8/3/03 San Cristobal After a walk through the plaza and the markets, we stopped at the first bar that looked reasonably interesting for a few beers. We had a ham sandwich and a small meat empanada and 4 or 5 Bohemias.

Then Cassie got sick.

That evening, a dinner was held at one of those oh-so-painfully hip vegetarian restaurants that are near the plaza. The dinner was arranged by the tour group for all the members of the tour to meet. Cassie complained of stomach pains and nausea and had to leave before the entrees were served. I walked her back to the hotel and then went back for my dinner. It was a difficult night for both of us, but far worse for her.

8/3/03 San Cristobal After breakfast, we reviewed the itinerary for the next 10 days or so. The most notable point of all of this is that the Zapatista rebels have declared that on August 8, 9 and 10 they will be throwing a party for the entire world to celebrate their transition from a miltary governement to a civil one. This marks a pretty crazy time for a number of reasons, but most importantly, they have announced that all the rebel leaders will be in attendance at the party, which will feature music, dancing and a basketball tournament in the autonomous community of Oventik, in the jungle. Also, the rebels have announced that they are breaking off all negotiations with the government, and that is a major question mark about the future of the Zapatistas, the villages and the people who are going to the party. Stay posted.

Today, we visited one of the many NGOs that work in the indigenous communities.