Guatemala Travel Blogs

Guatemala for Gringos
Nov 10, 2007 (11 photos)

          I sit on the rooftop balcony of the Posada Dona Clara in Antigua, Guatemala, recording my thoughts. I confess it is this balcony that has kept me here, despite the promise of more company and fewer ...

Catch-Up Since San Salvador
Apr 3, 2006 (5 photos)

... . After our nice day in the cool air, Santa Ana seemed oppressively hot, so we decided to decamp for the highlands of Guatemala. After 5 border crossings, we have to say that it has ALWAYS gone smoother for us when we have taken a local bus to ...

Just call me BATWOMAN!!!
Jul 7, 2007 (17 photos)

My first day in Lanquin a bat flew into my hair.  Yes, a bat.  Another one made friends with my back.  And I would like to say that I was calm through all of this, merely saying, "Hey guys, a bat just ran into me.  Isnīt that ...

Tikal and other Mayan Ruins
Aug 30, 2008 (5 photos)

... time helping you. Our first stay in Guatemala only lasted two days because we were just popping into Peten (the northern bit of Guatemala that sticks out between Belize and Mexico) to see Tikal and the nearby town of Flores. Flores is a little town on ...

Chicken buses and ice cream cones
Aug 8, 2005 (1 photos)

... pictures on that one too. Once I got to the "bus station" or storefront where buses depart from, I learned that the bus to Guatemala already left. So I was advised to get on that van over there to Morales and catch the bus there. So I got into a minivan ...

Antigua
Apr 7, 2003 (51 photos)

... are the most dangerous. The best way to avoid problems is to travel by chicken bus but there you must watch your luggage! Guatemala is also dirty and overpopulated. The government and the president are gangsters, real ones not by a way of speaking. The ...

Tajumulco Trudge
Apr 10, 2006 (10 photos)

Just after we wrote our last entry, we went to pick up our clothes at the laundromat. When we opened the package in our room, we discovered my pants on top with a note (in Spanish) that basically said "these were dirty when they came in", and my favorite ...

San Simon Revisited
Nov 28, 2007 (13 photos)

... ;   I had asked for the focus of the ceremony to be to help me become emotionally stronger - I knew I'd be leaving Guatemala in a few days, and I didn't want to spend too much time distraught over the separation with Nelson. Mapira suggested we also ...

A Few Observations
Nov 26, 2007 (20 photos)

             With all this talk about coffee, you may be wondering if I've been doing anything else! Indeed I have, and here I'll try to share a bit about some of the various ...

Just a little chill out time...
Jul 2, 2007 (9 photos)

 

The Last of Guatemala
Apr 26, 2006 (5 photos)

We didnīt find a sailboat to take us to Belize (slow time of year), so we got on a bus yesterday to Flores. The guy at the bus station told us that all busses were full, that we would have to stand for the four hour trip. Fortunately, an Australian ...

Highways and Burritos
Nov 13, 2007 (9 photos)

             I write this in the car, on the way to Quetzaltanango (affectionately known by the populace as Xela, though I for one haven't yet seen the connection). Apparently we're quite close, ...

On the road again...
Jul 4, 2007

... more people are picked up so that they can pass further back into the chaos.  Welcome to public transportation Guatemala style.  But eventually we manage to get ourselves and our bags into our very own seat after about an hour or so ( ...

Happy 35th amigo!!!
Oct 11, 2004 (18 photos)

I have just "chicken bused" myself down from Chichicastenango to the shores of Lake Atitlan (Panajachel). If you want to spend your 35th birthday downing Gallo (local beer) while toe-dipping by a lake, I guess this must be it. Lake Atitlan is just as ...

Lake, Steak and 3 Smoking Volcanos
Feb 17, 2005 (21 photos)

... movies every night, and usually good ones. * Footnote about the Mayan Culture. There are over 22 different Mayan Languages in Guatemala alone. One would assume the languages are similar, but in reality only a few are. The languages can be very varied, ...

Long Time No Write
Apr 25, 2006 (5 photos)

... nights in San Pedro la Laguna, a very cheap and therefore backpacker-filled town on Lago de Atitlan (the biggest lake in Guatemala, and supposedly among the most beautiful in the world, but you know how the tourist literature goes...) The town does have ...

Antigua, muy tranquilo.
Oct 9, 2004 (11 photos)

... English for that matter. Friendly Matt from Melbourne, almost at the end of his two months trip around Cuba, Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. His friend Stephanie from Germany. Well traveled Steve (Kiwi) and Catherine (UK) on their way to Panama, just like me ...

A typical day at the dinner table.
Oct 23, 2004 (3 photos)

So my graduation speech probably won't go down in history, other than for maybe being the shortest ever. I also think I impressed my Spanish teacher the other morning when he asked me.. "ŋDe donde eres?" (Where are you from?) Where I quickly replied ...

The "Shamans" of San Simon
Nov 10, 2007 (6 photos)

... wasn't a shaman; he was Saint Simon, one of the original 12 disciples, who had performed miracles and apparently appeared at one time in Guatemala. San Simon sat upon an altar, dressed smartly in a suit and tie. Devotees climbed up to the altar to ask his ...

Colonial Streets, Clouds of Incence, and Rowena!
Mar 3, 2005 (30 photos)

We planned to stay in Antigua for 2 days, 2 and a bit weeks later we left! We decided to take a break from the travelling scene for a bit and kick back and enjoy this beautiful city for a while. Antigua is overflowing with colonial architecture and ...

Today's question.
Oct 29, 2004 (8 photos)

You are deep in some steamy Central American jungle looking for Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent, when you thanks to your lucky amulet come down with Montezuma's Revenge. That's when you notice that the antibiotics your doctor gave you specifically ...

Coffee Fincas, River Caves and Carribean beats
Feb 2, 2005 (20 photos)

... full and private rooms were too expensive. Our only other option was to camp or hammock it. Now bearing in mind this area of Guatemala has torrential downpours, one of which was unloading itself at the time, our tent didn't seem like a good plan. There is ...

Guatemala
Sep 4, 2008 (6 photos)

... and rolling hills and there were amazing views. Eventually we reached our destination of Panajachel, known by the rest of Guatemala as 'Pana'. It was ridiculously touristy with row after row of stalls selling all kinds of crap, so naturally Claire and I ...

Returning to La Antigua Guatemala and Loving it!
Nov 9, 2007 (31 photos)

... Rica, she mentioned that she wanted to visit Panama while she was here. I quickly sold her on visiting Guatemala instead. I absolutely loved it the first time I visited with Carolina and would use any excuse to return! Benigno came ...

Enjoying the eye candy in Chapinlandia
Sep 27, 2007 (36 photos)

... in two days!           LA CIUDAD DE PANZA VERDE La Antigua Guatemala was a colonial city dream, with cobblestone roads, colorful 16th Century architecture and so much charm packed in every corner, ...

Day two in Guatemala - Venturing out
Sep 29, 2007 (9 photos)

... .   We learned from Andres that the word "Chapin" comes from the ancient Guachipilin tree, which the indigenous people of Guatemala used to make shoes from many, many years ago, and hence the word "Chapinlandia" was born! At least that's Andres' ...

Ancient Ruins and Howler Monkeys
Nov 7, 2007 (11 photos)

          I sit outside my room at the Jungle Lodge, one of three hotels located inside of Tikal National Park. It's aptly named: in front of me lining the balcony stand towering flowers, and spindly howler ...

A bloody hard hike and other stories.
Oct 14, 2004 (5 photos)

... listen to the "Save Entry Often" advice given on Travelpod. Repeat after me 500 times. Yesterday was party time here, as Guatemala beat Honduras 2-0 in a firecracker (ehh, well) of a match. At least it was a big improvement from last weekends game when ...

A Volcano Burnt My Sweater
Dec 20, 2007 (9 photos)

... her cousins had brought marshmallows to roast and don't let me get started on the fabulousness multi-layers of colored marshmallows in Guatemala!  The sunset was amazing and after the dark hike back over pointy dried lava with a guide that I was not ...

Those Colors are for Our Flag!!!
Mar 27, 2008

... me learn some espaņol. I am hardly perfect, and all to aware of my positive and negative impact as a tourist in Guatemala. However, I would hope that I would never presume to be better than, more civilized than, more human than an entire culture, an ...