Blogs from Verapaz Region, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 17

Left Flores at 6am in the morning and took a bus to Coban. And from there it was another tiring bus ride which took six hours to reach Lanquin. We took the infamous chicken bus which was crowded and uncomfortable as the seats were meant for people under 4ft in height! (just kidding but it was probably 5ft...) We had to be alert at all times after hearing tales of travellers being pick pocketed and losing all their valuables in the bus. Fortunately, the view of the beautiful mountains and forest throughout the journey made it bearable, breaking away the monotony of the long ride. and what more when the view was really nature at its best! We stayed in El Retiro, a really well managed forest lodge that had all the modern amenities. With environment ... read more

Greetings from the land of the Quetzal after being incommunicado for so long! But my hiatus is well justified, having been absorbing the sun (sol) and soul of this natural paradise for the last couple weeks. Semuc Champey is a natural park 2 1/2 hours from Coban in central Guatemala by a mostly gravel and dirt road through one of the most gorgeous areas i have ever seen (i know I say that every blog, but i really mean it this time!). And I have had some of the most memorable experiences of my life there. After Antigua i had been contemplating my next move. I almost didn´t come here...I was debating either the pacific coast down at monterrico or the forest in the highlands. Green Turtles or Green Trees? I know, tough life decisions. If ... read more

This was probably the most humbling experience either of us will ever have. We saw the opportunity “advertised” in the Lonely Planet and I (K) was unsure. These types of visits are often ill managed with families being saturated with visitors and numbed by the experience. The literature at the centre, EcoQueztal in Coban, was carefully written and clearly well planned. The organisation had been running for 12 years. 50 families were involved throughout the area and it was used to supplement to their regular income. All products sold and profits made were ploughed back into sustaining the development of the region. We decided to go. The following day, Carlos picked us up. With my sketchy spanish we managed to bumble along and make small talk. We took a chicken bus to a village where we ... read more

So leaving Coban, a medium sized town, for the north and more rural part of Guatemala took me to places where most tourists whizz past on the highway without stopping, kinda like Bakersfield, or Compton. It took me to the town of Chisec for a bus change and then to the town of Raxruyjah (Ray-roo-haah). Being in two towns with absolutely no tourist appeal, let alone tourists, and no interesting indigenous Mayan practices or dress, I had an opportunity to ask the question that was on my mind coming down here: What is third world poverty like? First of all, this question and its investigation gives me some guilt. To be a poverty voyeur seems wrong. These aren't anthropology subjects, they are people. But I've worked with low-income folks in the US, with poor people ... read more

Had an eventful trip across the border between Honduras and Guatemala. A very nice man gave me a lift in his truck (he had been doing business in Honduras) to the next major junction where I could get a bus (about 30 mins drive).. but unfortunately we omitted to stop at immigration. I didn't worry because I had read there was an office in Puerto Barrios but, having arrived there and traipsed around hot and dusty with ALL my gear to find first a bank still open on saturday morning that would give me some money (and queuing 50 minutes in what they then told me was the wrong queue) I then made it to the immigration office only to be told they only dealt with arrivals from Belize... don't ya just love bureaucracy... so they ... read more