Rancho Grande Inn Panajachel

... the stand was asking 200Q for. We walked on and her mother followed us down the road. On the way back up to the hotel the mother agreed to the 50Q (less than $6.00) and so I got a nice old embroidered piece for a good price. In the evening Terry and I went out to find a restaurant serving the typical dish of pollo de pipian (chicken with pumpkin) and the local lake fish Black Bass. Seems there used to be fishermen here but since that fish was introduced ...

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... the thought of 3 days and nights spent doing nothing more exerting than lifting my licuado fruta to my lips as i turned the page of that book that i never seem to be able to finish. No alcahol and plenty of sleep seemed just the tonic i needed after bolting across 3 countries in as many days.....<br><br>How wrong can a man be...we went out on the Thursday evening for a few drinks and i didn't get to bed until the ...

... by several adorable<br>hostels. We wandered down near the lago and eventually came across this<br>little beachside cafe where we did our homework. We really can see how<br>people can get stuck here. There are so many little paths that lead to<br>the cutest hotels, Spanish schools, and yoga/meditation centers.<br>Everything is colorfully painted and so many of the schools and hotels<br>also have non-profit projects they give to. It truly ...

... we left San Pedro. We had arrived a week ago but it felt like a lot longer that we had stayed in this little hippy town with its friendly locals and many travelling students. It had been nice to "put roots down" in one spot for a while and get to know a little town relatively well before heading on, its not always been that way for our trip and although our brains felt fried after 20 hours of spanish lessons, our overall demeanour was a lot more relaxed.

... mistaken for a common prostitute. <br><br>San Simon is no exception, we asked around the town where we could find him and some little kids let the way. We were led into a large cinder block room, where San Simon sat in a throne, with tons of candles in front of him. What is remarkable about San Simon is the way he is dressed and his unsavory habits. He is sitting in a garishly decorated silver throne surrounded by gaudy artificial flowers and neon lights. He looks like a ...

... the centre of the City and the outskirt was striking. For miles around the city on any land that is 'flat enough&#8217; &#8211; often followed the contour lines of the peaks &#8211; are dreary looking grey concrete shells &#8211; hundreds of them. In stark contrast to most housing we&#8217;ve seen in central American the only frienly splash of colour comes from the lines of washing strung above them. The centre of the city, however, looks far far more ...

... the best lunch any of us had ever tasted. We tore into it and ravenously demolished the provisions. Some debate ensued during lunch as to whether we had reached our destination for the day and the guides were wondering if we were happy to push on or whether they wanted to know whether we wanted to have lunch there and then or push onto somewhere else for lunch. Even after the whole hike, we were still all unsure of whether we had the option to stay the night in the village ...

... for my pictures. We had to hurry back to the boat since this was our shortest stopover. <br><br> On the trip back, Liz and I agreed to have dinner together. Since she was a vegetarian, I had her chose the restaurant, while I made arrangements with Adrenalina to catch a later shuttle back to Antigua. They were more than willing to obliged. Because of their great service the last two days, I decided to book the shuttle ...

... other than the human ones in passing. The turn-off down to the lake is shortly after, and from there the air warms up until we reach the ideal mile-high level at the lake itself. Welcome to Guatemala, land of eternal springtime.<br><br>Panajachel itself hasn&#8217;t changed much in the last twelve years. It did most of its changing in the same time period before that point. Hamburgers aren&#8217;t the big deal anymore; pasta is, perhaps reflecting a ...