. About 2 hours away from our house we hit tropical land -- lots of pineapple bushes, mango trees, sugar cane, rubber trees, coconut palm trees, and lots of tropical greenery. This big yellow truck is carring cut sugar cane to process. It is harvesting season right now, and they burn all the garbage pieces of the can bush. It really stinks, and these trucks can really slow you down. We narrowly avoided a few mishaps as our driver (or other drivers) tried to pass sugar can trucks on windy roads. Yikes! We're all safe and sound.

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Saturday, March 28, 2009

Have Sandbox, Will Travel



This is the only patch of sand in our yard, so Zane has moved all his cars to it, and taken up permanent residence.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Universal SD card reader, no cables, powered by your computer. Upload pictures from your friends' cameras too.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



You can fix a toilet or rescue a hostage with this team.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Invaluable on plane trips. Find it at Zellers.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Survival. The sticker is left over from our American hockey coaching days.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Hours of fun in any language (or without language).

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Best and cheapest, available at Costco.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



We pack everything in Ziplocs. Real Ziplocs.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Everything else leaks (for us, anyway). Leak = no fun.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



The mobile high chair. So simple.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Zane's child-carrier, comfortable for hours. Strollers are not compatible with Guatemala or trail hiking. You can see it here.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Larabars, available at Costco. Fruit and nuts and nothing else (held together by juicy dates).

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Danaya's sandals by Merrell.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



The single best transportation tool anywhere - Rubbermaid bin, sealed with a strap from Princess Auto. Nearly unbreakable.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things






Ah. Indestructible, even on the streets of Antigua, after 10 years of use.


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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Quick-dry, cool-on-the-hottest-days nylon, and tough.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



Logitech ClearComfort Plus Headphones for Skype. In action for several hours a day at times.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



HP Printers.

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A Few of Our Favourite Things



When you're traveling and short on time, you sure appreciate it when your gear just "works".

So here's a shortlist of the items we have deeply appreciated during our time in Guatemala, because they haven't broken, work well, and exhibit genuine craftsmanship (where someone decided to make something excellent, not just mediocre).

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Friday, March 27, 2009

LIFE School Fiesta



We attended a fundraiser dinner for the "LIFE School" here in Pana tonight. It's an excellent local American school that provides scholarships for Mayan children. Abel's children are scholarship recipients, and love their school. www.lifeschoolweb.com

Abel made tipico bags for Danaya and Jaydene as gifts tonight, and made another for Jaydene from a coffee sack, courtesy of Mike and Crossroads. The hospitality from our friends for our visitors has been incredible.

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos



Anchovies. Mmm.

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos - 89 and 98



An impossible moment of convergence - Zane's two favourite tuc-tucs.

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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Jaydene's Photos

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