Guatemala
Río Pampatín

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    • Day 49

      Jabilito

      March 17 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

      The kids had been invited to Jabilito to join an arts class with local kids so we hiked over and back. It's a really scenic hike and Jabilito is a funky little town! The kids loved the art class! Back home for some chill time and a Saint Patricks day vino on the balcony!Read more

    • Day 34

      Settling in

      March 2 in Guatemala ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

      Today we travelled back to Panajachel to stock and on some essentials as that is the closest decently supplied supermarket. A lancha ride across the lake, rucksacks loaded up, back across the lake and the trek up to our house.....we wouldn't want to forget anything!! Naturally the kids have now eaten most of what we bought!!
      We organized with our host to use the sauna (temazcal) this afternoon. Her mother came to prepare it while I was out for a walk. Barry informed me on my return it was ready to go so we jumped in....apprehensively!! The fire was lit and there was a huge pot of water set in front of it....the smoke nearly killed us, my eyes wouldn't stop watering and it wasn't very hot. I gave up after 10 minutes, Barry stayed and was joined by Rowyn.
      15 minutes later the lady arrived back....it was not ready... She quenched the fire, the smoke disappeared and she added fragrant herbs and pots of water to pour on the coals...it was brilliant!!
      Most of the houses here don't have showers so families use the saunas to have steam baths every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. It's surprisingly effective with buckets of water to rinse off and a drain in the floor.
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    • Day 33

      Exploring Santa Cruz

      March 1 in Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

      We explored Santa Cruz today which is pretty small but has some great swimming spots and hiking trails. We confirmed our Spanish school details - first class Monday morning at 9am!! The school is at the bottom of the hill near the lake so we have a nice walk down and a steep walk back, combined with the altitude and there is a lot of huffing and puffing! We had some fun swimming in the lake and enjoyed a home cooked meal. It was really challenging shopping for the ingredients, it's only tiny shops (tiendas) with no meat or much veg (whatever is in season I guess). We ended up making pineapple and potato curry....I vote to eat out every night...I'm not a fan of the planning/shopping/cooking/cleaning process!!Read more

    • Day 58

      San Juan and San Pedro

      March 26 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

      We started the day with a lancha to San Juan, the artist village! It was a morning full of learning, first up learning about the local bees, there are four different species that range in size from tiny (hive underground with dark sour honey used for medicinal purposes) to big bees that live in avocado trees with super sweet honey! We tasted all the honey types and Darragh, Barry and James ate the bees too (common apparently). The honey differs in flavour based on what the bees eat ( coffee, flowers,cocoa)
      Next stop was traditional Mayan weaving, Eira and Rowyn had a crack at spinning some cotton, all the dyes are natural and have varying shades based on the stages of the moon!! Incredible!!
      Finally we visited the chocolate factory, and I use the term factory very lightly!! It's a small local set up using traditional methods. The chocolate they produce is only good for four months as it has no preservatives or chemical additives!
      We travelled from there to San Pedro, enjoyed a lovely meal and grabbed the last lancha from there to Santa Cruz.
      To wrap up the day we watched the sunset from Guatmia, a fancy bar on the lakefront we hadn't ventured to yet but really enjoyed it,! Chess with a view
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    • Day 42

      Atitlán I: Santa Cruz & San Juan

      September 21, 2022 in Guatemala ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

      Straight from Acatenango, we had driven 2.5h the day before and arrived at Guatemala's second tourist highlight: Lake Atitlán, a huge volcanic lake, ringed by mountains and picturesque villages. We had chosen to base ourselves neither in the main town, nor in the most touristy/party villages but rather in pretty Santa Cruz, or a small resort with its own little pier nearby to be more precise. 200 steps up the pier in a private cabin to be even more precise.
      We started the next day with a hike along the shore to the main village pier and then up, as the village itself is on the hillside - with beautiful views of the lake. Our initial plan was to relax and go stand-up paddling, but as waves were high and clouds deep, we switched plans and took a boat to nearby San Juan - another beautiful village known for souvenir shopping. For all this, we used public boats, as this is the only mode of transport to reach most villages.
      In the afternoon, back at the resort, we used the onsite jacuzzi and sauna to relax before dinner.
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    • Day 114

      Lago de Atitlán

      May 25, 2023 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

      🇨🇭: Lago de Atitlán isch ehn sehr grosse See, wo 3 grossi Vulkän bi sich zue het. Mega schön chan i nur empfehle. Es isch alles guet mitem Boot zu erreiche und macht echt spass. Mir hend üsi Zit det echt gnosse und i wör gern no länger bliebe. Mir hend cooli Öbet det verbrocht mit lüt usem Hostel, es isch gsunge worde und schlechti witz verzehlt worde. Am schluss hemmer au no spieli gspielt und trunke sehr amüsant gsi. Ich bi ah sebem Obet erst noch de 2 is Bett cho und vorem 7ii wieder ufgstande, da mir mit paarne am See abgmacht hend, sehr schön gsi. De rest vom Tag hemmer denn chli ume chillt badet und nüt tue. Sind am spötere Nomi witters i die nöchst Stadt gfahre und det werdet mir ehn Vulkan bestiege. Nebst nem aktive Vulkan da wird vermuetli die grösst und strengst wanderig wo i jeh gmacht han. Goht bis zu 4000m ufe!
      Wünschet mir Glück🍀🌋🙏🏻

      🇺🇸: Lago de Atitlán is a big see, with 3 big volcano around them. I really can recommend it, its so beautiful there. Everything is very easy to reach by boat and is really fun. We really enjoy our time there, have nice evenings with peoples from the hostel. We sang together, made stupid jokes and ended up playing games and drinking alcohol, a lot of it. At this evening i’m going to bed after 2am and stand up befor 7am, because we meet the others at the lake. Very nice day. The long day we chill and swim in the lake, was very nice. Later in the afternoon the drove to another city. There we want to make a hike up to a vulcano. Next to a active volcano. Thats gonna be our hardest hike ever. It goes up to 4000m!
      Wish me luck🍀🌋🙏🏻
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    • Day 41

      Saturday chores

      March 9 in Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

      Just like home Saturday was for chores! We went to our local market to pick up fruit & veg for the week and then by boat to Pana to get other essentials. We wandered around a market there too and treated ourselves at the chocolate shop!!Read more

    • Day 11

      Day on the Water

      March 4 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

      Today was our last full day at Free Cerveza, and we planned to take it easy. The hangover didn't allow for much else. We spent the morning in the sun and swimming before taking the stand-up paddle boards out on the lake. When we got back, we spent the afternoon chatting with some Brits we met the night previous and chilling. Corrie and Kaz were a lot of fun, and we are already planning to catch up again when we are staying in Pana. We planned on a quiet night, but Corrie and Kaz planned on a big night after they had spent the day tripping on shrooms. As such, we had some drinks and played trivia. Somehow, we didn't do horribly. Mostly because we partnered up with a couple kiwis who knew their shit. It took a while, and by the end, we were too drunk to even listen to the questions and were just having a good time. The night ended up a lot of 'fuck the bus' and getting very, very drunk. We met some great people and had a lot of fun. Eventually though it was time for bed.Read more

    • Day 140

      La mia Isla Verde 🌅🌿🪷

      January 8, 2023 in Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

      Wow.
      Non ci sono molte altre parole per descrivere le sei settimane appena passate, in cui il tempo sembra essersi addensato, passando rapido ma lasciando un'enorme scia di ricordi.
      Se dovessi morire oggi (tocchiamo ferro) morirei felice, e con questo potrebbe concludersi questo racconto. Non è forse questo quello che spesso mi manca? la certezza di essere grato di vivere appieno tutto ciò che la vita mi offre. Così mi sento oggi. Estremamente grato per aver avuto l'occasione di passare del tempo in questo angolo di paradiso.
      I fiori, le piante, i colibrì, il canto notturno del guayanoche, gli scoiattoli mattutini, le farfalle, l'acqua, il vento, il sole, i botti, le feste, il vino (tanto), il cibo (tantissimo), i frullati, le escursioni, le nuotate, la sauna, la yacuzzi, le giornate della pizza, i viaggi in barca, le partite a Monopoly Deal, a shithead, a SushiGo, a Mancala, gli ospiti, i balli, le risate (dio benedica le risate), le confessioni, gli abbracci, le condivisioni e soprattutto le emozioni.
      Ne ho vissute tante. Spesso positive, di meraviglia, di quel fuoco che senti dentro che scalda il cuore e ti fa venire i brividi perché senti che sei fortunato ad essere lì, a vivere quello che stai vivendo. A volte accompagnate dalla tristezza, dalla nostalgia (soprattutto durante le feste), altre dall'ansia di non stare dedicando abbastanza tempo al dovere e forse un po' troppo al piacere. Ma ehi, chi sono io per sottrarmi alla fortuna di poter godere di ogni attimo felice? Certo ora mi ritrovo con un immenso lavoro da fare per la tesi ma un giorno, rileggendo questo, sono sicuro penserò di aver fatto la cosa giusta, e questo significa che era davvero la cosa giusta da fare.

      Ci sarebbe tantissimo altro da ricordare, ma il ruolo più importante l'hanno avuto le persone.
      Hollie e Cian, colleghi di lavoro, amici, presenti in tutti i migliori ricordi. Persone su cui, ne sono sicuro, investirò del tempo in futuro per continuare a coltivare questa amicizia. A partire da subito perché per le prossime due settimane il mio viaggio continuerà proprio con loro.
      Erik, compagno di escursioni, offritore incallito di bottiglie di vino rosso, e milionario norvegese in pensione che porterò nel cuore come colui che beve sempre "strawberry milkshake with little sugar".
      Sofia e Riley, manager, amici, persone gentili e dal cuore grande pronte a trasformare il mio compleanno in un pizza party con karaoke tutto a loro spese.
      Barb, cuore grande anche se a volte fragile, a cui devo molto, soprattutto un olio viso e un deodorante fatti in casa.

      Che dire, a volte basta poco, una singola scelta può cambiare tutto. Il cuore sa sempre ciò di cui ha bisogno.

      E ora, al prossimo capitolo di questo viaggio.
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    • Day 170

      Lake atitlan - Santa cruz

      June 21, 2023 in Guatemala ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

      No San Pedro because more chill place here

      Arriving with Paula at 12:00 at our hostel after boat transfer and shuttle (expensive here!)

      Chilling, reading a book, beautiful nature!

      Lovely hostel & family dinner

      Extended already my stay
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Río Pampatín, Rio Pampatin

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