It’s better to be a coward…

The public transportation system in Guatemala isn’t the safest. In fact, as Peace Corps Volunteers we are prohibited from taking public transportation inside Guatemala City. Last Wednesday I headed down to Antigua to spend the night there before heading into the city to have Thanksgiving dinner with a family from the US Embassy. I ended up going with two other volunteers. We got a late start since the axle broke on the bus one volunteer was riding down from her town. The delay meant we missed the last Pullman (think Greyhound) and had to take a Camioneta (think crowded school bus) for the 7-hour journey. Aside from a sore arse and a bit of boredom, things were going just fine until we got outside of Tecpan and three men stood up, pulled out pistols, and demanded all of our money and valuables. Not just the gringos, but also everyone’s. They were equal opportunity robbers. Unfortunately, I had made the tactical error of brining my laptop (free Wireless in Antigua) and my digital camera (to take pictures of turkey?). They had a keen interested in the three gringos on the bus and rightfully so since all told they made off with a couple of laptops, a digital camera, two I-Pods, about $200, my watch, and a bit of my pride. They had the due diligence to feel around my crotch and find my money/passport carrier. Fortunately, they only wanted the cash. For no good reason, I also had my class ring with me, but one of my colleagues was nice enough to hide it after she was frisked. I never did actually find out where she put it, but I suspect it was somewhere that doesn’t get much sunshine if you know what I mean. The ladrones (robbers) had control of the bus for about 45-minutes in total and got off in the middle of nowhere, probably to a getaway car. I have to say, they were quite good at what they did, but I see bad Karma heading their way. This is fairly uncommon and I chock it up to bad luck, and yet common enough that the Guatemalans saw no point in notifying the police. We of course made the necessary phone calls to the Peace Corps and they reacted appropriately. Not cool, but probably not the most danger I’ve ever been in. That night my fellow volunteers bought me the commiserate amount of drinks for an armed robbery at a bar in Antigua. Of course there was an Irishman/Philosopher at the bar who was able to pass on to me some words of wisdom (an ol’ saying in his country said with a thick Irish accent) “It’s better to be a coward for 5-minutes than to live the rest of your life dead”. Wise indeed.