Copan and more

So the bus picked us up at 4:20 and we were the last on the shguttle which meant we got the crappy seats. Luckily I can fall asleep instantly in a car. So I just propped up my knees and slept for a few hours. It wasn´t a deep sleep but slepp none the less. At the border we had to get out and pay entrance and exit fees. It only took about 20 minutes but the building looked like baseball concession stands connected together. I have a picture of me with my passport on the way out (got the stamp even though it actually wasn´t needed-some weird rule-I got mine for free but some people had to pay if they wanted their passport stamped.). We arrived in Copan around 10:30, checked into the hotel and then headed to the ruins. We decided to go without a guide and it proved to be okay. The heiroglyphics were quite impressive and the intricacy with which they did ewverything. I found Tikal to be better though simply because of the gandeur of it. The ball court was neat and I made sure to get a picture for Tim. You could go under one of the temples (or something) for an extra 15 bucks but I wasn´t that interested. We also went to the museum and it was much better than Tikal´s. It is a must do. That night we just walked around the city and had dinner. I had a three course meal, two daquiri´s and a beer (well the beer was free from the waiter) for $11 ( the waiter may have given me a deal on the meal as well-the deal ended at 6: and we got there at 7:30 but he told me I could have it-who am I to pass up a good deal?). Our room was cheap too. It costs us $10 each. The beds were comfy, we had cable TV (watched Sex in the City), hot water, it was clean, a really good deal....except....the walls were paper thin. At three in the morning two cats decided it was their responsibility to increase the feline population! They were at it for an hour!!! It was so loud and disturbing to say the least!!! Just went to breakfast and walked around the market that morning (not a tourist one but the one the actual locals use), watched a medicine presentation in the central park, and bought a magnet for my mom and a plate for me. The shuttle home was much more comfortable and only took 5 hours. The landscape was beautiful but it was weird seeing all the boulders on the road from landslides caused by a storm on Saturday night.
Last night we went to Sky Cafe and it was really nice. I got some good pictures of Antigua that we did not get last year. We walked home in the dark for the first time. There will be a festival to celebrate the city on July 25th and every Sunday leading up their is some activity in the park, so we made the assumption all the muggers were there anyway. Plus we had our keys between our fingers and our elbows ready in case we needed to kick some arse!
I did much better in school today. I am attempting to speak more spanish so the first two hours should have been grammar but instead we talked about my book club and then birth control and sex ed in Guatemala (she brought it up not me and I asked only factual questions given the sensitivity of the Catholic church here) for the first hour. I told her about the book our club read about Margaret Sanger. She asks me all these questions about Texas and the United States and I am ashamed to say I hardly ever know the answer. She told me to look up some stuff on the internet so we would have more to talk about. Each day we have a 30 minute break. Well on Friday two teachers went to a cafe to get some coffee and passed a bar. Well, one of them spotted her son at the bar when he should have been in school. It was the talk of the school. I have two afternoon trips this week. More on those after they happen.
Back to my family....I cannot say enought good things about them. They have been one of the best parts of this experience. When we arrived back from Copan you would have thought we were the prodigal children returning home after being gone for years. Even the granmother next door heard we were home and had to come over. The family has always been friendly and open with us but last week two things happened that I did not write about yet that showed me the family is really letting us know them and taking us in as part of the family in little ways. Remember the twins...well I asked who was older and the next thing I know the whole family is telling us about a third baby (the twins were actually triplets) who died a month after they were born. Then they told stories of how they had to tie strings around the wrists to tell them aparts for a year or two. Plus sometimes one would get fed twice and the other not at all because the could keep things straight. Everyone was laughing. Then they pulled out a photograph to show us all three babies. That meant a lot to me. The dad met us later in the week and is more resrved with us. Well, I either sit by him or one of the twins at dinner. The other night I happened to be by him and I got the giggles (that annoying giggling I do where it is a silent laugh and I can´t stop for at least 10 minutes). Well, they all started laughing at me and he kept hold his hand up and telling me to stop and he would do it just at the time I was about to truly stop and of course it would start again. I knew he must feel more comfortable to be able to joke with me like that. We saw the oldest boy hanging out with his friends at the basketball courts and Patty went up to him adn he did not seem embarrassed (even though I am sure he was) and he took time to say hi and intridue us and ask us a few simple questions about our trip. Then today I saw the twins walking seperatley home from school and each waved and said hi and one (my favorite) even crossed the street to tell me hi. They are so sweet. The mom wishes I had brought more pictures. I only have two on my camera from before I left of my dad and of Tim.
I think that is about it for now...until tomorrow.