A Family Holiday in Columbia

The title of this post is not to insinuate that my family was with me in Columbia, but rather that I was visiting my 'second family', los Herrera. Their daughter lived with our family for a year during my senior year of high school. It was wonderful to be able to visit with them 5 years on and have a chance to switch roles a bit. They had a list of all the Columbian foods, locations, and traditions that they wanted me to experience. We tackled those we could handle in the week that I was there, but hopefully I'll have a chance to get back and spend some more time with them.
My Columbian sister and me overlooking the 'Valle' region.
Ripening cherries at the coffee themepark, which my hosts agreed was like "Disney on caffeine"
Hot-springs Columbian style. There are actually two waterfalls, one cold and one naturally hot. They create a temperature gradient within the pool, so you can always find the perfect temperature!
The delightful residents of the local park. These two seemed perfectly content to share their tree.

Stopover in Panama

So my first destination after leaving Guatemala was Panama, mostly for reasons of airfare. But like many places I went simply because they had the cheapest airfare for my intended route (Poland, the first time to Guatemala), Panama was a good decision. It did, however, make me feel insecure about my Spanish as I struggled to understand the stream of words that poured out of my taxi driver's mouth once he learned I knew the language.

Panama City was great to walk around during the day. I also got what were probably some of my most interesting souvenirs here. What was strange was paying for these souvenirs with US dollars, the official currency, after having carried none for the past 4 months. You can use US dollars nearly anywhere in Latin America, but only a few countries have decided to take the next step and adopt it as their own. Panamanians also use US coins as well as issue their own.

Being in Panama City was also a chance to see the iconic Panama Canal. I was lucky enough to show up when a series of large container ships were passing through.
The scale is massive: in the photo below you can see a few workers crossing the closed gate. The water level changed something like 40 feet in this one stage of the locks.

I'm back! We'll see how long it lasts

So it has been over a year since I posted on this blog. Ooops. Although I am no longer in Guatemala and back in my native Minnesota, I would still like to share some of the amazing things I saw in Latin America. This first post back is a sampling of Tikal, the famous Mayan site in northern Guatemala. Tikal was an amazing place full of mystical stone temples and friendly critters. My one experience in splurging for a tour guide, which was totally worth it, and necessary due to the jungle surrounding all of the structures. I trust my navigational skills, but that doesn't mean I have to be foolhardy.


A view from Temple IV, where some scenes from Star Wars were shot

A very curious coatimundi, who had just licked up somebody's spilled water on the bench.

A spider monkey uses his tail to hang as he picks fruits out of the trees.

Me in front of the famous 'Jaguar Temple'