Next Chapter Travels

  early start I had one full day to see the sights of Guatemala City. I had coffee and called an UBER to take me to the Constitution Plaza where I would start the day of sightseeing. The square held very few people and lots of pigions. There was a large group that look like a school field trip so I was able to learn a litte more about the square by eavesdropping on their guide. There didn't appear to any other tourist, the street vendors were relaxing under a tree. A very helpful person in the tourist info kiosk gave me a nice overview of the city, along with a map and reassurnce that the areas I wanted to visit we save at that time of day. The buildings were interesting, nice example of Spanish architecture. There are many examples of Spanish architecture in this city. Having seen lots of Spanish architecture in Spain, it didn't really seem that interesting. To me, the buildings marked invasion by the Spaniards and the end of much of the indigenous culture. The UBER driver ha...

Arrived in Guatemala City at 5:20 am after an  uneventful day of travel. The only options on Delta were overnight flights that arrived very early, not my first choice because i don't like to start a trip tired. Oh well. No trouble finding the pre-arranged taxi outside the airport. There was heavy traffic to hotel, even at the early hour. Checked into the Hilton and went right to bed. The 4 hour flight between LAX and Guatemala City was too short for any chance of real sleep and way to short for sleep aids. A nice 5 hours of sleep at the hotel let me get caught up and back in sync with the rest of the day. Pretty much every resource comments on the dangers of Guatemala City. First mission of the day was to go out and access the area to get a feel for how to manage risk. For me, this includes checking with the reception desk to ask for the local perspective. The next step is to simple dress inconspicuously, carry no touristy purse or backpack and then simply venture out in the middle...