Christmas day. And looks like we may get to experience the full 24 hours allocated to this special day.
From midnight the intensity of fireworks hit a crescendo as a cacophony of crackers were launched. Not by any authority but simply by the people of Antigua. With churches on every block Christianity is pretty big here and these guys love to party! Church bells, late night discos, dogs and roosters added to the commotion of early Christmas morning.
Antigua town square
We awake officially and go to open presents on the balcony while a special breakfast is served by the wonderful staff at Casa La Amirilla (Yellow House). We stroll around town and not unlike Christmas days the world over there are some for whom the celebrations have taken an early toll. Alcohol a bit of a problem in Guatemala and quite a few shirtless men are passed out in the streets. We do our best to avoid them and the constant fireworks going off around every corner.
The vast array and quantity of Fireworks available in Antigua at Christmas time
We go for dinner at O’Rielly’s. Not surprisingly an Irish pub which is pretty packed with foreigners, again not surprisingly, as the local restaurants are either full of locals or closed. We walk home amongst the fireworks that have not ceased for one second all day and will not cease until well after midnight. Feliz Navidad indeed.
Boxing Day
It has been brewing for some time but today turns out to be decision day. Hence the following decisions have been made:
- Money withdrawn – any decision around rapidly depleting funds is a big one and the ongoing exercise of cash advances has not gotten much easier.
- Flights booked for the final leg of our round the world journey for end of February. Meaning we now have a schedule to keep. Until now we were footloose and fancy free.
- Book flight to LA from Panama – So it seems we are calling it a day in Panama and not venturing further south to South America based on our progress thus far.
- Buy a few gifts and send ourselves a Christmas present consisting of a chicken bus poster that we know all too well.
- Last but not least we book a bus to Honduras for tomorrow. Our time in Guatemala has come to an end.
We have a last supper with Martina who is headed back to work on a farm called Finca Ixobel. Martina has been a great companion I can confirm many years later that we are in fact still good friends and met each other in each of our home countries over that time.
For us though Honduras awaits…
About The Author
Warren
Ever since venturing out the back gate into the bush as a kid, I've had a curiosity to escape and explore as often as I could. It's fair to say that my curiosity has continued to grow instead of fade as the years go on. It eventually came time to turn a few scribbled notes into some legible stories and travel tips for anyone with a similar curiosity as me.