Semana Santa

For Semana Santa my friend Patrick came to visit and we planned a grand trip up north to see the beautiful sites that Guatemala has to offer.
Day 1: Patrick arrives and we immediately hop on a bus up to Coban with the hopes of making it to Semuc Champey by night fall. The 5 hour bus ride turned out to be a 7 hour bus trip due to heavy holiday traffic, but eventually we made it to Coban where we enjoyed a delicious dinner before heading off in a shuttle to Lanquin. We stayed at a place that came highly recommended and the whole way there, I told Patrick of the beauty and serenity he could expect when we arrived. Contrary to my last experience in Lanquin, we were not met by serenity but rather, a disco-like atmosphere full of drunken foreigners playing musical chairs. I don't think Patrick was very impressed... but nevertheless we enjoyed ourselves by sitting on the porch of the cabin, drinking a cold beer and watching the shenanigans from a safe distance.

Day 2: The next morning we awoke to the promised peace and serenity and after a delicious breakfast, we started our journey up to Semuc Champey. The pools there were just as blue and beautiful as ever and after a sweaty hike up, we were more than ready for a swim. We spent a good part of the day exploring and relaxing before starting back to the lodge. We hitched a ride in a pickup truck and sat uncomfortable on a cushion of crushed beer cans. I was assured that the driver was not drinking, only the passengers that sat in the back with us. They were quite entertaining with their remarks and jokes and one of them secretly snapped a photo of Pat... well not really of Pat, but actually just of his beard. I don't think they were used to seeing such abundant facial hair.

When we got back to the lodge we met up with my friend Hannah, another PCV living in the area. Just before sunset we all went to the caves of Lanquin for a quick tour and to watch the great exodus of bats at dusk. The darker it got, the more they seemed to flow out in a steady, stream. They whizzed past our faces in blinks and blurs and you could feel the collective wind of them whooshing by.

Day 3: Hannah went off to a meeting and as Pat and I sat at breakfast we spontaneously decided to take off for Flores as soon as possible. I ran up to reception and the woman at the desk told me that the shuttle was leaving now. As in RIGHT now. I could here the engine starting up and the gravel crunching under the tires as the van began to pull away. The woman called the driver and asked him to wait 5 minutes for us. We quickly packed up all of our things, and brushed our teeth en route to the parking lot. We hunkered down for the 4 hour car ride up to Flores. Our final destination was the Hotel Mon Ami located on the other side of lake Peten, in El Remate. The hotel was quaint and tucked back on a quiet dirt road. Just in front was a long rickety dock which stretched out over the water which was fresh and blue and oh so inviting. After a long, hot journey, the water felt great and we were very happy with our choice to stay in El Remate.

Day 4: We awoke very early to catch a bus to the famous Mayan ruins of Tikal. It was well worth the journey and when we first entered the grand plaza I felt completely overwhelmed and awed by what surrounded us. It seemed to me such an extraordinary human achievement.

I was also fascinated by the lush jungle and all the wild life that inhabited it. We saw beautiful birds, spider monkeys, and something that resembled a giant hamster deer.

We climbed the amazing towering structures and gazed down over the jungle canopy as howler monkeys made their ominous calls. Howler monkeys in fact don't sound like monkeys at all... They sound like demons. I wouldn't call it howling as much as roaring. An interesting fact about these creatures, which I learned from my friend Hannah, is that all the dinosaur roars and snarls used in the Jurassic Park movies were actually howler monkeys.

After a day of exploration we headed back to the hotel and took a dip in the lake, and hung out on the dock while dusk settled in. It was a perfectly peaceful and relaxing day.

Day 5: Another early morning off to another beautiful place... We hopped on a bus to Rio Dulce hoping to "aprovechar" the week and experience as much as possible. This gave us only a taste of the beauty of these places and often times, we wished we had more time... But at least we know where to go next time!

A slight mishap occurred upon our departure from the bus terminal. I don't remember if the driver was talking on his cell phone or exactly what was going on at the time, but I distinctly remember seeing from my front seat position on the bus, the form of a man smashing into the right side window followed by the sound of grinding metal and what I imagined to be crushing bone... The driver cursed and pulled over to the side of the road in a panic and most of the passengers poured out to see what had happened. I imagined that there must be a dead body in the road after that collision but I remembered that I had my first aid kit and decided to get out and see if I could be of any help. There behind the bus was a young man with a mangled bicycle. Miraculously he did not appear to be injured although his face was pale and ashen. He looked confused and disoriented as the bus driver kept repeating that he shouldn't have ridden his bike into the front of his bus. After a few minutes of argument and a survey of the mangled bike, the bus driver returned to the pilot seat and we were on our way again without ever looking back. I do hope the man on the bike got some medical attention and compensation for his damaged property but somehow I don't think he did...
Anyway,
we arrived in Rio Dulce and waited for our boat to the Finca Tatín where we would be spending the night. The boat skimmed over the beautiful lake Izabal and the fresh air was wonderful after a long hot bus ride.We crossed the lake and continued onto the Rio Dulce which winds through the jungle and feeds into the Caribbean sea. When we arrived in front of the finca we quickly realized that only one night in such a beautiful place would not suffice, but due to time constraints we had to stick to our schedule. The finca was set alongside the river and shrouded in the trees and flowers of the jungle.

The cabins were rustic and each bed was veiled in a lace mosquito net which made it look more like a place for dead people to rest then for those of us still among the living. No matter though. It was beautiful and quiet and we shared the evening with travelers from all over the world.

Day 6: We freed ourselves from our bug nets just as the sky was turning light so that we could kayak down the river a bit before breakfast and before our sadly premature departure. The morning was warm and we paddled along, passing local fisherman casting their nets. The bird life was plentiful and large white egrets swooped down from there tree perches to scoop up their breakfast. We had to turn back after about an hour and packed our things before joining the rest of the early risers at breakfast.

 

At the last moment, we decided to change our plans and make one last stop in Livingston and Puerto Barrios before hopping back on the bus to Flores. Livingston was an interesting place full of Caribbean culture mixed with Guatemalan tradition. This is the home of the Garífuna people who are Guatemalans descended from African slaves. They speak Spanish and creole and have a uniquely different culture from the rest of Guatemala. I would have liked to explore Livingston a little bit more but because we were tight on time, we really only saw the main street and plaza which for me was a little touristy.
After the short visit we got on a boat heading for Puerto Barrios where we planned to have lunch before the long bus ride. Upon arriving there, we were bombarded by traffic, loud music, and people everywhere! This was not what we expected and after wandering around dumbly for about an hour we decided to get on the road sooner rather than later. This was maybe the only rough day we had on the trip... In an effort to leave Puerto Barrios I asked around for buses and shuttles that could take us back to Rio Dulce (where we would then catch the bus to Flores). We encountered a lot of people trying to take advantage of us and overcharge us for the bus trip which made me feel very frustrated... We ended up getting in a shuttle with some sketchy folks and I immediately regretted it. The driver, seemingly uninhibited by the rainy conditions, drove down the windy road at reckless speed. FINALLY we stopped and transferred into another shuttle which put us much more at ease. In Rio Dulce we had a delicious lunch on the lake before the bus back to Flores.
We waited in town at the bus stop and finally saw a large retired tour bus pull up and we climbed aboard. We were immediately struck by the atmosphere inside. Extremely hot and humid. The bus was meant to always run the AC and so the windows were of the non-opening variety. People were packed in, to full capacity and sweat was dripping off every brow. The windows were steamed up and I wondered how we would ever survive the 4 hour ride on that bus...
Well we made it. Finally. And got a taxi to our hotel in Flores which was another stressful endeavor but eventually ended with us having a good dinner and great nights sleep in a lake view room.

Day 7: We ended the trip with a short flight back to Guatemala City. Thanks so much to Pat who got me the plane ticket and saved me from being stranded (I owe you)! Once in Guatemala we enjoyed our last cup of coffee/ tea together and I left Pat at the airport while I made the journey back home. It was a beautiful trip and I am glad we saw all that we did.