On Friday, we kind cut out of school early (30 minutes) to sprint home, pack our bags and dash off to the bus station next to the main Xela market and get on a bus heading towards a lake town called San Pedro.

Six of us (Steph, Tony, Kathleen and two sisters named Dina and Talia and myself) met at the school where Dina and Talia's host couple gave us a ride to the bus station. This was FANTASTIC as this cross-town trip would have otherwise taken us a good 20 or 30 minutes, walking. All was well and fine until we hit the speed bumps. With a total of eight people and luggage in a five-seater car, it was no surprise -- yet still a bloody surprise altogether -- when we bottomed out going over a speed hump, almost getting completely stuck with the car scraping its undercarriage rather roughly as the car kind of teetered on the bump for a couple of seconds. So, in an astounding demonstration of class, suaveness and subtlety, those of us in the back seat piled out and ran, flailing, up the hill past the two remaining speedbumps, and met our "chauffeurs" at the top of the hill where we merrily hopped back in and continued our trip. There, we again filed out of the vehicle, clown-car style to music provided by a market speaker store, which was appropriately blaring the song lyrics, "Americano! Americano!" We bring the spectacle.

Finally, we got on a bus, sat, got off the bus, booked it onto another bus as it was leaving and going to what we thought was the same destination but sooner, got two minutes down the road, discovered it was the wrong bus and hurried back to our other bus where we were greeted and healthily mocked by our original bus' driver. "Otra vez?" Har har.

Two hours later, we were off the bus and on a 30-minute boat ride through the lake and eventually ended our voyage in San Pedro, off of Lake Atitlan, where we remain at present. We're paying the equivalent of about $4.50 per person, per night at a bare-bones but comfy "hotel" with private baths and hot water. As our rooms are on the second floor, we also have a great view of the beautiful lake, which we can take in from our beds if we leave the door open or from one of the hammocks hanging on our level's balcony. Life is good0. And cheap.

The community here is a little hippy haven. Within our first 45 minutes in San Pedro, we were offered a variety of drugs or drug runs by a spectrum of strangers, and saw about five white people or tourists for every one Guatemalan. Astounding. Dreadlocks are like the national flag here, and after dark, frequenting any bar will run you the risk of leaving with a contact high.

But beside these more depressing or irritating aspects, the lake is freaking beautiful. The streets are hilly and cobblestoned; the taxis are pickups, three-wheelers (a picture to come) or motorcycles and the food ranges from Guatemalan fare (black beans, chicken, tortillas, etc.) to falafel and pizza. The weather here is also a lot warmer and has fewer mood swings than the temperatures in Xela where it can go into the 50s at night and into the mid-70s during the day. Here, the sun shines into a pleasant mid- to upper-70s with a beautiful lilting breeze. Prices here are also a little steeper because of the massive innundation of tourists. For example, Internet here is about three to five Quetzals in Xela, but 7 to 10 here. (Note: there are about 6.5 or 7 Quetzals to the dollar.)

Today, after a breakfast of omelettes, beans, tortillas and tea, peppered with cannon fire -- I know, we didn't see that one coming either, but apparently a festival is going on or is about to start -- we journied into the back streets and walked through the open-air market, which sold old clothes, toiletries, produce, CDs and trinkets at original prices probably tripled for tourists, but 100 percent negotiable.

We also went into tiendas (stores) that sold traditional Mayan fabrics -- as Western fashions are sparse here for women -- as well as small art shops and browsed the jewelry selections displayed by stationary vendors with tables and the cloth selections of women carrying their products on their heads, speaking English and advertising their (high) original prices in dollars.

Tomorrow, we're planning on going to Chichicastenango -- which the Lonely Planet guide says boasts one of the biggest markets of its kind -- and we'll return to Xela tomorrow and be ready to return to classes by Monday!