The microbus dropped me off in Cotzal. Here I was.
I have been using my Saturdays as exploration days. I did not know where I was going to go
today. I decided to walk down a road
near Cotzal to see where it went. It
ended on a main road that went toward Santa Avelina. I had already been down that way so I found
another road that veered off the other direction and I walked down that road
instead. I came to an intersection and I
had no idea where I was. I asked a guy
that happened to be there and discovered I was at the main road that would take
me to Cotzal in one direction or Chajul in the other direction. I was right next to Cotzal and I had
basically walked in a circle. I asked if
there were any villages on the way to Chajul, and he told me there was one
about 15 minutes away. That peeked my
curiosity and I began walking toward Chajul.
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| Chajul in distance |
It was all uphill at the start and I had
probably been walking for 30 minutes at a brisk pace before spotting the
village he was talking about: Batzmul.
Before walking down to explore the tiny village, I climbed up a boulder
that happened to be at the top of the hill.
From there, the view was astounding.
I could see miles down the road Chajul way out in the distance. I also spotted another
little village before reaching Chajul. I
sat there for almost an hour. I did not
want to leave that spot. Sometimes, when
life is good, it’s hard to keep moving, but we have to continue down the road
God has laid out for us. So curiosity
got the better of me and I continued down the road. At this point I had decided to walk all the
way to Chajul several miles more through the mountains, it was such a beautiful
day! I noticed a trail leading off the
road before descending toward Batzmul. I
hiked up and up and up, only to discover somebody was raising Bees. They swarmed everywhere and decided not to
explore that trail any further.
 |
| Batzul |
I walked into Batzmul. It is always very awkward walking into these
tiny villages as a Gringo. It seems one
appearance of a Gringo is the talk of these towns for a week. Some hide in their houses. Kids will yell “gringo, gringo!” I explored a tiny bit and talked a little
with a few of the people and then I was on my way.
As I walked farther down the road away from
Batzmul, I noticed many locals walking the other direction. I then came across a park where a church
service had ended. They were packing up
and heading home. I talked with one of
the young men there and got the story. The
Church of God from Batzmul and the Church of God from Vitzuchuj, the other tiny
village a mile or two further along the road, meet for some services as one
church body in the park. I thought that
was absolutely beautiful.
 |
| Vitzuchuj |
I then walked up and up and up, to that
tiny village with an incredible view, Vitzuchuj. What an amazing place to live! The people in this village were so nice and
welcoming. At the tienda, when I told
them I was from the United States, one girl screamed and ran out of the
store. Apparently she is afraid of the
U.S. because it’s so far away. There are
35 families in this village. At the main
part of town is a school, a tienda, and a church.
 |
| In Chajul |
After my half hour visit, I continued on my
way, the last leg of my journey to Chajul.
It was only about another thirty minutes of walking before I came to the
outskirts of Chajul. I continued up and
up (it seems all walking here is up for some reason) until I was in the main
part of Chajul. I had done it. A sense of accomplishment radiated through
me. I had only wanted to see what was a
little further down a road in Cotzal and I ended up walking clear to
Chajul!
“It’s a dangerous business, Jordo, going
out your door, you step out onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet,
there’s no knowing where you’ll get swept off to.” – Bilbo Baggins
:)
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