The original plan was to spend a month on Lake Atitlan. But it's almost impossible to find a place with a kitchen, and then difficult to set up cooking other than fruit and veggies. Each of the many isolated village options around the lake have their own claim to fame: prettiest, best sunrise, most Mayan, volcano trails, etc. We chose San Pedro, known for hiking the "Devil's Nose", best daily market and so-called "New Age" vibe.
Trudging uphill to the highest point, you come to the standard church/town square/soccer field/market. But what a market! Side streets overflowing with clothing, flowers, shoes, toys, and mostly massive amounts of fruit and veggies. How can they sell all of it every day??
So we're eating OK except it's always at food stalls, not home cookin'. We walk it off on trails like the one round the shore. Dramatic murals, the local hand-made canoes, and always manual labourers. Pat is impressed so much can grow so big, like this 12-foot tall corn --- in such dry soil. (Hint: it's volcanic!) But the lake is rising and already water-edge buildings have been inundated.
Back to the market. Women make up almost all the shoppers. Picking the freshest mums, strongest fabrics, biggest carrots. Sitting at a street stew of shoes --- 3 generations of women sharing their soles.
The tuk-tuks roam all day. Women do the laundry on rocks at the shore. That New Age stuff? There's yoga, Spanish school, drumming, dreadlocks, healthfood shop, juggling. A guy wandering with a mini accordian. Another guy who looks like a tall bearded Jesus walking around barefoot in a yellow floral minidress. Young girls in grotesque tattoos, piercings, straggly hair, and a Lost look. One progressive thing is that the town has banned plastic bags and straws to protect the lake (what about all the detergent from the washing?).
The climate is indeed Eternal Spring, as promised. Breezy warm days and comfy coolish nights. Ideal for a longstay the next time. But we're moving on to lower altitudes for more sights and hopefully a full kitchen!
There are still remnants of small garden plots and banana groves right to the waterline. The volcano ridges glow pink at sunrise and golden at sunset. Coffee and other beans are laid out to dry in dusty parking lots. Rattling tuk-tuks blare through the narrow streets like out-of-tune trumpets at 120 decibels.
We splurged the C$26 on a top-floor room with spectacular views day and night.
Trudging uphill to the highest point, you come to the standard church/town square/soccer field/market. But what a market! Side streets overflowing with clothing, flowers, shoes, toys, and mostly massive amounts of fruit and veggies. How can they sell all of it every day??
So we're eating OK except it's always at food stalls, not home cookin'. We walk it off on trails like the one round the shore. Dramatic murals, the local hand-made canoes, and always manual labourers. Pat is impressed so much can grow so big, like this 12-foot tall corn --- in such dry soil. (Hint: it's volcanic!) But the lake is rising and already water-edge buildings have been inundated.
Back to the market. Women make up almost all the shoppers. Picking the freshest mums, strongest fabrics, biggest carrots. Sitting at a street stew of shoes --- 3 generations of women sharing their soles.
The tuk-tuks roam all day. Women do the laundry on rocks at the shore. That New Age stuff? There's yoga, Spanish school, drumming, dreadlocks, healthfood shop, juggling. A guy wandering with a mini accordian. Another guy who looks like a tall bearded Jesus walking around barefoot in a yellow floral minidress. Young girls in grotesque tattoos, piercings, straggly hair, and a Lost look. One progressive thing is that the town has banned plastic bags and straws to protect the lake (what about all the detergent from the washing?).
The climate is indeed Eternal Spring, as promised. Breezy warm days and comfy coolish nights. Ideal for a longstay the next time. But we're moving on to lower altitudes for more sights and hopefully a full kitchen!
No comments:
Post a Comment