El Chapin

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It was a short trip – just 3 days spent in Guatemala, but really interesting and fun. The country is somewhat like India in terms of the infrastructure and destinations, but the people are a bit friendlier.

Started off from Antigua, the former capital city, with my two guides from Old Town Outfitters, an adventure travel company. I was fortunate to be the only customer with two guides (one was in final training). We drove some distance towards our destination of Lake Atitlan and then started a 40 km bike ride. Though it was mostly downhill, the few uphill sections took their toll on me, the novice mountain biker and I gave up half-way. We had a quick lunch enroute before descending to the lake side town of Panajachel from where we took a boat to our hotel which was on the cliff side along the lake. The hotel is apparently in lonely planet’s guide, but I had no idea at the time. My room had a super view of the lake, which is surrounded by 3 volcanoes and about 15 towns or smaller settlements. That night brought a thunderstorm in the distance beyond the volcanoes and I could see the lightning while lying on my bed. Unfortunately, photographs of the sky were not feasible.

The biker

One interesthing thing I noted was the number of old school buses from the States in use as unofficial public transport in the country. Some were still in their original yellow paint with even the names of the schools visible in some places. They are called chicken buses, probably because they are packed and transport livestock too.

Next day was the kayak trip across the lake to a nearby town. We used sea kayaks, though the lake was very calm so it was really enjoyable. Lake Atitlan was formed thousands of years ago by volcanic eruption and is very deep at places – upto 1500 feet. I made sure that my life vest fitted well, since I cant swim. The plan was to paddle to a town and then hike back to the hotel.

We reached the dock and waited for the boat to arrive with our hiking gear and take back the kayaks. In the meantime a quick dip in the lake refreshed us, since it was pretty hot, though this was supposed to be the rainy season. In all the time I was there, it only drizzled once. The hike back to the hotel took us through two towns and plenty of corn fields on the hillside. We then went back to Panajachel to buy some rum and watch Guatemala play Trinidad in a FIFA world cup qualifier. Guatemala lost 3-2, but the atmosphere was amazing. The entire town was glued to their televisions, including the women.

Our group expanded by 4, when another guide and the three girls he was travelling with joined us. One had fallen during the biking trip and needed stitches on her chin. The boat ride back to to hotel was a scary experience this time. Wind from the hills round the lake came in a made it rather choppy. To cap it, we got the last boat back so it was virtually a ‘chicken boat’. Water started coming in from the sides and within about 15 minutes I was soaked since I had a seat along the side. Anyway we reached without any mishap and went straight to dinner. Food in the hotel was rather good and tasted close to Mexican/Indian – spicy and use of plenty of vegetables. Mucho gracias.

The plan after dinner that night was to utilize the hotel’s ‘hot tub’, an outdoor, wood-fired small pool that could hold 10 people. We had made friends with a Texan family of father and 3 children – he was an elderly gent who had hiked in Sikkim and other parts of North India and was happy to talk to me about India. He arranged trips with his kids once a year – though most were married, they came on these trips with their dad – it was quite amazing to see. Anyway, the 3 of them joined our group in the hot tub so we had a good gang of 10 exchanging jokes and ghost stories well into the night. Here is where the rum came in handy. It was drizzling a bit, but we were pretty happy to sit in the hot water and view the lake and stars overhead. A couple of people even jumped into the lake later as part of a dare. Of course they promptly jumped back into the hot tub.

Lake Atitlan at sunrise

Next day I was slated to climb one of the volcanoes nearby, but decided against it in view of having a more relaxed day. So one of the guides and I planned to take boat rides to nearby settlements and roam them instead. A Kiwi doctor learning Spanish (apparently thats a major attraction of the country) joined us. We first went to San Marcos which had several ‘meditation centres’ spouting yoga, reiki and other therapies. You just cant escape the East, man. We walked around the place and along the lake. Next stop was San Pedro, which seemed to be more of a touristy hippy hangout. Some of the shops smelled of hash. We stopped at ‘Shanti Shanti’ an ‘Indian’ cafe for refreshments. They had chai while I relied on the real thing – Coke. The only Indian things in that place were some sitar music and me, though a certain person I know calls me a firang dog.

Hill shaped like a face (view sideways)

We returned to the hotel in time for lunch, a boat to Panajachel and drive back to Antigua. Stayed overnight in Guatemala City. No molestar. Next day I took the flight back to ole Cleveland via Houston, where an interesting conversation with the immigration officer ensued as a result of the name of my employer. Some things never change.

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