El otro mundo: Volcán Atitlán

A casi todos los viajeros que visitan Guatemala, suena familiar el nombre "Atitlán". El famoso Lago Atitlán es la joya en la corona de bellezas naturales de país, y ha sido conocido así por décadas. El escritor Aldous Huxley lo describió así: "(Lago de) Como, con el embellecimiento adicional de algunos volcanes inmensos. Seguramente es … Continue reading El otro mundo: Volcán Atitlán

The Little Prince and its unlikely inspirations

“When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”C. S. Lewis One of my favourite books is The Little Prince. It's also the first book that I read in Spanish. I remember quite clearly how I came across it. I had … Continue reading The Little Prince and its unlikely inspirations

I’m oven it like that

I can't remember who first proposed we should see the ovens above Panimaché Dos. Perhaps it was my friend Arelis, before she left with Beth to speak to Doña Elena. I had chosen to stay behind, to talk with Arelis's mother, Marta, about her memories of Fuego's 1974 eruption. My ears pricked up in interest. … Continue reading I’m oven it like that

Picture The Scene

Week Five was an incredibly long and dispiriting week, in which I hung around, failed to do interviews, and was generally hard on myself. I started to write a blog post about my largest bugbear, which was my continuing difficulty in communicating in Spanish to the level I’d like, and then – the post felt … Continue reading Picture The Scene

A Snapshot of Guatemala

This is my third blog post in 2017. I know, I know! I began the year with such good intentions: I wanted to publish once a month, and to write consistently from Guatemala. Now it is spring in Bristol, and the blossoms are already falling from the cherry trees. I returned from Guatemala over a … Continue reading A Snapshot of Guatemala

Microadventure: January

"How often have I lain beneath rain on a strange roof, thinking of home." - William Faulkner It's still vivid in my mind, although it's one of my more faded travel memories. I was lying beneath a fan in a soft white room, listening to the gentle whop of the blades as they cut through … Continue reading Microadventure: January