Blogs from Antigua, Capital Region, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 91

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We both found it a little strange passing through Guatemala City as it feels like a long time since we have been in a busy city!! Apparently it is the murder capital of Central America - the direct shuttle bus out to Antigua was a very welcome sight!! Antigua is a really pretty, colourful town in spite of the number of times that it has been hit by earthquakes and rebuilt. Thankfully we didnt experience any tremors although there had been one the previous week. As a coincidence, a girl from the gym at home is currently studying Spanish here (Fifers are everywhere!!). In retrospect making this our first stop to learn Spanish here would have been a good idea (however we have managed to get by with a couple of words and hand signals as ... read more
Arco de Santa Catalina
Cerro de la cruz
Live lava from a safe distance!


Greetings again, this time from Antigua, Guatemala! Actually right now I'm in Guatemala City, somewhere which def wasn't on my itinerary. Am trying to sort out flights and the sheer incompetence of a particular Spanish airline has driven me to desperation, hence having to hang around in one of the world's most dangerous cities while they eat their lunch and prob take a little nap... ggrrrr!!! Anyway, onto nicer things... Since my last post have been doing some serious relaxing. If the Galapagos was Paradise on Earth, then Vilcabamba in the South of Ecuador must surely be the garden of Eden! Mountains, cloud forest, lush green valleys, hummingbirds, more butterflies than you could shake a net at and stunning, stunning views. Spent much of my time admiring it all from the comfort of my own personal ... read more
The Panama Canal - Pacific side
Spotted at Cuenca bus station
Chicken bus


Robbed on our way to the world's most famous pick pocket festival Antigua during Semana Santa is known for thieves and pick pockets. One of the locals told me that the number of "tourists" from El Salvador and other parts of the country that congregate here in the week prior to the festivities is getting more and more alarming. "They aren't here for the parades or the parties and anyone who lives here can tell exactly who they are," she told me. "Antigua is so small, everyone knows one another. It makes me nervous to see all these shifty types everywhere." This was no news to us. We've heard all there is to hear about separating your valuables, never letting your bag go, keeping your eye on the zippers, especially in crowded places like markets and ... read more


Double-Duty: Spanish school and Semana Santa in Antigua in the same week! The Academia de Espanol de Sevilla set us up in a house where I was never sure how many people were permanent residents. Eduardo and Camilla, a lovely older couple in their early sixties were the heads of the household. They'd been having kids from the school stay with them for about three years and you could tell they were accustomed. They spoke slowly and clearly, making sure you understood what was going on. Their daughter Carolina was often around with her two children Maria and Diana, who were just as used to the constant rotation of guests. Brothers and uncles were also constantly stopping by. The daily routine for most of the week was up for breakfast with Eduardo at 7h30, off to ... read more


In travel, as in art, as in life, it is the small details that etch themselves into your heart and mind. The simple things are the ones that create a smile that radiates from inside all the way to my uplifted face that is staring at the sky thanking the heavens for dear sweet life. That is the feeling of Antigua. I swear I woke up with a smile on my face this morning, completely fascinated by the warmth of my blanket and the quiet of the dawn. The crisp cool air was a sensation I haven't experienced in a while, and it made me reminisce on falling leaves of various shades of orange and red, of apple orchards, down comforters, Norah Jones tunes, and wearing sweaters. This golden morning just got better and better as ... read more
Mayan textiles
Old horse drawn cart
More of La Merced


Six weeks of travel comes to an end. What a great time we had.... read more
Last chance liquado
Make that two


So, what shall I tell you about Semana Santa in Antigua? Well there were the alfombras... Already explained those, right? Well there were lots and lots of those, until it seemed that every foot of road was taken up by an alfombra, or was occupied by people building an alfombra, or contained the scattered and smudged ruins of an alfombra. These people are alfombra building machines I tell you. Then there were the processions. Lots and lots of those too. Each one involved hundreds of people lining the roadside, either wearing their sunday best, or in great purple KKK style robes and caps, shuffling VERRRY slowly along to the sound of a band cranking out funeral dirges (think New Orleans style funeral). These hundreds of people each had a card attached to their chest, with numbers ... read more


Have you ever bruised your heels? I think that when I let go of that taxi, those first few paces when I managed to keep my feet under me, before going down in a sprawling heap, my heels hit the ground so hard that I bruised them. And let me tell you, it sucks. I've been limping around the badly cobblestoned streets of Antigua for three days now, and the thing is - if your heels are bruised, when in the hell do they get time to heal. Anyways, for my regular, faithful readers, I wanted to warn you that by posting my robbery story, I may have screwed up the whole way you end up experiencing this blog. See, the entries are sorted according to the date that I assign them, not the date that ... read more


I love Anigua! After three days, I'm taking back my initial thought that it's like a ancient, Guatemalan Disney World. It really is different than Xela. And I'm glad I had both experiences. I'm also very glad that I studied in Xela. There are so many tourists here! This is the beginning of Semana Santa, the holiest (is that a word?) and most important holiday in Guatemala, so I think this is probably the most overrun it gets, but still.... I'm glad I was here for the start of Semana Santa to see some of the processions and traditions, but I'm also glad I'm leaving before it gets too insane, which I've heard it will toward the end of the week. For those familiar with Chicago, Antigua is like the Lincoln Park of Guatemala. It's where ... read more


We interrupt our regularly scheduled (that is to say, two weeks behind) updates to this blog to bring you this late breaking item: yesterday morning, while attempting to escape Guatemala City, I was robbed. And robbed good and proper, too. Combined with my loss four weeks ago of overly expensive prescription sunglasses, yesterday´s events bring to an end a 15 year unbroken record of travel with virtually no unfortunate incidents. I made two absolutely rookie and idiotic mistakes. See if you can spot them. Vanessa and I arrived in Guate City at about 6:00 a.m. after another overnight bus ride from Poptun. As I had recently developed a full-fledged cold (only I could get a cold in the tropics), I was operating in a bit of a Neo-Citron haze (Lemsip for you brits). So, after a ... read more




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