Market time in Chichicastenango

Today I went to a market in a town about 2 hours from here in San Pedro on Lake Atitlan, called Chichicastenango. It's apparently a very world renowned market place so I thought it would be a good thing to check out. It certainly was huge! There were a ton of people there, shopping, as well as hocking all their goods. It was crowded, so I had to be extra vigilant about my purse and a couple of times I evenn got pushed over by little Mayan women! It is funny when you see stall after stall of the same items....So much of the stuff is so beautiful, with all these vibrant colors. I would just love to buy blankets, table coverings, and other cool Guatemalan knick-knacks that I know would look great in my future residence- but since I don't have one, and can't fit all that stuff in my backpack- I settled for some nice jewelry....

I don't like bargaining much, but I turned out to be a pretty good haggler, of course accidently. I wanted a jade necklace, but didn't want to pay 200 quetzales. When they didn't like my offering price, I just said no thanks and started to walk away, really just preparing not to buy anything. That really was my plan, but that always worked for them to agree to my price :) So I ended up with a great necklace, a pair of wooden earrings, 2 headbands, a belt...and my meal... for about $30 USD. After thinking about bargaining later on, I started to wonder if I should feel guilty about the final price I paid. Does the bargaining really cheat these people of money they need to live on? You always expect that they mark up the price expecting to be bargained with, but is what they end up with just not enough?

There were so many kids trying to sell things, and more just begging for money. That is always difficult to see. I did buy one headband from a little girl just really to see a huge smile on her face after we made a deal. If you buy something, or give money to one little kid it's like an alarm goes off on every kid in a 40 foot radius (which is alot in this crowded market). Suddenly they all swarm around you...It's hard to even help one little kid because then all the others expect money from you as well. I know this is a problem everywhere that I know many of you have experienced during your travels as well, but it is always hard.

Tomorrow we are heading out of our blissful chill time at the Zoola hostel. It has been one of our favorite places so far. It is so easy to just pass your whole day lounging around reading and relaxing (and not at all feeling guilty about it!). And the food is absolutely delicious here, too! The place was started by an Israeli couple, and they made a menu that caters more than to just the Guatemalan native tastes. I stocked up on eating yummy salads and veggies, because I feel like that has been a little lacking in my diet.

So we are headed to El Salvador tomorrow...We only have 4 days to get over to Honduras to pick up my mom and her friend Lynne who are visiting us!!! Very exciting!!!