The Bad and the Better

Grand Plaza, Tikal
Tikal, Temple IV
View from Temple IV


Sunset, El Remate
El Remate
Our smashed shuttle bus

Another adventurous week in Guatemala. We left Lanquin last Friday and it was a hell of a ride. It was raining...which should´ve been a sign for us to just stay another day. All the roads in Lanquin are dirt...so it took us hours just to get up to the paved road, and we thought we were smooth sailing from there. Just outside of Coban, we were chatting away and enjoying the scenery. We were preparred for the 8 hour bus ride to Flores but we weren´t preparred for what happened next. As we were heading around a bend, a pickup truck was coming strait towards us, obviously out of control. Our shuttle bus driver quickly realized what was going on and that we didnt have any option but to position and brace ourselves for the crash. The truck hit us head on...I was in the front seat, middle, no seatbelt (there was no seatbelt), and as soon as I realized what was about to happen, I envisioned my face smashed into the winshield. It wasn´t that bad though, everyone walked away with a few minor bumps and bruises. We are all so lucky.

Eleven hours later, we made it to Flores, a tiny island in Lake Peten Itza, in the Peten. It´s absolutely beautiful here, but quite touristy. We spent 2 days here, walking around the island, swimming, watching sunsets, eating great food at our hostel and we even had a night out on the town. Let me tell you, Guatemalens in Flores know how to party!

Sunday Alex and I headed to El Remate, a very tiny town at the end of the lake. We spent the afternoon swimming and wandering around the town. We witnessed a beautiful sunset while eating dinner next to the lake. We stayed the night in a very...interesting hostel. Our dorm room was practically a tree house. When we entered, we encountered a scorpion and a bat. Lukilly, we had mosquito nets provided which came in handy.

Monday, we headed to Tikal...it is majestic, words cannot describe what we encountered. We entered the park at 3:30pm and were there until just after sunset. We spent an hour alone just in the Grand Plaza climbing the temples, gazing and taking photos. We later headed to Temple IV, which is 65 meters high, and watched the sunset from there. It was unreal. We left the park and camped in a tent we rented right behind a restaraunt. We were quite excited about camping...until we learned there was a leak in our air mattress...which wouldn´t have been a big deal, but the tent was on the concrete. So, by midnight we were laying awake, on the hard, cold concrete. Ill just say that it was a long night. Lucky for us, we were getting up early to be back in Tikal by 6am. We were some of the first people in the park and it was just as spectacular this morning as it was last night. We spent a few hours looking at wildlife, the ruins, the jungle, the amazingness of it all. We saw a howler monkey, tons of birds and some rodent type animals.

All in all, it was amazing. Now, we are back in Flores for one more night to catch up on some sleep. We plan to take an early bus out tomorrow to head to Belize, more specifically Caye Caulker Island. Let´s hope it´s an easy breezy bus ride...

Until Next time...

Antigua and the Guatemalan Jungle

Antigua, San Fancisco Church

Antigua

Semuc Champey. Carlos (the guide), and Alex

Semuc Champey from the top

Our Hostel, in the Jungle

Alfombra in Antigua

Procession, Antigua

This past week has been a crazy adventure...so I'll start from the begining.

Sunday, I hopped on a bus in Reu and headed to Antigua. 2 buses, a load of sweat, and 4.5 hours later, I was dropped off in what turned out to be the outskirts of Antigua. No one tells you where you are, but I knew I had to get off the bus and I felt my only option was to I follow the crowd. I made my way to Parque Central, thanks to the help of a local, and later to a hostel...but had to fight my way through the crowded streets. Imagine Ashland on the 4th of July...that's what Antigua was like when I arrived. Thousands of people in the tiny, cobble stoned city. They were holding a procession, which they hold every weekend before Semana Santa, which is the Holy Week. I settled into my hostel in Antigua and then roamed the streets watching the parade, the people, the colors, the floats. It was incredible, so vibrant. There were alfombras (rugs), made out of coloroed saw dust on the streets in elaborate, religious designs. All the men who participate in the procession dress in purple robes and the women wear all black. They carry enourmous floats through town and burn incense to cleanse the air. It was a huge fiasco, I wonder what Semana Santa will be like... The streets were filled with people well into the night, but the city finally settled down and Monday it was as if nothing every happened.

Monday and Tuesday I wandered around Antigua, did some shopping and sight seeing and came to appreciate the city more than I did the first time around. I did my fair share of partying with the people from the hostel, Antigua never sleeps and there is always stuff to do. On Monday, my friend Alex came to meet me and on Tuesday we got on a 7 hour roller coaster of a shuttle ride to Lanquin, Guatemala...Welcome to the Jungle. Alex and I met 2 girls on the shuttle...both from Portland, OR (small world) and the 4 of us decided to stick together. The shuttle driver dropped the 4 of us off along a dirt road, 9:30pm, pitch dark and we had figure out where in the world to go. We pulled out our head lamps and pocket knives and made our way down a dirt path and soon stumbled upon the hostel we were looking for, after a sketchy encounter with a local. The hostel (Zephyr) is unbelievable. It's situated in the middle of nowhere, with a view of the river and the jungle on all sides. The common area is lined with hammocks and tables for comfort and relaxation. The one downfall is that it's dry season, and today there is no water. So, you can only imagine what the toilets look like after everyone contribution... We are hoping for water in the next few hours. A shower would be great...

Wednesday morning we got up bright and early for our adventure tour. After a drive in the back of a pick up truck down a twisty, windy road, our fist task to was get onto a swing, tied to a giant tree and swing over a river...jumping into the water was optional, but I opted out of the jump and just did the swing, quite exhilerating, an adrenaline rush and better than a cup of coffee. After the swing, we headed to Grutas de Lanquin, the caves. None of us were sure what to expect, but we were told to get into our bathing suits, wear good shoes, leave everything else behind and then we were each handed a candle as we approached the mouth of the cave. Our faces were painted with an orange-redish fruit, which we were told the Mayans used to use as a natural sun block. We entered the cave and soon were wading through water led by the light of the candles. We swam one handed, crawled through small spaces, climbed ladders, dropped through a small hole, went down natural rock slides and made it to the end of our destination and turned to head back to the light. After the caves, we hopped on inner tubes and did a 30 minute float down the river for relaxation. Next, we headed to Semuc Champey and had lunch (street meat burritos). We then paid our entrance fee into the park and then saw that we had a 1.2 KM hike STRAIT UP...stair after stair after stair...after more stairs. Here they say "Vale la Pena".... which means "it was totally worth it" as we had an unbelievable view of Semuc Champey, limestone pools with fresh water (google images, but I'll post pics SOON). We hiked back down and spent the rest of the afternoon swimming in each and every limstone pool from top to bottom. Unreal.

The limestone pools completed our days worth of adventures, and we headed back to the hostel for some relaxation and food. I was set to head to bed early, but as always there was so much going on at the hostel, no time for sleep...I've always had a problem with socialization. I just can't say no. I stayed up until 1am playing cards and hanging out with the other travelers. I slept like a baby afterwards.

Our plan was to head to Flores today, but we decided to have a day of relaxation before another 7 hour journey. Today, we are going to enjoy the view from the hostel, take a swim in the river and wander around Lanquin before packing our things and saying our goodbyes to this beautiful place.

Xela, Reu, Champerrico

Me and Joseph in Reu

Champerrico
Xela market. Women in traditional dress
Xela
I didn't last long in Xela. It was a bit overwhelming after being at the lake for a whole month. The city is big, loud, dirty and I felt like I was going to get hit by a car at any moment. I spent 2 days there with the girls I went there with. We wandered around the town by foot both days and did lots of shopping, observing and eating of deep fried street food. So good, and so cheap. On St. Patricks Day, we decided to splurge and ate a really nice dinner at an Indian restaurant. Weird, I know...but we all wanted something other then deep fried Guatemalan food. On Friday, I caught a bus to Retalulue (Reu) to visit Joseph, Curt and Semilla Nueva. The bus ride was unbelievable. It's so beautiful out here, so lush and so much life. There are fruit trees everywhere, it's so green and it's amazing to pass through these small villages. So many times I wish I could've jumped off the buss to walk around and look around.

It's hot here in Reu. 100 degrees everyday and so humid. Its almost like being in Hawaii...but without the beach, or any body of water for that matter. Reu is smaller than Xela and there are virtually no tourists. Its a much different feel from the rest of Guatemala. People dress like us Americans...in scandalous clothing. It's so hot here that it would be hard to wear the traditional dress. The nicest place in town is the McDonalds...well Im not sure about that but I think only the weathy go there as it's expensive and air conditioned. There are street vendors all over the parque central seeling fruits, veggies, clothes, knick knacks and meat. There is raw meat hanging everywhere in the blistering heat. I'm on the verge of becoming a vegetarian after seeing all the meat hanging up around town.

Yesterday, I went by bus to Champerrico, the beach on the pacific coast, with Curt's girlfriend Katie. We were the only white people for miles and miles, which was nice at first as we were not in a touristy place, but it became pretty intense as the day went on. When we got to the beach, we layed out with our books. Not 5 minutes after, did we have a group of men surrounding us asking us to come with them, to hang out, to practice our Spanish with them, etc. We had to be very assertive in that we were fine by ourselves, that we came to relax and enjoy the sun. We did get a break from people and did some swimming in the warm, blue sea. The water was unbelievable. You couldnt go to far out though as the rip tide was strong. Katie and I had lunch at a small restaurant on the beach, no problems. Towards the end of the day, we went to take showers before getting on the bus and we had the whole beach staring at us. I guess it's uncommon for them to see a)white people, b) white women, and c) white women in bikini's. When we went to the showers, I was going to watch our bags while Katie showered and we were going to trade. A woman who worked at the restaurant insisted on watching our bags while we both rinsed off in the showers. I went with it...and it was like we were putting on a shower for everyone at the restaurant. The woman stood and watched us even as we were both out of the showers and getting dressed. Pretty crazy!

The next few days I will just be relaxing and hanging out in Reu. My plan is to meet up with my friend Alex on Monday and head east towards Semuc Champey, Tikal, the carribean coast and eventually out of Guatemala. That's all for now...

Virtual Tour part 2...and More

I POSTED PICS...SCROLL ALL THE WAY DOWN!

There are a few very important details that I should mention about what I´ve experienced.

First of all, there are dogs everywhere and they never stop barking. They are pretty vicious as well. I have several friends who have been bitten...most by the same dog (which has had its rabies vaccinations...supposedly) and some people have been bitten by other dogs. I really dislike the dogs here, they are awful and there is NO animal control. Aside from barking dogs, you hear lots of rooster crowing...all through the night. Their are wild chickens everwhere. Its fun to see them wandering around. Another typical sight is people walking around with machetes. It was pretty scary the first time...when I went on a hike into the woods with a girl friend and we saw a man walking towards us with a machete. People, both men and woman, old and young, carry around machetes to chop wood for burning in their wood stoves. Its unbelievable to see them working...espeically when it is small children.

Today I left Lake Atitlan and am now in Xela with 2 girls...one from Ireland and the other from New Zeland. We caught a Chicken Bus her (school buses that have been painted wild colors geared towards locals) and boy was it a hell of a ride. The bus was going to fast on crazy steep, curvy roads. But we made it! We walked around with our big heavy packs for about an hour before finding the hostal we wanted to stay at. We are in a dorm room with about 30 other beds...thats what you get for $2.50 a night...right??

My month in San Marcos and San Pedro was amazing. It was difficult to leave the community of friends I made, but change is good. I spent my last few days there doing what I usually did...swimming, eating and meeting amazing people. On Sautrday, we went to Festival Atitlan in Santiago. It was a music festival raising money to help clean up the lake. We had a good time playing all day, getting our faces painted, meeting tons of folks, eating good food and listening to good music. I even ran into someone from high school...small world!!!

Well, Im off to explore Xela...enjoy the pics

Virtual Tour (for mom)

I`ve had a special request for a virtual tour of where Im living and what Im seeing...so here goes my best.

Lake Atitlan-There are many small towns around the lake. As I said before, I`ve spent most of my time in San Marcos which is where I continue to reside. Its very small. With that said, there is no bank, no post office, only a few very small tiendas which are even smaller than SevenElevens. There are a few woman who sit in the streets and sell fresh fruits and vegetables, for dirt cheap. Although, they are more expensive for the gringos. When you take money out of the bank (in San Pedro), you get 100 Quetzal bills (8 Quetzales= $1) and people in San Marcos NEVER have change. So, its always an adventure to buy things. When people dont have change, they let you take the product and tell you to come back later when you have the change. The good ol` honor system. The woman here dress very traditionally. They wear long skirts that are beautiful colors and patterns, with a solid colored sleeved blouse. Its funny though, because most of them wear western shoes, flip flops and high heels. The men just wear blue jeans, flannel shirts and sombreros. I don`t know how they wear these clothes as its so warm here. I try to dress appropriately, with shorts at least knee length. There are times when I dont because we are always swimming and I do feel uncomfortable walking through town in little clothing. Sundays are washing day. You see the locals line up at the lake to bathe and wash their clothes. Its quite a sight and families are all together doing it. Its very bad for the lake though as they dont use biodegradable soaps and there is some bad algae growing in the lake that will eventually kill it. There is a volunteer group here trying to educate the community about it all.

Most the fruits and veggies come from Guatemala. There is coffee grwoing EVERYWHERE. You can see banana trees and avocado trees wherever you go...so much fruit!

San Pedro, just a 10 minute boat ride across the lake is a bigger village. There are many more tourists, a large veggie and fruit market at the top of this killer hill. There are resturants and shops everywhere, tuk tuks (small taxis), and people trying to get you to rent their kayaks or horses or stay in their hotel. Its quite overwhelming. We come here when we have to use the bank and internet as it`s much cheaper here. You can also walk down the street and get a fresh squeezed orange juice for 3 Quetzales (less than $.50) or a smoother for 5 Quetzales. Its so awesome. I have spent all of my day in San Pedro. I came over here with a friend bright and early to get a huge delicious breakfast (chocolate/banana pancakes, eggs, potatoes, toast, coffee and BACON...yes Bacon). After our amazing meal, we rented kayaks and went around the lake and for a swim. After our kayak adventure, we met some other travelers and went to a local spot to have a delicious lunch. Since then, we wandered up the trechorous hill to the market to buy food and to use the internet.

I plan to stay at the lake the rest of the week as their is a festival on Saturday to raise money and awareness for Lake Atitlan. Im looking forward to it as I am going with the wonderful women I`ve met while traveling. I keep making plans to leave the lake, and things come up. So for now, Im just going with the flow of how things happen. I have been better about getting out of San Marcos to explore other parts of the lake. Yesterda, I went on a hike with 4 other girls from San Marcos to San Pablo where we found a nice little beach. On our way out, there was a man standing there with heaps of marijauana...his kids right behind him. It was quite comical....

Well, I will leave you all with that. I hope everyone is doing well on the other side.....

Signing off!!!

San Pedro

It has been an interesting few days here in San Pedro. Let me tell you...

Saturday night I went to a bar to watch the guys from Portland perform. Live music is always great. Around midnight, I headed to another bar with a friend and there were hundreds of cops all around the small town of San Pedro. Maybe not hundreds, but a lot. Apparently the cops go around to all bars about midnight to frisk people (lots of drug use here) and shut the bars down. So, we went to an after party instead...which wasnt much of an after party. The owners of the bar were so worried about us getting in trouble by the police that we were all taken into this small room in the back of the bar. There were about 30 of us and it turned out to be pretty fun. People were doing their thing (drinking and stuff) and there were people playing the guitar, drumming and singing, face painting and it was quite a show. I didnt make it to bed until...well, late.

Sunday was rough and the Portland boys were nice enough to let Alex (new friend from Canada) and I crash at their house. The only very difficult thing is that their toilet has no toilet seat...and when you have a very upset tummy, you get quite a leg workout while using a lidless toilet. Sorry if thats TMI. But, its the truth. Maybe they should invent traveling toilet seats?? Also, it rained harder yesterday than Ive ever seen rain. It lasted about 2 hours with a bit of thunder and lightning. Thank goodness I got to watch it from a covered yard.

Today I got myself a room at a hostel after mooching off the boys and making them sleep in tents in their yard, while I got to use their bed....and then I ventured over to Panajachel, I believe the biggest city around the lake. Its about a 30 minute boat ride across the lake. I wandered around for an hour before I could find what I was looking for...the artisians market where I bought myself a scarf. Its amazing how good of sales people the Guatemalans are. They will do anything to get you to buy their stuff, and you have to be good at bartering with them. Its actually pretty fun. After a bit of shopping by myself, I got back on the lancha (the boat) and waited for an hour for it to get some more people in order for it to head back to San Pedro. I witnessed a beautiful sunset on my ride back to San Pedro.

To be honest, I am pretty ready to head back to San Marcos. Its much smaller and the hostel I was at has such a great community...not to mention the full kitchen, sauna and private dock for swimming. San Pedro is more for shopping and partying. So, I made head back across the lake later this week. I also need to prepare myself to venture away from Lake Atitlan and see more of Guatemala. I will, soon. Well, thats all I got for now. Much love to everyone.