BUt only a few. Curiously, in La Antigua, there are tourist police, parking police, and regular forces and darn near on every corner. Every delivery vehicle from Coca Cola to vegetales, banks and ATM machines, and many stores have a guard armed almost invariably with a 12 guage, pistol grip shotgun and often with a side arm as well. I always say buenas dias or hola to them as I pass by...... I wonder if the town would erupt in chaos if there weren´t an armed guard visible nearly everywhere.

I visited the volcan Pacaya last Saturday for the trail up. Too much altitude for me, I suspect the pre trip aspirin didn´t help. Kids with horses ride and walk alongside like vultures attending to the carrion. It´s a steep beginning, folks say, ´it´ll even up just ahead¨, nonsense almost never did. After 60% of the climb I was lightheaded and took the ¨horse taxi¨for the last forty percent of the trip. Cost 12 bucks roughly, 100 Quetzales, but I´da not made the ascent without it. There was no active lava flowing for at least two months but marshmallows were toasted on a pocket. This is Tuesday, I only know that because the maid showed up today, and my thighs are still sore and stiff. Hummph. Another limit I have not been used to.

Traffic in Guatemala is worse than I remembered in Puerto Rico 45 years ago. Traffic laws are really just suggestions which are sometimes acceded to. Stop signs mean slow a bit, traffic lanes mean if you can fit there you can go there, other cars are missed by inches, not feet. If the center line is solid going uphill approaching a curve, it means to go faster as you pass. When we are doing 80 kmh the speed zone is fifty and we are passed in the shuttles like we are standing still by BMW´s and others of that ilk. At night on the roadways tail lights appear to be optional as we´ve run up on many a truck or small pickup with one flickering or none showing despite the headlights being on. Motorcycles abound. Motos include from small scooters up to Harleys of which I´ve only seen five or six including the one in the Bodegona, super market. No price on it but it´s always been in there in my few weeks here. No oil spot under it so I figure it´s not been run....

There are rigs here I absolutely love. The shuttle vans can be by Toyota, Nissan, Hyundai, and others but are all diesels with five speed manual trannys. The only one I have seen with the engine in front is the Hyundai H-1 which apparently sells for about 23 thousand bucks here. The others have the turbo (sometimes) four cylinder motors under the front seats like the older Toyota vans had years ago. These would be fabulous boat haulers, get good mpg, and develop their torque way down in the rpm´s it´s clear. We can be going uphill in 4th gear with a load on, not accelerating but hanging in there easily. These rigs all have seating for from 8 to 15 or so.

THere are lots of names of cars and motos here we typically don´t see in my area of the states at least, even on Hondas motos, etc. A scooter here or a 125 motocycle costs between 15,000 and 20,000 Quetzales or 2000 to 2500 bucks. Tons of small motos as they are clearly the cheapest rides around. You often can see a family of 3 or 4 or 5 riding on one. There can be a mom and pop and three small kids sandwiched onto the seat, none with helmets. Helmets appear to be ridden by fancier bikes or.....others as they desire. The essence of traffic here is, if you can do it, do it. Many cars and motos have scrapes and dings, many.

My whole fam has arrived in Antigua and gone on to the playa where my daughter lives south of Monterrico by 13 km. They will return Wednesday and we´ll have Navidad here. The next day after that we head to ruins of Copan in Honduras for an overnight trip. It´s apparently about a four to five hour drive, Hotel and return included for 80 bucks a head, continental b´fast included.....

I´m off shopping today for food for me.....those gals all shop for strange stuff that ain´t broccoli and spuds and oranges and apples. I eat it but boat cooking has been my mainstay for decades. Hey, if it works, stick with it!