So we made it to Antigua, said to be the most famous town in all of central America. If ever there was a more chill place I don´t think I´d believe it. This town has a very relaxed vibe to it and we appreciate that very much right now. We spent the night here and simply relaxed and enjoyed this small city’s many restaurants and cafes and played cards. Practically every tourist who comes to Guatemala passes through here at some point so it is a very clean active place. After a little rest it was on to Lake Atitlan. Quick note: we had a very hilarious taxi ride from Guatemala City to Antigua. The cab driver had lived in Guatemala all his life but had once tried to come to America. He was caught however and promptly deported….to Ecuador. He´d tried to conivnce the authorities he wasn´t from there but they would not listen, so he´d had to call his family at home and tell him he´d been sent to Ecuador against his will. It was hilarious.
The two hour bus ride was rather boring, but it was well worth the wait. As we came over the last peak and caught our first glimpse of this mountain lake we were absloutely floored. Descending down the winding roads our gaze remained transfixed on this breathtaking vista. When we finally made it to the town of Panajachel (can you pronounce that? I can´t) and stayed just long enough to have lunch. We dined with this mother-daughter traveling duo from Chicago. The mother had actually grown up in Guatemala and had many interesting stories about her experience in the area. She and her daughter Crystal were great fun to chat with. After that we boarded a boat to the smaller town of San Pedro. Chilling in the small boat and gazing out at the lake I had a relization. With the looming volcanoes and mountains that completely encircle this small body of water, sprouting up with countless verdant trees and quaint villages, this was undoubtedly the most beautiful lake I´ve ever seen in my life. Amanda has gone on record as stating that this is the most beautiful place she´s ever been to period. It´s hard to argue. We found a hotel that looked right out over the water and wandered around the town, which is apparently very devoted to God. You can not walk half a block without seeing one sign that proclaims “Jesus loves you” or something similar. The narrow cobblestone streets and were very calm and the people were always friendly towards us obvious outsiders. This was an awesome place to visit.
Next day was market day. We boarded a bus and road away from the lake to the town of Chichicastenango (I´m not even going to try) but everyone calls it Chichi for short. Every Thursday and Sunday is the big market. Locals come from all over the day before to set up shop for this big event. Some even sleep in their stalls. We arrived around 10 a.m. or so and set out to see the wares. It doesn´t become overly apparent at first as the outskirts are just busy with people and noisy passing cars. But as you wander into the labyrinth of stalls and vendors you become ensnared by something that can only be decribed as organized chaos. Every sense is assualted in this place. The feel of all the intricate native weavings, the smell of the smokey candles, the iridescent mass of colors of hand carved masks, the taste of the greasy food frying en-mass in the local eatery. And of course, the swarms of people shouting at you to come and buy their stuff. This was a whole new adventure for us. Bargaining is something I´ve never really done before but for these people it´s a way of life. Everything is for sale and no price is set in stone. You can get everything here: blankets, bags, clothes, books, hand-carvings, even machetes.
You can walk around pretending not to be interested in anything, but these people are experts. The see where your wandering eyes go and will jump out to get you to stop and look at their stuff that they know you want. Being the gringos the sellers will naturally start start with something really ridiculous, but they will lower it right away. We counter with an extremely low price to see how they´ll respond. And the game is on. Even if you have no intention of buying anything it´s fun just to see how low you can get stuff for. You haggle back and forth with the vendors always claiming that their offering you a “special deal” that´s just for you but they probably use that line a hundred times a day. If you can´t get the price you want we often deferred to the ultimate tactic “The Walk Away”. If you´ve spent enough time with them and they know you´re truly interested many sellers will often drop their asking price rapidly if they see you turn around and look elsewhere. Some people will even chase you down. It´s crazy fun and if you´re patient you can get some great deals.
After our market adventure we went back to San Pedro for one more night and then made our way back to Antigua. Tonight is special as it is Amanda´s last night on the trip. Tomorrow she flies home to Seattle where she will beging preparing for grad school so she can go on to educate the youth of the world, single-handedly saving English class is her lofty goal. It has been great fun to travel with her and I wish her well in her future endeavors. She will probably make her own post about her experience in a day or two so be on the lookout for that.
Later all!
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