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Nothing Changes on New Years Day

Monday, December 31st, 2007

Day 56

We had to move hotels today since the Jinava is booked for New Years. We figured a bit of a splurge was in order for New Years eve so we called ahead and reserved at the Vulcano Lodge in Jaibalito. At $40/night it wasn’t exactly breaking the bank. Jaibalito is just a 25 minute ride from San Marcos and since it is unreachable by road it promised to be a very quiet new years.

We climbed off the boat at Jaibalitos dock and walked uphill on the villages main “street”, although since there are no cars let’s call it a sidewalk. We passed friendly locals and laughing kids playing football, it was a good first impression. Finally we reached a sign pointing the way to the hotel, it was set just under some cliffs on the upper end of the village. Sprawling grounds, attractively landscaped with small cabins to stay in. Our room was spotless, large and well decorated with a fabulous front veranda. We had a hammock, a couple of chairs and a great view. It was tough to imagine a more relaxing place.

The hotel is owned by a very friendly Norwegian couple. They bought the place 14 years ago and slowly have transformed it into one of the best places I have ever stayed at. That night for our new years dinner they had setup large table for 12. All the guests, staff and themselves sat down for a new years eve feast, it was like dinner with family. The food was laid out buffet style and we could just take what and how much we wanted.

After dinner some guests headed to bed but Jordana and I were determined to be up at 12am to bring in 2008. We got a bottle of wine and sat on our veranda waiting for the new year to arrive. With a candle, mosquito col burning and some low key music on the iPod it was the quietest new years we have had yet one of the most enjoyable.

I don’t have much else to report from our time at Jaibalito. We spent most of it on our veranda in a hammock. Hence the title of this post, sorry I just wasn’t feeling creative and I always think of U2 on new years. When we tired of that we strolled through the village to say hi to the children and buy some bananas for lunch. It was a perfect way to start 2008, a year that promised to be filled with new countries, adventure and excitement.

Happy new year!

Vacation from the World

Friday, December 28th, 2007

Day 53
Up early for the bus to Lake Atitilan, Chichicastenango had returned to its normal self. The market stalls were down but would be back up in just a few days for the Sunday market. We made the short walk to a corner from where buses left for the Interamerican highway, there we could find another bus heading to the lake. After no more than 2 minutes of waiting we were approached by a skinny man named Juan. He asked where we were going and then offered to take us in his minivan which was going direct to the lake. Sounded good but I figured his minivan was really just one of the tourist shuttles you see here. They are good if you want to travel with foreigners and pay about 15 times the local bus price. Although they do go direct and will drop you at any hotel you want. I told him thanks but it was too expensive for us. I guess they didn’t have many people in the van because he then offered to take us for $5 U.S. each, the regular price was $10-12 and the bus we were waiting for would be about $3 so we agreed. As they accepted our money they made it quite clear that we were not to discuss what we paid with the other tourists.
Close to 2 hours after we left Chichi we were just outside of Panajachel, a large settlement on the lake. The driver was a large man and I couldn’t help but laugh at his apparent attempt for tips. A few examples; as we passed the town of Soloa, he pointed and said “Soloa.” Then as we caught our first glimpse of the lake, “lake”. I figured he was aspiring to be a tourguide but the travel agency was holding him back. Well now we knew why. As the road curved down towards the lakeshore we were presented with a postcard view of Lago Aititilan. Our driver even stopped at a lookout so we could snap a few pictures. That and so we could buy from the souvenir stalls setup on the roadside. He also took this opportunity to pull out a map and explain something about the lake to another girl in the van. I stood snapping pictures ans listening, it didn’t sound like much real info. The lake sat shimmering far below and on the far side rose three volcanos, all around was deep green hillsides. I could see now why this has been called one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

We arrived in Panachael and made our way to the docks to catch a ferry to the small lakeside settlement of San Marcos. The small fibreglass boat was packed and we had to place our packs on the precariously on the roof. The crossing took just over 40 minutes till we arrived at the small wooden dock of San Marcos. San Marcos is a small settlement on the lake with a path that leads up from the lake through coffee and banana plantations. Its a friendly place where the people we passed offered a “Buenos tardes”. About 300 meters from the lake we hit the main road and turned left and walked up a steep hill to the entrance of Hotel Jinava.
After the steep hill up we climbed down just as fast through the gorgeous landscaped grounds of the hotel. The lake lay sparkling blue down below and we were really excited about getting a room and our stay here. We scored a bungalow with privacy and postcard perfect views. The next 3 days were not much to write about. We lay on the dock and when the sun became to hot we would slip into the cool clean water of Aititilan. It felt like summer in the Muskokas back home except there were 3 volcanos looking down on us.

That’s about all I can write about our time at San Marcos on Lake Aititilan. Its an amazingly beautiful place and the sort of place where you disappear from the world. No TV, no newspaper, no radio, pretty much no outside world contact. World war III could have began and we wouldn’t have known from here. For the next few days we pretty much did disappear and its never felt so good.

You Can’t Buy a Sunset

Thursday, December 27th, 2007
Day 52 Chichicastenango is set beautifully in a high valley surrounded by green mountains. To reach the city the final accent is a series of sharp turns on a steep hill, it feels remote and isolated. All that isolation is lost ... [Continue reading this entry]

Navidad Verde

Tuesday, December 25th, 2007
Day 50 Feliz Navidad, it just doesn't sound the same as merry christmas. I realize it means the same thing but to my language challenged ears it doesn't. The closer we got to Christmas the more I told Jordana that we ... [Continue reading this entry]

Liquid Hot Magma

Saturday, December 22nd, 2007
Day 47 Now when you read the title of this post you need to use Dr. Evil's voice from Austin Powers. Otherwise its like watching a 3D movie without the glasses. Right, so go back and say it again just as ... [Continue reading this entry]

North Into the Highlands

Wednesday, December 19th, 2007
Day 44 We were up and out of our guesthouse by 7am on our way to find a bus north to the highland city of Quetzeltenango. Getting around guatemala may not be luxurious but its very easy. On our way to ... [Continue reading this entry]

Prime Rib and some Ben Stiller on the side

Tuesday, December 18th, 2007
Note: I have finally added a some photos, and hopefully many more to come! Check for the link on the right side of the page. To make it easy here it is... http://picasaweb.google.com/mikejordana/CentralAmerica Day: 41 to 43 The next ... [Continue reading this entry]

A Tight Fit

Saturday, December 15th, 2007
Day 40 We awoke in the morning, packed up and before we even had breakfast were in a taxi to the bus station. We were headed only 45km away from Guatemala City but it would feel like we were leaving ... [Continue reading this entry]

Barred Up In Guate

Friday, December 14th, 2007
Day 39 We were aboard the Monja Blanca company's "luxury" bus to Guatemala city or as everyone here refers to it, Guate. It sounded luxurious, the White Orchid bus company, and on the luxury bus no less. In reality ... [Continue reading this entry]

A Trip Through Time

Wednesday, December 12th, 2007
Day 37 Late morning we returned to Flores and waited for a 2pm bus south to the city of Coban. Once again we enjoyed some pizza in Flores, this time on a beautiful lakeside patio. Being vegetarian and travelling in Guatemala ... [Continue reading this entry]