Jungle rivers, chicken buses and nature´s wonders
I find that it takes me more and more willpower to find an internet cafe and jot down the things I´ve been doing and seeing. Travelling is like living in a world where there is no time, no dates and no technology. Old habits gradually disappear, and are replaced by only a handful of the most useful travel habits. It´s funny how those things go. Slowly but surely one becomes a traveller, getting so used to life on the road that it ends up holding little surprises or insecurities. Travelling in boats along the Carribean coast, surviving the uncomfortable chicken buses, finding hostels, bargaining at markets, marvelling at nature´s wonders that Guatemala holds… it´s all in a day´s work really.
Without fully grasping the realization, my departure date is coming closer though. Only 12 days or so left here in guatemala and I´ll be in good old Amsterdam again… man, time is flying by oh so muy rapido.
Anyhow. Since the last post, where I announced I´d go from Rio Dulce to Antigua, plans changed a lot (as every plan tends to do). I met up with some people who were planning to go to Lívingston the next day. Having heard that Lívingston is pretty cool and that the boat trip to it was absolutelely stunning, I ended up going with them instead of meeting up with a previous travel partner in Antigua. Exploring the Belizean-like local culture, chilling at the Carribean sea, visiting water works nature site where you can swim in naturally formed pools and jump from waterfalls… it was pretty good to kick back there for a few days.
From Lívingston to Puerto Barrios by boat, and then via El Rancho and Cobán by bus to Lanquín, an absolutely wonderful little village that´s pretty hard to reach over two hours of unpaved mountain roads. Its surroundings being high green hills and blue sky, and in posession of one of the best and most relaxed hostels that I´ve ever stayed at, made the four days I had there fly by.
Not to forget about the amazing thing in the neighbourhood: Semuc Champey, a nature reserve where some of nature´s powers created an impressive powerful roaring river that disappears into an underground cave. On top of the cave all sorts of stone plateaus have formed over time, thus creating a large number of crystal blue cool water pools in which you can swim. At the end of the plateaus is another cave in which the underground river surfaces again. It´s been one of the most impressive places I´ve seen in Guatemala so far, and it really has to be seen to be understood.
In El Retiro, Lanquín´s hostel, I coincidentally met up with a friend whom I already travelled with for two weeks in Mexico. It´s such a small world! So three of us decided to sick together for a bit and we made it to Quetzaltenango (aka Xela) yesterday, in one of those days where you start travelling at 0600 AM and reach your destination at 1000 PM. I really hate those days, just sitting in buses and taxis. Normally I prefer to travel overnight so that you don´t lose a full day and you save one night of accommodation on top of that. Guatemala has only little opportunities for night travel though…
Quetzaltenango is one of the bigger cities in this country, and is a good base camp to make nice day trips from: night treks on an active volcano, thermal baths in the mountains, relgious idols (Maximón) and markets. Due to its altitude of 2500 metres, Quetzaltenango is quite cold. Since a long time I´m actually wearing a sweater here. Ah well, I suppose it´s good to get used to that kind of weather again, in preparation for my coming home to cold Holland. Only twelve days left…
James
