It was nice to get back to Antigua, more things to do and a better selection of groceries. And we are glad to be not quite ‘under’ Volcan de Fuego. It started acting up while we were in San Marcos and forced the evacuation of about 4000 people (see the BBC report here ). Fortunately, the activity seems to be on the other side away from Antigua and even the ash blows out toward the ocean. But it’s pretty spectacular even so. It quieted down a little when we got back but the ash clouds during the day are massive and the lava at night sometimes looks like fireworks. We…
Category: Guatemala
Lake Atitlan
Wow! This is one of the most picturesque areas we’ve ever been in. A large volcanic crater lake surrounded by….more volcanoes. Some active-ish. The last one erupted sometime in the mid-1800’s. The safety odds are probably better than being next to Volcan de Fuego but the lake mysteriously rises and falls every few years, like about 50 feet, so you never know. When it was formed some 80,000 years ago the ash covered an area ranging from Florida in the north to Ecuador in the south. It is very beautiful though and considered by many to be the most beautiful lake in the world. Tourists come here for the mystic qualities,…
San Marcos – Shuttle Bus from Hell
We took a break from Antigua to go to Lake Atitlan for a few days. We’ve been to the lake before and we stayed in the main city there, Panajachel. This time we thought we’d stay in one of the smaller towns around the lake, San Marcos, and I’ll write more later. We wanted to get the morning shuttle, so we could be there in plenty of time to get the lowdown from our host Carlos before he shipped out stateside for the American Thanksgiving. But alas, that was not meant to be. By the time 9:45am rolled around (we had booked a 9:00am shuttle) and we had someone phone…
Guatemala – Land of Stray Dogs (and Horses)
So yes, there are dogs here. Everywhere. There were many at Lake Atitlan the last time we were there. And most seem to be homeless. They wander about solitarily or in packs and mind their own business for the most part. They do however keep an eye open for anyone throwing out morsels and treats. They’re not starving at all as far as we can tell but they most definitely are wary of people. They get a lot of scraps from strewn garbage, from neighbor’s feeding them, and some of the stores here have dog bowls with food on the sidewalk outside their doors. It’s a little sad to see…
Antigua – All Souls Day Procession
On the way back from the large kite festival we got off our shuttle bus early. As it wound through the congested streets of Antigua, the crowds became very thick and finally we stopped. It didn’t look like we were going anyway anytime soon so we got off to walk the final 1.5km home. It became immediately apparent why we got stopped though. We had run smack dab into a parade of sorts and most of the central core was completely blocked. The parade turned out to be the All Souls procession that takes place at the end of the day on November 1st. It felt very similar to the…
Sumpango – Visit the Dead or go Fly a Kite
It’s one or the other dude but either way I’m sure you’ll have a blast. At least in Sumpango which is one of several places here that celebrate Halloween…colorfully. More accurately, they celebrate El Dia de Muertos, a big festival from Mexico on down through central and South America. November 1st, the day of the dead. While Canadians and Americans stuff themselves with chocolate bars gathered from the night before, here they party big time. They do the Halloween thing like everywhere complete with lots of fireworks, but it’s November 1st that important. Families congregate in the cemeteries and celebrate the day with meals right in the graveyard. In Sumpango,…
Guatemala – Land of Color
If I were to use only one word for this place it would be color. There is so much of it here. From the clothing to the flowers, painted buildings, artwork, pottery, and kites (more on that later). And let’s not forget the chicken buses. Yes, it’s also a land of volcanos, earthquakes, and lightning storms, but for us, the thing that sticks out the most is the color. The native Maya wear the most colorful clothes I think I have ever seen. The clothing and fabric, all hand woven, are amazingly beautiful. So, it’s a treat to wander around and take it all in. The street walls are often…
Antigua – Colonial City
So, we’ve been here for a week now and covered most of the core city. We seem to need groceries daily as our fridge is behaving badly but it gives us a chance to do a tour on our way to the supermarket and the bakery. And we usually need to carefully time our walks between rain showers and or thunderstorms as it is still the rainy season. The cobblestone streets are narrow but not as much as the ones in Spain. There are lots of churches though just like back in the old country and the architecture, while not as grandiose, is still pretty impressive. What’s left standing…
Antigua, Under the Volcano
Apologies to Malcolm Lowry. After a long day (and night) getting here and arriving just in time for an eruption of Fuego in the morning followed by a 5.7 quake in the afternoon, I thought about entitling this piece Holidays in Hell, but I’d have to apologize to P J O’Rourke instead. After a fierce lightning storm 2 days later (a few strikes next door and across the street) along with torrential rain, it certainly was tempting. But really, this place is not anything like the articles in O’Rourke’s book. The earthquake was minor (this time), the volcano though continues to spew a lot of stuff and we have…