… this street goes straight down to the lake

Everything about Mayan culture is very colorful. And all these colors have meanings and significance. More about it later.

This is how an average street in San Juan looked today!

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!

Bombay, circa 1993?

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.

There were a few places where I saw green pine leaves strewn on the streets. I asked William about it. And I learnt that it is a local culture to say “Welcome!” No wonder I saw them right as we stepped off the jetty and also in front of the church!

You can see Volcan San Pedro and Volcan Atitlan