Just got back to Xela.... Never thought I'd say it, but it feels like home. I visited Lake Atitlan for the weekend and it was awesome. It's a huge lake surrounded by volcanos and tiny villages. We visited three of the villages and of course, the necessary, touristy part too. That part is called Panajachel and it's the main hub, from which boats leave to take you to the other towns around the lake. The streets of Pana, as people call it, are filled with stall after stall of Guatemaltecos selling similar and some beautiful things. We stayed one night in [View Full Entry]

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When the big man pointed at my glasses, our guide Fernando quickly snapped a few inches of twine from a rope hanging nearby, neatly removed my glasses from my head, and tied the two ends of the cord to the arms of my glasses. As he handed the modified glasses back to me, I knew we were in for a better than average adventure. Ten minutes later we arrived at the mouth of the cave. A large pool of still, dank looking water lay in front of a large, locked gate. We stood, momentarily stymied while Fernando searched for the key [View Full Entry]

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So, we've been hanging out in Lanquin, at this place called El Retiro for the last few days. It is one of these places you encounter every once in a while when travelling: located in a slightly out of the way place, in an idyllic setting where some gringo came years ago, discovered he didn't want to leave, and decided to open a hostal/guest house/retreat. There is usually one particular attraction in the area that has been a tourist draw for ages, and often little else of note. But the hostal/guest house/retreat ends up becoming a destination in itself. See, at [View Full Entry]

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Having been back in Guatemala for a week and a half now, and having reacquainted myself with the vagaries of long distance public transport, I feel it is now appropriate to present to you my Guide to Guatemalan Bus Travel or Riding the Gallo But first, a word on etymology (or is that bugs?). The standard form of travel in Guatemala has been named, by gringos, the chicken bus. For those of us who grew up in Quebec, riding the chicken bus brings back fond memories of childhood, for the buses here in use are, in fact, the Blue Bird Body [View Full Entry]

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Spent a couple of days wandering around the ruins of Tikal. [View Full Entry]

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Wow.. what else can I say?! Today some friends from school and I visited this tiny town called Zunil, home of the smoking, drinking deity of miracles - also known as San Semon. You have to ask the locals where San Semon resides - currently it´s a tiny house filled with candles and flowers. San Semon resembles a cowboy in an electric chair, complete with vest and cowboy hat, sunglasses, a hankerchief covering his mouth, red gloves and an american flag over his shoulders. It´s completely laughable, but apparently we shouldn´t have.... From what I can gather, San Semon is a [View Full Entry]

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Hoi allemaal, ik vond het weer tijd voor mijn update! Dit keer zal ik niet weer zo'n triest verhaal schrijven. Het gaat goed met me, ondanks dat er hier rare dingen blijven gebeuren, heb ik mijn weg hier aardig gevonden. Ik woon inmiddels in een soort hostel. Ik heb een kleine kamer waar een bed in staat en een klein kastje waar ik mijn kleren een beetje op kwijt kan. Ik heb geen ramen, maar ach alles went. In het hostel hebben we een gezamenlijke keuken en een gezamenlijke tuin waar wat tafels en stoelen staan, prima vertoefen hier! In het [View Full Entry]

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A visit to the old Spanish Fort. [View Full Entry]

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Etter en lang dag i Palenque startet vi turen mot Guatemala tidlig neste dag. Forste del gikk greit, med en ny (men ukomfortabel) minibuss. Deretter var det en halvtime med elvebaat for vi naadde Guatemala. Der ble vi loset over i en serdeles daarlig minibuss som ble fylt til randen. Etter mye om og men pluss en del svindelforsok kom vi oss endelig til El Remate, rett ved Tikal, og fikk oss en hyggelig bungallow der. Tilbrakte hele neste dag i Tikal, som ogsaa er en gammel Mayaby. Tikal er mye storre enn Palenque, saa det ble veldig mye gaaing. I [View Full Entry]

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Hola amigos!! Hope this finds everyone doing well. I haven´t written in a bit, mostly cause I´ve been so busy!! Who would have thought - in Guatemala? After a week and a half here, it´s starting to feel like home. It´s so strange! I run into people I know on the streets... it really is a small world. So much has happened and I don´t want to bore you with a play-by-play, so here are the highlights.... I´m hoping to add photos soon. Love and hugs to all!! - I´m remembering and learning a lot of Spanish in classes and otherwise... [View Full Entry]

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