La Cuidad de Guatemala

So we safely made it through our first day in Guatemala City without being robbed, kidnapped, or having our organs harvested. In fact, so far Guate is the complete opposite of what you´d think. It is very developed and quite beautiful. This fact is accentuated by the fact that we are staying in Zona 10 (Zona Viva) where all the malls, restaurants, and bars are located. We did witness the view of colorful shantytowns when our flight was landing, but those are far removed from our current location. So far the Guatemalans have been very warm and friendly, this morning the women that worked here made Chris and I some pancakes and coffee, which is a great way to start the day. Yesterday Luis, my friend and our guide through Guate, met us at the airport, which upon seeing him completely lifted the tension of being in a strange new place. We proceeded in his car to some malls, to check them out and exchange some money. The first was Oakland mall, which rivals Tyson´s Corners in is scale and grandiosity. Then we went to Fontabella, near our hostel, which looked like a plaza with shops straight out of Italy. The Hostel, by the way, is amazing. It´s called Xamanek, and it´s located right near all the clubs and bars in Zona Viva. There are only a few people staying here, and the interior looks like a mix of post modern Swedish design and grandmas hand-me-downs. We plan on staying here for two more nighs and then heading out to Antigua where we will really get our bearings. I´ve also realized that A) camping is most likely not going to take place while we are in Guate, and B) we´ll need at least 5 weeks to see all of Guate. Today we´ll head into Zona 1 to see the central Park, El Palacio Nacional, and some more of the historic sights and museums. Already Guatemala has defied expectations, and we can tell that Guate has many more surprises in store for us.