All the platforms combined to reach up about a hundred and twenty feet, all the way up to the top of the trees! No wonder why it’s called a canopy tour, because we were on the top level of the rainforest! It’s pretty much the same as being on the top of the circus or party tents, which are also called canopies. I must admit that my heart was beating so wildly at this moment. The first guide said adios and screamed all the way from the first platform. Whoa! I looked at Alvaro and David. They simply smiled at me. We went along with the guide, and we got the feeling of just preparing for the next wild long run.

I decided to film myself while on the ride. It was so out of control! We kept on arriving to every platform. David and Alvaro couldn’t stop laughing at me. We kept on going on the ride, and saw the top of the rainforest. It was an amazing view, a very sweeping view. One of the guides heard monkeys howling at us. It made me think they were kind of cheering for us. We were thrilled to see them, because it also was like as they were going from platform to platform, just like us. After the tour, we headed back to the vehicle. We saw two young and female Mayans trying to sell us coconuts. David and Alvaro ordered a couple. The girls used a knife to make a hole in the shell and then gave the coconuts over without straws. They said to just drink from the holes. The coconut milk tasted really good, just like they said!

We got on the small road to Flores. The guide remembered my special request for meeting at least one Deaf person in the area, so he pulled over and asked a local female Mayan. She pointed down the road and said about a few meters. I was incredibly excited about the chance to meet another Deaf person here in Guatemala. We went on down and then pulled over alongside the road. There was a small wooden house with a bench, along with a tree growing on top of a wooden post, making for a nice shady area like a bus stop. A girl and boy walked over to us. The girl spoke to Alvaro, saying the boy is Deaf. I learned that they are twins, and both 12 years old too. We watched the girl speak in home-made sign language to him. It was heart-breaking to see because he doesn’t know how to use Guatemalan sign language.

Alvaro asked her about the lack of Guatemalan sign language, and she answered that they were unable to get him into a Deaf school or find a Deaf adult to teach him. I tried to gesture with him but he only smiled at me. He could speak some basic Spanish words, such as mom, dad, school, and other important words. I told the girl to try to teach him more language. She nodded yes to me, with a beautiful smile. Alvaro spoke Spanish to her for me. We waved good-bye to them and walked away. In my mind, I was saying WOW. I hope that the three of us had a good impact on him, hoping something will happen for him as he grows up.

Then it was back on the road, to the famous cave of Aktun Kan, with its bizarre formations that vaguely resemble animals, along with its’ stalactites stalagmites and bats. The guide and I had flashlights at the ready, harkening back to my Boy Scout days, and the motto “Be Prepared.” Alvaro used his cell phone since it had one small LED light. David only had a match. We walked on into the cavern, on its five kilometers-long path. At one point, we had to do a short crawl on our hands and knees. Many of the bats kept flying right past us. I saw a bat clawing away at the wall just a few feet away from me. I was so anxious right there, but I had David take a picture of me with the bat. He snapped the picture, but said that the bat flew away. I looked around, and sure enough, the bat wasn’t there anymore. Then I looked back to David and felt a big drop land on my shoulders. I was so freaked out and screamed, which scared David. Oh, no! It was only a big water drop from the top of the cavern. We had a good laugh and continued on deeper into the cave.

It was amazing to see the formation of the cavern, and we could make out thousands of pictures on the walls. Then it was time for us to head back out of the cave, and hit the road once again. We drove through the Santa Elena street market. The market itself was very crowded, but not so pretty. Many residents always avoid that part and go straight to the island of Flores. It’s a natural island on Lake Peten Itza, with only 5,000 people on it. It was great and beautiful to see, strolling around the island within 15 minutes. I felt like being in India because of the many rickshaws. Guatemalans actually brought them over from India due to its cost-efficiency and easy use around the small towns or villages. We had a perfect late lunch before hopping onto a 18 passenger plane from Santa Elena Airport back to Guatemala City Airport.

It was a scary ride! We were scared when the plane flew through the thick clouds. It was very bumpy, and we could feel the plane yawing left to right. We landed at the airport safely, acknowledging that flying was better anyway than taking the 12 to 14 hour long drive from Flores. We could see the airport’s lighted runaways from the cockpit. It was a thrilling sight for us to witness the plane coming into the airport. It was now time for me to end my assignments in Guatemala. I truly appreciate Alvaro for his help and company during my time here in Guatemala. It’s very worth it to visit this country, and whenever you’re here, please do visit the Deaf people here. My heart is definitely going out to the Deaf people we met here! I will hopefully come back here when the coffee beans are ready to be harvested. I also have to thank Sorenson Communications for their great support in making this trip happen. People are already looking forward to the video clips coming online shortly. Hasta Luego, Guatemala!

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When we landed and exited the plane, I got ambushed by a whole herd of taxi drivers and tour operators. I had to look around for my own taxi driver, and found him holding up a small card with my name “Joel Barish” on it. We also picked up our own guide, and left for Tikal National Park. On the way to Tikal, I noticed many signs along the road cautioning us about animals such as jaguars, snakes, coatis, and operalla turkeys. Seeing those signs, it made me feel like as if I was in the jungle for real. We arrived and found out that our rooms were not ready, so we decided to take an early lunch before starting our long journey into Tikal. After lunch, we started our tour. Our tour guide was pretty clever by using my tripod to demonstrate some things on the map of Tikal. I saw a sign warning about alligators nearby, but I didn’t think it was real. However, David caught an alligator near me, about two feet away! Now I definitely trust the signs. The tour guide also saw a three-inch-long poisonous snake. It looked like a newborn.

Being in the jungle was a surreal feeling. We couldn’t hear anything, because of course we’re Deaf. The guide listened out for us, pointing sources of different sounds, including some spider monkeys jumping from tree to tree. It was an awesome view! David kept looking up, afraid of the monkeys possibly throwing some coconuts at us. We were getting close, and kept on through the jungle. Then Temple IV came into view, and we began climbing the 200 steps up to the top. It was a long walk up! We finally arrived at the top, and the view was breathtaking! From there, the other three temples, I, II, III, were located, along with vast swathes of rainforest. Parts of Tikal, such as Temple IV, are fighting an ongoing battle against the encroaching jungle today.

The tour continued on to the other temples. We went to Temple V, which was very fascinating, and we had to climb up on some very steep wooden stairs mainly because the temple stairs weren’t safe to climb due to age. They’re also being restored by the park staff now. I finally reached the top of Temple II, and could see Temple I in front of me! We took a perfect picture of us and the view. After completing the tour, I thought about how amazing it was to see how they built all of this from scratch! It was definitely a rewarding tour for me. I saw so many animals roaming around freely, an interesting sight since we mostly tend to see them in zoos. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see some jaguars and pumas, but my guide did see a jaguar ten feet away from us.

We went back to our hotel and checked ourselves in. David decided to go swim in the pool, while I took a quick shower and freshened up. We all dressed up in comfortable clothes and went to the restaurant called “Jungle Inn.” The food was very delicious, and as we ate there was a full moon above us! The moon gave us great light as we walked back to our hotel. There was no streetlights along the route we took back. When hearing guests visit here, they have to buy ear plugs because of all the howling by animals during the night. I joked to a hearing guest that we will sleep well tonight because of our Deafness! We got things set for another Tikal adventure tomorrow, and went to sleep. Buenas Noches!

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Rocio found a tree with some red cherries, and pulled out a cherry for me. I squeezed it, and found a bean coming out of the outer skin layer. The bean’s interior actually has two skins; parchment and a silver skin. I put it into my mouth, and it tasted so sweet. She explained to me that they need to stop the beans from developing more fermentation by going through several washes before being put out on the brick floor for the sun to dry out. Each of the coffee trees can be harvested up to 8 pounds’ worth, but around 1 to 1.5 pounds are usually exported to the world as top quality Arabic beans.  The rest of the beans could become robust beans, bound for instant coffee or the local market. 85% of the estate’s coffee beans usually goes out to the United States, Japan, Europe, and Belize.

I was like, oh, no! You’re drinking low quality coffee at your own home! She laughed, and said it’s pretty common everywhere in the world for those who farm the coffee beans to wind up with the coffee they have. And just like Rolando’s farm, Starbucks is also Filadelfia’s best customer.  All the coffee farms make sure all their beans are going to earn a profit, not just being idle since they only harvest once a year. After the tour, I felt wonderful and happy to have had the chance to see the farm, because I actually used to own a coffee shop right after I graduated from Gallaudet University. Having seen the farms while here in Guatemala, I really appreciate the opportunity to have coffee from such fine farms like these, and I just have a better appreciation for coffee overall after today. Indulging in my love for coffee once more, I grabbed another cup of coffee for the drive down to Guatemala City.

After arriving in Guatemala City, we went to meet a Deaf Guatemalan model, Anny. She is one very gorgeous and elegant model! I was very impressed with her assertive facial expressions, and her skill in using Guatemalan sign language. She also has some painting talent! Anny never went to modeling school, but judging from what I saw, she clearly has a natural ability for modeling. Even some of the companies she models for can’t believe she’s Deaf. Anny said that she faced a lot of discrimination growing up as a model, and still does today, but she refuses to give up her modeling career. Celco, a local painting company, usually calls on her to be a model for them, for example.

It was thrilling for me to see her on the billboards, just like other models. Hearing people certainly won’t realize that Anny is Deaf just by looking at the boards, because we the Deaf are invisible and seemingly normal-looking without our hearing aids. We definitely can do anything except hear! She also appeared in some of the regional magazines, too. Anny hopes to bring more Deaf young models here because Guatemala doesn’t really have much in the way of opportunities for Deaf people. I believe she certainly could change history in Guatemala; time will tell. In the meanwhile, I’m definitely rooting for her to be a successful icon for Deaf Guatemalans!

After meeting with Anny, it turned out that more of the Deaf locals wanted to meet me at the mall. So we came down to the mall, and chatted with them about the United States and Guatemala. Interestingly enough, unlike me or others in terms of pagers, they depend heavily on their cell phones for the text ability. They have to pay for prepaid cards every week, depending on how much they use their text. It’s too expensive for them to purchase Blackberry pagers here. It would probably take half of their monthly salaries for pager services, paid per month. Some of the locals mentioned that they had traveled to the States while the others have been dreaming of the chance to do so.

The big problem here is paying the US embassy here $100 for the interview to get the visa. If they didn’t get the interview, they wouldn’t be refunded by the embassy. Moving on, the locals said they couldn’t believe that there are so many Deaf people around the world when they come to check www.deafnation.com, speaking especially of my travels, and the finding of Deaf people in the remote countryside. They were so excited to have the honor of DeafNation doing the first of many stories on Latin America in Guatemala. Then we said our goodbyes, and checked in at the hotel by the airport. Now it was finally time for me to enter the real Mayan world, at Tikal!

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In Guatemala, it’s also known as a “chicken bus,” mainly because of the wailing children, clucking chickens, and the many passengers. It’s three riders to each seat, with many more also standing in the aisle. A camioneta will stop just about anywhere alongside the road, and as the joke goes, a “chicken” bus can never be full. Each rider has to pay 75 cents per hour. I drove pretty fast through the small towns, but the bus still kept coming on and passing me by. I didn’t keep up with the bus, because I definitely didn’t want to race with that loco bus driver! Another bus passed me by on the zig-zagging roads, but I kept my speed preferring to make it safely to Chichicastenango.

We finally arrived, after the hectic drive down, in Chichicastenango, which is home to the most famous market in the entire Mayan region, always coming to life in a maelstrom of furious commerce without fail. It’s regarded as the best place to buy tipica textiles and handicrafts, made by Mayans. You have to be well-honed in your haggling skills otherwise you’ll part with more of your money than you wanted to. You just need to make reasonable offers to the different vendors. I felt like a NBA player, being in the market with Mayans who are shorter than me. I certainly came to empathize with the NBA players, right there. Walking down the street, I had goosebumps when I saw many of the Mayans sitting on the steps of a famed regional church. It was a beautiful sight.

Then it was back into the maze of vendors, once again, as we viewed the many flowers, vegetables, fruits, crafts, and clothes for sale. They even sold packs of wood/sticks from the mountains for locals who don’t have gas stoves. I stopped by a vending spot to buy some papaya from a Mayan, and I couldn’t resist eating it right then and there. It was delicious, and a great source of vitamin for the morning. I pressed on in the packed street, and saw 3 Mayans making small tortillas. It was a thrilling sight; they were making three different kinds of corn tortillas: black, yellow and white. Each of them tasted incredibly different, and was so fresh and hot. It would have been perfect if there had been some avocado on them.

One vendor had countless numbers of Mayan masks. I got a great deal on them because David, my media crewmember, and I brought 3 masks plus one moon chime. It is a definite must to visit that market if you are in Guatemala. You definitely could get a real feeling of Mayan culture and community from that market. We went looking for Deaf Mayans in the area, but failed to find some. I asked around the market, and one Mayan said that he knew some but many of their elders always hid their Deaf relatives, because of their lack of education. I had to move on with the rest of my day.

We drove another two hours, this time back to Antigua. The first place we stopped by was one of the most famous coffee estates, Filadelfia Coffee Resort & Spa, in the Antiguan region. It was a different world, entering the estate. There was strong security, and the estate was gorgeous. It comprises over 750 acres of coffee and ecological reserves, including 20 hotel rooms. Unfortunately, the harvesting period hadn’t begun there yet. I reserved a coffee tour tomorrow so I could see the coffee-production process, where they harvest the beans, wash them, clean, roast and ship the bags all in one location. It certainly felt and looked different from Rolando’s farm in Huehue.

Alvaro wanted to take me and David into the center of Antigua one more time before we leave for Guatemala City tomorrow. We stopped by a French crepe restaurant, where we had our dessert for the evening. However, something was missing. Coffee! We walked around the old center of Antigua. It was such a beautiful evening, capped off by some great fireworks. We found a coffee shop, and I saw the same barista there, from five days ago. He smiled at me. I saw that their coffee of the day was from Huehue, and mentioned to him that we had been there a few days ago. The roads were wild, and the mountains were unbelievable! He laughed and agreed with me. I felt great, having had the chance to think of Rolando’s coffee farm again. What a coincidence! There was a small parade marching past us, a perfect way to end the night and stay in Antigua.

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He works so hard every day, doing about 12 to 14 hours of work a day, and then brings his material on Fridays and Saturdays to different suppliers and customers. Jom had me put on one of his colorful cortes. It was for women only, but he just wanted me to experience what it’s like wearing a corte. Meeting his wife was an exciting moment because I had my mind opened to other cultures. She had walked to the small market by her home and surprised my crew and me with some bottled waters and crackers that they couldn’t even afford. It was a moment of great hospitality! I purchased some sheets from them, to help recognize their hard work. After leaving their home, I wondered why Jom wasn’t wearing any real Mayan clothes. He said that other people could kill him, even other male Mayans, due to their jealousy about other successful Mayans doing their craft. It left me concerned about their valuable culture, and how it would hold up in the future.

Once again, we drove through Quetzaltenango, seeing many new buildings mixed in with old markets. I saw many Mayans selling their wares along with common vendors, and it was a fascinating sight. We saw a new mall, and decided to stop by for some food, at Taco Bell. It was just for fun because Taco Bell’s menu is definitely not native to Guatemala. It was a fun lunch! The mall had everything that American-style malls have, and it was a good thing to see. I hope that the new generation of Guatemalans and their government will help preserve the Mayan race and their culture because considering the world as it is now, we can’t afford to lose more chapters in the history of our planet.

We then returned to Cantel to meet up with Sam’s family. Sandra asked me to join her in cooking some special Guatemalan cuisine. I couldn’t say no to that offer! We made some Jocon and Caldo de res. Flor, Sandra’s daughter, made the dessert – tres leches cake. All of us had a good laugh and great conversation during the meal. It was interesting to learn about Flor’s job as interpreter. Deaf Guatemalans always pay their interpreters for job interviews, hospital visits, work meetings, and other events. I asked her about the cost because interpreters tend to be a little pricey, and because many Guatemalans would be unlikely to afford their services. Flor said that the client usually negotiates the rates with the interpreter before the point of satisfaction is reached. The rates usually fall in the range of $3USD to $8USD per hour. She was amazed by the fact that we Americans don’t really pay for those services except for private occasions. Flor was also impressed by the relay services back home in America. We then had a discussion about Sorenson Epansol and its tri-language capabilities. She hoped that the Guatemalan government will help improve the standard of living for Deaf people in the country. It was a great end to the evening with them, having had good food and good discussions!

I definitely will miss them tomorrow when I leave in the morning at around 6 AM, for the next assignment. I greatly appreciated their hospitality and their taking excellent care of me, David, and Alvaro. I also extended my thanks to Marco who was more than willing to join us for the past three days here. Buenos Noches!

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There were a lot of people going through the two doors non-stop, which led me to stand by the entrance for 5 minutes, and to me it felt like a thousand people had just walked by in an instant. It was fun to see different people going by such as the Mayan females carrying the baskets on their heads, without hands. There were so many vendors selling chicken and meat, I couldn’t believe. It looked delicious, too. I ran into a Deaf guy who had been running his vending space in the market for the last forty years, while also selling shoes for the other owner who was leasing his space. It was surreal seeing him discuss how he sat on the same chair for years and years meeting different people every day. He was a truly lucky man, having the chance to earn two incomes in one sitting. The average Guatemalan income goes for about 2,000 quetzals, which equals $265USD per month. Interestingly enough, he said that he hadn’t met any foreigners until today, despite being in the same spot for the last forty years! He mentioned that he knew another Deaf guy, from Chiantla, who’d be willing to guide us to meet Rolando, the Deaf coffee worker.

We followed him on his motorcycle through the maze of Huehuetenango, to meet Rolando. It turned out at the start that he wasn’t there, so his sister used her pager to text him to show up. He showed up within 10 minutes and said that an hour’s worth of driving would take us to the coffee farm, so we quickly embarked on the drive in our cars. The drive was really bumpy, and the winds made the car rattle a little bit. And so despite having driven for just over an hour, Rolando said it would be a little further before we arrived at the farm. While on the drive, I took the opportunity to see the mountain range from the car. It was a gorgeous sight!

Then he said to stop, and then turn left just before the bridge. I was thrilled to see the directions being handed down, because I wanted to get out of the car, but it turned out to be false hope. We actually still had to go up the mountainside. An unpaved and dirty road lay ahead of us, and we had to navigate the treacherous route using the 4×4 gear. It was certainly a nerve-wracking ride up, because the road was rather steep just being above the river at the bottom. Coming off the road, we finally arrived at a small town, going by the name of La Libertad. Rolando’s sister and grandmother were there, and they had asked a man to take us down to the coffee farm because the main path to the farm was more dangerous than the one we had just come off. Once again, we went down an incredibly steep road to the farm. Getting out, I felt goosebumps on my body as I walked toward one of the coffee trees. I was finally at the coffee farm.

Rolando explained that the coffee beans are supposed to be harvested in a few weeks, during December and January.  That’s usually when the rainy season occurs, helping the harvest. The view of the mountains from here was awesome!  I asked him about the other side of the mountain, and whether coffee could be grown there or not. He said that side couldn’t handle coffee production, since the beans needed good sunlight, perfect soil, and excellent overall conditions. Rolando gave me some tidbits about his family and the farm, noting how long the family had the farm, and how big it was. The farm covers almost 2,000 acres, and had to hire a man to oversee the acres by himself. The hired hand makes sure that nobody steals the coffee beans during growing season. Rolando himself uses his horse to watch over the 85 coffee bean pickers during harvesting season, and the beans the pickers get usually goes overseas to major companies, companies such as Starbucks. So the next time you go to Starbucks and see a bag of coffee beans from Huehue, make sure to remember that Rolando’s family produced the beans!

He gave me a bag of green coffee beans to take home and roast for myself. It was the best gift I’ve had in a long time while on the road, since I’m a big coffee fan. I definitely had a greater appreciation for the coffee production process, because it’s certainly a tough job to do! Since there aren’t any railroads in the region to ship the beans out, they have to use trucks to ferry them down, and they have to go on dangerous roads to do that. Coming up here on these roads was worth it for me and my crew because I got to see the coffee farm, and learned a whole new wealth of information. We hit the road again, back to Xela, and arrived at 9 PM. Sandra provided us a great dinner to cap the night off before the next day’s worth of adventures began. Buenos Noche!

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Resuming the drive, it took us around 4 hours to drive to Cuatro Caminos, a major intersection on the Inter-American highway outside Quetzaltenango. That was where we met Jose Sam, another Deaf Guatemalan. He’d had to ride on the bus from his hometown, Cantel, to the intersection for an hour so he could meet us. We got in the car and drove about 15 minutes down to Cantel. Certainly a big difference in our traveling! I got to meet his family – Sandra, his wife, and Flor, his daughter. Sandra is Deaf, and teaches at a Deaf school near her home. Flor is a CODA, and is regarded as the best interpreter in the area.

Sandra was excited for the chance to introduce me to a trio of Deaf Mayan sisters around the corner from her home. Their family has 10 sisters and 1 brother in total, and the girls are the three deaf siblings in the family. I had the opportunity to join them in their harvesting of the corn field they own, where they do their own crops along with their own livestock. Elvia, the oldest in the family, explained all about guipil (Mayan traditional dress), and its production. The family makes good money off the guipil. Hilda, the second oldest sister, showed me their livestock, and mentioned that the family, as a tradition, always buys a piglet in June and raises it until a day before Christmas, when they kill it and have it for their big family feast.

They also raised chickens and chicks, and one big chicken can feed a family of 12. She gave me a fresh maize tamale, wrapped in green corn husks which helps preserve the flavor of the corn. It was the best tamale I ever had! Noelia, the third eldest sister, discussed her experience as a street beggar, and how Noelia’s grandmother made her stop begging and use her talent for making clothes. She listened to her grandmother, and now she has success with the clothes she makes with her two other Deaf sisters.

Sandra wanted to take us to her school, a Deaf school, so I could see for myself. I was so thrilled for the chance, as it is only natural for visiting Deaf people to want to see the local Deaf schools! I was very impressed with what I saw – clean classrooms, decorations, books, pictures, desks and so on. She said that the school currently had 135 Deaf students, ranging from Kindergarten to 6th Grade, and included an early childhood program. I asked about the 7-12 grades, but it turned out that students in Junior High School (7-9 Grades) usually went to mainstream schools with some interpreting, and spent their last three years of pre-college education without any interpreting. I was stunned! Only 10% of the students manage to finish high school. Guatemala has 4 Deaf schools, none of them capable of having residence programs. Essentially, the old days of having students stay at the school were gone. My heart sank, feeling like as if it was the Titanic and it had just hit an iceberg. However, I was very impressed with Sandra, since she really puts hard work and effort into increasing the standard of education for Deaf Guatemalans.

I finally had a chance to meet a certain local Xela Deaf man, Marco De Leon. He went to the United States for college, and stayed for two years. Marco took me to meet some Deaf people, around whom I would do my assignments on. It was an interesting drive – we had to drive through the back roads of the city, on unpaved roads. I got to meet another Deaf Guatemalan who knew other Deaf people up in the mountains. I was excited – there would be more great assignments to come for me!

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Pacaya is an active volcano in Guatemala which first erupted approximately 23,000 years ago, and has erupted at least 23 times since the Spanish conquest of Guatemala. After being dormant for a century, it erupted violently in 1965 and has been erupting continuously since then. Much of its activity is Strombolian (low level volcanic eruptions), but occasional Plinian (eruptions that are similar to the one that killed Pliny the Elder in AD 79) eruptions also occur, sometimes showering the nearby city of Antigua with ash. We arrived at the entrance of the volcano park, with many local guides offering their services. We had to pay the entrance fee and then we started our drive up the mountain range, passing small villages in the same vicinity as Pazaya Volcano. I felt so spooked due to the scary sight of the volcano. I couldn’t imagine myself living on the same mountain range as the volcano!

We stopped our vehicle at the last village, and while stopped we saw many bulls walking by us along with some small kids playing soccer. The journey on foot to the volcano began with about 3 miles’ worth of walking. It felt like a fun and simple hike. I thought. I just absolutely couldn’t wait to see the volcano. We went through a jungle with very high hill, and were stunned by the sight of a small poisonous snake near us. Fortunately it appeared that that someone had broken its neck, killing the snake. The guide disposed of the snake in a safe place, and we walked away from it, glad that it hadn’t been alive when we came across it.

Finally some smoke was sighted from the top of the volcano. I couldn’t believe how close I was coming to the volcano, and how I would be able to see it up close. I even saw it when I had flown in earlier into Guatemala City Airport. At that point, the walk had become incredibly exhausting, walking uphill like as if it was at ninety degrees! We had to walk on an unpaved path, and then on the volcano’s soft lava rocks, like as if I was walking on snow. We came to what appeared to be the top of the mountain, but we had a good laugh when we realized it was only the side of the hill by the volcano. It was a surreal view, seeing volcanic ash on the ground and then lush, green fields on the other side.

Yet more hiking was needed, so we kept moving. The downhill slope was long, and a little steep. Our guide said to be careful, and so we went down the slope in a sort of skidding fashion. It was almost as if I was skiing with my hiking boots! Getting a sense of what volcanoes do, I saw an actual living plant on the slope, pretty much the only one. It was pretty sad to see that. We continued on to the next hill, leading to the volcano, and while on our way we saw some rocks coming down from the peak, and white smoke coming out. We also wondered if we were being crazy, trying to come face to face with the volcano, but the general enthusiasm of the group compelled us forward.

We passed by some lava walls, and did some climbing on them. The lava ash was only 8 months old! It was incredibly tough to walk on it, once again feeling like I was walking in some deep snow. I kept telling myself don’t give up, knowing that the peak was near. We saw some evidence of fresh lava ash, and the guide told us to wait while he checked the molten lava area nearby with his stick. It was about ten feet away from me, and I could feel the heat of the lava coming at me. The wind was blowing at us, making the heat feel unwanted and uncomfortable. We put some marshmallows on a stick as if we were camping, and held it out near the lava. It felt so hot underneath our shoes! There were some lava rocks, but we couldn’t touch them even though they had been cooling off for several months now.

The marshmallow caught on fire within a second, a sight I couldn’t believe with my own eyes. Then we saw some new lava breaking through a black hill, coming at us. 10 minutes on the volcano’s slope was enough for us. Our guide mentioned that the area (we were about 200 feet below the peak) was currently very dangerous due to falling lava rocks. Then more smoke came from the peak, and the lava started really flowing out, through the path. We were like, let’s go down! It was tough going, because of the instability of the lava rocks. It took us about 45 minutes to get down to our base location, while the trip up actually lasted around 3 hours, plus the 15 minutes spent taking video for my vlog. The whole experience was definitely worth the effort and danger!

From there, we drove back to Antigua to meet a famous local Deaf painter, Freddy de Leon. Both Alvaro and Freddy grew up in Antigua, and Freddy gave me a brief history of the city. Then we went out to see his artwork in the city. While on the tour, he mentioned how a couple from the United States hired him to paint as many pictures as possible on the walls and ceilings at their mansion, which had a big courtyard in the middle. It took him over eleven years to finish the work perfectly. The city was very beautiful, with its cobblestreets and old buildings which went alongside a famous courtyard with a water foundation built back in 1738. We did some walking around, and I saw so many people out and about, in a peaceful way, not like one of the big cities back home. Thank God!

Now it was time for dinner, so we stopped by a local Antigua store for some good local cuisine. We had small tortillas with steak, chicken, and sausage along with some fresh vegetables. After dinner concluded, it was then time to say Buenos Noche and prepare for our long drive to Quetzaltenago the next day.

Get connected with Sorenson VRS^® for easy to use features and free services.  Sorenson provides access to industry-leading E911 services.  Sorenson has handled more 911 emergency calls than all other IP providers combined.  Learn more at www.sorensonvrs.com.

I decided to check the tourism office for Guatemala, and other agencies.  They preferred to speak Spanish rather than English, which was a very diverse experience for me.  I had heard about Spanish VRS, and I always thought that I had to use Spanish sign language with an interpreter.  So I tried Sorenson Español VRS, and wound up being surprised that I could use my ASL while the interpreter spoke Spanish. The hearing people to whom I spoke were shocked that I spoke beautiful Spanish (in ASL), and also by my written English (via email).  I explained the concept of VRS to them, and we had a good conversation.  From there, it was only a matter of getting everything ready for my trip to Guatemala. Gustavo introduced me to Alvaro de Leon, who would be a guide of sorts for me while in the country.  Thanks to modern technology, we used a webcam to discuss the plans.  And so with everything set, I took my long flight.

David Letkiewicz tagged along with me as my media crew, like he did with me in Greenland.  David had to adjust to the sheer heat of the country, recalling the memory of how cold it was in Greenland. We arrived in Guatemala City to a gorgeous view, seeing many small houses alongside the mountains.  Alvaro was there outside of the airport to greet us, and picked up the rental SUV for our assignment.  He signed “Guatemala” with the flag, in his greeting.  We grabbed a chance to stop by the Guatemala Tourism Office (www.visitguatemala.com), and do some media paperwork so we could go about the country with ease, especially Tikal Park.  They were very excited about us bringing some sign language media down here, while at the same time bringing some more new Deaf experiences to our DeafNation viewers.

While there, I learned that Guatemala City is growing incredibly fast with over 1.2 million people, and I could tell from the busy scenery out there.  There were so many people coming out from the mountains wearing guipils, a traditional form of Mayan dress, along with common clothes. Moving around the city, I soon found there that was a similarity between the city and America: the traffic was terrible, just like Los Angeles! A sure sign that this city is definitely getting bigger.

We stopped by a shopping mall to meet Gustavo’s sister, Brenda.  I was stunned seeing an upscale shopping center in this city; I didn’t expect to see one around here.  Dinnertime came around, so we grabbed a good dinner and had a great discussion about Deaf people living in Guatemala.  I was so restless, and very excited to bring many great experiences to you through my video reports plus the online daily blog.  We saw the sun going down, and began driving to Antigua, where Alvaro lives.

When we arrived in Antigua, I was napping and felt the car rumbling. It woke me up right away, thinking something was wrong. It turned out to be a cobble street, in the heart of Antigua! I felt very vigorous, so glad to be out here in the real Guatemala, away from the urban cities. It was very dark as we drove through the down, but we got a chance to see the famous Arco de Santa Catalina.  With night upon us, we finally arrived at Alvaro’s home, and met his family. They welcomed us like as if we were really coming to our own homes.  It was time for bed, but I couldn’t help but be very ready and excited for our real adventures to start tomorrow, beginning with the most active volcano in the world. Buenos Noches (means Good Night in Spanish)!

Get connected with Sorenson VRS^® for easy to use features and free services.  Sorenson provides access to industry-leading E911 services.  Sorenson has handled more 911 emergency calls than all other IP providers combined.  Learn more at www.sorensonvrs.com.

Tourists climb II to reach the Temple of the Masks. The site’s pyramids, plazas, temples, and palaces were once an important center of Mayan civilization. (Photograph by David Hiser/Getty Images)

Get connected with Sorenson VRS^® for easy to use features and free services.  Sorenson provides access to industry-leading E911 services.  Sorenson has handled more 911 emergency calls than all other IP providers combined.  Learn more at www.sorensonvrs.com.