I Shouldn't Be Alive Pt. 2

DAY SEVEN

Good news! I can move my legs again, and it’s due to two things: a lazy day yesterday after our hike, and Las Fuentas Georginas today. Las Fuentas Georginas are hot springs over by the volcano we visited yesterday, Santa Maria. 

I was picturing a cross between a tourist trap and a spa; the kind of place where a family on vacation goes to relax and grab lunch, then leave feeling calm and satisfied. That’s not at all what I got. Instead, almost everyone there was local, and it was more of a public swimming pool than a spa. One of the volunteers (with a different group) that we rode over with thought it looked like a typical American pool on Memorial Day - overflowing with people of all ages, but especially children with their toys. There were floaties and kick boards, and a lot of kids would jump into one of the pools like they were jumping off a diving board. I was really quite surprised. I hadn’t expected that many locals to be there, but that’s who was there, and that’s who was having the best time. 

Journey and I spent some time in the water, then grabbed some nachos at the poolside grill. How do authentic Guatemalan nachos taste, you ask? To be perfectly honest, they taste like really cheap American nachos.

Pretty soon it was time to go back to the van. And boy, I almost wish I’d walked. It had gotten incredibly foggy while we were there, and the roads were windy and not large enough for two lanes; we almost got into several head-on collisions, and were, at times, way too close to the edge of the road (by edge, I basically mean ledge - it was a steep drop to the bottom of the mountain). But just like yesterday, we did, somehow, make it back alive.

This afternoon, Journey and I went to the local market and then to a little place called Xelapan, which is amazing. They back a ton of fresh bread and pastries every day, and the entire building smelled delicious. I had a little croissant with some chocolate in it. It was fantastic.

Tomorrow, we’re back at the shelter! It’s our last week here - time has really flown.