Pictures – Week 7
Sunday, April 18th, 2010Here are the pictures from Monterrico, Tecpan and Ixamche ruins, and Lake Atitlan. Enjoy!
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Monterrico, Ixamche and Lake Atitlan
Sunday, April 18th, 2010Monterrico! It feels like coming home. We spend our time socializing with our friends, swimming in the pool and watching the waves. The waves are exceptionally huge. Patrick and I go for a swim and he immediately gets knocked down by the undertow. That ends our ocean swimming in Monterrico. Instead, we blow up our old camp air mattress and play in the pool. The night before we arrive, man who was drinking went for a swim at night and got swept away. Never underestimate the power of the ocean!
Paul and I bring Patrick to Guatemala City and at the same time, meet my parents. We spend a night in the City with just the “adults” of the family (our friend, Becky, graciously offers to babysit the kids in Monterrico), then Patrick leaves at 5am on Sunday morning. We enjoy our week with Patrick – playing lots of pool at the new pool hall, playing poker, playing board games and enjoying Paul’s cooking. We look forward to travelling with him this summer in Ecuador and Peru.
We spend a few lazy days with my parents in Monterrico. Paul and the boys love the new pool hall, and Quinn even joins local musicians and a famous young English actor, Olly Alexander, to sing a few songs. The waves get bigger and some reach the edge of our property. At night, the house shakes when a big wave crashes like a small earthquake. We estimate the waves to be about 20 feet high.
My parents and the family leave the steamy weather and head to the highlands for a few days. The weather drops from 96 degrees to 68 degrees and rains, and everyone complains about the cold. We go to Ixamche, Mayan ruins dating back to 1470 AD. We explore the four plazas. Connor has studied the Native American culture and provides us with all kinds of interesting factoids. We stay at an amazing cabana with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, loft, kitchen, and fireplace. The grounds are incredible – playgrounds, pool, animals, church, gardens, restaurants, tennis court, basketball, football, etc.
We spend the next couple of days at Lake Atitlan with my parents. Connor, Quinn, Dad and I check out the zip lines near Panajachel. All of us “pass the test” at the base of the course, but I explain that Quinn needs to go with a guide. Imagine my surprise when Quinn comes down the first zip line alone! He looks completely out of control, so I re-explain that he needs a guide. All of us have a great time, and Quinn even does the last couple zip lines solo. The guides are impressed when I tell them the age of my father.
Soon after the zip lines, the rain starts again and continues through the night. The main street of Panajachel turns into a small river and we get soaked coming back from dinner.
We go to Santiago Atitlan on Friday to see the market and church. A Catholic priest from Oklahoma was murdered at the church’s rectory during the Guatemalan civil war. The church was a safe house for the local guerillas during the war and has an interesting history.
We spend our final days in Monterrico relaxing and partying with our friends. Tomorrow, we go to El Salvador. Guatemala has been a nice break and we are now ready to resume our journey.
Pictures – Week 6
Friday, April 16th, 2010
Just a few pictures of our sixth week in Guatemala with Patrick:
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Hola Guatemala!
Saturday, April 3rd, 2010
Guatemala! The border crossing goes seamlessly, but has several steps. We have to check out of Mexico at migracion. We drive across a bridge to Guatemala after paying a toll (interesting that we have to pay to leave a country) ... [Continue reading this entry]
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