Chicken buses and economic challenges in Antigua, Guatemala

"Chicken" bus

I started volunteering at a free health clinic, Puesto de Salud [Place of Health], this past Thursday, December 27. It’s located in Ciudad Vieja (“Old City”), a small town right outside of Antigua, about 10 minutes away by bus. Ciudad Vieja was actually the capital of Guatemala before the volcanic eruption that wiped out much of the city. The capital then became Antigua, but soon became Guatemala City because a severe earthquake hit the colonial town. Guatemala City is still the capital today.

Taking a "chicken" bus
I take what the locals and tourists call a “chicken bus” every weekday to the clinic. I believe they are hand-me-down school buses from the U.S. This name was coined by tourists who've seen many Guatemalans on the buses with chickens and other animals too).

There is nothing to pull or press to signal a stop, and the one aisle for people to pass through in the middle of the bus is very tight. If you want to get off, you better get up fast and move towards the front or you’ll miss the stop. I ended up missing my stop coming back from the clinic on my first day because I didn’t get up quickly enough. There are a lot of people riding these buses everyday, so it gets crowded and cramped.

I always feel like a giant when I board these buses; I have to duck when I sit down in a seat nearby a window or else I’ll hit my head on the overhead storage compartments. That happened to me once last summer. I hadn’t realized that my head was so close to the compartments, so when I carelessly moved through the aisle to sit down in a seat by the window, I was just met by a painful, clobbering sensation in my forehead.

The Plaza Central Park, Antigua, Guatemala

Employment and a brief look at the economy in Guatemala

Guatemala is the most populous nation in Central America, and about 75% of the population lives below the poverty line.

I take a bus from Antigua to Ciudad Vieja, which costs 3 quetzals (less than a dollar: about $0.40). 7.70 quetzales is equivalent to 1 U.S. dollar. My teacher at the school, who is a native Guatemalan, told me that many workers in Antigua (especially those who come from neighboring towns) make only about 50Q a day (~$7). In the town’s park, there are many Indigenous women with their beautiful, traditional garbs who walk around and ask people to buy scarves, jewelry, or other pieces of clothing that they put together with their own hands. You also see young boys walking around with shoe polishing equipment asking passerbys if they’d like to be serviced. There are also people who sell ice cream and popsicles from a mini-ice cream bar with wheels. Some sell newspapers and magazines. Others hand out fliers for a travel agency they’re trying to promote. A few men try to sell flutes that are decorated with Mayan designs. I bought one of those last summer. There are many ways that people here try to make money to support their families and I am humbled by both their creativity and perseverance in doing so.