14 June 2006

Friday, the pickup we took back to Santiago had at least 25 people scrunched and hanging off the back. That was the most crowded one I’ve been on so far. Usually, it’s not more than 10 people but clearly they can be very crowded. These aren’t big pickup either. Nor are they new by any means. Sometimes I wonder how they keep running, but I haven’t seen one broken down yet, just a couple flat tires. Every once in a while, I’m able to ride in front. The first day I took one, I noticed that, rather than keys, the driver had stuck scissors in the ignition. Last Thursday, I was lucky enough to be in front when the keys simply fell out of the ignition and the car kept going. I thought it was hilarious. Almost always, there is no radio, the dashboard is in pieces and the cover is coming loose, if not completely off, the door. Somehow, these drivers keep their trucks going and make 3 Quetzales off me each time I ride in one. (That’s roughly 40 cents.)

I went to church on Sunday at Iglesia Santiago Apóstol in Santiago Atitlan. It was absolutely crowded. Anyone who arrived with less than 10 minutes before mass (including me) had to stand the whole time. There had to have been well over 400 people there; they were spilling out into the plaza as well. As far as I could tell, there wasn’t anything special about that mass so I suppose it’s like that all the time. I was also the only white person there. Everyone else was a native, mostly in the native clothing. Some women also had the trademark head wraps of Santiago. It’s basically a strip of red fabric that, Katy told me, was about 30 feet long. It’s simply wrapped around the woman’s head over and over until the last little bit is decorated. It must stick out over 6 inches from their heads.