Dalama Adventures Tale of two corporate types ditching their jobs and traveling the world for 14 months... check out all photos, blogs & interesting tid bits at http://www.dalama.net

We awake at 4:30 am to the all so familiar wounds of calling roosters, along with the sunlight slipping through the slits in our eyes.  We hear firecrackers ripping in the distance, crackling through the sky.  We're still on Spain time, and our stomachs rumbling, as it should now be lunchtime for us and we haven't yet eaten breakfast.  We wander through town, happy to find a little bakery called Cookies, etc. open for desayuno.  We're at "the" place in town to quench our caffeine need, it's all you can drink with breakfast.  We order up two desayunos típicos - eggs, queso, black refried beans and fresh baked bread.  We haven't had refried beans in ages and are so stoked to have them on the menus here for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Fat and happy with our breakfast experience, we order some fresh baked cookies to go, and head out into the streets.  

It's festivities to the max here today.  There are kids everywhere, carrying and running through the roads with their lit fire torches.  There are literally hundreds of kids, seemingly with their school classes for the big day before Indenpendencia.  The park in the town center (parque central) is packed with locals, and for once I can see all the activity going on because I'm actually taller than everyone here.  Local women wear vibrantly colored local fabrics, skirts embroidered blouses and colorful cloth wrapped and placed on top of their heads.  Many have children strapped to their backs, wrapped in colorful cloths.  Women and little girls have their long beautiful black hair in braids with colorful ribbons woven in.  The little girls are dressed just like their moms... long skirts and beautifully embroidered blouses.   Some women are selling textiles and jewelry, must most are out enjoying the day with family, a day off work.  Rugged skinned men in cowboy hats lead their families through the park.  young school kids hand in hand, showing affection to their first loves.  

The noise is overwhelming:  loud music pumps from trucks with large speakers... hoppy Guatemalan tunes that keep people moving and dancing through the streets; whistles scream as hundreds of children, wearing their Guatemala head bands, fun through the streets blowing blue whistles.  Group after group queue up for their turn to ignite their torch from the village "olympic" torch and there's a constant rust of new teams racing out around the town square.  The olympiad races continue all day and all night.  After a day of exploring the town, we settle for street vendor food for dinner... freshly made corn tortillas with cheese melted inside, and beans and guacamole smeared on top.  A delectable treat for dinner.  Luckily the food settles well and we call it a night.  We're not so pleased with our hostel, Casa Rustica.  Last night we ended up with bed bug bites, and after changing rooms, we hope we don't have a repeat performance.