Lago Atitlán again!

We took our 3rd trip to Lago Atitlán, this time with Tonya, Anthony, and Iva. We never get tired of going to the lake. This time we were able to do some things we have done on previous visits as well as a few new things.

One of the new experiences was a new route to the lake. Since we were 7 people, we hired a driver and van so that we could all ride together. When we were about halfway there, the driver suggested that we go a back way to avoid the market-day traffic in Sololá. And it was amazing. We were always on paved roads, but we went up, we went down, we curved around and around. Again, Guatemala is rugged! And beautiful. It was fascinating to drive through these small towns in the mountains.

But alas, after about 45 minutes, I started to feel very sick. And there were a few others who were mildly sick as well. Just in time, we stopped at an overlook of the lake, our first view from this angle. This is on the east side, near San Antonio Palopó. The other times we’ve come in via Sololá and Panajachel.

One of the villages on the lake. I’m not sure which one.

Cerro del Oro, a unique feature across the lake

Feeling very sick but trying to appreciate the beauty

To get through the rest of the drive into Panajachel, I kept my eyes closed and my head bathed in the fresh air coming in the window. We all made it!

After arriving and checking in, we headed first to the Nature Reserve which is just a 5-min walk from the hotel. We discovered this gem when we were here in Nov with Matt and Tara and Grace and the girls spent a lot of time here. But Brett hadn’t been there, and Sadie and I only spent a short time there.

We took a hike (about 1 hr) that took us over about 7 swinging bridges.

The kids liked to jump up and down in the middle of the bridges, making everyone else bounce!

We saw coffee ready to be picked here and in other places at the lake.

And monkeys, but they were more elusive.

The highlight for the kids was clearly the playground! I think we mentioned that playgrounds in Guatemala are really fun but that’s also because they have things that would be considered unsafe in the U.S. Think trampolines, mini-zip lines etc.

I even tried it! The other adults did too, but we don’t have photos.

Here’s the length of the zip line. Anthony looks like he has just swatted at whatever it was that was biting us all. It wasn’t a mosquito but we were itchy afterwards.

Our hotel: we stayed on the 15th floor. There is nothing else around that is nearly this high, but these high-rises have a storied history. Construction started in the 1970s with Nicaraguan Samoza money then stalled out after they lost power and/or because of the war in Guatemala. They were empty shells when Brett visited in 1999. Sometime since then they were finished. Because of their height and the surrounding geography the winds at night can howl loudly and air pressure slamming doors shut.

After a good night’s sleep, we headed out with Arturo on the boat Isabel to visit villages.

We were surprised to see that the level of the lake was about 3 feet lower than when we had been there in Nov. Arturo said that it was due to the dry season.

The day started out calm, but the winds really picked up which made for a bouncy ride.

Anthony is scanning the horizon. We are all a bit cold and wet because the water was rough.

Our first stop was the village of Santa Cruz, which we had visited previously. This village is up a VERY steep road from the dock. Our kids had been there before and were already complaining about the steep hike, so we gave in and let them ride a tuk-tuk up the hill.

This is Santa Cruz. After a very steep hike, we arrived at a women’s cooperative (the yellow building) where they make and sell all kinds of textiles. There is a restaurant on the top floor.

View of the road that we walked up to get into Santa Cruz with volcanos in the background.

At the restaurant in Santa Cruz, enjoying the view

We had to walk back downhill a short while to get to the trail that connects Santa Cruz to the next village, Jaibalito.

This 1-hour hike was a highlight of the trip for me–and I think for the others too. We were on the side of the cliff, with stunning views, sometimes with a very sharp drop off. And then other times the path went through forests of coffee plants. It was amazing!!!

If we would have made an album on this trip, this would be the cover.

Hotel on the edge of the lake; the lake is rising for unknown reasons (this is part of a cycle that has been long observed) and many of the newer constructions on the shore are starting to get flooded. Waves were covering the lower deck of this hotel.

Notice this woman carrying this huge load of blocks up a very steep hill. There were even a few young girls hauling blocks. People here work so hard.

The second village we visited, San Marcos, has Mayan inhabitants but is also known as the village of “global seekers” who believe that the town has a type of spiritual energy. This translates into many North American and Europeans with flowing locks and flowing clothing, yoga workshops, advertisements for deep breathing etc. I wonder what the Mayans think of all this? Our kids thought it was all very strange.

Because of this visit a new phrase has entered the lexicon of our family. We saw an advertisement for a breathing class with a gringo named Daniel featured prominently on the poster. Somehow this became, “Deep Breathing with Darryl.” Now anytime someone in our family gets unnecessarily worked up about something the response is: “You need to take Deep Breathing with Darryl!” or simply “Do we need to call Darryl?”

Scenes from San Marcos. We got a kick out of the message board in the town which focused on yoga classes, deep breathing training, and herbal medicine.

After San Marcos, we went over to San Juan which is known for it’s textile shops. There, we watched a weaving demonstration, saw how coffee is roasted, and did a little shopping.