Amazing, I tell you!

When I first learned that a high-end shopping center, Miraflores, was being built right next to Tikal Futura, another high-end shopping center, I thought “oh, fantastic. Guatemala needs more exclusive and expensive stores like the Middle East needs more conflicts.”

Well, I walked through the doors of Miraflores this afternoon, pre-judging and pre-jaded, ready to hate the place in advance. Yet I was caught totally unprepared for what unfolded before my eyes… a mall so spectacular that it would put most U.S. malls to shame. A place so out-of-place that I had to keep muttering to myself, like a culture-shock mantra, “Guatemala… Guatemala… Guatemala…”

Amazing. (Amazing, I tell you!)

Once I recovered, however, from my momentary blindness brought on by the bright and shiny commercial lights, I began to see the place for what it really is: another playground for the well-to-do. Filled with shops that the great majority of Guatemalans could never afford to shop in. Filled with the class of Guatemalan shoppers that could easily afford to shop in such shops. Filled, I might add, with a superior attitude so thick that it could be carved up and sold wholesale to humbler parts of the world.

Indeed, once the WOW factor faded, I thought to myself “this is one place I never need visit again.”

And then…

And then I found Saúl E. Méndez, a very ritzy men’s clothing store.

Now those of you who know me are probably thinking that I’ve blown some kind of mental gasket and warrant an immediate psychological medivac out of Guatemala. While it’s true that on a day-to-day basis I try to get away with wearing as little clothing as possible, and that any remotely nice clothing that I do own was given to me, and that the only way I’d end up in a fancy-shmancy men’s clothing store would likely entail an accidental trip or headfirst fall…

This men’s store had something special… it’s own café. (Ok, all of you… right now, stop rolling your eyes!!!)

Yes, the Caffé Saúl…located in an enclosed courtyard in front of the store. A painfully hip café with overstuffed chairs decorated in colorful Guatemalan fabric, jazz playing in English and Spanish, and amazing (amazing, I tell you!) cappuccinos with a complimentary piece of raspberry fudge for Q9 ($1.10).

Ah, but that’s not all… crêpes made on the premises. I ordered a Belgian dark chocolate crêpe that was simply amazing (amazing, I tell you!) It has quickly vaulted to my second favorite dessert of all time… and the leader, shadow cake from the Yorktown Bakery, should be nervous indeed. The cost of this mouth-watering, powdered-sugar-covered, still-warm-from-the-grill, slowly-melting-dark-chocolate marvel? Twenty-two Q, or $2.75.

This could be one of the least-expensive “escapes” ever!

Ah, but that’s not the half of it! Well, ok, yes… that is actually the half of it… but here’s the other half:

Last week I went to the movie “Timeline” at the Lux Cinema in Zone 1. It was shown in one of the tiny upstairs theatres, where you’re sitting about fifteen feet away form the slightly-stained, wimpy-sized screen. The sound was lousy to begin with, and definitely not improved by the ranchero music blaring forth from the projection booth. The kindergarten-sized wooden seats are the definition of discomfort, and the rows are so close together that I had to drape my legs over the chairs in front just to keep the circulation flowing.

That’s when the cockroach ran up my pants leg. (Yes, la cucaracha, la cucaracha…)

And to top it all off... the movie seriously sucked.

Today, for $2.90 (instead of $1.90 at the Lux), I entered movie heaven. The Miraflores movie theatres are finer than any I have ever visited in the States. The screen was pristine, and a mile high (well, roughly.) The seating was arranged on a deep incline, which meant that the row of seats in front of you was all but invisible. And the seats were amazing (amazing, I tell you!)… padded, plush, reclining, head-high… and many without armrest dividers so that you can snuggle with your honey. (Honey not included.) The sound is digital and sans ranchero.

Heck, even the movie itself “Mi Novia Polly” (Along Comes Polly) was a major improvement!

So, in summary… the perfect coffee place + the perfect movie place = one happy me.

……………..

PS: It may seem odd for me to be ranting and raving about malls, coffee, and movies. Shouldn’t I be focusing instead on the A-List stuff: art, activism, advocacy, analysis and accompaniment?

Well, ok, maybe, sure, yeah. But I not only work in Guatemala, I live here. And living here can sometimes be less-than-easy (check Thursday’s list of lamentations.) Work there is, and work there will always be.

It’s just comforting to know that amidst the sweat and madness there exists the possibility of breaks and escapes. (And all for about $7, popcorn not included!)

Posted by elcanche at April 24, 2004 07:02 PM