Checking in after another trip to Acatenango. My first trip there was graced with favorable weather, numerous eruptions of Fuego, and tolerably pleasant group chemistry. While this weekend’s trip wasn’t altogether miserable, it was marred by horizontal freezing rain, hubris, and altitude sickness. However, the trip was not entirely for naught, and I emerged from my bed this morning with two quotes from the weekend still resonating strongly with me. The first was the use of the phrase “singing Terets” to describe a guide who would frequently, spontaneously, and without catalyst, burst into song. I thought of Chez, and diagnosed him. The second quote was in regards to drinking a sufficient amount of water. The summit of Acatenango is over 13,000 ft., which is not a staggeringly high peak, but is ample to induce some mild altitude sickness, especially if hikers are not accustomed to the elevation and are not drinking enough water. This is a point that we hit very hard in our pre-trip meeting, and continue to reiterate throughout the hike. The conversation went something like this:

Guide: Ok, everyone should have had at least 2 liters of water by now. Has everyone done that? How much have you had?
Italian Guy: None.
Guide: You really need to be drinking more water. You will get sick.
Italian Guy: My body is like my Vespa: the perfect machine.
Guide: Whatever.

Naturally, our Italian friend spent twelve of the next twenty hours throwing up, with a splitting headache. No one felt bad for him. He also refused to eat anything but the chocolate that he had purchased in town. When he bonked 1 hour into the 3 hour hike out, again, no one felt bad for him. I should mention that while the Italian Guy was perhaps not entirely adept at hiking, he did ride his 1971 Vespa from New York through Canada to Alaska, then through The United States and Mexico to Guatemala, which is pretty incredible. His itinerary eventually leaves him in southern Argentina, and I have nothing but high hopes for his journey.

Today, I spent $1.85 on this:

Until my first (inevitable) parasite, I will not be cooking.