Luis Felipe Guerra is Intrepid Deputy Operations Manager in Guatemala, however he’s additionally Maya, and a tour information. As a baby, he struggled to return to phrases together with his Indigenous heritage, going through racism frequently. By discovering extra about his historical past, and sharing it with travellers, he’s realized to take pleasure in his heritage. Now he needs younger Guatemalans to do the identical.
When my father was a baby in Guatemala, he was not allowed to talk Mayan within the classroom. If he ever stated a phrase in Mayan, my grandfather must pay a advantageous, and my father can be punished. He used to inform me about being made to kneel on corn kernels whereas holding a chair on his again, usually for hours.
I come from a Mestizo background, which implies I’ve blended native and European ancestry. My father is Maya, of the Poqomam folks, however my mom is European. I used to be born within the northern-most Petén area of Guatemala, and spent a whole lot of my childhood in considered one of our biggest Maya cities, Tikal, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
My father used to work for an airline that flew to Tikal, and finally turned a park ranger there. I bear in mind my brothers and I bringing him lunch and enjoying amongst the ruins, watching the archaeologists do their work. This is the place I first noticed tour guides displaying guests across the website. As I watched these travellers, overwhelmed by the great thing about the pyramids, I imagine that was the second, with out figuring out, when my coronary heart fell in love with tourism. I used to be hooked.
When I used to be rising up, Guatemala was a really racist nation, and being Indigenous was not one thing to be happy with. Like my father, I used to be discriminated towards at school. It took 36 years of civil battle and a whole lot of hundreds of lives to show issues round. Guatemala had one of many longest working civil conflicts in South America, stretching from 1960 to 1996, and when it was over, one of many peace phrases from the rebels was respect for all Indigenous folks within the nation. It was a horrible battle, however due to that battle, my kids now be taught Mayan at college! Kids can put on their conventional Maya gown, as a substitute of the college uniform. It’s not good, and we nonetheless have an extended strategy to go, however in case you examine the tradition now to my father’s era, it’s been a complete, 180-degree change.
For my very own journey, tourism performed an enormous half. I ended up at a highschool that helped a whole lot of children get into the journey business. That’s the place I met Mario, an archaeologist. He was my first direct contact with Maya historical past. Mario advised our class in regards to the equinox and the way the Maya deliberate their agriculture by following astronomical occasions, by studying the rhythm of the seasons. I discussed to him that I realized that from my grandfather, and that my grandfather was an Indian. Mario corrected me and stated, “Luis, your Grandfather is not Indian. He is Mayan”.
Mario was the primary one to make me really feel happy with my Indigenous heritage, and he helped me turn into a tour information. I began main excursions even earlier than ending highschool! I fell in love with it, and I made a decision that’s what I needed to do for the remainder of my life. Even now, after I’m not working and I’ve a weekend to myself, I am going and tour across the ruins. There’s a ardour in me to share the historical past of my folks, to share hundreds of years of civilisation with anybody that wishes to find out about it.
As I watched these travellers, overwhelmed by the great thing about the pyramids, I imagine that was the second, with out figuring out, when my coronary heart fell in love with tourism. I used to be hooked.
It’s all a studying course of, even for tour guides. Once, after I was strolling by a stone monument in Tikal, I noticed a information studying the hieroglyphics for a gaggle. His title was Antonio, and he’s of the Kaqchikel Maya folks. Until that day, I didn’t know anybody may learn these hieroglyphics, not to mention tour guides! So I waited for him to complete his lecture, then went up and requested him if he may share his information with me. He smiled and stated, “Of course!”
So Antonio began to show me, and thru him I bought a spot on the University of Texas. From 2003 to 2009 I attended lessons in Texas and realized the way to learn Maya hieroglyphics. This is what I really like most about being a tour information. Imagine stone carvings, made 1300 or 1700 years in the past, and now I’m capable of learn these carvings; the phrases popping out of my mouth have been written down by somebody hundreds of years in the past. I can learn their ideas, and communicate within the voice of the Maya. It’s a privilege to share this information with travellers.
I count on tourism to turn into the primary business in Guatemala over the subsequent few years. Our authorities isn’t good, however they’ve slowly been defending extra historic websites, attempting to encourage funding in tourism, and there are a whole lot of tales which might be actually encouraging. For the previous few years, I’ve been engaged on Intrepid’s Indigenous Action Plan in Central America. It’s our roadmap for bringing Indigenous communities into tourism, and educating our prospects about Indigenous historical past and tradition. We need to get to the purpose the place younger Indigenous children really feel like journey is a legit profession alternative. We need to assist them get into the business with vocational coaching. Most of all, we need to supply folks a distinct path.
I do know one teenager, for instance, Juanito, who lives within the highland communities and speaks a minimum of eight completely different languages – French, Hebrew, Italian, Spanish and lots of Mayan dialects. He learns by assembly travellers and promoting items to them. Now this child can depart his group and turn into an interpreter, or a tour information. Stories like which might be repeating everywhere in the nation. Boys and ladies who turn into wonderful leaders, and enhance their high quality of life by transferring from agriculture into tourism.
It’s one thing that modified my very own life. After being a park ranger, my father turned a taxi driver, shuttling foreigners from Flores to Tikal. That taxi paid for my sister’s schooling, paid for my brothers’ and mine. My father solely had a first-grade schooling, and my mom by no means bought previous the sixth grade, however that’s the great thing about tourism. Anyone can do it. There aren’t any restrictions in your means. My household made their means into journey, and it modified our lives for the higher.