Guatemala! October, 2009

Rule #1: Wait until <3 weeks before I leave to decide where to go.
Rule #2: Choose somewhere I know nothing about.
Rule #3: Buy Lonely Planet.
Rule #4: have a maximum of 3 'must-dos' for places to go or things to see.
Rule #5: Leave the rest to chance.

I arrive in Mexico City and am approached by Patricia who was on my flight from Toronto. We are both headed to Antigua after landing in Guatemala City, so we share a ride to a local Spanish school, where she will be studying for the next 2 weeks. The next morning we pile into a van with other groggy travelers ready to climb Volcan Pacaya. The long and steep climb at 2000m+ is totally worth it when I see the lava river. Can't stay for too long due to the heat, so we go back to the cooler spots and find some vents in the rock over which we roast marshmallows........... So Cool! Next I'm off with Gerlinda, who I met on the volcano, to see "the most beautiful spot in all Guatemala." Semuc Champey is in a deep valley, through which a powerful river flows. The river has carved a 300m underground tunnel through the limestone. Over this is a series of pools fed by mountain spring water. We spend over an hour jumping from one to the next, then climb up up up up up up up the valley to survey this place from above – totally worth the effort.

The next day I take 6 different 'chicken busses'. A chicken (local) bus is generally an old school bus or passenger van. The goal with these vehicles is to stuff in as many paying riders for the journey as possible. Sometimes you have a seat, sometimes you sit on the floor, sometimes you have someone sitting on your knee, and sometimes you're standing. At one point there are 23 people and 3 chickens with me in a van built for 15. I break-up the journey with a stop at the ancient Mayan city Quirigua and take a long walk through a banana plantation. I make it to Rio Dulce with the intention to head down river in the early morning....... except that my hostel turns out to be the most wonderful jungle/river paradise. Intentions mean nothing when the plan is to have no plan. I do; however, make a schedule for the following day:
1) Go to the hot springs and swim.
2) Explore the river network around the hostel in a canoe.
3) Lie in a hammock and read at least 1 chapter of my book.
Good plan.

Livingston (must-do #1) is my next destination. My goal is to learn about Garifuna people, who create some of the most wonderful music in the world. Traveller's Tip: Don't trust people who are too eager to recommend services, opinions and stories when you arrive in town. They tell nothing but lies and can skew your experience, wasting time and money......... it is bound to happen to me at some point. I am set straight by Juan Carlos, who works at the museum. Incidentally, he is a musician and invites me to a concert the following evening - excellent plan! I arrive at my hostel only to find Erika, Linda and David ready to go to a traditional Garifuna cooking class at the Rasta Mesa Cultural Centre across town (Erika and Linda climbed the volcano with me on day 2). Our meal is Hudut - coconut seafood soup - with mashed plantains. This is not something I expect to enjoy, but I am totally surprised when it turns into a fantastic meal. During dinner, some men from the community play traditional music on drums, maracas and turtle shell. After dinner, we have a drumming lesson. It’s not easy to keep the beat at first, but so much fun to be part of this sound.

Rasta Mesa is an after-school program for the children of the Garifuna community. Their mission is to "preserve and protect Garifuna history and culture by educating the community in art, culture and agriculture." The next morning (Saturday October 24), I head straight back there and meet about 15 kids for a beach clean-up. They bring a drum and maracas for music while we work, and we fill about 7 big garbage bags full of garbage.

Hot, dirty and exhausted, I shower back at the hostel and meet my friends for dinner.We (8 of us) then head to the concert and are entertained by both the music and by the women dancing. The concert ends, and the band invites us to join them at another show - there's a group in from Belize (Punta Boyz), who are playing a local club. The music and dancing is great, and everybody has an excellent time. What an awesome Birthday!

Next stop on my journey is Copin Ruinas, Honduras (must-do #2) – another ancient Mayan city. I tour a coffee/cardamum plantation on horseback. The ruins of the city are spectacular; some of the structures have been reconstructed and many have been preserved as they were when they were found.

Heading back into Guatemala, I'm ready for a long day of driving..... What I'm not ready for is a country-wide strike. We are dropped-off at a roadblock and walk about 2 kilometers with our luggage. There have been a number of blockades erected behind the second van van since it arrived, so we prepare to wait-out the protest. Guatemalans are protesting the state of transportation in the country. There is no public-run system, and the price of the local busses is high when compared to the income of the passengers. In addition, many of the roads are in disrepair and unsafe. The blockade we wait behind for about 6-hours is made of trees, rocks and burning tires; it is guarded by about 70 men with machetes. Eventually, one of the protesters calls a friend of his who comes to pick us up on the other side. 6 of us ride with our luggage in the back of a pickup truck to a hotel and wait for our van to get through and drive us the rest of the way in the morning.

I arrive in Panajachel on Lago Atitlan (must-do #3) after an attempted robbery and taking the wrong bus when the driver lied to me saying he was going my way. I make arrangements to walk off my frustration by climbing another volcano the next day. The town where we start is 1610m, and the peak of Volcan San Pedro is 3020 meters. There are interesting plants along the way in the 'cloud forest,' and I take pictures of flowers as my excuse to catch my breath on the way up. When I finally get to the top, it is clouded-over, and the view is limited to small windows in the cloud that open for 30-seconds or so as a tease. The way down is faster, but slippery and steep; thank goodness for strong walking sticks!

Buying-up all of the souvenirs I can fit into my pack, I run around town squeezing the most out of my last full day. It takes me all day to get to Guatemala City, but arrive in good time to catch my plane. Patricia and I are again on the same flight, so we have a little slide show at the gate and debrief our adventures. The verdict? Planning a vacation before I go works well, but not having a plan opens up new possibilities that aren’t anywhere in the guidebooks. Who knows what rules I'll choose to follow for next time......