Blogs from Panajachel, Western Highlands, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean

The last time I visited to Panajachel (2005), I only saw a tourist trap. Booth after booth with tourist kitsch for sale with jacked up prices line the streets. Many of the items are made in China. This time I stayed with my friend Maria who has a house in Panajachel, but also lives in Texas. We flew down to Guatemala together and she invited me to visit her in Pana. Maria is originally from Guatemala, and even in the States dresses in traditional Mayan clothing. This was a wonderful chance to see her on her own turf and I got to see Panajachel from Maria’s point of view and it totally changed my experience of the town. She has a nice house with a gorgeous garden and a breathtaking view from her roof. Just hanging ... read more

Hola nuestros amigos! In our previous entry, there were a few people who had questions about the lake level and why it was so high. This area has been experiencing higher than average temperatures and longer rainy seasons in the last few years, and as there is no outlet for the lake. It has continued to get deeper as the amount of rainfall is more than the rate of evaporation. Historically, the lake has been up to 70 metres shallower than today and there are some Mayan ruins on what were islands, now submerged under water. As this is Lake Atitlan - the ruins have been christened "Atitlantis". We have spent a week at a Spanish school in Pana and have enjoyed every minute of it! Our Spanish has definitely improved. The school offers extra-curricular activities ... read more

OK, so whose crazy hare-brained idea was it to take a car down through Central America anyway??!! What an amazingly ridiculous experience it is to cross the border. We -- well, Tarjei actually -- had it thoroughly researched and knew EXACTLY what to expect at the Mexico-Guatamala border. We had a plan... Sort of like women approaching childbirth for the first time and have a well-researched birthplan ("No drugs, no epidural, no episiotomy, no C-section"). After all, TT & I have a combined 26 years of post-secondary education --"No guide to get us through customs, we can get the car exported from Mexico and imported to Guatamala". Well, at the first real pain, we demanded a C-section. Actually, after running the gauntlet of at least fifty guys descending on the poor old blue Volvo (we refused ... read more

Woke up this morning after a horrible night sleep. I am full fledged sick now & Geoff is beginning his recovery. Awesome! I guess it's better than us both being totally useless & sick at the same time. After I could pull it together we walked into town to find some food & a pharmacy. I'm self prescribing us both antibiotics so this doesn't get worse & last much longer. Plus I'm almost out of ibuprofen already. We didn't find an open pharmacy so we decided to find food. We ate at a little comedor in the town center. I had a plato tipico which is served all day long & can be any meal & consists of: eggs (however you like them), refried beans, fruit, cheese, fried plantains, & tortillas. I have eaten a lot ... read more

Hola, El proximo dia, nos dieron las estampillas en neustros pasaportes en mexico y fuimos a guatemala! Nuestro omnibus paro al lado de migration y un camión stupido quebró detras de omnibus bloqueando la pasada a guatemala!! Esperamos por una hora y los guardias de la frontera de mexico cobraron al omnibus 110 Quetzals para cruzar la frontera por otra calle. En el omnibus yo senté al lado de un hombre que se llama Federico. El es de argentina pero el vive en panajachel! nos dió mucha información de panajachel y centro america en las cinco horas del viaje. En panajachel encontramos una posada que se llama Casa Loma. Una familia lo maneja y es muy barato. Dario y Yo, mas nuestros tres nuevos amigos dormimos en la casa loma. Esa noche encontramos a dos niños, ... read more