Chichicastenango in Guatemala is a popular tourist destination due to the twice weekly massive market; but, it is not just a market town. There is so much to see! After we had our fill of the market at Chichi, we found a guide, Oscar, who offered to give us a two hour tour of the local Mayan culture for Q300 (quetzales) (about $45 for both of us). It was more than we wanted to spend, but since his English was pretty decent, we decided it was worth spending the money to get a good explanation of what we were looking at. Our stroll began at the pig market, a little space off the main road where they sold, what else, pigs! [Read more…] about The Mayans and the MONEY!
Market Day in Chichicastenango (“Chichi”)
The wild ride on the chicken bus came to an end at Chichi. Phew! As soon as we got off a man came up to us asking where we were staying. He spoke English pretty well and was wearing a vest that said “guida autirazad” (or something like that) so we decided he must be trustworthy. We told him we did not have a room, yet, so he grabbed one of our bags, “come, I show you nice place” and began walking away from us.
[Read more…] about Market Day in Chichicastenango (“Chichi”)
Chicken bus to ChiChi
Oh Dios mio! What a ride. Within about thirty seconds both Carrie and I felt a sudden urge to vomit. At 2:00 we boarded a packed shuttle headed to Lago de Atitlan (Lake Atitlan). There were 12 others on board and we were the only crazies who planned to jump off early at Los Encuentros. Marco had booked the trip for us and he told us to make sure to “get off where the roads meet.” Apparently the roads met at a Texaco because the shuttle driver suddenly veered off the road and dumped us there. We were no more than a few feet down the street when a man came up to us saying something about “ChiChi.” [Read more…] about Chicken bus to ChiChi
Monterrico es muy bonito!
I heard Carrie’s alarm going off for about fifteen minutes so finally I dragged myself out of bed, gathered my shower items and clothes and stumbled into el bano. After a nice hot (finally) shower I nudged Carrie, “Wake up! The shuttle is coming within the hour.” Groggily, she replied,”what time is it?” It is 7:15 a.m., I said, as her hand swept the floor looking for her phone. “No it isn’t! It’s only 5:15 a.m.!”, she exclaimed. Oops! Her phone alarm woke us up at the right time….if we were catching a shuttle in New York!
Amigos en Antigua
We made it to Antigua!
Carrie and I flew in on different flights, but just 20 minutes apart. The Guatemala City airport was much smaller than I had expected. Just as we passed through customs we found a booth selling tickets for the shuttle (minivan) to Antigua. The ride is about 45 minutes and cost just $10 per person. The driver dropped us off right at our hotel, Hotel Casa Cristina. It is such an adorable place! Our room (#7) is perfect!
Just twelve rooms, each with its own bathroom and hot shower (or, at least hot if you know how to use it!) Unfortunately, the knobs are reversed and Carrie and I both ended up taking freezng cold showers the first morning. I later asked the front desk attendant, Jose, “porque no agua caliente?” [Read more…] about Amigos en Antigua
One week and counting! Packed for Central America.
In exactly one week from now I will have landed in Guatemala City! I am so fortunate to have convinced my dear friend “C” to join me for the first ten days of the adventure! We are flying separately, but our flights arrive a mere 20 minutes apart so I think that, barring any kind of airline craziness, we should be there at the same time. After “C” leaves, my friend Rhiannon at peanutbutterbound.com is joining me for a few weeks or more! I am no longer going alone. Hooray!
The real question is whether my bag will qualify as Spirit airline carry on…
[Read more…] about One week and counting! Packed for Central America.