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Getting around Guatemala City
Blog: Fourteen months, four countries, and three kids - Tales from the Field - 21 August 2009
Guatemala City is divided into several zones. They start in the middle, and spread out like a snail, going around from 1 up to 15. The spiral snail pattern is a bit off in some places, but the peripheral neighborhoods tend to have higher numbers.
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Giving Back: ARCAS, Guatemala – A One in an Only!
Blog: Canada's Adventure Couple - 18 August 2009
Every move we make in our lives is based on a decision. That decision can be of minor importance, or like in my case the one that changes the path of my life forever. When I hopped on a bus to take me from Belize to Tikal, Guatemala I had no idea what was awaiting me!
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How hard can it be to get the kids in school in Guatemala City?
Blog: Fourteen months, four countries, and three kids - Tales from the Field - 17 August 2009
Bright and early this morning, we took our three kids to a nearby school to enroll them. The teacher and the principal were very welcoming and told us about all of the benefits of their school. We agreed that we would like to enroll the kids in the school. It would cost us $200 per kid a month, $600 overall, but we decided that was probably our best option. The American School in Guatemala costs much more, and has a several thousand dollar enrollment fee. Public school seems not to be an option, because of the kind of visas we have.
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My first Sunday in Guatemala City: Globetrotters, Barbecue, and Church
Blog: Fourteen months, four countries, and three kids - Tales from the Field - 17 August 2009
My third full day in Guatemala turned out to be my first day of research. Miguel Ugalde, a university professor who lives close to us, invited my family to his house for a barbecue. After a small lunch at home, I marinated some steaks, and got the kids ready. Miguel came to pick us up at 2pm, right on time.
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Get off the tourist path: Laguna de Lachua
Blog: Nono in Guatemala - 2 August 2009
Last January, I took the opportunity to visit Laguna de Lachua, north of Coban. I had heard about the place by a traveler friend and saw a few pictures which made me want to explore it.
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The Chicken Buses of Guatemala
Blog: Brilliant Tips Travel Blog - 29 July 2009
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 the twilight years of their careers and are reborn. The old yellow school bus is beautified with brightly colored paint in brilliant patterns and religious icons. Now, the buses are a vivid piece of typical ...
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Loma Linda, an other ecotourism project
Blog: Nono in Guatemala - 25 July 2009
On Tuesday, I went to visit Loma Linda a Community close to Nueva Alianza and who is developping an ecotourism project. Luisa, a Canadian friend, has been living there for the last 2 months and asked me to come with her to pick up a computer in Chimaltenango and bring it to the community. The computers are brought to Guatemala by a NGO named Computers for Guatemala .
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Guatemala & Mexico Part 2.1 – Armed & Angry Police
Blog: The 4 Season Travel Blog - 20 July 2009
This post is the continuation of Guatemala & Mexico Part 1 and Guatemala & Mexico Part 2. At this point in the travel story I have finally made it to Antigua. My plans are to learn Spanish and live a peaceful, “real” Guatemalan life with a local family.
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Guatemala & Mexico Part 2 – Falling Bridges, Erupting Volcanoes & Prison Encounters
Blog: The 4 Season Travel Blog - 15 July 2009
Writing the headline above made me realize that my relaxing vacation in Guatemala wasn’t that relaxing after all. But it was an amazing adventure that I definitely will remember for the rest of my life.
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Enchanting spots: Tikal, Guatemala
Blog: velvet escape's blog - 13 July 2009
Situated deep in the jungles of northern Guatemala, Tikal is the largest of the ruined cities of the splendorous Maya civilisation. This ancient city with its breathtaking pyramids (some of which are higher than 60 meters!), temples, palaces and monuments reached its epitome in the 1st century AD but can trace its roots back to [...]
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What I learnt in North America
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 4 July 2009
So. After nearly three months the first leg of my round the world trip is over, and I’m nearly a quarter of the way through. So what have I learnt so far I’ve learnt I don’t need to do stuff every day. Sure, there’s always something to see, something to do, but trying to cram too [...]
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Mexico & Guatemala in pictures: Shop fronts
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 29 June 2009
Mexico & Guatemala are very colourful countries in so many ways, from the food, to the landscapes and the traditional dress of the indigenous peoples. But my favourite of all are the hand-painted store fronts and advertising that brighten up every city in both countries. I wish we had this tradition back home. You can see [...]
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Guatemala: Budget & Other Numbers
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 28 June 2009
After narrowly scraping in under budget in Mexico, I was expecting Guatemala to be a hell of a lot cheaper. In many ways it was – thanks to cheap chicken buses and short distances, I spent less than a fifth of what I had in Mexico on transport; similarly I was pleased to find that accommodation [...]
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Impressions of Guatemala
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 27 June 2009
My first trip to Guatemala in 2007 was extremely brief – I spent just two days there on a brief visit from Mexico to see the Mayan city of Tikal – but it remains probably my best travelling memory. Tikal is the most amazing place I’ve visited, and viewing the sun rise over the jungle [...]
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Getting close to the lava
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 25 June 2009
If there was an active volcano in the UK, you wouldn’t be allowed within a mile of it, let alone be able to climb it So when I found out that Antigua had one on its doorstep, that you could not only climb but also get really close to the lava, I didn’t have to think [...]
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44 Little Travel Rules No One Tells You
Blog: REID ON TRAVEL - 23 June 2009
I've gone a few miles over the years. And here are 44 little things about travel I picked up on the way.
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Learning Spanish in the Guatemalan Highlands
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 23 June 2009
After spending a week studying Spanish in Xela, I made a last minute decision to switch to PLQ’s sister school up in the mountains. It hadn’t been part of my original plans, but on speaking to some of the students who’d studied there it really sounded like an experience not to be missed, and so [...]
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Earthquake! Volcano!
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 21 June 2009
I got my first reminder that I was staying in hotspot of geological activity when my whole classroom began to shake in a little tremor one afternoon. It was just a small one, but getting to feel my first earthquake was a pretty cool experience. There’s been a couple of others since I’ve been here [...]
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Charming Antigua
Blog: velvet escape's blog - 20 June 2009
La Antigua, or just Antigua, is a resplendent city in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. Proclaimed a UNESCO World Heritage Site and often touted as the most beautiful city in the Maya region, Antigua is home to a stunning array of Spanish (colonial) baroque architecture, colourful churches, bustling markets, cobble-stoned streets and charming squares. The [...]
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The coolest Spanish School in Guatemala
Blog: Itinerant Londoner - 18 June 2009
As soon as I read about PLQE (Proyecto Linguistico Quetzalteco de Español) I knew it was the school for me. It has a philosophy that surrounds the learning of Spanish with developing an understanding of the social, economic and political situation of modern Guatemala, which really appeals to an old lefty like me. It’s run [...]
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Get off the tourist path: visit Yaxhá in Peten
Blog: Nono in Guatemala - 28 May 2009
My first trip to Peten was back in December 2005, so I decided recently to return to this amazing region during Semana Santa. My friend and I left Flores early on Saturday to go to Yaxhá, an archeological site at 30 km southwest from Tikal. I had heard about it from a friend and had planned to go for a long time. But going without an organized tour used to be complicated. So when a travel agent told us about a new bus going directly to the site for 150 Quetzals per person ($20), I knew it was my opportunity.
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San Pedro La Laguna - Part 2 - The Mayan
Blog: one more left and i'll be on the right side - 28 May 2009
The town of San Pedro rests on the edge of Lake Atitlan; Guatemala’s largest lake. Eight other towns each enjoy a spot on the lake’s perimeter and from here we can see three of them. At night, their lights Iook like points on a Hollywood movie mission control panel from the Starship Enterprise. I find [...]
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San Pedro La Laguna - Part 1 -
Blog: one more left and i'll be on the right side - 28 May 2009
27 April 2009 I write to you from a balcony in Guatemala. It is evening time and the climate here is pleasant. These parts of Central America are more temperate and the wet season is advancing closer; we see beautiful crisp mornings with vivid clean pin-sharp light, followed by tan inducing lunchtimes, sometimes a light shower [...]
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Our Favorite Ruins of the World
Blog: Canada's Adventure Couple - 9 May 2009
We have been lucky enough to see some of the most magnificent sights on earth. The ones that always seem to amaze us the most are the incredible ruins and temples of the world.
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Guatemalan Experience: Weekend at a coffee Finca
Blog: Nono in Guatemala - 2 May 2009
Just four years ago, the community of Nueva Alianza wasn’t sure how they would survive. After working hard for generations for the sole benefit of the coffee plantation owner, they were left with nothing after he declared bankruptcy (due to the global drop in the price of coffee) and fled, still owing them 18 months of back pay.
