A Trip to the Forbidden City: Guatemala City that is

One thing that I have noticed about Guatemalans is that they confusingly refer to the capital, Guatemala City as just Guate. So when asking a Guatemalan where they are from and they say Guate, they don't mean that they are Guatemalan, they mean that they are from the capital. Also the buses that I see that go from Antigua to Guatemala City say Guate on them. Ok so this isn't really that confusing.

To put things lightly: we have a lot of rules and regulations as Peace Corps Volunteers in Guatemala. I have heard that we have more restrictions than any other PC country. This may just be chisme (gossip), but I'm pretty sure it's true. The travel restrictions we have are for our safety. Not all of Guatemala is safe for a tourist to be in. However, have no fear, there are many wonderful and safe places to visit here such as the beautiful Antigua and Lake Atitlán. One of the many places that we as Peace Corps Volunteers are not allowed to go to is Guatemala City, which is the capital of Guatemala and its largest city. Guatemala City is about an hours drive outside of Antigua. We can fly in and out of the airport in Guatemala City, but that's it. If you are planning on traveling to Guatemala - make your own decisions - don't let me scare you off. I know foreigners who happily work in Guatemala City.

Since we aren't allowed to visit Guatemala City, the Peace Corps planned a one day optional trip where we could experience a little bit of the city in a highly structured and chaperoned trip. I jumped at the opportunity. On this trip we visited: Popol Vuh Museums at the Francisco Marroquín University, the central square and government building, and an outdoor shopping center.

"Warriors" figurine 

Street art

One of our stops was the main Government building which is located on the central park. We were lucky enough to get a tour of the building.

Government building on the central plaza

Guatemalan flag in the central plaza as seen through open doors of the building.

Peace Statue with a fresh Rose

Who knew that there is a bare-bones Eiffel Tower in Guatemala?

We also took a trip to Cayalá which is one of the nicest open-air shopping malls that I have ever seen. It was like nothing else I have ever seen in Guatemala. It was like being back in America. It has Starbucks (which doesn't exist outside of Guatemala City), fancy restaurants, and good burger/beer joints. After being out of America for so long we were all pretty much in heaven. Don't get me wrong, I love Guatemala, but sometimes when you are away for that long a little taste of home is much appreciated. 

"Welcome to Starbucks Cayalá"

Cool sculpture