It's a beautiful morning and we hate to leave this beautiful place called Panajachel. We get an early start so we can make the steep pull to Sololá before it gets to hot. Soon we are back on CA1 head for Chimaltenango. For those reading this blog who were with us in Huehuetenango in 2008, you may remember the place on top of one of the mountains where it got really foggy (I think they called it Alaska) well, this was the same road and we ran into the same fog, the same sharp curves and steep assents and descents.
We decided to make a detour and go through Antigua. I've always been very good with directions and finding my way around, but one of the problems I've experienced on this trip is that I was never able to find a good map of Mexico or Guatemala. Coming to one crossroad I chose the wrong way and we drove 10 miles out of our way before I figured it out. In a way it was worth it because we were able to get a good view of Fuego (Fire), one of Guate's most active volcanoes. Every few minutes it belches a cloud of smoke into the air and sometimes at night you can see the glow of fire.
I know Antigua well, having spent four months there years ago. It is a beautiful old town and has become a tourist destination. All the streets are cobbled and driving the van and trailer over them was excruciating. I was beginning to think that if the topes and potholes hadn't already broken all of our belongings the cobbles would. We did not spend much time in Antigua as I wanted to get through the City by mid day, but we did take time to order two Domino's Pizzas to go.
Guatemala City is broken up into zones, some of which are very dangerous. Carlos had given me some directions, but without map I was still very unsure of where we were going...only that we needed to get to the far side of the city in order to head for the Atlantic. I made a habit of stopping every 2 -3 miles to ask if we were still on the right road. I did not want to end up in the wrong part of town. Fortunately we made it through with out getting lost, but it took far longer than I had anticipated.
Leaving Guate, the road begins a long winding descent towards the Atlantic. The land becomes much more arid and less populated. We had made it a rule that we would not drive after dark and because decent hotels are few and far between we would begin looking for a place to stay every night around 4 pm. A few miles before the right hand turn to Zacapa we found a very nice hotel, Hotel Pasabien. The rooms were actually small duplexes. Priced at Q400 ($51.00) it was a bargain. It had a great pool with a dive tower (with out the board). Our boys had already jumped a few times and were sitting in deck chairs when a STM team from Texas showed up. There were a few young guys with them who were showing some interest in the tower, but appeared reluctant to be the first to make the leap. I told my boys to go jump again, knowing full well the other would have to jump too. We men are so predictable, especially when we're young!
Just to prove they did!
Later that evening we walked across the street to a small, open air, roadside restaurant and ate something similar to a fajita, but filled with rice and cheese and cooked over an open fire. By now all of us are anxious to get to Siguatepeque. We've been on the road for quite awhile now, 21 days, and the van is getting pretty old. The boys keep asking me if we can get there by tomorrow night. My reply is, "If all goes well". Of course when does that ever happen.
We decided to make a detour and go through Antigua. I've always been very good with directions and finding my way around, but one of the problems I've experienced on this trip is that I was never able to find a good map of Mexico or Guatemala. Coming to one crossroad I chose the wrong way and we drove 10 miles out of our way before I figured it out. In a way it was worth it because we were able to get a good view of Fuego (Fire), one of Guate's most active volcanoes. Every few minutes it belches a cloud of smoke into the air and sometimes at night you can see the glow of fire.
I know Antigua well, having spent four months there years ago. It is a beautiful old town and has become a tourist destination. All the streets are cobbled and driving the van and trailer over them was excruciating. I was beginning to think that if the topes and potholes hadn't already broken all of our belongings the cobbles would. We did not spend much time in Antigua as I wanted to get through the City by mid day, but we did take time to order two Domino's Pizzas to go.
Guatemala City is broken up into zones, some of which are very dangerous. Carlos had given me some directions, but without map I was still very unsure of where we were going...only that we needed to get to the far side of the city in order to head for the Atlantic. I made a habit of stopping every 2 -3 miles to ask if we were still on the right road. I did not want to end up in the wrong part of town. Fortunately we made it through with out getting lost, but it took far longer than I had anticipated.
Leaving Guate, the road begins a long winding descent towards the Atlantic. The land becomes much more arid and less populated. We had made it a rule that we would not drive after dark and because decent hotels are few and far between we would begin looking for a place to stay every night around 4 pm. A few miles before the right hand turn to Zacapa we found a very nice hotel, Hotel Pasabien. The rooms were actually small duplexes. Priced at Q400 ($51.00) it was a bargain. It had a great pool with a dive tower (with out the board). Our boys had already jumped a few times and were sitting in deck chairs when a STM team from Texas showed up. There were a few young guys with them who were showing some interest in the tower, but appeared reluctant to be the first to make the leap. I told my boys to go jump again, knowing full well the other would have to jump too. We men are so predictable, especially when we're young!
Just to prove they did!
 |
| Mark |
 |
| Ben |
 |
| Thomas |
Later that evening we walked across the street to a small, open air, roadside restaurant and ate something similar to a fajita, but filled with rice and cheese and cooked over an open fire. By now all of us are anxious to get to Siguatepeque. We've been on the road for quite awhile now, 21 days, and the van is getting pretty old. The boys keep asking me if we can get there by tomorrow night. My reply is, "If all goes well". Of course when does that ever happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment