Lounging at the lakes and dicing with death

Well I am just recovering from the shock of nearly losing all my pictures, because of some virus or another, and reflecting on my last two weeks in Guate...

Aldous Huxley said "Lago de Atitlan and its several immense volcanoes is really too much of a good thing. After a few days of this impossible landscapoe one finds oneself thinking nostalgically of the English home counties". Well I can vouch for that. It was simply beautiful, so it is not surprising that my 3 day stay turned into over a week!

Each of the lakeside towns had its own feel and charm. San Juan with its complete lack of tourism, cheap comodors, murals and womens weaving cooperatives. San Pedro, with its party athmosphere reminded me a bit of Thailand. We has a great few days getting drunk on redwine at the Swimming Pool Bar all day and dancing all night to awful music at Freedom bar, downing glow in the dark G&Ts. Lazy morning were spent nursing hangovers and sleepless nights over very late breakfasts, and afternoons were spent swinging in hammocks being a stonehead, glazing at the lake and eating Pan de Banaña.

Across at the other side San Juan was equally as chilled, though we did venture up yet another Volcano once our legs had recovered from the previous hike. It was a hot sweaty battle, but the view at the top were sublime, though short lived, as we were reliable informed by our consciencious guide that bandaderos were loitering nearby ready to relieve of of our cameras or worse. Needless to say, we beat the world record for descent!

San Marcos felt like a hippy commune so i left before I was dressed in tie-die, fed lentils and forced to do a moon dance. Panajachel was more upbeat and tacky, with ´tradiitonal´ xelophone themed bars that kept me awake all night. I was in my element however, pottering about the place purchashing pretty things like they were going out of fashion.

With my back to the lake, I was finally headed for Antigua, stopping off at two great market towns on the way. First was Solola, made famous (here at least) recently, when the towns people decided to take the law into their own hands. çWith no respect for, or trust in Giatemalan police or the country´s judicial system, they decided to burn the town´s police station to the ground, amçnd then publicaly lynch said criminals in the square, burning their bodies in a pile for good measure. All was quiet in the aftermath when i was there, just a heaving local market selling everything from chickens, shoes, dried pasta, industrial sized pots of hair gel, and pretty much anything else you can think of. A burnt out cop car had been turned into a stall selling pirate DVDs and bras. Genius.

Next was Chichcastenango (try saysing that after a few), which was different kettle of fish altogether. This is where all the crasftmen (and women) from across Guate to sell their wares. The town turns into the biggest market around everyweek, the streets jammed with Guatemaltecas busting around in traditional dress, stalls selling jewellery, wood carving, and everything it is possible to make using the traditional material they weave here. bags, cushions, purses, bottlebottle holders...you name it. Everywhere has it nutter though, and the guy entertaining the crowd with his tales of wrestling wild animnals and flogging their innards for their healing properties had to be seen to be believed (he brought the lot along, dried and skinned for reinactment purposes and I assume our beneift)...

Anyway, exhausted and skint in arrived in Antigua, pleasantly surprised that it as not completely packed full of hideous gringos. More partying followed, with roof top cocktails at sunset overlooing the cities three huge surrounding volcanoes and salsa in the evenings. Its a tough life! The city itslef was beautiful, with cobbled streets, a lovely plaza and 24(!) churches. Enough of that. I was there for a reason. Yes you have guessed it. Another Volcano!

I had heard about Pacaya, but nothing could quite prepare me for it. This time it was about the hike, or the altitude, or the vistas. It was about the Lava. There is no way round it. It was completely and uttlerly dangerous. 20 tourists, stumbling about on top of an extremely active volcano at dusk, wobbling around on inch-thick crust taking photos of the huge oozing lava rivers flowing right past us. We toasted marshmellows in the fire as the wind howled and lava crackled under our feet. With meted shoes and hot feet we scrabbled back down in the dark, filthy dirty and totally exhilerated. How they allow it I dont know, but it was incredible.

Mum at this point I suggest a stiff Gin x

Next of the list of extreme adventure was Semuc Champey. Incredibly beautiful and totally unique, it is difficult to describe. From above it looks like series of bright blue and green pools, friged with yellow, shelving down through the dense green jungle that surrounds it, sinking into each other as they flow, and joined up by a series of waterfalls.

First though, we headed to the nearby caves, with our flipflops tied to our feet and armed only with candles we inched deeper and deeper inot the darkness, as the water crept up over our knees and then up to our necks. We swam through tunnels, climed up underground waterfalls on rope ladders, squeezed through tiny gaps between the cave walls and lept off ledges into deep (thankfully) pools of blackness, flying past stalitites as we went. Awesome. And I am no have claustophobia!

Back out into the sunshine, we swung off the river banks on rope swings, plunging into the cool water, each time just missing the huge rock plateaus jutting out into the calm blue. We tubed down the rapids on rubber rings and splashed about in the calm pools in the sunshine, making our way downstream. Then it ws the big one. A 15 metre Waterfall, and only one way down. Like lemmings we threw oursleves off, disappearing over the edge and plunging into the pools below. da, you would have loved it! My tummy left its position my mu body, as did my bikini on it.

Safely down, we scrambled up and under another waterwall, as the water pelted down on us, to see where the tranquility ends and the fierce underground river re-emerges in all it glory. Our guide also pointed out this was where the bodies of three tourists emerged, in pieces, some days later, after falling in at the other end some time ago...

One final launch off into he pools below and a mildly hairy swim across the mouth of the rapids and we were all back safe and dry. Hungry, tired and with a few cuts and bruises to show for an absolutely amazing day!