Quetzaltenango, Tuesday

0010 Should be going to sleep. But one thing I miss from UK is sleeping under a simple quilt. Here it's layers of sheets and blankets. I *am* sleeping well on the whole, but I do find it hard to keep the bed 'intact' if it isn't professionally remade, and I don't like the way one of the layers inevitably ends up dangling on the floor.

1920 School not too bad, perhaps because we mostly did grammar. Teacher seems to be saying I'm working well but I mostly put this down as polite fluff. However, I do feel I am making slow progress.

He told me that there are virtually no mosquitos here due to the cold. It turns out Quetzaltenango is also the name of the departamento, which includes places much lower and hotter where they *are* an issue, which would explain the technical looking report on increase in malaria cases in Quetzaltenango I saw on the web. Since it's all probabilistic anyway (you can get bitten if you use repellent but aren't drenched in it, and one bite *could* give you malaria) I am going to stop using it and see how it goes; I am very much inclined to believe him on this. Shame I've been wasting it (though only on head, neck and ankles as I've been wearing fleece all the time) since I got here. May try to buy some more here anyway ready for when I leave but didn't bother this afternoon. If it's a niche product here I feel that makes it even less likely I can get the picaridin (sp? from memory, has other names too) non-DEET non-homeopathic stuff here.

Teacher I met on Friday night spoke to me in the break; he told me some of his family are seventh day adventists and they don't use stimulants like tea and coffee (but 'natural' teas are OK...) or eat meat. (He doesn't follow this; I did wonder if I should politely query why he had been drinking beer on Friday, but didn't. He said he was a Marxist...)

Came back to flat and had four hot dogs, finishing the supply bought on Sunday. Went out for a walk around (part of) the exterior of the large cemetery - very colourful with little house-looking things (the impression I got was almost dog kennel size, not full tombs) and crosses of various colours on the high bit at the west end when viewed from the next road along - and then I walked along the exterior wall to El Calvario where I had passed yday without realising and went in and walked round. Didn't take photos inside or outside as seemed a bit disrespectful. Some biggish tombs, one or two very impressive, others more like pigeonholes. Not too dissimilar to the fancy cemetery in Buenos Aires (Recoleta?) but more colourful and no cats. Bit run down in general but not excessively so. Huge numbers of flower stalls outside, presumably for people to put on tombs.

Vague recollection of reading cemetery in Antigua wasn't safe made me a bit edgy but didn't feel at risk from people; although the odd area could be deserted there were a lot of people about. (The cemetery is pretty big.) What did make me nervous was the first group of stray dogs big enough to make me reach for the word 'pack' I have seen in Guatemala. I bravely walked past and although there was some barking behind me (no idea if related or not) nothing happened, and that was the only such incident. This was at something like 3pm so broad daylight.

Came back, did homework. I dithered about going out tonight. Outdated but probably representative Xelawho guide (cover feature is on World Cup) my teacher gave me implies most live music is on Wed or later. If that guide is to be believed there might be a quiz night at K&Q tonight but I've decided not to chance that; I will probably chance the quiz night at El Shamrock Thursday (depending on what/if I get told/overhear during this trip on Thursday, if it is on - I haven't been asked to pay yet, will ask tomorrow). What I am going to do in 30-60 mins is pop round the corner to the nice-ish looking little bar next to the Q'nais restaurant, sit at the bar if possible and have a couple of beers. If I am able to strike up a conversation great, if not at least I ventured out. It's not ideal to be drinking tonight but unless I meet someone I think I will keep it to two or three presumably 330ml-ish bottles so not all that excessive.

(It's not the main reason, but I'd rather try out the walk back here late-ish at night for the first time on a Thursday when probably more people are about. I don't intend to stay as late at El Shamrock this Thursday as I did last week even if I do meet people at the quiz; the dancing afterwards isn't really my bag, it's more time drinking when I could be using that alcohol allowance more enjoyably elsewhere/when and staying out til gone midnight sucks when I have class at 8am. Obviously if I feel super 'in' with people I just may do it anyway, but I'll probably make my excuses and leave by 10 or 11.)

Part of reason for avoiding K&Q (not all that rationally) is that I may go there this Sat night or perhaps the Sat after and see if any of that group from last Sat are there and I can scrape acquaintance through 'becoming more of a familiar face', so to speak.

Feel a bit edgy about going out to this bar round corner tonight. Probably irrational. Maybe combination of going out after dark (but it's like a minute or two's walk) and social shit, but it's not AFAICS some tremendously imposing cantina, it looks sort of comfortable but not fancy from what little I saw from the street, and unless there's football on (I have no idea, probably not, but did hear someone mention El Clasico other day and for all I know that's on tonight) it will probably be mostly or completely empty. It's really not a big deal, it's just a small low stake experiment with the local night life instead of sitting in flat.

I feel relatively OK in general, though I was bitching to myself about the cold room (when naked and wet; it's at worst mildly cool "keep fleece on indoors" otherwise, although there was condensation on inside of balcony door this morning and FWIW the bed seems to have about three blankets on) and the perpetually damp towel after showering just now. (The shower has to be turned on and off electrically while water is flowing; I forgot last night but remember before going to sleep and fortunately it still worked today. This plus incredibly slippery tiled floors and the Mexican arm-breaking incident means no way am I showering after even a couple of beers. Not *ideal* to be showering now instead of after beers but it's the best I can do. Also no way I am showering in the morning when I have to be at school for 8 and it's cold; getting up on time as it is is a minor act of heroism :-) )

2020 Been milling around for five minutes or so waiting to head out. I should just fucking go. So I will...

2025 Here. Place is La Liga. Sitting at bar with a small draught dark beer. Two guys at a table, otherwise just me and 2-3 staff. Only Q10 for beer so not too bad. Writing this on phone is obviously not super social but this feels dead enough I doubt it's really making a difference. Will sit here, read and attempt to just chill and if anyone else is alone and comes over for a beer at the bar here I may talk to them. Few more people coming in now. I work on the assumption that it is semi-universal that sitting at the bar alone looks a) alcoholic ;-) b) invites conversation. Feels OK here though.

Oh, I don't know if they do it here, but various places do offer micheladas at an extra Q10 a glass. This feels moderately extortionate and I don't like to try one when out with other people, but at least one quiet afternoon I should find a bar and have a michelada or two - I've probably not had one since Z's 40th. (I also wonder how well the cheaper local beers work as micheladas. But if it's a quiet afternoon I can ask the bartender for recommendations.)

2037 Occurs to me while the thing is falling apart and I might lose it, I could have brought my paperback book to read here and been a bit less the guy fiddling with his phone. But that's hardly an odd thing these days, and this way I can at least read what I want (from the online library). I already finished the paperback two or three days into the trip.

Geeking out, using the known length of my right middle finger to measure, the glass's beer holding region is about 10cm deep and 8cm diameter. So - mental arithmetic here - I estimate its volume as 480cm^3 - so it's *probably* a half litre, although I have a vague feeling Guatemala uses US standard sizes for bar glasses despite being generally metric. I don't know though; maybe references to 12oz and 16oz beers I *think* I have seen in some bars is something they do in bars aimed primarily at tourists, who are presumably primarily from the US. Might ask teacher tomorrow. (Gut feeling is I have over-estimated the diameter a bit, but since I assumed pi=3 that would compensate a bit. I guess this shows that knowing the length of some *other* fingers would be helpful, then I could avoid the need to estimate what proportion of my middle finger is the diameter.)

2046 Good job I'm not trying to appear cool and leave my phone alone. Still only me at bar anyway. Anyway, when I ordered this draught beer they did offer me choice of (if I heard correctly) a litre or a glass, which would perhaps suggest they are using metric and this is a half litre. Maybe they offered litre or a half, but I don't know.

The glass doesn't really look big enough to be nearly a pint, but maybe it's deceptive - I know estimating volume of a glass can be tricky.

2109 Second beer. Quite a bit busier than when I came in but not packed, still just me at bar. Will assume the beer is Gallo oscura. It doesn't seem like a bad beer to me; I've never claimed to have great taste, but seems to have some taste to it. Possibly the 'clear' (clara; what is the right English word? "light" would seem obvious by contrast with dark but that seems to have other connotations of low alcohol or whatever) more lagery version is a bit flavourless,  but not drunk enough of it to say that confidently. They did offer me a mixta when I ordered which I will guess is half and half; might try that some other time.

2117 Juan Gabriel "El Noa Noa" playing. First song I've recognised, can't help smiling. Feels quite a bit older than music playing before.

I'm probably influenced by something I read in that copy of Xelawho (which has that annoyingly pert - is that the word I want? - and slightly smug tone you'd - well, I'd - expect of a publication evidently aimed at foreign medium-to-long-term visitors) but Moza does have a metallic taste (while being on the whole fine), which this doesn't seem to have.

2135 Coldplay "Yellow". Not one of my favourite songs, but OK. First English language song have heard. Need a piss - surprisingly so, even if this is 5% as probably is, had about two pints - but feel pretty comfortable. May have one or two more (probably just one, but not going to beat myself up) even though suspect chat ops are limited. Probably be better to come at a busier time, but it's also about what I'll call " face time" even though I hate the phrase, i.e. familiarity, to some extent. Especially if I extend at this flat for a week will prob come back here again.

2155 While I'm having a drink and I've decided nothing I've written would ever let this turn up for her in even the most paranoid web search and TBH I'm not saying anything that bad: the American woman who seemed cool and educated and interesting who was on the pub quiz team last Sunday went off on a couple of moderately epic rants about Trump and how a friend of hers *dared* to call himself a nationalist (which was - because we all know words have fixed meanings handed down by God - *not* a reasonable word to use, it means fascist or something like that) and how the letter bomb shit recently was obviously a massive fake news thing (I am making this up to give the flavour now, I didn't follow the precise details) so she felt it was her duty to make up some opposing fake news and spread that around - I mean, FFS, when I am foolish enough to dip into Twitter or read the fucking UK press the world feels polarised but this was practically a level above it. Maybe I'm being unfair. Maybe (some people in?) the US really is wound up a notch tighter.

(FWIW I'm guessing she was in her mid-late 50s; she had apparently hung around with Grandmaster Flash when she was younger! A bit. Like I said, she seemed very cool and interesting.)

Beer glass has been kept in fridge, was frosted til I took pause to right this. Different shape though.

2208 Quieting down, just one big table behind me. Hombres G "Si no te tengo a ti" . Have 2/3 of this beer left, while I may change my mind I think this will be last for tonight. No point burning through my alcohol allowance (I'm already overdrawn anyway, I think) needlessly. Group behind me also seems to be departing in chunks.

My teacher said the other day he knew of (liked?) Hombres G but didn't listen to them a lot (I could say same about The Smiths, lately) but mainly among 30+ people. (He is 33 I think.)

2214 Probably stating the obvious but I feel there's a mixed feeling (can't express myself properly) to when is a good time to meet people at the bar. On one hand the busier it is the more people. On the other, if it's absolutely bustling it's much less intimate and harder to get into a chat. Still, mix the two strategies I guess. If I don't feel I have pressing alternatives I might come down here Fri or Sat night, perhaps leaving to go elsewhere if nothing seems to be happening. One guy not happy with any of the music they're playing. Not an obnoxious drunk but a bit stroppy AFAICunderstand.

2224 Back home. Rather enjoyed that. And while of course I am drinking too much and deserve to die an early death and to worry ceaselessly until that day about my impending early death, by order of the NHS, having three (probably) half litres and then coming home feels pretty responsible. Although it probably isn't. Who am I to judge what's responsible? I think three pints is deemed binge drinking, or maybe it's more than three. But fuck 'em anyway.

2304 Bed. Don't feel particularly tired (or drunk) but it's a smidge chilly and I'm not not-tired, so I might as well read in bed until I drop off rather than sitting at kitchen table doing the same - it's not like I have a laptop, so I'm staring at the same screen anyway.