Rainbow World Fund 2009 Guatemala Tour-Day 9

I woke up to a very loud rooster crowing somewhere in the neighborhood. We once again piled into the two vans to our first destination of the day, the home of Evelyn Santos in the town of Agua Caliente (Hot Water). Evelyn is a very skilled weaver, and her specialty is “double weaving”, that is, weavings with designs on both sides. Evelyn, a friend of RWF’s, greeted us at her door with her little girl, both dressed in the traditional Mayan costumes. We sat down to a breakfast of fruit, coffee, juice, beans and tortillas, and then spent a few minutes in Evelyn’s shop, where her weavings and clothes are on display. Evelyn dressed a couple of the women (and one of the men) in the traditional outfits. After a while we wandered out into the main plaza. Agua Caliente was a charming little town, very picturesque. You could see where its hot springs come from, because the town is surrounded by volcanoes, one of which was actively smoking while we were there.

Evelyn Santos and her little girl greeting us at her door for breakfast

The group having their breakfast

Evelyn giving us a weaving demonstration

Evelyn showing us some of her work

One of the typical Guatemalan buses, very picturesque but they’re big polluters. Avoid getting stuck behind one of them.

A view of one of the volcanoes from the town’s central plaza

The fountain in the main plaza

Another nearby volcano, this one belching smoke

After breakfast, our next stop was “Valhalla”, a macadamia nut farm started by an American, Leo Gottschamer in 1985. Leo not only grows the trees, but has a press that he uses to make various macadamia nut products: oils, butters, that kind of thing. As Leo explained to us, macadamia trees absorb unusually high quantities of carbon out of the atmosphere, and thus scientists studying ways to reduce global warming are looking at macadamia trees more closely. The place was physically beautiful: very green and shady with many funky and unique features including an indoor-outdoor bathroom with a garden in it, full of plants and flowers.

Leo Gottschamer, the owner of Valhalla

The Valhalla bathroom

Inside the bathroom

Leo demonstrating the press for us

There was a period later where various group members received facial massages using macadamia oil as Leo talked about the history of Valhalla. Because I’m highly allergic to macadamia nuts, I passed on this opportunity. Later we were served pancakes with some kind of macadamia syrup on it (I had a sandwich with zero macadamia products in it). I was impressed with Leo’s accomplishment of creating this plantation out of nothing, but Leo, a natural comedian, started into his “second act” of material, which was off-colored, even for our group. The two Sister, I’m sure, have heard it all in their time. It was time to leave.

For me, the final leg of our trip was the most moving: Transitions, a small manufacturer of wheelchairs and prosthetic devices. The factory was located back in Antigua. We were met by a man in a wheelchair, Alexander Galvez, who was the manager of the business. He explained to us that other than Transitions, there are virtually no resources for the handicapped in Guatemala. Transitions allows them to regain some of their independence; instead of being confined inside, people who are paralyzed can get mobile again with wheelchairs, and people who are missing limbs can get prosthetic devices made to order. Alexander shared his own personal story with us. When he was 14, he was identified (incorrectly) as being a member of a rival gang or faction, and was shot in the spine and paralyzed. While in the hospital with other young men paralyzed by war, injuries or polio, he was approached by an American, John Bell, who had the idea of creating a workshop where people could build their own wheelchairs from locally available materials. Three other paraplegic men in the ward were approached by Bell, and Transitions was formed. It now has a workshop that makes wheelchairs out of bicycle parts, and prosthetic arms and legs for people missing limbs. All the workers I saw there had some kind of disability. One of them told us about the basketball team they had formed, and how their team had competed in an international tournament. The people there seemed to have formed a tight community, and sense of pride in what they had accomplished was evident. This visit was another one of the many highlights for me.

One of the workers in the wheelchair workshop

Showing one of the wheelchairs made from bicycle parts

We returned to our hotel in Antigua that afternoon, with time to explore the city a little. I walked around with Mark and Brad, a couple of fellow travelers, looking at the crafts booths for further bargains and just getting more a feel of the city.

Mark in one of the booths, with the leather briefcase that he got for a great price

A girl selling lychee nuts

The ruins of a church abandoned after one of Guatemala’s many earthquakes

One of our tour group members made a surprising discovery: a museum having a display of gay and lesbian erotic art by Latin artist from around the world. It was the last day of the show. Naturally, I had to visit it. It made for a very interesting contrast to the other cultures we had experienced during the trip. There was some good work there in the exhibit, some humorous pictures, some kitsch and everything in between.

One of the pieces from the gay and lesbian erotic art exhibit