Catching Up

Sorry for the lack of updates as of late. It’s been a hectic couple of weeks. Here’s a quick update just to let you all know what I’ve been up to and where I’m at right now.

- I bid farewell to Xela the week before Christmas. It was a week filled with goodbyes and hopeful see-you-laters. It’s amazing how much that place came to feel like home. I will miss it a lot.

- Before my dad knew that I was coming home for his birthday, he offered to fly me home for Christmas. Having just talked to my then housemate Hannah about how we spend the holidays I felt pretty homesick and I couldn’t say no to my dad’s offer. Coming home this time was doubly shocking. Everything looked so big… the roads, the mall, the bar, my house. I can tell already that when I come home for good there will be a big readjustment phase. Nevertheless, I couldn’t imagine not spending Christmas at home with my family and I’m glad I was able to be there. Thanks, Pops.

- Less than five days after I came home, I was back on a plane to Guatemala with Julie. She had eight days to spare so we spent them traveling throughout a decent chunk of the country which I had not yet seen. It seemed like everything small and non-fatal that could go wrong went wrong, but we had an amazing time nevertheless. Here’s a brief summary of our week together.

Our plan was to land in Guatemala City, meet up with two friends of mine who wanted to show us around, take an overnight bus to Flores, head to the Mayan ruins at Tikal, venture south to the gorgeous limestone pools of Semuc Champey, and then spend our last few days relaxing and celebrating the New Year together at Lago de Atitlan. Well with Julie’s lost luggage, overbooked hotels, stalling vans, much longer travel days than expected, bad weather, guys with boats trying to rip us off, and one very hard-to-find, very form-fitting, and very orange swimsuit, the plan didn’t go quite smoothly as expected, but it was still an unforgettable week.

Tikal

First up was Tikal. After taking an overnight bus to Flores and killing time there before our shuttle arrived, we got to the overcrowded national park and were told that there were no more tents or hammocks for rent, and the only room left would cost us Q345 (or $42). Without little other choice, we splurged a bit hoping that our luck would change the following morning with our 4am sunrise tour of the ruins. When we left the room, the starry sky looked promising for a beautiful sunrise over the jungley horizon, but the clouds quickly rolled in. We did, however, still get to hear the howler monkeys roaring and bringing the rest of jungle to life. Anyways, here are some pictures.

Semuc Champey

Tuesday morning, we woke up and took a tourist shuttle to Semuc Champey, hoping the journey would be quicker and smoother than our trips to and from Tikal. After nine hours in a van and then a half hour in a poorly covered pickup with a local lady sitting on my feet, we found our cozy lodging along the river only a few minute walk from the national park.

We woke up the next morning and took a cave tour that our hotel offered. After a quick rope swing into the river, we strapped on our sandals, were given our candles, and we were led into caves, our legs knee deep in water. We could hear the bats screeching up ahead as the water level slowly rose. All of a sudden, we were swimming trying like hell to avoid kicking the occasional rock from below. With our candles as the only source of light, we were forced to one-handedly doggy paddle. We could hear the nearby waterfalls battering the ground as we climbed up the slippery ladders, candles in our mouths. We used ropes to pull ourselves as we walked up the smaller waterfalls. The water eroded the walls into designs that looked almost like hieroglyphics in some places and like twisted and tormented skulls in others. We couldn’t help but think about how this was probably the most dangerous/coolest thing we had ever done in our lives. It was the kind of thing that wouldn’t happen in the US without life jackets, ample lighting, and 15 pages of waivers; but here, dozens of people visit these caves every single day. We walked away with some battle scars – a few minor scratches on our hands, back, and feet – but mostly pumped full of excitement. Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures from out time inside the cave.

Later on that day, we decided to check out the actual Semuc Champey park. Thinking that we’d be going swimming and doing only some minor hiking, I just kept my flip-flops on and let Julie wear my light sneakers. Big mistake. Inside the park, the trails were still muddy from the days of uncustomary rain from the previous couple of days. We decided to start with a hike to the Mirador, or lookout point. 20 minutes of intensely steep climbing left me slipping and using my hands as extra feet. At the top, we saw the pools, but I was too cranky to really take in the scenery. In my $2 Old Navy sandals, I felt like I could go tumbling at any minute, so I took them off. After about a half hour of painful barefoot walking downhill, we reached the start of the limestone bridge. Semuc Champey was formed by large boulders that had fallen into the river and created somewhat of a damn. Instead of flowing over these rocks, the river carved a tunnel for itself beneath. It was amazing seeing the awesome force of nature and knowing that I would have no chance against this current. A bit further down the path, we found the pools and went for a swim. The turquoise water was pristine and you see every little rock, pebble, or fish beneath you. We spent an hour or so hopping from pool to pool before heading out of the park. It was paradise. Check out some pics:

Lago de Atitlan

With Semuc Champey being so remote, our choices for transportation away from there were pretty limited. We decided that we were still going to make it to the lake for New Years, even if it meant one hellish day of travel. We woke up at 5:30am on New Year’s Eve and hopped in the back of a pickup. In Lanquin, a small city in the middle of hilly jungley forest, we hopped in an overcrowded tourist van. Two hours later in Coban, we joined another overcrowded tourist van as we all switched into one slightly larger van. Six hours later, we arrived in Antigua. A girl we had met told us her cousin reserved a room for us in San Pedro, so we gave her Q70 just in case we didn’t make it there in time. Julie and I hustled through the colonial city and hopped on a chicken bus.

After three chicken bus switches, we arrived at the lake’s largest city, Panajachel. We got to the dock thinking we still had 2 hours to spare to catch a boat. We thought our luck was taking a turn for the better. We were wrong. We were greeted by a sketchy man who told us there were no more public boats and all we could take now was a Q400 private boat. Frustrated, exhausted and confused, we decided to pay Q200 even though we both knew how horribly we had just gotten ripped off. We did, however, catch the sun setting over the opposite side of the lake and it was a beautiful sight.

My phone had died, so we ran to plug it in and call up that girl’s cousin. She had no idea what we were talking about and, before our conversation properly ended, my phone ran out of money. Disheartened, we grabbed the $3 beer and burrito special at the bar across the street. We laid there thinking about our bad luck as scantily clad men and women danced to a obnoxiously monotonous house beat on the projection screen.

We found a place to stay that had hot water and a big comfy bed and we spent the night drinking in the new year with a friend I ran into and her boyfriend. All in all, not a bad New Year’s.

We woke up early on Friday, but both pretty hungover. After grabbing a couple Q5 smoothies, we decided to do some kayaking. If you ever go to Lago de Atitlan, you have to kayak for at least an hour. Being on the water, feeling it gently toss you about as you stare at the surrounding mountains and three volcanoes with awe is really the best way to see the lake. We spent the rest of the day relaxing, eating, watching the all-day concert booming outside of the municipal building, and trying to spend our last few hours together without worrying about being anywhere or having anything in particular to do. Once again, here are some pictures.

What I’m doing Now

So, like I said, my time volunteering in Xela is done. The plan is to spend two months with Las Casas de Esperanza just outside of Granada, Nicaragua. There, I’ll probably be doing construction work and teaching while living in a volunteer house. It’ll be nice to be living in a community again.

I don’t start there, however, until January 12. In the mean time, I’m traveling through El Salvador, a little bit of Honduras, and maybe seeing a bit of Nicaragua before settling down again. Expect more updates in the next few days, hopefully with some stories from adventures gone right.

Happy New Year, everyone.