Chicken busses... are they really legal?

---

Hmmmmmmmm where to start...
Well Guatemala is DEFINITELY in my top 3 countries, just STUNNING! The people are simply delicious. The friendlist people (well on par with Peruvians) that I have met in my travels so far. They are just such warm, happy, helpful, fun-lovin', complimentary, smiley people! Something I really noticed is the females are so warm and friendly too. In various other South and Central American countries I feel the females aren't very accomodating towards gringas (female foreigners), but in Guatemala they look you in the eyes and smile and make you feel very welcome. I felt so comfortable in this beautiful country!
Something else I really loved about Guatemala is it is still very traditional. I am unsure of the percentage but there are many locals who continue to wear the traditional Mayan clothing and who speak Mayan as a first language, some don't even speak Spanish. Their clothing and materials they use to carry things are filled with such bright, intense colours, Mel and I just LOVED it! The colours compliment their happy, easy-going friendliness.


Highlights of our time in Guatemala were:

1. Our time in Antigua:
We had such a fun time practicing Spanish, drinking and eating in various bars and restaurants in Antigua. A few that come to mind are Frida's, the bar tenders were lots of fun - we spent many a night and afternoon enjoying their company and the nachos to die for BEST ever, Skye Cafe - such a great spot to knock back a beer in the sunshine whilst enjoying the view overlooking Antigua and her stunning volcanoes, Nokiate our FAVOURITE Sushi restaurant - just stunningly tasty and great service, Kafkas again delish food and great service, Reilly's an Irish bar that is always jam packed - we had many a good nights there, and one of my faves was the street tostillas YUMMMMO and cheap!
Apart from all the food and drink we consumed in Antigua we just loved the atmosphere and vibe of this very touristy town. It really is so pretty and fun to explore. It's cobbled roads, colourful buildings, tuk tuks, freindly faces, tourist shops, the big outdoor/indoor market, the restaurants/bars/cafes, the live music nightly, the stunning view of volcanos surrounding the town, the beautiful sunny weather we were lucky enough to have... I can't speak highly enough of it. We loved it so much that we returned there about 3 times (in between our little trips elsewhere).

CLIMBING VOLCAN PACAYA:
Mel and I climbed Pacaya Volcano in Antigua and camped for the night. That's right we camped on an ACTIVE volcano! CRAZY eh?!!
It was really amazing! We drove about an hour and a half to get to the base and it rained the whole way! Not such a good sign 😞
By the time we began walking the rain had stopped and the humidity had set in. It was a hard climb (but nothing like the 8hr volcano hike Dean (a friend from Australia and I did in Nicaragua). It took us (a group of nine of us, Mexicans, States, Quebec, Turkey and Australia 😊) just over an hour to hike to the camp sight. We set up camp and it started to drizzle again, hmmmmmm. We had some dinner and then watched as the volcano exploded. It was amazing, I have never seen anything like it... an active volcano. Spurts of hot red lava exploding into the night sky, WOW! We later walked to a lookout point and looked out over Guat City and other towns, it was amazing, all lit up like fairy lights 😊 Suddenly we all heard rocks tumbling down the volcano, it was crazy, volcanic rock rumbling down, it sounded like a monster growling! We stayed silent for a while then I did a "KOOOOWEE" (something I learned from my Dad 😊), and the vibrations of my voice set it off again because the rocks rumbled down once again... such a unique and eery sound!
We headed back to camp and had a glass of wine (from a box), then watched the lava exploding again. A truely spectacular sight!
Hit the sack about 9:30pm and woke up at 4am. We headed up with sticks in hand (like walking poles, but actual tree branches that kids and families make and then sell to you for $1.50, for two, b4 you head up. And then come running up to you when you walk back down to ask for them back, so you actually just rent them for the hike) as volcanic rock can be nasty to fall on. It's very sharp and you could easily cut open a hand or leg, so it's safe to have some support and balance. We were looking for lava. Unfortunately, it was uncommon for Pacaya, but there wasn't much lava flow around! Bit of a disappointment, but we found a little, enough to toast some marshmellows. And we saw a STUNNING sunrinse and it cleared up so much we could see the other 3 volcanos, Agua, Fuego and Acatenango which is also very uncommon, so we were very lucky!
We took loads of pics and stood over hot lava rock, you really can feel the heat that comes up from underneath you. We trecked back took down camp and headed down the volcano. There were hundreds of tourists (not that we aren't) heading up so we were all so happy we had done the over night and had the volcano to ourselves!!
What an adventure!

MOUNTAIN BIKE RIDE:
Mel is a keen out doorsy gal and really gung ho about mountain bike riding, so when we past a bike shop in Antigua she ventured in to find out more. Sure enough the company ran bike tours and Mel was pumped. I on the otherhand was a bit more apprehensive as haven't experience too much mountain biking. We asked lots of questions about the tours, as there were various different ones, and ended up signing up for a trip through coffee plantations, corn fields, small towns and beautiful countryside. For me it wasn't an easy ride, but it was lots of fun and just gorgeous, so green. At one point we stopped in a small local town (sadly I have forgotten the name) where they have a wooden figure (in a church) of San Simon - a well respected deity, similar to a god and the Mayan people worship him. People take all sorts of gifts to this figure, such as his favourite rum, cigarettes, insense, flowers... they burn things outside the church and walk around the smoking fire and chant. We also visited inside the church and watched as a lady was blessing people in front of the San Simon stature, she was waving some kind of branch around each person she would then drink something and all of a sudden spit it over them, it was quite a sight.
We had two super fun guides, Juan and Ret. Ret was Italian and had travelled all over, making Antigua his new home. Juan was local and was full of life and smiles. We had a great crew with us too, all much fitter than me, which showed at the end when there was an extention (extreme) part to the trip, I oppted out and enjoyed the ride in the mini van to join the rest of the crew at the bottom of the extreme section. It suited me just fine, and I had some great chats with Ret about our travels and life in general.


Our time in San Pedro:
We were told San Pedro was a fun lil hippy town on Lago Atitlan (Lake Atitlan), with good vibes and a chill feel about it... well worth the visit, so we set off. We headed to the market area in Antigua to find the bus heading to Panajachel (a small town on the lake where you catch a ferry to any of the other towns/villages on the lake), a local guy saw us with our packs and waved his arms frantically for us to run to his bus. We jumped on as it started to pull away, hoping we were heading in the right direction. Four busses. a lot of confusion and some INSANE driving later we found ourselves in terenchal rain in Panajachel. The bus trip was quite an adrenalin rush, Mel and I aren't ones to pray but a few times during that trip we both had our heads burried and were hoping someone was making sure we would arrive in one piece. We jumped off the bus into the rain, at this stage it wasn't actually too bad, but with in minutes (no joke) the streets were flooding. I am talking water nearly up to our knees. We bought a couple of umbrellas (and got totally ripped off, but we needed them... of course we never used them again, always the way) and made our way to a hostel. When we got there were were both pretty drenched, but were very hungry after not eating much all day so battled the flooding streets again in search of some warm food. After a hearty meal we showered, warmed up and hopped into bed to write in our journals and read our books. Arhhhhh how cosy bed is when it's bucketing down outside. Our plan originally was to make it to San Pedro that same day but who wants to travel in such rotten weather?
The next morning we set of early for the ferry across the lake. We were approached by a young captain and Mel, after reading in the Lonley Planet not to be sucked in by young locals pretending to be captains, was a bit rude to him and we ended up catching a different ferry over... and waiting longer for it to leave (we later met Henry again, the young captain, who wasn't a fake at all, spoke excellent English and was LOADS of fun, funny how things turn out!). We were shown a hostel that was recommened to us, though it really wasn't our cup of tea, we were all about comfy beds 😊 After trudging around with our heavy packs for over an hour checking out different hostels we decided to pay a little more for better quality. Seeing as we were planning on staying a while, the owner cut us a deal, so it worked in our favour in the end. We found a little bar across from the hotel, El Barrio, where we decided to join in the celebrations of 4th of July Independence Day for US of A. Nestor from Florida cooked up a storm. It was called "BARBEQUE EXTRAVAGANZA... Featuring; grilled pork, chicken, fish, pork sausages, potato salad, home made baked beans, cole slaw and fixins..." YUMMMMMO!!! I can't remember when I have been so full b4. I just couldn't stop, it was simply delicious, especially with his famous chili sauces added! Great work Nestor!!! We met some fun characters that night and soon fell in love with San Pedro.
The following 10days were spent wandering the streets, kayaking, practicing yoga, skipping, eating, drinking, learning Spanish and watching movies (and eating popcorn) at David's restaurant Nuevo Sol, brilliant service and the best meatloaf!! Thumbs up!! Oh something else I can't forget to mention is the cake ladies. There are these tiny Mayan women who go around to all the restaurants, day and night, selling delicious chocolate, banana and cinnamon cakes! Arhhhhhhhhh so tastey, and they are so little and sweet you find it hard to say no!


STUDYING SPANISH:
We had heard studying Spanish in San Pedro was the way to go, great teachers and cheap. We chose the perfect school as the people running it and the teachers there were so lovely and the location was gorgeous. Every time you walked in the front door there would be someone to great you with a huge smile and a warm welcome. They were very patient and encouraging with our ever improving Spanish. The school was set up in beautiful gardens looking out over the lake. Every student worked in a little shelter hut and had their own space with a private teacher as to not be disturbed by other students. It was such a great way yo learn, in a peaceful environment and a one on one teacher experience. My teacher, Letty, and I focused a lot on grammar and I quickly got very confused, but it all started making sense as the week went by. It would have to be my most enjoyable language learning experience.
Oh I also had a couple of guitar lessons sitting alongside the lake with a crazy fun Canadian. He could play any instrument under the sun and was so full of life and love. He taught me some nifty techniques. After my first lesson I was on such a high. I was practising in my room (he leant me his guitar), and I was listening to some Bob Marley. I was soooooooo excited when I taught myself the very start of my fave song, Redemption Song. I ran down to Mel in the internet cafe to tell her what a natural I was. Of course after the second lesson I did a typical Anna... it was all too much hard work. When I can't get the hang of something straight away, I tend to give up pretty quickly. Whoops! I am getting better though 😊 I have always dreamed of playing the guitar (as one of my best friends Claire pointed out to me just yesterday) so I know I will get there one day. And I realise it takes time and isn't an overnight experience. DANG!!!


North of Guat:

TIKAL:
Mel and I headed up north passing Rio Dulce, to Flores a sweet little tourist town on a lake where you stay when you are visiting the famous Mayan ruins at Tikal. We arrived on a rainy night and were picked up by what seemed like a legit company who then helped us find accom. It was pretty busy at the time we went so a lot of places were booked out. We once again ended up paying a little extra, though it was a fab room, with a stunning view of the lake, so we weren't too upset 😊 The guys bailed us up in the mini van about their tour to Tikal and what a great deal it was etc. We figured all the travel agents would be closed so we opted to go with them...
We woke up at 3am, as we were being picked up, apparently, at 3:30am, though they did say allow for a 15minute gap, it could be 3:15am or 3:45am. We were out the front by 3:20am all ready to rock. There were several other tourists waiting outside their accomodation ready for their mini bus to Tikal (about an hours drive from Flores), we watched as mini busses continued to come and go. Soon it was 4:30am and there were no signs of our bus. There were 3 other crew, Aussies, also waiting for the same DODGY company. Mel and I were furious and annoyed at ourselves for falling for their b*%#sh@! lies. We decided we were going to head back to bed and demand a refund in the morning. As we got to our bedroom door we heard the sound of car breaks out the front. We quickly ran out to see if our bus had finally turned up. Sure enough it had. Mel and I had a go at the guide (in our best Spanish, I was really impressed with Mel, she got stuck in to him, go girl). He made up some excuse about a flat tyre. We all piled into the mini bus reluctantly. We picked up a few more people and the driver argued with another couple who did demand their money back (good one them), then headed on our way... well of course we had to stop and fill up with petrol didn't we. Because he couldn't have done that the night before. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!
We finally made it to Tikal for the "sunrise tour", ha we actually saw the sunsise during the bus ride. Everyone was sitting up on a huge pyramid looking out over the lush green Tikal. The guides were so unimpressed with our tardiness though they knew it wasn't our fault, apparently this happened frequently with unauthorised companies.
Ceaser, our guide for the day, was AWESOME. He was a local man who had, obviously, spent a lot of time in the States. He often used typical sayings from the States such as "lock n load", HA, and had a clear North American accent. He was so much fun, full of energy and SO knowledgeable about Tikal and the Mayan people. There were 7 pyramids there and it took the Mayan people over 200years to build them. All by hand mind you. Wow you should have seen the size of the limestone blocks they carried, that weighed up to 40kg. They weren't big people either, short, dark and stocky (was how Ceaser described them) they carried these huge blocks on their backs with a strap that was attatcahed around their heads. The Mayan people continue this tradition today, and we saw evidence of this in the streets of Guatemala. We learnt that they lived off corn and meat they hunted (corn is a main food group in Guatemala, and I love it), they also chewed a zap from a tree they called the 'chewing gum tree'. We tasted a leaf they used for medicinal purposes and anticeptic. It is actually the leaf that Old Spice comes from. There was a tree that dropped seeds that smelled like french onion soup that the Mayans cooked in their houses as the smell kept termites away. It's amazing what people can do with nature, when technology isn't interferring.
We climed one of the pyramids up stairs that were actually more like a ladder. As I reached half way I soon regretted the climb. I never thought I had a fear of heights but wow did my tummy feel queezy when I was looking back down... "don't look down, don't look down", the common phrase that runs through your head, but of course you always 'do look down'. It really was a steep climb, though once I reached the bottom and felt safe again I was pretty damn proud of myself. We were told by Ceaser that one day a lady was up the top concerntrating on taking photos instead of the edge of the pyramid and she slipped and went tumbling down, intence. I am sure this happened a lot when the Mayans were building these monstrosoties.
Tikal was so beautiful, so green, so peaceful, but for me so not as impressive as Machu Picchu. I know you can't compare but you also can't help comparing, and for me nothing compares to the mind blowing Machu Picchu! However Tikal is certainly worth the visit (just go b4 you see Machu Picchu 😊), and if you can get Ceaser as a guide, you will have a very enjoyable learning experience.
If you do wish to do the tour, I recommened that you book through a travel agent or one of the tours in Lonely Planet, don't trust randoms, as we did!

Chichicastenango:
Mel and I did a mission to Chichi, apparently Central America's biggest market. It was so much fun. So full of colour, super busy, super local (and touristy), and exhausting after some time exploring all the stalls. I wasn't going to buy anything but of course I DID. You just can't help yourself, it is such beautiful craftswork, and so cheap... It was a fun adventure and well worth the tedious bus trip crammed into small mini-busses...


Chicken busses... are they really legal?
An experience that stands out clearly from my time in Guatemala was the 'chicken busses'. These are busses imported from the States and used as the main form of public transport. They have this lable as people take all sorts of livestock on board, it might also have something to do with the CRAZINESS of them.
On our way back from our 2nd trip to San Pedro Mel and I decided to 'chicken bus it' (a common phrase used any time in Guatemala). I don't regret it, though I will never forget it. The first bus was probably the worst of the four we took to make our way back to Antigua. We jumped on board (luckily only with small packs and an over the shoulder bag) and were instantly looked at like we had foreigner written all over us. Not that is it uncommon or that they were unfriendly looks, but people can't help but stop and stare at the tall white girls with blonde hair. The bus was jam packed, I mean almost busting at the seams. There were three to a seat (and if there was a family, about 5 to a seat, with all the kids), and the isle was full of other people standing. We were 2 of about 5 foreigners. There's a driver and the guy who collects the money for the ride. How he made his way down those crowded isle still amazes me, he was pretty small, but he sure did a great squeeze job to get through the bodies. The bus took corners like a rally car. No joke. We were driving on roads with sharper corners than the Great Ocean Road and he took each one faster thatn Peter Brock. It was a heart racing journey and there were a few times I really thought we were up on two wheels. Though the locals all sat the calmly, chatting away, like it was just any other normal bus trip. I tell you what I was shaking like a leaf after that ride, and was dreading the next few. However we did make it back to Antigua safely and I am here today to tell the tale 😊


What a country! I just LOVED Guatemala and am excited to visit again one day!
Adios mi pais favorita!!

---