To answer the question more directly, I am sending a quote from the web page below. although it doesn't cite a source and it is a poorly-written lawyer's page. Unless a good source is found, I would take it with a grain of salt. "Time to become a [Guatemalan] citizen – The standard time frame is five years. However, after three years of residence, you can apply to have the wait time shortened from five to three years." SOURCE: http://milotemicasa.com/guatemala-pensionado-permanent-residency-program/ I am sorry if this does not directly answer your question but it is worth noting. The following web page is from the "Dirección General de Migración del Gobierno de Guatemala". It is in Spanish and it details the process and requirements to obtain a "Residencia de Pensionado o Rentista". http://www.migracion.gob.gt/index.php/alertas-alba-keneth/8-migracion/28.html

I am interested in projects that generate income. Volunteering is something I will always do as a service of course. However it is much more valuable when I can generate income as well. For sure, a new venture or perhaps a joint venture would be ideal. I am interested in projects that include Education, Technology, Social and Economic Development, and in general products that include the local population. I have had several projects that included Water Purification, Energy Generation and Building Technology but those have been far few when I would like them to be on-going projects ideally. So perhaps my idea has been to develop a new project to promote a very creative industry. I am willing to hear ideas. What kind of projects are you looking for? Do you want to volunteer, go into a commercial income generating business? If it's business I know of several that are Available.

When I volunteered in Ciudad Vieja I often would read the postings for runners at the City Hall. They ran everyday from Ciudad Vieja to Dueñas and back. It is a nice run and you don't have to worry about the cobble stones since they run on the main road. I am sure they continue to do this even though I haven't been back in the last 2 years. You may want to check it out. Hi Michaela, I'm living here and it's not so friendly for your average runner. I'm run longer distances so once I get out of town, not so bad. But you'll need to like hills/up. I do most of my quality running in the gym on the treadmill and trying to get back into form. I expect if you are here for any length of time, you'll need to have a gym membership to run regularly. I've seen a lot of local runners on Sun. mornings meeting in front of the church at Parque Central. Look for lime green, seems to be the preferred running color :). I hope from the gym to start a once a week long run on the weekends for visitors and locals alike. I'll post here when ready to start a group run. I haven't ran a race here yet but planning on May 11th, a 15k in the city.

I share with the reader the everyday activities of living and housesitting in Guatemala, renting a house and finally touring the country. While there we experienced floods, earthquakes, tropical storms, the famed Xocomil and Norte winds, thefts, fire, political unrest, family intrigue, person-al humiliation, physical injury and perpetual problems with the property we were caring for. But we also thrived on the hospitality, friendship, love and protection of our Tz’utujil Mayan, Span-ish and Expat friends. In spite of the challenges and dangers, we developed a deep affection and appreciation for Guatemala’s highlands, the Lake Atitlan region and its indomitable Tz’utujil Mayans. www.professionalhousesit.com http://michaelsherer.com/ This is the blog that Michael writes, informative and written with some humor and good insights on Antigua and CA.

In our experience, the police reports need to be obtained while you're in the US as they need to signed and notarized when you pick them up (we used a mobile notary). They then need to be authenticated by the Secretary of State ( the state in which you reside). Those signatures then need to be authenticated again by your local Guatemalan consulate.. Once all these documents are authenticated by the consulate, you can scan and email them to the tramitadora for translation into Spanish. Once that is completed, you must take (not send) the original documents to the tramitadora so that she can process your documents with the correct agencies. Best wishes! She is no different than an inmigration attorney except that tramitadores are experts in their field, very competent and their fees are normaly less. But she can only work with whatever required documentation you provide to her for her to file on your behalf.

Southwest is currently building an international terminal at Houston Hobby. They plan to start service to Mexico, Central America, and northern cities in South America. Will be interesting to see how that plays out with the competition. Iguanalover, yes it was good. I remember one time my son and I flew from Seattle-Taipai-Bangkok on EVA Air with a return ticket. Day we arrived in BKK, bought bus tickets to Angor, cashed in our return tickets with EVA's downtown office because we were not sure when we were returning to the US. Then used our Singapore miles to fly out of Hong Kong to Seattle. The dang airlines just throw up hurdles to make you buy another ticket so they can bulk up the bottom line on their financials. The reason for all this was because I've never had to prove onward travel at land borders any where I've traveled in SEA, SA, and CA. Oh well, those days are gone as you posted.

Try contacting Dianne Sena in Antigua 7832-9830. She's US Certified and Licensed. Speaks English. She's a psychotherapist. I would suggest you call Gail Trezuola. If she can't help she will know someone who can. PM me for her number or look it up in the Revue.

OK PapaPoopy, as you wish...buena suerte. Well since my parents are Guatemalan citizens most people are telling me the process to becoming a permanent resident will be a lot easier. Wish me luck