Another mid-week post ---- there's just too much to write about!...
Flying over Guatemala City (been there, by land, 1997) reveals chaotic sprawl and remnants of earthquake damage from decades ago. At 3.5 million it's the most populated city in all of Central America, with the barrios spreading right up to the volcanoes. A grey puff of dragon's breath reminds that they're still active. An hour away is Antigua, the original capital before it was destroyed by a quake. Very Spanish colonial with the usual cathedral, town hall, and park grouped under ancient hardwoods.
Antigua is pleasant but we've been curious about Lake Atitlan, another couple of hours away on twisty mountain roads. It has been called The Most Beautiful Lake in The World (!) in the past. Is it still?!?! The van arrives with at least one car sick gringo and we find our way to Panajachel, the base for nature's beauty pageant. But it's sunset and hazy, so the view is a tease of the big show to come.
Lake Atitlan is a captive fresh water crater formed 85,000 years ago by unimaginably massive volcanic heaves. The water is now 1,600 feet deep and actually rising from subterranean bulging. There's no outflow possible, so shoreline buildings are being permanently inundated. The vista of volcano cones is spectacular and impossible to portray in one photo.
No ring road around the lake, so dozens of 12-passenger ferries connect the shore villages, like stringing pearls. So a great way to check out the possibilities is to ride the waves, bouncing from one dock to another. Leaving Pana, the first stop is San Juan La Laguna. Weaving and textile cooperatives of Tz'utujil Mayans, brilliant colours in paintings, and a friendly clean vibe.
Around the cove is San Pedro La Laguna. Also Tz'utus and some Cakchiquel Mayans (different and distinctive dress). Many Spanish schools, volcano trekking, kayaking on gentle bays, and a backpackers' haven (...as you'll see in the next blog post...).
No lunch, just a launch over to Santiago Atitlan. Mayans, cliff diving (the lake is a mild 20C), Spanish conquistador church, and glorious flowering pointsettia. Oh, and everywhere the dominance of the volcanoes that created this place.
No question the views and cones and pink sunsets and magical waters have soul-lifting beauty. But in my opinion you'd have to photoshop out all the negative human presence to return it to #1 on this planet. But we're staying for a while, because the other claim is true ---- the climate is "Eternal ____". Fill in the blank?
Flying over Guatemala City (been there, by land, 1997) reveals chaotic sprawl and remnants of earthquake damage from decades ago. At 3.5 million it's the most populated city in all of Central America, with the barrios spreading right up to the volcanoes. A grey puff of dragon's breath reminds that they're still active. An hour away is Antigua, the original capital before it was destroyed by a quake. Very Spanish colonial with the usual cathedral, town hall, and park grouped under ancient hardwoods.
Antigua is pleasant but we've been curious about Lake Atitlan, another couple of hours away on twisty mountain roads. It has been called The Most Beautiful Lake in The World (!) in the past. Is it still?!?! The van arrives with at least one car sick gringo and we find our way to Panajachel, the base for nature's beauty pageant. But it's sunset and hazy, so the view is a tease of the big show to come.
No ring road around the lake, so dozens of 12-passenger ferries connect the shore villages, like stringing pearls. So a great way to check out the possibilities is to ride the waves, bouncing from one dock to another. Leaving Pana, the first stop is San Juan La Laguna. Weaving and textile cooperatives of Tz'utujil Mayans, brilliant colours in paintings, and a friendly clean vibe.
Around the cove is San Pedro La Laguna. Also Tz'utus and some Cakchiquel Mayans (different and distinctive dress). Many Spanish schools, volcano trekking, kayaking on gentle bays, and a backpackers' haven (...as you'll see in the next blog post...).
No lunch, just a launch over to Santiago Atitlan. Mayans, cliff diving (the lake is a mild 20C), Spanish conquistador church, and glorious flowering pointsettia. Oh, and everywhere the dominance of the volcanoes that created this place.
No question the views and cones and pink sunsets and magical waters have soul-lifting beauty. But in my opinion you'd have to photoshop out all the negative human presence to return it to #1 on this planet. But we're staying for a while, because the other claim is true ---- the climate is "Eternal ____". Fill in the blank?
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