Our First Off-The-Map Adventure
I don´t even know where to start. Just the past few days have given us so many stories… try we must.
Crossing the border from Mexico to Guatemala was a study in complexity. We hired a van to smooth the border crossing, having learned that the several steps necessary were not at all easily navigated. Boy, were we glad we did. Before leaving Mexico, you have to sign out. The Mexican immigration office is well-kept, the luxuriously wide roads relatively free of trash, and the people confined to buidlings or sidewalks. From there, you drive 4 km into Guate. The road narrows and fills with people, trash, and rain water. There is barely enough room for the van to pass through, and had our van not taken us directly to the Guatemalan immigration office, we might still be at the Mexican border.
We had planned on meeting Zil (our friend from college) in Huehuetenango, which is a small city that is off the tourist trail (compared, at least, to every where we´ve been so far). It´s far enough off the tourist trail that while arranging our transport, we had a difficult time convincing the van driver that we were headed to Huehuetenango. We ended up in a van full of people headed to hotter tourist spots like Xela, but Huehue was on the way and no one objected to our paying the same price for a shorter ride. Imagine our surprise when our van driver pulled up next to a tire shop on the highway, announced that we were in Huehue, and left us and our bags by the side of the road. Everywhere we´ve ended up so far has been accompanied by a Lonely Planet map… this was not. Half and hour later and $11 U.S. dollars poorer (a ridiculous sum in Guate), we found ourselves in Huehue. It was our first off-the-map adventure, but we made it through and met up with Zil that evening.
The next morning we found our way to a chicken bus (an old recycled American school bus) to Todos Santos. The trip from Huehue is about 20 miles, but it takes three and a half hours. The last hour of the drive is on a dirt road. Todos Santos is a very small Mayan Villiage full of people who speak Mam. All of the men and boys wear the same outfit of red striped pants and blue and white striped shirts while the women and girls all wear the same skirt and shawl. It´s pretty incredible. At first I thought it was like nothing I had every seen, until I realized that when you´re walking the financial district of San Francisco or Mid-town Manhattan, the uniform is a dark business suit. This one is a little different becuase it involves red striped pants… the idea is basically the same.
We´re off for a hike in the local hills — our map is drawn on a napkin and involves directions like ¨when you reach the place where it seems like no one should be able to farm broccoli because it´s so steep, turn right.¨ Thankfully everyone here seems willing to help out lost gringas on their way south.
Even though there´s so much more to say, we´ll have to cut it off here. Stay tuned for more.
-Sarah and Megan
Tags: border crossing, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Mexico, Todos Santos, Transportation, Travel
admin
Holy Smoke! I don’t know what to say. The village with the red striped pants and blue striped shirts sounds tres surreal (nice comparison to NYC, btw).
But . . . is broccoli remarkable because you can grow it on very steep hillsides, or is it remarkable because you can’t grow it on a slope at all? HOW STEEP IS TOO STEEP FOR BROCCOLI? I suppose this is that “cultural difference” we’ve heard so much about. Or else it’s that “being abstracted from your food” we’ve heard so much about. Or else its just plain bourgie ignorance we’ve heard so little about.
I think I bought a version of that outfit in San Francisco, btw.
kisses and broccoli flowers
More broccoli flowers, kisses, and hugs.
Watch the slope. Hang on tighter than the broccoli when you turn there!
Love,
Dad
Once I hopped on a bus to go to Fremont, thinking it was the 74, but it turned out to be a 71, and it took me to Eastlake. Thats about as far off track as I’ve been. Oh! There was that time when we all went to try and see some native american thing in Oklahoma, and went the wrong way and ended up in Arkansas… But cars put me to sleep really easily, so I woke up when we were back in Oklahoma…
Yeah, Austen, your mom will probably say “Thanks for reminding me” — I remember thinking that was one time I was so glad I stayed home:) I’m really glad though to have some adventurers in my world. I love my vicarious life.
I want one of those blue & white striped shirts. Damn the cost. Get one extra El Grande or fit it to two medium sized quates. Just get it here quick. As soon as the shirt is in hand, I’ll retire early, join WallStreet and RULE the WORLD. I can tell the two of you have taken the advise of Kwai Chang Caine “Its not the destination stupid its what the hells happening while your getting there. ”. Or maybe that was grasshopper who said that. Anyway, you two are a fine proof of Albert’s Space time continuum. You get to Huehuetenango at the same time as your friend Zil. And you travel by plane, van, chicken bus, and sauntering (which comes from saint seeker by the way). Three years ago, while at Wesleyan, would you have imagined you’d all be sitting at a café in Huehuetenango? (Huehuetenango is not the destination in Shawshank Redemption is it?) A mysterious place this world. Tip a coke for me.
I enjoy your blog by the way.
Love DAD
PS
Those aren’t puffy shirts are they?
What does blog stand for anyway?
Blog is a shortened version of Weblog, not to be confused with Splog, which is a fake blog (combination of spam and blog). First citation of the word blog was in 1999.
Aren’t you glad you asked?
I had always heard that Broccoli was invented by some guy named “Broccoli” in the 19th century. So I wiki’d it just now and learned that while it is invented by “Man”, but over the course of thousands of years, in an effort to “breed the flowers out of mustard.” What a goal! In any case, Wiki also provided the following fascinating Broccoli moments in pop culture (I’m an especial fan of Daddy Bush’s encounter) . . .
Broccoli is frequently referred to in popular culture as a vegetable that parents try to force their unwilling children to eat.
In The Simpsons episode Treehouse of Horror XI, Homer is killed by eating broccoli. When examining the body, Dr. Hibbert said that broccoli was one of the deadliest plants, and it warned people with its bad taste.
United States President George H. W. Bush was known to have an active disdain for broccoli, having actually said so in an offhand remark during his presidency. In response, a powerful broccoli agriculture lobby sent several tons of it to the White House. This broccoli was promptly donated to the Capital Area Food Bank.
Also, in the TV sitcom Seinfeld, Newman refers to broccoli as a “Vile weed!”. In the animated series Family Guy’s episode “I Never Met the Dead Man”, Stewie Griffin invents a weather control device in an attempt to wipe out global production of the vegetable.
Dana Carvey did a sketch on Saturday Night Live where he played a pop artist who improvised a song to his manager (played by Sigourney Weaver), which fixated on broccoli brought home by a woman. The sketch was a big hit, and the song (known by its repetitive chorus, “Chop-pin’ Broc-co-lay!”) became quite popular.
Broccoli even appeared as a contestant on a cartoon game show on an episode of MTV’s Cartoon Sushi. The character could only repeat its own name, and did so for every answer it gave.
In the Animorphs book Megamorphs #2: In the Time of Dinosaurs the Animorphs discover (in the novels) that an alien race known as the Mercora invented broccoli, which is the apparent reason why broccoli tastes so bad.
In Michael Winterbottom’s 2002 film 24 Hour Party People, a stoned Tony Wilson (played by Steve Coogan) repeatedly claims that the vegetable was ‘invented’ by Cubby Broccoli.
Tom “Broccoli” Landers is the current world record holder for eating broccoli. Following the World Broccoli-Eating Contest in New Jersey, he offered this tip for getting it down: “Just swallow, don’t bother to chew.” Landers consumed 1 pound of the green stuff in 92 seconds.
In episode 17 (“Beat your greens”) of The Powerpuff Girls, the children save the earth by eating broccoli-like aliens.
Funny, all of this talk about broccoli. It was Megan’s favorite vegetable when she was very young, in fact she would say “I feel a cold coming on, I think I need some Mr. Broccoli.” It never occured to me you would find a hillside in Huehue growing your favorite food. Stay healthy, keep writing. Love to you both.
mom
My. We go away for a while and look what happens! Don’t worry all, soon you’ll be able to see pictures of the outfits and some hillsides. Unfortunately, I don’t think we ever found the broccoli.
-Megan
sarah had difficulty with brocolli, unless we played the tree game and she pretended to be a blind giraffe who was ambling along and bumped into a tree and nibbled at the leaves unsuspecting that is was really…. (ominous sounding music)… BROCOLLI! As a blind giraffe it was her favorite food.