Religion, Serious Business

Last weekend was Easter, and as traditional for most of us in Canada we have a wonderful chocolate binge and forget about all sensibilities. Down here, chocolate bunnies and marshmallow chicks aren't really a thing here. No, here Easter is all about the prayer.

On Friday morning, a small flotilla of boats came sailing by, all three were covered with fancy purple drapes, and the center boat was carrying a large cross. I had never seen anything like this before, but they stopped at every property, and I can only guess that they offered prayers for everyone. Even people who always come here to party on the weekends had banners of saints displayed on their properties.

In less savory news, the navy was out in full force patrolling the water ways. You know someone important was in town because as soon as the weekend was over, they packed their things and moved on to some other place.

Run, Run, Run

Earlier today I was sitting in front of my computer, when I heard a light splashing sound coming from outside.  I looked out over the back of the yacht, and I saw two amazing little lizards playing the water.

These amazing little lizards!

Ah yes, the Basiliscus! Commonly known as the Jesus Lizard due to it's remarkable ability to run on water. I didn't realize that these guys were native to Central America (I never really thought about it period), so you can imagine my surprise seeing them in the flesh. I went out to get a closer look at them, but as soon as they saw me they dashed across the water and into the jungle. Next time my little reptilian friends, next time.

Rise

Over the past few days we have noticed a bunch of dead fish rising to the surface of the water. Seeing one fish is normal, seeing two or three is odd, but this was a lot of them. According to our friend Roberto, at this time of year lots of salt flows inland from the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the species of fish are able to adapt to the change, however one type gets decimated each year. What a strange world.

Hmm...

Earlier today I was on my computer, when all of a sudden I heard the roar of large engines. Now, I hear boats coming all the time, but this was different. These were really loud and powerful engines. I looked up to see what was happening and I saw a flotilla of military boats racing down the river. Now we have had military guys here before, but this time they were being escorted by Americans! I wonder what they were doing? They just went to the lake and back to where ever they came from, so it wasn't anything serious, but still...

Done Right

When out at the store, we came across something we have never found here before. Yeast! You know what that means? Happy, fun, bake time! Yay!

Wait is that the had of the creator?!

With yeast acquired, there was only one thing which would be worth making . Pizza made with my shamelessly stolen Mitchell's Sunshine Bread recipe. Yum, I haven't had that stuff since like April!

A Difference of Colour

When we were in Canada, one of the things we brought back with us was Cayenne Pepper. We love our spices, we use so much, some days you forget that it's even there, however when there's no spice, you'll hear all about it!

So here in Guatemala, all of the cayenne is a mild orange colour. The stuff we bought in Canada (imported from an unknown nation) is a beautiful dark red. The red stuff not too surprisingly is significantly hotter than it's orange counterpart. Even I had to tone down how much I was using. I can't wait to make a butter chicken!

Late to the Party

Tonight I watched the 2012 production of the Victor Huge classic Les Miserables. In this version stars, Hugh Jackman as the convict with a heart of gold Jean Valjean, and Russel Crowe as the legalist police inspector Javert.