Blogs from Antigua, Capital Region, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean

I leave rising from the plains burning dry heat a landscaped apron of mango trees stretched drum tight under smoking volcano Fuego his sister Agua their brother Acatenango west wind raising a loose horsetail of pumice dust from Acatenango’s flank rust colored against turquoise the gouged once molten rivered mountainside is etched deep trampled glowing red they lied when they told us who is buried here was it 200 hundred no senor it was certainly 2000 mas mas they lie to us here but we know who did not come home that night never came home that morning the truth is washed away when they spray the cobbled streets with precious water while people here are waterless the cane fields burn behind me the armless man waits and I shake his stump and say good morning ... read more

Hola gringos! Efter en sløv start har vi nu fået lidt af Guatemala under huden! Vi startede med at være et par dage i Antigua, den gamle kulturelle hovedstad. En fin, by med farverige bygninger der bærer præg af tiden fra de spanske "Conquistadores". Godt jetlagget, skulle de første dage bruges på at få hovedet med herover så der blev slappet lidt ved poolen, slendret rundt og bare suge folkene og stedet ind. Antigua ligger på vestkysten, i et vulkanfyldt område, samme kæde der starter Andesbjergene længere sydpå. Jeg har set billeder fra nogen af vulkanerne hvor man kan komme op og se "floder" af rød lava - det lyder jo ret spændende, så der måtte vi op. Tidligt afsted om morgen - og endelig med fødderne i støvlerne - gik turen op af på vulkanen ... read more

Fri 16-Sat 17 November - Day 21 to 22 - Antigua We arrived around 2.00pm after negotiating the busy, large city of Guatemala, at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Antigua, one of the most delightful colonial towns in Central America. After booking in at the very friendly Hotel Posada Los Bucaros in our spacious room with 2 double beds and a single bed, Alfredo took us on the usual orientation walk around the city. The local indigenous could be seen throughout the cobbled streets and plazas of the city in their colourful costumes, selling their crafts and textiles. They are very short people, wearing colourful blouses and full skirts. Often, they were carrying their wares on their head as well as carrying a baby in a wrap. As the cultural centre of Guatemala, Antigua was an ... read more

SC writes: A few last comments from Antigua Guatemala.Because of it's history (built in 1543) and "impressive beauty" Antigua was declared a WorldHeritage site by UNESCO in 1979. It is the second most visited destination in Guatemala and has certainly enabled us to chill out after the trip - despite some minor security worries. (E.g. We went into a couple of small local grocery stores yesterday in search of nibbles. Each had a cash desk behind stout iron bars - like prison cell). Having said that we have not had any sort of problem at all, beyond haggling with taxi drivers.... read more

SC writes in catch up mode: Saturday was a very long travelling day, where we crossed back into Guatemala, bumped over a thousand sleeping policemen, climbed up to 2,500 meters and enjoyed some fantastic scenery. That got us to Lake Aticlan, a huge volcanic caldera dating bake 60,000 years, surrounded by three huge newer volcanic cones - spectacular scenery and even better sunsets.On Sunday we toured the local area,first by boat across the lake to two smallish villages. One was an arty crafty enclave where Cathy succumbed and bought some small painting. The other included a women's cooperative that produced woven goods from scratch. Cathy tried her hand at cotton spinning as you will see. In the afternoon ... read more