http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Central America Caribbean , Guatemala , Lago de Atitlan en-us Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:38:05 BST Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:38:05 BST Lago AtitlanAfter a couple days in Antigua we took the long journey on a road full of twists and turns to the lake. It is about 2 hours and was quite similar to the Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway in Oregon. Once here we decided to put our deathdefying adventures on hold for a few days and take it easy. The first night we stayed in Panajachel which is the main town for tourists and transport http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Santa-Cruz-La-Laguna/blog-303721.html So we arrived in Guatemala city at 6am yesterday absolutely shattered. We tried to get a shuttle bus from the airport to Antigua but due to lack of numbers we either had to pay more or find an alternative so refusing to pay the extra the QS and the accountant in us we decided to make our own way to the dodgy bus station read dirt road lined with food stalls and chicken buses Anyway we f http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-301958.html first day went from L.A. to tucson AZ where i stayed at my the house of my friends greg and his familyhttpimg80.imageshack.usimg804433yo011pb6.jpgnext day went south across border at nogales eventually encountering the immigrationaduanahttpimg80.imageshack.usimg805030yo014yl3.jpg where a six month visa can be obtained for 30 dollars and a six month vehice permit will set you back 39 http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Juan-La-Laguna/blog-300660.html Lake Atitlan and San MarcosHannh and I got away for the weekend. It took about 2 hours to get to the lake. What a beautiful place When I got into my room 6night with a shared bath the most expensive place is around 40night I noticed the light didnt work. When I looked at the ceiling light there was no light bulb. So down to the desk I went to ask for a light bulb. Keep in mind that ver http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Marcos/blog-299782.html So I would like to take this opportunity to comment on the drug use expats evangelists and hippies in San Pedro. We had heard of the reputation San Pedro had for drug use and expats before we came here but we still came because class was only 60 a week and the city as famed for its beauty. We have not been let down. Class is only 60 a week and the city is beautiful. Our first day we wer http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-297261.html So after class today Anne Laura and I went to lunch. We ate very close to the place we had breakfast which is close to the place we had dinner the day before lunch breakfast and dinner two days ago. Yes there are many restaurants which sit out on Lago de Atitlan and offer a great view of the water and the surrounding mountains. And believe it or not friends I started to get the urge to http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-296737.html Hola AmigosSo my first day of class in San Pedro proved to be interesting. I met my teacher Elmer and we headed to our shack. After talking for awhile he asked me ldquoquires caminarrdquo I said ldquoSirdquo and we went for a walk. We headed through the gardens. The school is outside and is in the center of a giant garden divided into many parts. Each section of the garden is ow http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-296727.html So my plan of staying in Xela for two weeks before traveling was thwarted by my friend Laura and my new friend Anne. They had the idea that we should go study at a school in San Pedro. For those of you who are not familiar with San Pedro let me describe it for you. San Pedro as Anne put it is an oxy moron. It is a small town of about 10000 which sits in the mountains on the edge of Lake Ati http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-296233.html We found another one of Guatemalas not so secret treasures Lago Atitlan.As we arrived in our minvan we came over the hill to look down upon a large beautiful lake surrounded by volcanoes and much vegetation.Panajachel is the largest town around the lake and this is where we were dropped off. Although this was nice enough we had read about another place called San Marcos a town on the other sid http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Marcos/blog-295739.html After spending every hour of every day with the other volunteers here we end up being almost like a family. So when some of the longer term ones leave its a bit tough not only because we end up doing more work until new volunteers come but because we really miss them around the house. This month six of those special people have left us Miguel Lara the couple from Madrid their good friend Pil http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-291715.html After a month of being stationary the restless urge to hit the road stirred heavily in my body and mind. We said good bye to our friends and families packed our belongings in the truck and left our temporary home but not before picking up an additional traveler to toss in the back seat. Her name is Terra and she's from Wisconsin. She asked if she could tag along with us for a few weeks hit http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-290969.html We exchanged smiles from accross the balcony the day before when she checked into the hotel. It's a good start to a morning when the girl next door that you've been eyeing says Beunos dias just after you finish doing a set of pull ups on the balcony stairs. After breif conversation in spanish we switch to english as she is from the States. She asks me if I know how to get to the black sand beach http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-286671.html The weather wasnt that good that day in atitlan but I had a pretty good time although the pics dont look too good...oh. well http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Panajachel/blog-284438.html GUATEMALASomehow she has been calling since childhood when I first visited in 1973 still in cloth diapers where my parents decided to travel different ways...Guatemala has been beckoning since I was one.Perhaps by returning I can be One again...Since the beginning of this voyage there has been a sense of awakening of dreams not yet dreamt becoming real of finding myself while shedding bi http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Panajachel/blog-283068.html Greetings from sunny San Pedro La Laguna. Oh wait no its pissing it down...AGAIN Apart from the glorious sunshine the day we arrived last wednesday it has rained or atleast been very overcast grey and miserable every day weve been here. Add to the that the gorgeous and bloody massive roast chiken dinner we had last night sunday at the British Pub here so far I am yet to find a post of http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-283055.html I got some real cool pics that I will be uploading soon just wanted to check if you are getting some kind of info. please let me know.AlohaGiorgio http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Panajachel/blog-277296.html Day 46 April 25th The day before we had flown from Quito Ecaudor to Guatemala City via Miami.Arrived very late and caught a direct shuttle bus to Antigua as Guatemala Cityis not the type of place you wanna stay in the night. Antigua was a little town very touristic but cute nevertheless. We stayed at a cool hostel called yellow house. The next day we walked around the town and explored a bit. http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Marcos/blog-274885.html Als nachdem das wiedersehen mit dem lieben jan mit nicarum gefeiert wurde machten wir uns auch schon bald auf den weg zum naechsten ziel.. und zwar zu den naechstgelegenen hotsprings.. wieder in die chickenbuse rein.. aber alles anders weil zu zweit lustiger... unterdessen oder immer noch aber eigentlich wieder viel gepaeck 24kg.. und schlussendlich in einem bergdorf angekommen.. ja die re http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-273174.html Hi all...hope your gald to see we have finally got some photos up Thought wed give you an update on what we have been doing since our last entry..FINALLYAfter our spectacular sunrise tour of Tikal in Guatamala we headed soth west to Antigua which is a town just outside Guatamala city. Its old and colonial and a beautiful place in Guatamala...cobbled streets old churches and surrounded by vo http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-270986.html Hola Nick has allowed me this once to do a travel update. The reason being we did our first proper hike two days ago and in order for me to be able to move on and maybe even do another hike i need to express my self in words. Youll notice i put the word hike in speech marks...thats because it was a lie...and i am still trying to think of something more suitableLet me begin we had a choi http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-268361.html So....we left Flores tired hot but at least we didnt miss the bus and we got to witness the most amazing electrical stormwe headed South away from the heat which was recorded at about 37 celsius. We also escaped a jaded dope fiend Canadian at our hostel AND another Canadian who had a story for every occassion as he reckoned he was a travel writer....i have sold a picture that doesnt mak http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Panajachel/blog-267168.html ja wiedermal nach einer halsbrecherischen busfahrt mit den sagenumwobenen chickenbuses welche wie gewohnt fahren wie die bekloppten irreschnell umsomehr leute umsomehr rasen.. andere logik kann ich nicht erkennen plus einer laengeren fahrt mit cracksuechtigen tuctucfahrern wasn tuctuc son 3 raedriges piaggoding.. wie kohli mal gehabt hat.. wisst ihr eigentlich das man mit denen auf die sei http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Marcos/blog-267134.html The Guatemalan antics have kept rolling on since my last blog. My next stop was to Antigua for Semana Santa or Holy Week celeberations. Semana Santa is the week that runs from the Sunday before Easter until Easter Sunday and all throughout Latin America its a time for big celebrations street fiestas carnivals and so on i had to make a reservation to be in Antigua over Semana Sanata quite http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-263414.html My Final WeekMy evening out with Luis and Marcario began a little strange...Oh yeah it was because Marcario never showed up...Lstima I later found out that he got there about 5 minutes after we left. We ordered sandwiches at Guajimbos in Panajachel and then carried them off to the shore of the lake where we sat and drank beer and watched the sunset. We joked about Don Chema selling everythin http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-256888.html One of the places we heard most about during the first two months of our trip was this little lake town San Pedro. We heard it was full of drugs travellers and Spanish schools. All of this has turned out to be true and depending on what you are looking for in life a little trip down here wouldnt be a bad idea. The scenery is incredible set on a high lake surrounded by 4 or 5 volcanoes. The http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-256756.html Hola meine Lieben..boooooooooah die Zeit vergeht viel zu schnell ich kanns gar nicht glauben..nur noch 14 Tage..Well dann berichte ich euch wiedereinmal was ich so die woche ueber getrieben habe.Es war a anstrengende Woche mit viel herumreisen.Ich war mit David Rory und Andrew in San Pedro Lago di Atitlan das Leben dort is mega billig .. doch das Leben dort is auch ganz anders dort gib http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-256712.html When you plan and trip like this one that involves driving through crime filled third world countries you tell yourself a few things. We will only travel by day we will only travel on the main roads and we will stay away from places that are notorious for crime. Once your on the trip however you forget these things...but we will get to that.After a few wild days in Antigua involving open m http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/San-Pedro-La-Laguna/blog-254885.html Relaxing at the lake days after finishing the hike and just before returning to the States http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/Santa-Cruz-La-Laguna/blog-252837.html Thanks for a Wonderful Week TennesseansI did as close to nothing interesting as possible on thursday and friday. My job all day was to carry cinder blocks down a ridiculously steep hill in a wheel barrow. There were 400 of them...Yeah.Saturday A group from Tennessee came today and they are great people. One couple has adopted from the orphanage before and are in the process of adopting again. Th http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-251704.html Okay so as a follow up on the civil unrest situation I have a lot more information now. Wednesday After the people got so mad at the police about their lack of work to resolve the kidnapper situation they scheduled a town meeting in the soccer stadium. There were more than 5000 people in the stadium and their demands were just that the police arrest the KNOWN kidnappers before 30 days or they wo http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Guatemala/Lago-de-Atitlan/blog-251694.html