Here's the tail end of our group boarding the bus. Esperanza took us to the bus area behind the Antigua Market so we'd all be on the same bus. It would have been a real adventure if we had been split amongst various chicken buses! We planned ahead to avoid this situation.
A chicken bus is probably the most common mode of public transportation in Central America. Usually the buses are old U.S. school buses and they are modified for use in Guatemala, Mexico, and other countries. The original engines are replaced by diesel engines, the last ten feet of the bus are chopped off
(to accommodate a smaller turning radius in the streets and on hairpin turns) and the back is re-soldered on, racks are added to the inside and on top, and it's painted vibrant colors. A number of buses are shiny and cleaned daily, such as this bus we rode. In fact, we were on a chicken bus on Saturday, June 26, and there was a flat screen TV with a streaming signal so we watched the World Cup live. Better than Concord Trailways to Logan!
The infamous chicken bus gets its name because it is common to see the top racks overflowing with baskets of goods for the markets, including fruits, vegetables, chickens, textiles, and anything else you can imagine.
The bus cost 3 quetzales to ride, about 36 cents.
Esperanza's Mom showed us how coffee is roasted over an open fire and then ground on the stone metate. This stone has been passed down from her great, great grandmother. They do not use a electric coffee maker; they just put the ground coffee in the bottom of a pot and cover it with boiling water. They served coffee for us to sample and it was delicioso!
The children are taught to weave at a young age. Esperanza's siblings, ages 6-10, did some simple weaving demonstrations for us. We bought woven bracelets that the children made as well as weavings made by Esperanza's Mom.
