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Solo Travel Destination: Guatemala
Blog: Solo Traveler - 8 May 2012
In spite of the travel challenges, this Solo Travel Society member is sure that you will fall in love with the culture, landscapes, cuisine and people of Guatemala.
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Photo of the Day: Semana Santa – Antigua, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 7 April 2012
We spent last Easter in Antigua, Guatemala (along with about 200,000 other people) in the middle of one of the largest and most extravagant Semana Santa (Holy Week) celebrations in The Americas. From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday the cobble stone streets and historic churches of this colonial gem of a town are taken over by dozens of processions take place during all hours of the day and night featuring enormous wooden floats carried by up to 100 people at a time.
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Border Crossing 101: El Florido, Guatemala to Honduras
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 20 March 2012
Crossing international borders is never easy, especially when you’re driving across in your own vehicle as part of an overland road trip. We hope the information, below, helps you get prepared and get across smoothly with or without a vehicle. Date: June 8, 2011 From: El Florido, Guatemala To: Honduras Lay of the land: This border crossing, referred to as El Florido on both sides and used primarily by big rigs and day-trippers visiting the Copan archaeological site, is dusty and quiet. No touts, no hassles, no services, banks or other facilities.
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The Chicken Buses of Guatemala
Blog: Brilliant Tips Travel Blog - 5 March 2012
From its colorful markets and bougainvillea-covered walls to its pastel colored colonial buildings, Guatemala is arguably one of the most colorful countries in the world. One of the first things I noticed upon arriving in Guatemala, were the intensely hued buses. Known as “chicken buses,” these old, retired American school buses arrive in Guatemala in [...]
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The Pope and the Black Christ – Esquipulas, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 29 February 2012
After our own sort-of-miraculous recovery from our campsite robbery, we packed up and traveled onward to the town of Esquipulas. Now, Esquipulas is not the only town that has a church which features a depiction of Christ as a black man, however, the sculpture of Christo Negro (Black Christ) in the Basilica of Esquipulas is credited with miracles and has become a major pilgrimage site even meriting a visit by Pope John Paul II. Tens of thousands of devout Catholics cram into Esquipulas during the annual celebration of the Black Christ which happens on January 15th.
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Five Years on the Road: Our Trans-Americas Journey “Road-a-versary” By the Numbers
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 27 February 2012
Happy Anniversary to us! Or should we say “road-a-versary” (thanks Julie)? Today is day 1,825 of our Trans-Americas Journey road trip. That’s five years of active travel on the road not counting a couple of stretches when we were unexpectedly stuck in one place for reasons beyond our control (looking at you, Chevrolet). We’re not very good at math Our initial description of the Journey predicted three years and 75,000 miles to cover North, Central and South America from the Arctic Ocean to Tierra del Fuego.
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Robbed and Recovered (all before breakfast) – Ipala Volcano , Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 24 February 2012
Sure we’re careful. But we’ve also been lucky. After many, many years of traveling on the road we have only been robbed once when some *#!!*&^ stole the side-view mirrors off our truck in Guadalajara, Mexico. That lucky streak came to a screeching halt in Guatemala, however. It all started when we decided to go camping with our friend George (perhaps the coolest guy in Guatemala) on the shores of Ipala Lake in the dormant crater of Ipala Volcano. Driving to Ipala Volcano Ipala Volcano is more than 5,400 feet (1,650 meters) high which is pretty dramatic.
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Big, Big Rocks – Quiriguá Mayan Archaeological Site, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 22 February 2012
We’d decided to blow off the Quiriguá archaeological site, totally put off by the 80Q (US$10) entrance fee–higher than almost any other Mayan site in Guatemala other than Tikal. But when our travels took us right back past the remains of this post classic period Mayan city we took it as a sign and decided to shell out $20 and visit the site. Quiriguá really does have some of the most massive and most unusual carved rock in the entire Mundo Maya (southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras).
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Spanglish Town, a Hot Waterfall and Birds on the Ground – Rio Dulce, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 17 February 2012
We’d bounced over such bad roads to get to the famous natural pools at Semuc Champey that we figured a few dozen additional miles of the stuff wouldn’t kill us. So, on the advice of local tour van drivers who assured us that the shorter, more direct dirt backroad toward Rio Dulce was a breeze, we left the Semuc Champey area and headed southeast. The van drivers were right and the dirt road turned out to be in good condition as it took us through rolling hills until we’d descended to one of the quirkiest (and hottest) towns we saw in Guatemala.
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Way Out Water – Semuc Champey & Lanquín, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 15 February 2012
You’ve got to endure a slow, bumpy, curvy road to get to the serenity of the famous natural pools of Semuc Champey. First we passed through the grotty, congested city of Coban before turning off the pavement. From there it took 45 minutes to drive seven miles (11 km) to reach the dusty town of Lanquín. From there it took another half hour to drive a steep, windy, narrow and rocky road another six miles (9 km) down to the Cahabón River where the pools form. You could say we were ready for a soak.
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Hungry Hummingbirds Photo Essay – Chelemhá Lodge, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 13 February 2012
We had a lot of fun watching an impossibly colorful male quetzal emerge from its nest in the privately-run Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in the Yalijax Mountains of the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala. However, the color, diversity and sheer appetite of the hummingbirds drawn to the feeders on the wrap-around decks at Chelemhá Lodge were thrilling as well. See what we mean with this photo essay highlighting the hummingbird species that happily call Chelemhá home.
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Quetzals the Hard Way – Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 8 February 2012
Spotting quetzals during our time at Ranchito del Quetzal was eerily easy. All we had to do was get out of bed at first light and stumble down to the restaurant where as many as 10 quetzals at a time dutifully came out to greet us. However, our next attempt to see these technicolor birds, at Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, was much harder work right from the get-go. Getting to Chelemhá First there was the matter of getting to the privately owned and run Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, a 400 acre (172 hectare) chunk of land in the Yalijux Mountains in the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala.
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Quetzals the Easy Way – Biotopo de Quetzal, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 6 February 2012
The quetzal is Guatemala’s national bird and their money is named after it. It’s also one of the most impossible looking species on the planet. The bird has iridescent feathers that change from bright green to dark blue to nearly black as the light shifts. Its overall color scheme includes an eye-popping mix of neon green, red, blue, yellow and white. The feathers on its tiny head are like a fluffy mohawk. Strange finger-like feathers seem to wrap around from its back toward the front of its chest as if to hug the bird.
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So Much More Than Semana Santa – Antigua, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 1 February 2012
Antigua, Guatemala is best known as the town that hosts one of the world’s biggest and most colorful religious festivals. Holy week, or Semana Santa in Spanish, is celebrated with elaborately made and profoundly temporary street carpets called alfombras and lots of somber and elaborate processions in which hundreds of the devout carry enormous floats (called andas) through the cobble stone streets all in an effort recreate the persecution, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In a word, Semana Santa in Antigua is epic and you should experience it if you can.
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Mayan Moats – Laguna Petexbatún & Aguateca Archaeological Site, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 30 January 2012
As if visiting archaeological sites wasn’t enough of an adventure, there are a handful (like Yaxchilan in Mexico) that are best accessed by boat which adds a thrill before you even get there. Aguateca Archaeological Site by boat It’s got the word “agua” right in the name and, in some ways, the roughly two hour boat ride that you have to take from the town of Sayaxche out to the Aguateca archaeological site was the best part of our visit to this once powerful Mayan city which dates back to 300 BC.
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Stelae! – Dos Pilas & El Ciebal Archaeological Sites, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 25 January 2012
It can’t be avoided. If you want to get to the town of Sayaxche in the Peten region of northern Guatemala (and points beyond) you have to get on a low-tech little ferry and cross the Rio La Pasión. That includes horse-drawn carts, 18 wheelers and us. Rio La Pasión is a pretty grand name for a fairly ho-hum waterway and an even more forgettable town. Honestly, Sayaxché is pretty shitty but it’s the gateway to some very nice Mayan archaeological sites. Dos Pilas The Dos Pilas site dates back to AD 629.
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Take the Long Way Home: Trekking to El Mirador – Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 22 December 2011
So far so good. Despite what we’d heard, the two day trek to the El Mirador arcaheological site in Guatemala hadn’t been as hard or as hot as we’d feared and our “rest day” at the site itself was pure pleasure (except for the part about getting peed on by spider monkeys). However, things were about to change.
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A Site for Sore Feet: Trekking to El Mirador – Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 19 December 2011
A “rest day” at El Mirador doesn’t include much rest. That’s because almost everything about what remains of the Mayan city now called El Mirador in the Peten region of Guatemala is spectacular–from the jungle trek in (and the resulting spectacularly sore feet) to the cultural, artistic and architectural importance of the area that’s been called the cradle of Mayan civilization.
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Getting Organized and Getting In: Trekking to El Mirador – Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 13 December 2011
Of the nearly 60 archaeological sites that we’ve visited during the Trans-Americas Journey none is as cloaked in mystery or as hard to trek in to as El Mirador in the jungles of the Peten region in northern Guatemala. We’ll get into the intriguing details of El Mirador in our next post (for now, suffice to say, El Mirador was a massive city which is older than Tikal, is home to the largest known Mayan pyramid, by volume, and is still reluctantly giving up game-changing secrets).
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Tikal Basecamp #2 – Flores, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 5 December 2011
In a recent post we told you about some of the best places to stay and eat in chilled out El Remate which, along with Flores, is one of two main basecamps for travelers headed to the thoroughly awesome Tikal National Park and Archaeological Site.
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Tikal Basecamp #1 – El Remate, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 1 December 2011
If you want to visit Tikal National Park and archaeological site (and you do) there are two basecamp options for travelers: Flores or El Remate. We spent time in both towns. We’ll tell you all about Flores in our next post. For now, we’re focusing on El Remate on Lake Peten Itza which we believe is emerging as the better of the two options. El Remate is a chill, lakeside village near the Biotopo Cerro Cauhi which has a growing list of budget and mid-range accommodations and a few solid economical eating options.
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Beyond Tikal – Uaxactun Archaeological Site, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 28 November 2011
There are plenty of great reasons why Tikal archaeological site gets so much attention (and thousands of visitors). However, Tikal is not the only former Mayan civilization in Guatemala’s Peten region that’s worth your time. About 15 miles (23 km) along a good dirt road beyond Tikal lies Uaxactun. Inhabited from the Middle Pre-Classic period through the Classic Period, Uaxactun thrived from 500 AD to 900 AD and was the longest lasting Mayan city in the Peten region of Guatemala. While Uaxactun and Tikal may have been neighbors they were not friends.
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If We Had to Pick a Favorite – Tikal National Park Archaeological Site, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 21 November 2011
When Eric visited the remains of the vast and powerful Pre-Columbian Mayan city of Tikal in Northern Guatemala in 1993 he quickly dubbed it his favorite Mayan archaeological site. Eighteen years later we have now visited more than 50 other Mayan sites, including Tikal for a second time. Though we love most of the Mayan sites we’ve visited Eric says that Tikal, which was Guatemala’s first national park (designated in 1955), is still his favorite.
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Survivor Mayan Style – Yaxha Archaeological Site, Guatemala
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 10 November 2011
Little known fact: Eric sent in a video application to be on the very first season of Survivor. That obviously didn’t pan out and, in hindsight, that was for the best. What does that little confession have to do with Yaxha, the remains of a pre-Columbian Mayan city in Guatemala? Quite a lot, actually.
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Guapo Guatemala – Chiabal, Laguna Magdalena & Chajul, Sierra de las Cuchumatanes
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 8 November 2011
North of Huehuetenango the Sierra de las Cuchumatanes mountains, the highest non-volcanic range in Central America, rise into the sky. This spectacular bit of Guatemala is home to high altitude plateaus, tiny windswept villages and a naturally infinity-edged lake that almost no one visits.The Cuchumatanes are also home to two new community tourism guest houses that get you into the terrain and into the culture. Chiabal The blink-and-you’ll-miss-it village of Chiabal is perched on a wide, sheep-speckled plateau at nearly 11,000 feet.
