After an early start Saturday morning, we arrived at Dulles with plenty of time to spare (I’m an early airport arriver!). While we boarded our plane on time, it still departed a bit late. J and I knew this would make our connection in San Salvador a bit tight. Of course, once we landed, we discovered that our flight to Guatemala City left from a gate at the absolute other end of the airport! Joy. We walked quickly over and arrived at the gate just as boarding was beginning. Whew. I was not looking forward to trying to get on another flight in El Salvador (or spending the night as some of our fellow singers had to do!).
Upon arrival in Guatemala City, we were met by the wonderful woman who has organized these Messiah concerts for the past 11 years, as well as some other helpers who drove us into the city to our hotel. After a brief room snafu (apparently our assigned room had not yet been checked out of…oops!), we ended up in a lovely corner suite with a view of the city and the mountains in the distance.
View from the room at sunset
That evening, we were picked up by our trusty van driver, Arturo, and driven to the lovely apartment of the organizer’s son. That evening, we met so many wonderfully warm and gracious people, both Americans and Guatemalans. To me (Page) it felt like one of those surreal evenings that belong in a movie. The conversations, laughs, and varied topics of interest very much endeared me to the country of Guatemala. Since J had a long day of rehearsing and performing the next day, we left the party a bit early to get some rest.
On Sunday, we started the day with delicious Guatemalan coffee and a Guatemalan/American fusion breakfast (the hotel catered to English-speaking business professionals so there was a lot of standard American fare on the menus). J was being picked up for rehearsal at 11 AM, so I decided to spend the day at the hotel…resting, reading and watching the Ravens at Miami. I must admit, it was a bit surreal to be watching the NFL while in Guatemala (the hotel had a Miami CBS feed as one of the channels). When J got back from rehearsal, we got all dressed up and hopped in the van with the other performers and their guests to head over to the Ambassador’s home for the gala performance.
In front of the hotel Christmas Tree in our fancy clothes
I wish I could have explored/snooped around the residence a bit more, but what I saw of it was lovely. The performance that evening was a mish-mash of opera arias and musical theater pieces that were well-sung and well-received by the audience. Afterwards, we met a number of US expats living in Guatemala (I met a number of American women who had married Guatemalan men) and did a bit of schmoozing at the reception in the Ambassador’s home.
Musicians and the Ambassador
Since Sunday was another long day for J, we turned in relatively early when we got back to the hotel.
View from the Spy House and Zoo 