hypocrisy or dichotomy

it occurs to me that i don’t always know the difference.

for instance. last weekend when i was in flores i didn’t stay in the hostel partly because i didn’t want to be around tourists. not that i am against tourists, i just don’t want to be associated with them exclusively. i always feel a little guilty when i ‘m in a country and hanging out with people who aren’t from that country. which is partially silly since i wouldn’t feel guilty about hanging around with people who aren’t american in america.

even so…

instead i stayed by myself in a hotel and was a little lonely. on the flip side i made friends with a local guy who makes jewlery and was really patient as i struggled through spanish with him all day long.

i know full well i wouldn’t have met him, or at least spent that kind of time talking about family and culture and church and all sorts of things if i was with other people who spoke english. it is just easier.

at the same time, it is interesting to speak with other tourists not just because they have good travel information, but because it is a kind of sociology experiment. all these folks from all over the world in this one spot for similar or very different reasons. and even if you are from the same country, the chances that you would be speaking to each other and having that kind of interaction in your own country is small. that’s part of what makes it so intersting.

so why the guilt…

i’m headed to tikal tomorrow at the crack of dawn. old mayan ruins that are huge and extensive. i’m not excited but i am curious to see them. and i think i’ve decided that next weekend i’m headed to the coast for a few days…they have creole cooking and you all know how greedy i am.

i’ll keep you posted.

Tags: guatemala, travel