Antigua - last stop in Guatemala

Time really flies by when you are keeping yourself busy. My last destination was Antigua, which is llike an hour drive from the capital.

Antigua is like the showpiece of Guatemala for international tourism.
It boasts tons of spanish schools and more than 40 churches.




map - it is super easy to walk around in Antigua




La Antigua Guatemala (commonly referred to as just Antigua or La Antigua) is a city in
central highlands of Guatemala and famous for its well-preserved spanish architecture as well as number of spectacular ruins of colonial churches.. It used to be the headquater for the spanish conqueres and it had been the capital for a long time. After being seriously destroyed by volcano erruptions, the capital was eventually moved to Guatemal city. It has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
This is a city, that you must have seen when traveling in Guatemala.

I spent 5 days there and had a fabolous time. I came across many other backpackers, joined a volcano hike and took it generally easy. There are tons of outdoor activies available!!!

Pacaya Volcano

Antigua is a city surrounded by volcanoes and Pacaya is one of the most famous and the most active in the country. Walking to this volcano is one of best tours that you can do if you are in Antigua. You must walk 3 Km through a very difficult path amongst lava rocks (until 200m) which are absolutely wonderful but they are also very dangerous. The hike lasts between 2 and 3 hours and it finish when it reaches a point with great views over the valley and the volcanic crater. The view is incredible and if you are lucky you will see lava coming down from the Volcano. Usually you should pay between $7 and $10, if you want to do this trip. Some travel agencies in Antigua offer this trip at night, the experience is absolutely amazing.

on the top of the volcano










breathtaking sunset



Cerro de la Cruz

It is in the North of the city. It offers beautiful views of Antigua and Agua Volcano

Plaza del Apostel - Santiago









Parque Central - meeting point

It is the gathering place for Guatemalans and the place where tourists begin to discover Antigua. The square has a famous fountain, known as “The Mermaids Fountain”, built in 1738. The square keeps its setting with colonial buildings, such as Catedral de Santiago, Palacio de los Capitanes, Palacio del Ayuntamiento, Portal del Comercio and Portal de las Panaderas. It is usual to find local people offering tourists handicrafts.

Round-trip: Tikal - San Pedro

On the map you can check the route we traveled. The ride in the chickenbus from San Pedro to Guatemala City takes about 4 hours. From Guatemala City - Flores overnight 9 hours. The connection went well without a hitch. That is actually the white line on the map above.
The blue line shows our itinerary from Flores towars San Pedro where we first started.

We woke up early to make the most the experience. In the morning we usually traveled a couple of hours in order to enjoy the rest of the day in a new city.

Highlight of the trip was Semuc Champey, probably the most popular place all over Guatemala.

Semuc Champey is a natural monument near a mountain village called Lanquin It consists of a natural 300 meter limestone bridge, under which passes the Cahabon river. Atop the bridge is a series of stepped, turquoise pools, a popular swimming attraction. Although it can be difficult to get to as it it very remote and kind of in the middle of nowhere, Semuc is definetly worth visiting.



overview on the valley and pools from the top




beautiful pool and crystalclear water



by the waterfall



after a swim :)



having lunch at the exit of the parc - excellent
quality of food and so cheap/ exacty what
we needed!!!

Here are other highlights of this exciting round-trip in Guatemala. We have a great variety of things, lifestyles, languages and whatsoever:




cute girl, joined us for lunch at the table



security presence in front of a banque
it is prevailing all over the country



the window in the hotelroom was not fixed
right. so the water was leaking inside :)
It was pouring rain that night. We stayed in our
hotel in Coban, after returning from a daytrip
from Semuc Champey.



Javier´s shoes full of dirt after walking through
all the mu in the mountains.

We left Coban, the day after visiting Semuy Champey.
The roads were not in the best conditions due to the crazy
amount of rain from the night before.
We headed towards Nebaj, a remote town deeply located
in the mountains. The mountain road was still in construction
and not paved. A huge truck got stuck in the mud and paralyzed
the traffic. It took some hours to get it out of it.
So we started walking through the mountain in order to catch
another minibus ;) such a big mission but we made it!

finally in our last minibus towards Nebaj.
The bus was cramped.




some kids being enthusiastic about painting
so lovely :)

get the hell out of my way, stupid cow :)
This was taken in Nebaj, our last destination on our
round-trip. We spent the last two days there, wandering around
and getting to know this unique and beautifu area of Guatemala.

Good morning doggie!




our seats on the back of the pick-up truck




a wonderful local family, who invited us for dinner
and shared interesting and inspiring stories
with us



taking random photos with the sweet and little
one of the family


The entire trip lasted 1 week and we traveled a distance of more than 1500 km, using simple transport, such as minibuses and chickenbuses. The experience was very rewarding and enabled me to get know Guatemala better as a whole!!! Happy memories :)

Tikal

incredible heights of a temple

It is my 3rd week in Guatemala. I have completed 2 weeks of spanish course and i made great progress during that time. Living with a family as well, is the most effective way to learn the language in any case. Since i only had 4 weeks altogether in Guatemala, I wanted to make the most of it by traveling to as many parts as possible.
A friend of mine and me took a chickenbus in the early afternoon to the capital and later the same night we took a nightbus (spacious and comfortable bus) to Flores. The ride to Flores took us 9 hours and we got there at 6 am the next morning.

We got a fairly good room in the hostel "Los Amigos" in Flores and booked our busride to Tikal, scheduled for 9 am. No time to sleep as we had a itch to catch the magical sights in Tikal :)



















overlooking Grand Plaza - like
downtown Tikal :)

Tikal (or Tik’al according to the modern Mayan orthography) is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centres of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala. Situated in the department of El Petén, the site is part of Guatemala's Tikal National Park and in 1979 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


Tikal was the capital of a conquest state that became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Maya. Though monumental architecture at the site dates back as far as the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period, ca. 200 to 900 AD. During this time, the city dominated much of the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily.

tring to catch some breath







chilling out in the shade



OM Shanti OM







Tikal was amazing. It is one of the most visited places in central america. However the heat out there in the jungle was kind of unbearable. I guess i took like 4 showers on that day. :)

Semana Santa - holy week

Semana Santa (holy week during easter)

The holy week is famous for its vibrant, elaborate religious festivities, leading up to Easter. Thousands of national and international visitors crowd the cobblestoned streets to watch the costumed processions, reenactments of the crucifixion, and other ceremonies.

I experienced the holy week in San Pedro La Laguna, where I was in the midst of my 2nd week in the spanish school. You’ll see adorable kids carrying very heavy things and generally the entire community being involved in the process.

The biggest event of it takes places in Antigua, which (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) puts on the largest Easter celebration. It’s estimated that around 200,000 people come into town this year to watch the colorful street celebrations between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday.

fancy streetdecoration for the processions







main procession on Palm Sunday






fruits being suspended up in the air to worship




old man, totally involved in the ongoing
preparatory operations

PROCESSION
A religious parade which always leaves from and returns to a specific church. Processions tell the story of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection using elaborate floats, full of iconography. More than a dozen major processions take place throughout the holy week.

The procession tradition is said to have started in Guatemala in 1524 and, today, most Semana Santa processions include two main floats. The first carries a scene from the life of Jesus. The second carries a depiction of the Virgin Mary. Each procession is named after the specifid Jeses and Mary that adorn the floats (i.e. Jesús De La Merced, Jesús El Peregrino, Jesús Del Milagro). Some processions last for 15 hours and cover many miles.

The most awe-inspiring part of Semana Santa are the brilliant carpets, or "alfombras". Sand or sawdust is used to level the cobblestones, and is dyed different colors and interwoven with bright flowers, other plants, and pine needles. The result is designs so intricate, it seems tragic when the processions pass over and trample them!

I enjoyed this experience to the fullest and can recommend strongly coming to Guatemala at this time of the year!




most significant procession in San Pedro




#2



artistically made carpets on the streets











fiesta en la playa - Palm Sunday












kids sliding down the stairs in front of the church
in Santiago