Some bad news

Two bad things happened today--one was my fault, and one (probably) wasn't.

First--not my fault--my nice, lightweight, packable ripstop montbell
shoulder bag got slashed in the market at San Juan Comalapa. A real
shame--when I got it, I had the idea that it would be a great bag to be
able to pack up in my backpack, though I can't say I've ever had the
opportunity to do that. But it was a really nice bag!

The good news is, I bought a replacement--a nice leather shoulder bag
with a pretty secure closure which I made more secure by adding a
padlock (feeling a little paranoid at the moment). Thick leather that
will be a bit of a deterrent to another such incident.

The second bad thing--my fault--is that I probably paid too much for the
shoulder bag, which isn't a bit deal, but one thing after another. The
guy kind of had me over a barrel. I told him what had happened to my
other bag, and he was the only one in the market that had a replacement
that was big enough for my computer (and I think he knew it). And I
hate haggling. Hate it!

Kind of a downer--though I have to say, I had a good time up in San Juan
today, where I bought a weaving in the local style, which uses silk
thread as an accent. Bought it from a very friendly Guatemalan woman
with a surly teenage son. Pretty entertaining. Beautiful things down here!

All in all, not a bad run without any such bad experiences--I've spent a
lot of time in places where I've been warned about such things, but this
is really the first such experience that I've had bad luck like that.

I should add, as well, that nothing was stolen--or at least nothing that
I've noticed, which means nothing of value. And if that's the worst
thing that happens today, I'm doing okay. As I always say, I always
feel like I'm getting off easily, as long as I don't get kidnapped.