Day 92 - Tuesday 20th December 2005
My final 4 hours of classes came and went, I said goodbye to my teacher and some of the students, packed my things and sat down over lunch, trying to decide what to do in the five days before Christmas. I wanted to visit Semuc Champey, a series of lakes and waterfalls in the middle of the country, and my plan was simple.
Day 91 - Monday 19th December 2005
With only 2 school days until Christmas I began to seriously consider where I was going to be at for the festivities. Since the beginning of the trip I had thought about being in the Bay Islands (Honduras) learning to scuba dive, but since I had learnt this at the lake I had kind of put that plan out of action.
Days 89 & 90 - Saturday 18th & Sunday 19th December 2005
I had thought about going away for the weekend, but when I woke up Saturday I just couldn’t be arsed to sit on a bus for any length of time, so I resolved to look around some of the museums and ruins in Antigua. I began by going to one of the many ruins (as a result of the earthquakes) in the city, the church of San Francisco.
Days 84 to 88 - Monday 12th to Friday 17th December 2005
Its funny, but the more I learnt in school, the more I realised I needed to learn. I suppose this is true with everything in life. The week began well, my brain was functioning after the weekend break and I soaked up the info. However as the week progressed I began to feel that my brain was leaking and I couldn’t take anymore.
Day 83 - Sunday 11th December 2005
The student hotel I was staying at included 3 meals a day Monday to Saturday, but on Sunday I was left to fend for myself. Therefore the three of us who were staying at the hotel all went out for breakfast. Which was nice. I needed a hearty meal as I planned to climb the nearby volcano Pacaya in the afternoon.
Days 79 to 82 - Wednesday 7th to Saturday 10th December 2005
I woke up feeling much improved from the previous day, so set about to look for a Spanish school and to see if Antigua was as fine a city as the guidebooks and other travellers had made out. I began walking about looking around and what immediately struck me was the similarity in layout and architecture that Antigua shared with Oaxaca in Mexico.
Day 78 - Tuesday 6th December 2005
After getting my scuba diving certification I wanted to get away from the lake. I had originally only planned to spend three or four days around the lake, but this turned out to be more like 8 or 9. I had had fun but I thought it was time to make my way to Antigua to take another week of Spanish classes.
