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Latinoamérica 2017

December 2016 - September 2017
A 264-day adventure by About a girl who travels Read more
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  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 12

    Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve

    January 8, 2017 in Belize ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    I was planning to leave San Ignacio the next day to head over to Guatemala when Sandy asked me to join them the next day for a road trip to Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve. I knew that Maayan, a girl from Israel, had been looking for people joining her to get a rental car and go there but hadn't really thought about it as my plan was to just go to Actun Tunichil Muknal and not spend any more time in San Ignacio. But now that I was asked again I figured - isn't this the upside to have 6 month for my trip? So that i could just change my plans like I wanted and just stay longer whenever there was an opportunity for some adventure?
    So checked with the hostel if I could stay another night and told everybody I was in.

    We were 10 people all together and got 2 4WD for the trip. There were 4 places we wanted to go to inside the park and we decided to drive to the one furthest inside the park first and stop at the other ones on the way out. So the first one should be the Rio Frio Cave. We even found that one in maps and used my phone to guide us there. After the while the phone told us to leave the main road (which was already just a gravelroad) and take a small path towards the river. We followed these directions without a doubt. After a while the street got smaller and bumpier and due to the rain there was a lot of water in the street. At one point the street was completely under water for at least 20m and we didn't know how deep it was. But the phone had told us to go this way so Justen gave it a try and started into the water. We did pretty good for the first half but somewhere in the middle the car got stuck. By trying to get out with a lot of gas Justen gave our car a nice camouflage look :) He probably should have closed the window first.
    As the car wouldn't move we all got out and started collecting wood to put it in front of our wheels for better grip. The guys from the second car came to help and we all stood on the side cheering him on when Justen got back into the car to give it another try. There was a lot of flying mud again but it worked! The car was free and Maayan, who was driving the second car, managed to get through the mud without any trouble.
    We kept on going down the road till we got to a pretty steep hill with again a lot of water at the bottom. So we decided to give a closer look to the map and figured out what the problem was. We hadn't logged in the parking lot at the cave but just the closest "street" - which wouldn't bring us to the hiking path and was divided from the cave by a river 😬
    We send Tassilo and Peter to check out the way beyond that hill and used the time to start eating our food while listening to some raggaton music from a CD we had found in the car. Even though we still hadn't made it to any of our touchpoints we had a lot of fun and this trip was already worth it's money!

    When Tassilo and Peter came back they told us it would be pretty hard to cross the river and get to the cave from this side so we jumped back into our cars and made our way back toward the main road. When we came back to the flooded part of the street Justen made us get out of the car first and drove through the mud with a lot of noise (partly from hitting a tree) but he made it. This time it would be Maayan who got stuck. But we already knew how to get a car out now. At least now both cars looked alike.

    After this adventure track we found the rest of the streets to be pretty decent and there were actually signs telling us where to go.

    The Rio Frio Cave was huge and there was even a little beach inside. Of course it couldn't beat Actun Tunichil Muknal, but it was still pretty amazing.

    The next two stops were Rio on Pools and Big Rock Fall. Two spots at the river with pools and waterfalls. Unfortunately it was still pretty cold due to the rain the night before so we didn't actually go for a swim. But it was still fun to walk around and spend some time near the river watching the water fall. And there were never really a lot of other people around. Really nice.

    Our last stop was a fancy resort with an outside terrace from where you could watch another waterfall. We didn't quite know if they would even let us in the way our cars looked. But they were just smiling. Actually everybody we passed kept laughing at us. Stupid tourists not knowing their way around ;)
    We treated ourselves with an expensive drink and enjoyed the view.

    After that we headed home and were surprised to hear that the owner of the car rental was really happy to hear we had a great time and didn't really care that the cars looked like they did. He only asked us for a good review on TripAdvisor and even wanted us to share our pictures and videos.

    After that eventful day we enjoyed the end of the day in the hammocks on the roof of our hostel. It's gonna be a day to remember...    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 13

    Bordercrossing to Guatemala

    January 9, 2017 in Belize ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    After our adventure in Mountain Pine Ridge the whole group was leaving San Ignacio to different directions.
    A lot of them were heading towards the coast but Dennis was joining me on my way to Guatemala. It should be my first bordercrossing by foot.
    We took a taxi to Benque and from there a taxi to the border. I thought it would be more exciting but it was actually just like walking through immigration at an airport. You enter the building on one side and once you leave it on the other side, you are in another country. The only weird thing was that we could have missed immigration in Guatemala. You had to walk to a shelter to get your stamp but you could have just walked past it without anybody realizing. From Melchor we took a collectivo to Santa Elena and from there a TukTuk to Flores. This was definitely the trip with the most different ways of transportation.    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 13

    Flores

    January 9, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Everybody told me you only go to Flores to make your trip to Tikal from there. But I actually quite liked it. Flores is just a small island in the lake Peten Itza which is connected with the main "city" Santa Elena by a bridge. It's a cute little town with colorful buildings and my hostel had a rooftop terrace with a really nice view over the lake.

    There was some kind of festival going on in town with a stage and live music in the main plaza and many little stands with stuff to buy and street food.

    Dennis and I went there for dinner and ended up dancing with the locals and drinking with some other backpackers. The next night we went back there and saw some kids doing traditional dances. It tells you so much more about a country and there people if you are just part of something like this.    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 15

    Lanquin

    January 11, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Zephyr Lodge in Lanquin is a little paradise and the perfect place to get stuck for a few days. It's a little over my budget but the 4th night is for free - so it didn't make any sense to leave after just 3 nights :)
    It's just a 10 minute walk from the little town but as it's placed upon a mountain I was happy they pick you up. And the drive on the back of a pick up truck with a bunch of other backpackers was already an experience.
    The view from up here is ridiculously beautiful. And as the building is right on top of the mountain, you have a nice view everywhere. Even on the toilet and in the shower. I could even watch the sunrise from my bed, if I would wake up early enough (might do that tomorrow). But instead I saw the full moon rise from behind the mountain yesterday!
    As almost nobody wants to take the walk to town, everybody comes together at night for good food, cheap drinks and some funny games in the main restaurant.
    I spend the whole day yesterday at (and in) the pool. Today it's raining a little so I'm probably gonna spend the day in the main house making some travel plans - still with an amazing view :)    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 16

    Semuc Champey

    January 12, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    From Lanquin I took a tour to Semuc Champey. It's a series of natural pools in a "bridge" from lime rock over the Rio Cahabón. Which means the actual river is running below the lime rock. Just some water runs over the rocks forming clear pools which are connected by little waterfalls.
    The tour actually started with a jump of a bridge just outside the parc. I knew if i start thinking about it, I might not do it. So I just climbed up on the railing and jumped. Free falling for 10 meters takes longer than I thought. I even had enough time to think about how best to touch the water. But not enough to actually change my position.
    Inside the park we first made our way up to a lookout point overlooking the pools. From there we climbed down to jump into one of the highest pools and then slide down the little waterfalls to the lowest one. I always thought it must hurt to slide down natural stone slides. And yes, it still does 2 days later. But it was still fun ;)
    To get to the park and back to the hostel later we took the pick up truck again. Why don't we do this at home? You can fit a lot more people in one car, if they are standing on the back of a truck.    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 20

    Rio Dulce

    January 16, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    The day started with one of these situations I will never fully understand. I wanted to take a bus from Lanquin to Rio Dulce from where I would then take a boat to Livingston on the caribbean coast.
    I had already bought my ticket for the bus in Flores. I was a little worried as I had heard that sometimes tickets bought elsewhere are not accepted. But when the hostel called the travel agency in Flores to confirm the date of my departure (I had bought an open ticket) they said everything should be fine.
    So the pick up truck brought us from the hostel into town where all the shuttle busses with different destinations were waiting. I found the bus to Rio Dulce and showed my ticket to the driver. But he said he couldn't accept this ticket. I told him to please call the number on the ticket as they could probably confirm that the ticket was valid. But he only asked "Where do you wanna go?" "Rio Dulce." "Which hostel did you stay?" "Zephyr Lodge, but I bought the ticket in Flores. Please call that number." "No, it's the wrong ticket!" (and of course all this was in spanish).
    Another guy showed up and I had the same conversation over and over again. When the bus driver finally called the travel agency there were already 4 people there telling me I had the wrong ticket. And they still asked me every now and then where I wanted to go. Seriously? Still Rio Dulce.
    After the bus driver had spoken to the travel agency he made 2 more phone calls. All the while even more guys walked by asking me where I wanted to go, telling me I had the wrong ticket.
    But suddenly after a few minutes the bus driver put down his phone saying "esta bien!". He took my ticket, put me on the bus and suddenly everything was fine.

    The bus drive to Rio Dulce took about 5 hours. The first 4 hours over really bumpy gravel roads. The streets in Guatemala are definitely the worst I've seen so far. Never felt such an relief when we finally reached the paved road.

    But the journey from Rio Dulce to Livingston made up for everything. We got to Rio Dulce just in time that I could hop on the public lancha (small boats who work like collectivos) to Livingston. These boats make a few stops in between and give you a few informations about the area. Finally the sun came out again and it was a really nice tour. The river ends in the ocean and I was back to the Caribbean.    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 21

    Livingston

    January 17, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    At the end of the boat ride down the Rio Dulce I arrived in Livingston. Livingston is a Garifuna town unconnected by road from the rest on the country. Garifuna people were brought to America as slaves but revolted and lived independently along the Caribbean Coast.
    The town felt a little run-down but still had its charme.
    I stayed in a hammock at Casa de la Iguana - a party hostel run by some nice people who engaged the party atmosphere by promoting drinking games and the "guifiti challenge". Guifiti is rum infused with herbs and the challenge was to drink 4 shots in a row. After you have mastered the challenge you can raise the number behind your country on a board. The number behind Germany was 99. But i figured there are enough crazy drinking germans traveling that will raise the number over 100. I think it's a nice place if you wanna party but to me it felt a little overdone.
    The hostel was also organizing some tours to beaches and other spots in the area but I decided to explore by myself. I took the walk to the nearby waterfalls Los Siete Altares which took me through the whole town and along the beach. The beach here was not to beautiful but nice to walk along in the water. The water was pretty warm but every now and then there were little rivers with fresh water running into the ocean and then suddenly the water would be really cold.
    Los Siete Altares was a series of waterfalls and pools which you climb up from the lowest pool just before the river connects to the ocean. It was nice to be there completely by my self but I was still happy when I met a couple with their little daughter at the highest pool as the guy showed my where to climb up here to jump down from the last waterfall.
    After I had made it back to the hostel a nice surprise was waiting for me: Sandy, Courtney and Peter who were with me on the adventure road trip through Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve in Belize had just arrived. It was great meeting them again and catch up about what we had done since we last met.
    Later that night a Garifuna Band was performing at the hostel playing some traditional drum rhythms. Again it was nice till it got a little to much when they made people come in the center one by one dancing in front of everybody. But it was still a nice night and we danced quite a lot.
    The next day I took another Lancha across the bay to Puerto Barrios to catch a bus from there to Guatemala City.    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 22

    Ciudad de Guatemala

    January 18, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    I probably wouldn't have spend any more time than necessary in Guatemala City if I wouldn't have met Ines in Lanquin.
    Her parents are german but she was born and raised in Guatemala and she invited me to stay with her and her family for a while. I was really happy about this invitation as it is an opportunity to get to know a city in a way not a lot of backpackers will.
    After Ines and her brother Thomas had picked me up at the bus station we went back to their mums place for a typical german "Abendbrot". It was delicious with good bread, cheese and ham. Ines and I finished 2 bottles of wine and talked till late. What a nice evening to start my stay in the city.

    The next day I got the complete Guatemala City Tour. I guess most backpackers only see Zona 1 and the historical buildings around Parque Central but with Ines and Thomas as my local tour guides I got to see a lot more.

    We started at Mapa en Reliefe (see extra post) but already on our way there we passed by a lot of buildings and areas Ines and Thomas would point out and explain to me. From there we continued to Zona 1 and the historical buildings mentioned above. We also strolled down 6 Avenida a bit to check out some shops around here.

    Our next stop was Ciudad Cayalá. We had lunch and some Micheladas on the terrace of La Playa. From up here you have a good view over the whole city. It was a bit cloudy but you could still make out a lot of the areas we had already visited and also saw the volcanoes in the far.
    After this we made our way to Plaza Berlin for another nice view and to see some pieces of the Berlin Wall - I wonder who brought them here? :)

    On our way the two kept showing me more stuff and we made some stops to buy necessities for me - things you need to do when visiting a big city.
    For sunset we went to an empty apartment Ines family owned on the 14th (or 15th?) floor of an building close to the airport. Even though the sunset was partly covered with clouds it was really cool being up there. Ines pointed out the volcanoes to me and I caught my first glimpse of Fuego erupting (I'm super excited to go to Antigua now!). Also we could watch the planes land right in front of us. It was crazy how loud you could here them up there once they were in the right spot.

    For dinner that night we went to Cafe Saúl. Not the typical backpacker dinner but definitely the best food and wine I had on my trip so far. And I really liked the design of the restaurant! A place to remember.

    The next morning Ines and her mum dropped me off at the bus station to catch the chicken bus to Lake Atitlan. And after 2 unusual but most amazing days in Guatemala City I jumped back into the backpacker world with a stomache full of good food, a backpack full of freshly washed and good smelling clothes and a mind full of nice memories of a city most backpackers might skip. I'm really thankful to Ines and her family for this and hope I can return the favor one day!    Read more

  • About a girl who travelsLatinoamérica 2017
    Day 22

    Mapa en Relieve de Guatemala

    January 18, 2017 in Guatemala ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    The Mapa en Reliefe is a huge relief map of Guatemala at a scale of 1:10000. But as I read later the height of the mountains has been exaggerated to 1:2000 to make it look more dramatic. The map was build over 100 years ago.
    Belize is also part of the map as it technically still belongs to Guatemala (in 1859 Guatemala gave Britain rights to the land provided that the british build a road from Guatemala to the Caribbean Coast - but this road is still not finished).
    I think every country should have a map like this. It gave me a much better understanding of the country I have traveled to see it like this. You can walk all around and on two sides you have little towers to view the map from above.
    The funniest thing though was the guy cleaning the map who would just walk over the mountains like a giant :)    Read more

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