Sun and Black Sand Beaches
Trip Start
Jan 01, 2007
1
31
141
Trip End
Ongoing
Monterrico,
Guatemala
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
To say it is an adventure to get to Monterrico is an understatement. We start out at 8am in Antigua by catching a chicken bus to La Esquintla. The ride is about an hour long and when we arrived in the new town we have to switch Chicken buses and head to Taxisco. After another hour our so we are in Taxisco and we need to wait 30 minutes for another bus to La Avellena or we can hop in the back of a pickup truck or tuk-tuk. We meet a Swiss girl and her mother, Eileen and Anita, who are headed the same way (and Eileen is fluent in Spanish) so we all cram into a tuk-tuk for 10Q each. Yes all 4 of us with bags and the driver. I´m not sure how but I got stuck sitting next to the driver half hanging out of the tuk-tuk for the 18 Kilometer ride.
Birds
Once at La Avellena we need to wait for the next launcha (small ferry) or hitch a ride with one of the car launchas. Guess what we did. For 5Q each we hopped on this little launcha with a car for the 30 minute ride to Monterrico. When I say launcha I really mean 6 planks of wood held together with rusty nails sitting about 4 inches above the water. More or less a raft with an outboard. The ride through the mangroves is amazing and we see many birds and beautiful flowers. We also see one of the weirdest things alive. It is a fish with 4 eyes. Yes 4 eyes! It has two that stay below the water and two that stay above. I guess to watch for birds but I'm not sure. I tried to get a photo but they are quick and with 4 eyes I'm sure they saw me and hid. Once on the dock at Monterrico it was a lovely 20 minute walk in the blazing sun to our hotel, Las Brisas del Mar. (A great recommendation from Eileen and Anita!)
It was worth it. This place is gorgeous. We got a large private room with 2 double beds and private bath for 100Q ($13 US) per night. It had a large clear swimming pool and lots of hammacks on a terrace overlooking the ocean.
After a quick dip in the pool we head to the beach to check out the Pacific Ocean. The black sand is so hot it burns our feet even through the flip flops. We quickly head to the water and walk up the empty beach to the little (really little) town center and grab a seat at a tiny comedor for lunch. We enjoy incredibly fresh fish and shrimp along with a liter of Gallo (local Guatemalan lager) while chickens and pigs run all up and down the street. The upper deck of our hotel has a bunch of hammocks that overlook the ocean and are great for napping.
Birds
Wandering around the beach area we run across a couple of hotels and restaurants that are right on the beach but are a lot more expensive than ours. Johnny's is the cheapest but is still more expensive for their dorms than our private room. Try staying at Brisas Del Mar and hang out at Johnny's restaurant on the beach for as long as you like. Our first night in town there is a crazy preacher who has set up giant speakers in an alley and is literally crying as he preaches. The sounds are so loud that we can hear him at our hotel for the next 3 hours. Crazy.
The hotel is equipped with mosquito nets, which are needed, and it feels like we are camping out. It is fun.
We ate breakfast at Feliz Abuela's in the El Dolphin hotel and the food was good. Grandma makes a good fruit drink but it is not as good a Johnny's. Johnny´s fruit drinks are not to be missed and can have a double shot of Rum added for 20Q. Go ahead and splurge!
The sunsets on the beach are not to be missed. We brought two bottles of wine with us from Antigua and would head to the beach each evening around 5pm with the wine to watch the sunset. The colors reflecting off the ocean and the black sand beach are incredible. The photos do not do it justice. Once the sun goes down the beach starts to cool down and a nice breeze rolls in from the oceans. Truly tranquil.
On our last day we went for a swim on the beach and then reserved a spot on the 3pm shuttle back to Antigua. We wandered around the island and eventually paid for our ride to Antigua around 1pm.
Flowers in the mangrove
While waiting at our hotel to be picked up the shuttle operator stops by, at 2:15 pm, and tells us there is no more room on the shuttle and he wants to give us our money back. What! You have got to be kidding. He says that because we did not pay in the morning that he sold our seats and when we came back in the afternoon, and paid him, that he did us a favor and booked us with another company. However, the company just called him and told him there was no space. So after arguing a bit and knowing we are not getting anywhere we take our money back. We checked around and there are no other shuttles that are heading to Antigua today. Oh well another day in paradise.We get our room back and take a nap in the hammocks then off to Johnny's for a rum filled fruit drink and some nachos. After another amazing sunset of course. The next day we reserved, and paid, for a spot on the other company´s shuttle before heading off to the turtle farm. The preserve is supposed to be turtles, crocodiles and iguanas. They only have one turtle but do have many of the other animals there including some stange looking prehistoric fish. If you miss this little park it is no big deal but they could use your 8Q entrance fee. We take another swim in the ocean and enjoy a burger at our hotel before we head to the shuttle pick.
Note: If you are in Monterrico and eat at the Pelican restaurant do not order the Tiramisu. It is the worst I ever had. We are not sure about the other food so you are on your own.
