Water,Water Everywhere and only Beer to Drink

Late,late Saturday night, Feb 13th. I'll have to be honest. We goofed off today. Even though we had been expecting to drive to Escueler for a half day of teaching, the students had made an arrangement to take all of Saturday off. It's been a satisfying but tiring week so a day off came as an unexpected but welcome surprise.

After breakfast I pulled on a pair of decent walking shoes (I hadn't even bothered to pack my indecent ones). We set off on foot for Lago Suchitlan. The road leading there is paved with the ubiquitous cobblestones and it took perhaps half an hour to hike down the steep hill to the bottom. There we paid fifty cents each to enter a large covered pavilion housing a few small restaurants and a couple of craft/souvenir vendors. The place was virtually deserted. Some empty tour boats were pushed into the reeds lining the shore, a tiny truck had just dropped off some propane cylinders and, further along the water's edge, five or six fishermen standing knee deep in the lake. Their gear? - a small branch broken off a tree with a short length of string tied to the end. A far cry from the kazillion dollar bass boat, towering outboard and hi-tech fishing equipment you might see on The Fishing Channel, but these guys today looked like they were having a pretty good time.

It was a good workout climbing back up the hill in the heat of the late morning. Halfway up we encountered an English-speaking couple heading down. The guy, whom we've never met, addressed us as the three amigos. Perhaps it was a coincidence. Or maybe that's how the people in town actually refer to us.

The hotel pool seemed especially inviting after our sweaty walk and we relaxed in and out of the water for the rest of the morning. Hunger finally prompted us to walk into town to our favourite restaurant. I think I've mentioned it before - the daily lunch special, which is always delicious, comes to four bucks if you splurge for a beer with your meal. On our way there Tito rumbled up behind us in the pickup. Suchitoto is a very small town and you can't go far before you run into someone you know. (Tatiana only has to walk ten paces downtown before she’s giving some friend or acquaintance a big hug) Tito invited us to drop by the school later - not the trade school where we teach but rather the facility that includes the convent, class rooms, meeting halls and dormitory rooms. The Arts Centre.

After another terrific meal we walked the short distance to the school/convent. Fifty young students were there when we arrived. These are the kids that hope to become involved in the upcoming production of the play that Edward is working on. From what I have gathered, Suchitoto has a population of around 7,000. Today’s hopefuls had traveled in from the outlying areas, a collection of villages and communities whose residents bring the municipal total up to 30,000. Sitting in a wide circle on the floor, their shining faces beaming up at us, they listened intently as we three spoke of our passion for theatre and our desire to pass on the torch. Tatiana and Tito translated beautifully as we went (so Tito tells me) and I believe we were very well received. The kids were shy but they did manage to pose a few interesting questions, such as what had drawn us to the work and how a career in the theatre had affected our personal family lives. The experience reinforced the value of what we’re doing here. If our small contribution, followed by the efforts of those to follow, can help these young people realize a dream then the project will have succeeded.

On our walk back to the hotel we stopped at the home and studio of artist Miquel, another member of Es Artes. His place deserves an entire entry of its own – it’s full of art and spirit. Before leaving we made a plan to return there for a mid-day meal on Sunday. Every turn that we take here brings us closer into this welcoming community.