Blogs from Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 3

The great continents of North and South America are linked by an isthmus which also separates the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This volatile area both politically and geologically is where the Mayan Indian ruled in pre-Colombian times. Now between Southern Mexico and Northern Colombia lie seven nations; Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. My adventures in the latter had wetted my appetite for the region, and I now embarked on a five country odyssey of discovery. The beginning was a little convoluted, flights from Birmingham to Newark, (Wonderful views of the Arctic/Canadian icy wastes, the snow covered forests of New England, and the Manhattan skyline from the Hudson River approach) change for Houston where I am convinced we flew along the great Mississippi, then on through Mexico to Guatemala City, where I ... read more

She spills the black tea leaves dry and mounded on the battered metal scale the canella and the ambered incense the brown bark wrapped in burlap and the chilied nuts and the manzanilla flowers where eternal sons of leathered mothers pull handcarts loaded groaning under mountains of yuccas to be laid displayed atop complicated vibrant weavings abuela woven dyed deep soaked remolacha red and dried beneath volcanoes history deep a blink a breath a beat a step a whisper the tap of a finger the tender swipe of a baby’s brow to settle her while you make pyramids from shining red tomatoes and braid garlic for your brother who then slings them over his shoulder walks off yelling gravelly voiced ajo ajo ajo ajo mira momnita then you chop tops off the purple yucca expose the ... read more

Arrived to Panadol (Panachel) we followed Claudio, he went already different time to Lake Atitlan and he knows where the boats depart for San Marco la Laguna. He’s going as well. 25 Quetzals to go on the other side of the lake, we had to get used to the new currency. 11 Queztal are 1 Pound, more less. 35min boat ride on a calm water to arrive to a little wooden pier where at night the water it looked to us similar to cement screed. There were guys ready to offer us tuk tuk type of transportation, they call it taxi, we skip that and continue following Claudio, he said that his hostel it’s just near our one. Literally 5 mins later walking Claudio indicate with his index finger a wooden gate, that’s your hostel. Daria, ... read more

Hola chicos Nogle fede dage i Flores og Peten er overstået Peten er lig Maya civilisationen. Det var her det hele startede, her de største og vigtigste templer ligger - der ligger mange Maya templer og ruiner i Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua osv. Men det startede i Peten ca 5000 fkr og havde deres storhedstid til ca 1200 ekf da kristendommen for alvor tog over. Men hvad skete der så med dem? Såmænd ikke noget, mayaerne trives stadig i Guatemala og en stor del af befolkningen er Maya. Når man lærer ansigtstrækkene at kende, ser man tydelig forskel. De er lavere har lidt skæve øjne og høje kindben. Central Americas kinesere kan vi kalde dem ;) Vi besluttede at lave en plan der hed: se nogle små mayaruiner, derefter noget stort - Tikal, og slut af med ... read more

Meine weitere Reise führte mich schließlich über Honduras nach El Salvador. Hier musste ich zweimal die Grenze überqueren, was wieder völlig problem- und diesmal auch kostenlos funktionierte. Grenzüberquerungen werden langsam zur Normalität für mich. Von El Salvador habe ich leider nur den Surferort El Tunco gesehen, da ich mich dort wirklich nur einige Tage aufgehalten habe. Es ist ein lebendiges Surfer-Örtchen, welches sich gut für ein paar Tage Zwischenstopp eignet. Für Schwimmer oder Sonnenanbeter ist es aufgrund der starken Strömung, der großen Wellen und des steilen, steinigen Strandes allerdings nicht so sehr geeignet. Für mich sollte es sowie bald weiter nach Guatemala gehen, wo ich dann auch wenige Tage später in Antigua ankam. Antigua hat mich von Anfang an überzeugt. Es ist eine wunderschöne, koloniale Altstadt, welche schon seit den 70er Jahren zum UNESCO Weltkulturerbe... read more