Onodonno's

adam is always asking to go to:

derick queen

tropical smoovie

chucky cheese its

and let's not forget onodonno's (ah-nuh-dah-nowls).

just last week he asked:

mom, is it onodonno's or mcdonald's?

it's mcdonalds.

but it's okay if you wanna say it your way.

later that week we drove by mcdonald's and the kids teased him.

adam says:

i don't say onodonno's any more. mom learned me that it's mickdonalds.

In honor of adam, here are pics of * 'the fanciest mcdonald's in the world' in antigua, guatemala.

*source of info: dad ;)

guatemala day 6

it's 4 am and the alarm goes off.

today we bus to a small airport where we take a small plane over the jungles, then a small bus takes us to tikal. it's a national park in the peten jungle (forest of kings).

we were split into two groups. garrett and i got the 'big' plane. it sat 33. the others took the 12 passenger plane. the morning was beautiful and clear. it was crazy to fly out of guat city and to realize we really were in the highlands. buildings spread over the mountains, trees covered the ravines. after a minute or two the colorful buildings were fewer and fewer until it looked like we were flying over a sea of broccoli. truly. thick, green, bulbous trees carpeted the ground.

as we neared tikal, the street signs started. first was a snake, then a big thick, cat-looking thing. what's that i ask dad? jaguar crossing. ah. we pass a few more animal signs (turkey, coati, elk…) but i am not really paying attention. i'm watching the vegetation closely. wouldn't that be cool to see one? i'm listening to the bus driver talk to dad who translates to all on the bus. in 20 years, our driver has only seen 5 jaguars. not to worry. they may cross this road out here, but closer in- at the actual park, they stay away during during daylight due to human presence.

after a good dousing of bug spray, we start our trek.

interestingly enough, we come up to a massive ceiba tree. its branches are over run with epiphytes and it looks like a hairy tarantula to me. i guess these arial plants provide homes for countless insects, frogs and snakes. toucans and capuchin monkeys live there too. the ceiba is the focal point to an ecological system.

we stop and laugh at the monkey sign.

we see a few monkeys. well, we hear them before we see them. they were loud and it looked like they were having fun swinging from branch to branch. at one point, one of the monkeys reached out its arms to the other like he was helping the other across. then they started to slap each other. the binoculars came in handy.

the path was so covered with trees that the sun never came all the way through, which was nice considering the heat and humidity. very indiana jones. minus the poisonous darts and gold statue.

through the trees we spot the top of temple I.

we are so close. as we make our way off the path, our view is widened immensely- no trees cover this clearing.

the grand plaza is surrounded by stelae and altars, ceremonial buildings, residential and administrative palaces, and a ball court.

at each end of the plaza stand the temple of the great jaguar and the temple II, or temple of the masks (my family's personal favorite).

these are the huge pyramids, or temples you see in pictures. the type that kinda get your heart racing. awe-inspiring, massive, ancient, pyramids. people actually built these. a people that was an advanced civilization. can you believe these structures stand today?

gar felt the need to pose. my laugh echoed through the acropolis.

mayan ruins are evidence of a long lasting, cultural tradition. the monuments paid tribute to the rulers of the past, and inscriptions inside talk of dynasties and conquests, alliance and raids. ten square miles of central tikal have been mapped revealing over 4,000 structures identified to date. the national park is just over 142,000 acres and only about 30 % is excavated. this is what the jungle can do if the temple is not maintained. we saw guys with machetes cutting the grass growing on some steps of one of the temples as we approached. how's that for maintenance?

dad tells a story of a people warring with their arch enemy. while the captain is off fighting an uprising occurs in his land, the people fighting amongst themselves. they split into two groups. one felt they had the right to rule while the others wanted a free land. the captain returns, puts to death the rebels, and calls for them to hoist a common flag upon their towers and in their cities. he returns to war thinking he's resolved the problem only to learn they have overthrown the government. the captain again returns, crushes the rebellion and restores power. eventually over time, those who have royal blood win out, and it becomes a place ruled by the dynasties.

the place is alive with these stories. i would love to have seen it during its rise, its height, and its fall. it fascinates me.

we continued deeper into the jungle, on to the ultimate view. we came to a small clearing. trees were still overhead.

the ground was covered with a thin layer of green moss. dad told stories.

a native man stood by a tree and handled a huge, thick, black scorpion. when i heard the commotion from our fellow travelers i walked over. he had it by the tail, so he said he was safe. he also said if it does sting you, it will make your tongue go numb. i imagine a lot more than your tongue will be numb if that thing got you.

garrett was more impressed with the man's awesome chest hair than he was with the scorpion itself.

we walk on. the jungle was a sea of smells. one tree we kept passing smelled exactly like ramen noodles. another one was peppercorn which was very strong. sweet smells came now and then. at one point, the husbands of the soelberg sisters facilitated an all spice experience for the group. jason jumped up to grab a branch, then kirk and neil held it steady and low while others grabbed leaves. it smelled just like pumpkin pie with a clean, fresh smell to it. dreamy. i thought 'all spice' was a bunch of spices all mixed together. who knew it was a single spice?

we continued to pass these long vines that would surround the trees. we wondered if you could really swing on them, tarzan style. garrett volunteered to be the guinea pig.

it was hilarious to watch him swing, but at the end he slammed into the tree- and got bark debris in his eye. lame. i didn't see that coming.

finally we come to the ultimate temple with the amazing view.

the original steps are crumbling so they have built a wooden staircase to the top.

it's quite the climb. the view is absolutely amazing. garrett felt like quite the explorer/conquerer.

the walk back to the bus was really fast. maybe because it was more of a run. it started to rain (which felt fantastic). at first we just heard it. it was really loud above, with only small trickles coming down to us. when we got to places that were less covered, it poured down on us. i felt like i was caught in flash-flood rains. no wonder the roads wash out. luckily the ground was mostly limestone instead of the dark dirt. we had white sand-like stuff all over our lower legs. i was happy it wasn't mud. there's nothing like getting caught in a downpour.

gautemala day 5

interesting things about peacocks:

1. peacock - male, peahen- female, peafowl- refers to birds of both sexes

2. one of the largest flying birds

3. they caw REALLY loudly

all night we hear ca-cawing, cawing, cawing by our 2nd story window. i didn't even realize they could fly. but there they were, perched in the branches of the trees that canopied the hotel grounds.

we pass the pool on our way to breakfast. peacocks. everywhere. crossing our path, perched in the trees, flying down from the trees. it was gorgeous in the daylight.

last night we passed the pools on our way to dinner. but that's another story for another day.

today we were on our way to izapa, mexico, or 'the most important civic and religious center on the pacific coast from 600BC - 400AD' (v. garth norman, world's expert on izapa)

what to expect:

heat

humidity

bugs, namely chiggers

border crossing

long bus ride

walking about 2 miles

an amazing experience

we were prepared for all of these.

past the pool, we made our way to the bus. in front of us stood an enormous tree. the morning light illuminated it's trunk and branches. we actually stopped walking to look at it. as i was thinking it, garrett said, 'wow. that's a majestic tree.' we walked closer to it. i snapped a few shots as garrett looked up in awe. it was huge. and alone, and regal. how can a tree be regal? i'm not sure, but this one most definitely is. mental note: find out what tree this is.

manuel told us: the kapok, or ceiba tree.

i found this info from the ceiba foundation:

The ancient Maya of Central America believed that a great Ceiba tree stood at the center of the earth, connecting the terrestrial world to the spirit-world above. The long thick vines hanging down from its spreading limbs provided a connection to the heavens for the souls that ascended them. Even today, these grand trees are regularly spared when forests are cut -- it is a common event to see lone, isolated Ceiba trees proudly spreading their shady branches high above a pasture or agricultural field, a relict of the great forests that once were there. Ceiba trees are self-compatible, meaning they can self-pollinate to produce viable seeds.

we board the bus headed for the boarder.

manuel is amazing. he's a perfect tour guide. he's native to guatemala, he has friends everywhere, he knows the culture, the people, and the history. i don't know many americans who know our history as well as he knows his. oh yeah, and on occasion he performs miracles that i have found usually involve sliding a few bills to whomever stands at the gate.

example:

he orchestrated a border crossing for a bus of 47 people~ in less than 30 minutes.

this includes disembarking, passports, mandatory bus fumigation and quick search, a potty break (for most of us), and boarding the bus. he has mastered the art of leaving a tip.

after a drive we walk off the bus and into a clearing. chickens ran around, a small house was nearby, and a man outside working on something. manuel went and paid our admission. we walked over to looked at a stone (stela 67) depicting a journey on the sea, heading east. pretty cool. this lone stone is surrounded by low (8' tall) temple looking structures, 3 steps high. dad says this stone was moved from its original spot, probably from across the street. (i laugh to myself as i imagine those that built these temples. when they finished, they weren't quite right. something was missing. one of the builders said, 'hold on a second, i know just what this needs.' and they went across the street to steal stela 67.

now we head across the street to see what we came for.

one piece of land- 3 possible stories, all intwined, all different time periods.

those that were older took a taxi. the rest of us walked down the dirt road. we passed small houses here and there. there may have been ten houses, max. we passed pigs, chickens, a couple dogs, and birds in the trees. it was mostly green jungle. upon further investigation, you could start to pick things out. here was a grove of cocoa trees. over there is a garden of corn, beans, and squash. corn is everywhere. we came upon a house (muted red in color) with laundry on the line and cocoa beans spread on the porch, drying in the sun. one house (light aqua blue) had the radio on quite loud. there were 4 men working in the crops outside.

we approached the clearing. gar was up ahead, with mom. i had fallen behind (garrett's ramming speed) because of my picture taking. (he later told me i'd missed an iguana! it rested on 'the tree of life' stone (stela 5) when he and mom walked up. it split when it saw them approach.) what a cool place. i was impressed, this was a good sized clearing. mounds (un excavated ruins) were all over.

dad told us about the tree of life stone as we stood around it. the stone is carved into a picture that tells a story. this stone has in the center a tree, then a rod, water, 12 roots, a man writing a story, another man teaching. cool stuff.

more stones were sprinkled around the perimeter of the grounds, each one shaded by a corrugated tin roof. each told their part of the story. deep respect abounded here. this place was a commemorative monument to a person of significance. a king? a prophet? the father of a nation?

have you heard the mayan story of quetzalcoatl, the white god that descended from the clouds and visited the people? my eyes wandered to the highest 'hill' or temple. the weather was hot and humid, but the clearing was serene. the trees seemed to be talking with the grass. if we would stop to listen, could they tell us of a figure that indeed connected the terrestrial world to the spirit world above providing a connection to the heavens? would they tell us of a day when earth's chaos stopped and there was peace? and there was light.

i looked near the middle of the clearing. there a ceiba tree stood tall and majestic. it offered rest and shade to those who sat in the benches built in its buttress roots. some say the central figure of the tree of life stone is represented by the ceiba tree. i don't wonder why.

it was a slow- paced quiet day, offering plenty of time to reflect. from the peacock to the ceiba tree, the tree of life stone and the temple plaza, it was a day filled with regal figures. here, i couldn't help but feel i was surrounded by greatness. i too felt a profound respect for those that have gone on before me, and for their contributions to their world that has turned into my world.