To Bee or Not To Bee – where is the Buzz?
So, that wrinkly old arm on the upper part of the picture – that be yours truly. That small spot you see on my hand – that be a bee. In fact, at one point there were a few of them. The shocker is that I am not jumping up and down.
You know why? I had just learnt from my new friend (lower part of the picture) at the apiary in San Juan that Mayan bees do not have stings. Woo hoo!!
I did ask him about his indigenous lineage at first to make sure he knew what he is talking about.
That said, I certainly learnt a thing or two from this gentleman! As my old friend Dev Ghoshal would say – completely inconsequential data – it is not like the next time I see a bee I am going to establish its MAyan heritage thru 23andBee or something like that – but still, it feels good to learn new things!
When was the last time I was in a tuk-tuk?
My ride is here!!
William arranged for a “tuk tuk” to take me around San Juan! A “bahajh” as he called it. The driver – Gabriel – could not have finished high school. I asked him which grade he is in. He said he is 19 years old. I told him I don’t buy a word of it. So, he showed me his license. This April 1st is his 20th birthday!!
Also, found out what this “bahajh” is all about. It is a Bajaj auto rickshaw from India! The town is filled with bright red Bajaj auto rickshaws all over. Later, I found out that many of the motorbikes here are Bajaj Pulsars. In fact, William told me how Mahindra and Mahindra has started taking market share away from Toyota in truck segment.
Indian automobile industry seems to be doing very well here.
Learnt a local custom
We reached San Juan
A closer view of Volcan San Pedro
The view on the south side of the lake
The view on the north side of the lake
Let’s get a boat
Instead of sitting by the lake, we decided to get in the lake. In fact, the ever resourceful William called his friend over to take us to San Juan. It would have taken us over two hours by road. We just cut across the water in 25 minutes. A distance of about 15 km. I am told the towns around Lake Atitlan are all named after the 12 Apostles. Our target is San Juan.
We had the boat all to ourselves!!