A Day off Campus

Our day off campus yesterday was great! We started out with a cold cereal breakfast, and everyone was ready to go and the bus was even here waiting for us at about 8 am. We had discussed doing some singing on the bus, but we were all enthralled with the view as we were taken on the scenic route to Antigua. Our first stop was a scenic overlook with a view of one of the volcanoes. We were blessed to actually be able to see the top of it, as it is usually shrouded in mist. The next stop was at a cross that is a monument on a hillside overlooking Antigua. Once we arrived in Antigua, our first stop was at the bank to exchange currency. That took much longer than expected (we though we were now on Guatemala time - but even Tony said it took a long time), so by that time we were finished it was lunch time. At that point, our group split and headed in different directions. Bob, Jared, Grace, Lauren, Max and Mary decided to do a volcano tour, so rented horses to go up, then walked back down. Of course, they stopped and got some marshmallows along the way so they could try roasting them on the hot lava. The lava wasn't hot enough to brown them at this point, but they did get pretty gooey according to the reports.

The other group that consisted of  Norm, me, Dawn, Erich, Hunter, Nan, Tony, Wayne, Sarah, Terry, and Ann opted not to do the volcano tour. Hunter was still not feeling great, but he was determined NOT to miss the trip to Antigua, and Nan got a visit from Montezuma, as well - but again, refused to miss out on our one day away. It turned out fine, as they both ate lightly and we allowed them plenty of opportunities to sit down and rest. We took Tony to his favorite restaurant for lunch as part of his birthday celebration, and enjoyed a delicious meal that included omelets or scrambled eggs, or sandwiches for some as well as some wonderful desserts. I tried an almond torte with a kind of whipped cream that is more tart than sweet and almond syrup. Tony had an American favorite - apple pie and ice cream. After that we did a short tour of a ruins of a basilica in downtown Antigua, then checked a few jade stores, but nobody found anything they couldn't live without. The highlight was following the scent of freshly baked cookies to a small bakery, for a little treat. They also offered smoothies. Ann and I tried the mango smoothies, and they was awesome! We concluded our afternoon by doing some shopping in the Artisans market, and even did some bargaining for the few items we bought. By that time was nearly time to return to the bus, so we headed back that way. Dinner was a late evening stop at Pollo Compoyo - a chicken restaurant similar to KFC in the U.S. that Bob particularly enjoys. At that point we were all ready for a good nights sleep, so went in search of our beds.