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- having lived in panajachel for twenty three years, the romantic image i originally had of guatemala is long gone
- i still find beauty in the sight of a young woman in full mayan regalia
- i still find the sight of her speaking on a cell phone incongruous, but now i also appreciate the utility the device offers, and the status it confers
- some mayans embrace the old way of life, some want nothing to do with it; if they thought about it most would say they want the best of both the old and the new
- the fact of the matter is that most don't think about it all that much; their daily lives, like ours, consists of work; of trying to get ahead
- they enjoy success when they find it and do what they have to cope with the disappointments, but on the whole their lives, like ours, are pretty mundane
- my initial romance with guatemala is behind me, but then it never was anything more than a figment of my imagination anyway
- in the end reality has added texture, depth and subtlety to a palette i thought only contained primary colors
- duncan aitken
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