Antigua is a fairly small colonial town which has suffered various earthquakes in its past and has been rebuilt a few times. It is overlooked by three volcanoes: Fuego, which spits lava, often seen drizzling down its slopes; Agua and Acatenango. Volcanoes aside, it reminded us of San Cristobal de las Casas in Mexico, but without the hippie vibe. Our airbnb wooden house was set in the grounds of a Spanish School, reminding us that we really should take more classes to brush up on our irregular verbs, which were becoming increasingly irregular by the day!
Alan outside the Spanish School leading to our accommodation...
Sunset on our first night in Antigua
Antigua is visited for its architecture, eating and drinking, shopping, climbing volcanoes, visiting nearby villages and taking chocolate or Spanish courses. There are also a few party hostels. Some people love it and stay there a while. For us, though, a week was enough, it didn't really float our boat for some reason, but it's a friendly city, and very photogenic, so we'll let the pictures speak for themselves....
Doors and windows of Antigua
The golden retriever loved to sleep in the window of this popular cafe
\\A whole shop of pinates
Life-sized pinate and friends
Woman selling paper parasols in the Central Park
This almost sums up the demographic of Antigua
The artesans' market
The chicas look pretty piqued.... must be the overcrowding!
Surely somebody wants a tour of the city/necklace/newspaper/fresh juice/scarf/hairwrap.....
Rainy season's nearly at an end, so the tourists will start arriving soon. It's been great for us, as it's been uncrowded, accommodation costs have been lower and we've had more chance to chat with people. But for the people who rely on tourism the low season is very hard.
Colourful Antigua
Woolly balls!
Glam-rock/goth hybrid? (Remember Kiss, or the Glitter Band?)
God-fearing ....... this god, San Simon, is one bad boy!
San Simon is the Antiguan area's equivalent of Maximon (see Lake Atitlan Part 2 blog posting) and we were told that he's not altogether benevolent, as the photo suggests!
Wooden masks for sale in the market
San Simon in numbers, even scarier....
Amazingly, you can buy a San Simon Shrine Starter Kit, just seen at the bottom of this pic. It includes candles, some hooch (aguardiente) and a figure of San Simon. Many local people told us that they are afraid of San Simon and we can see why! Some were also embarrassed that people worship a wooden effigy of a god, though, thinking about it, it's not that dissimilar to what happens in Christian churches every Sunday, and in Buddhist, Taoist and Hindu temples etc!
Faded splendour
The famous arch, Arco de Santa Catalina, over one of the cobbled streets in the Centre
Cerro de la Cruz (Hill of the Cross) offering great views over the city and volcano
The walk up the hill to the viewpoint wsa apparently dangerous until fairly recently, with risk of armed robbery. Police with guns patrol the route now - we passed some enjoying a snack and a laugh.
La Union lavanderia (laundry) - women have been washing clothes here for centuries and still travel in from the surrounding villages where they have no running water
The individual sinks at La Union public laundry
Us trying to look decent! Rare posh meal out....
As we save money by cooking and eating in our accommodation, we decided to have a meal at a posh hotel recommended by a French ex-pat in San Marcos at Lake Atitlan. It was a grand experience in the gorgeous hotel which is a former convent. Each table is given a flag to denote their country - hilarious. The food was delicious, though Alan's gnocchi dish was definitely nouvelle cuisine sized!
This floating flower display at Hotel Casa Santo Domingo reminded us of Laos - hmm, maybe we'll go back there this trip!
A corridor in Hotel Casa Santo Domingo hotel and Museum - v stylish
Lanquin and Semuc Champey
We needed to decide how we would be travelling to Costa Rica, as we are scheduled to be there for the beginning of November to start our volunteer stint at Cloudbridge. 2 months at the Lake had blunted our itinerary planning abilities and we were unable for a while to decide which route to take and which places to visit en route. We had almost ruled out seeing much more of Guatemala before visiting Costa Rica, due to both time and weather constraints. We had been warned against visiting Semuc Champey due to disputes and torrential rain. However, a quick perusal of the internet suggested that there were no current concerns, so we booked the shuttle bus and three nights in a hostel, El Retiro Lodge, which came highly recommended (apart from, we were warned by a 27 year old, who was very unimpressed, the constant 'doof doof music').
We set off at 8am from Antigua on the 200km or so journey north, in very heavy rain, and, with meal and 'comfort' stops on the way at Macdonalds (where we had a MacWee, but declined to sample any of the delicacies) we arrived at 4pm, in slightly lighter rain, at El Retiro Lodge in Lanquin, the nearest town to Semuc Champey. Due to the rain and fading light it was difficult to see much, but what we could make out looked amazing, in a beautiful setting among trees, looking down to the fast flowing river at the bottom of the terraced grounds. The river is usually green and good for swimming, but, alas, due to the rain, it was muddy and not safe for a dip while we were there. However, the competitors taking part in the world white water boarding championships 5 kms downriver were reportedly thrilled. Sadly, we found out too late about the competition to watch it, but saw videos and it looked crazy!
View from our (second) cabin
We stayed for the first night free of charge, courtesy of the manager, in a very basic cabin, as we there were no cabins with private bathroom available, due to the 'huge group' staying on Saturday night (young Guatemalans out for weekend fun). Next day we moved to a cabin with bathroom, for a very reasonable 150Q a night (about 6 squids each).
The rain-swollen river from the dining area - birdspotting while eating massive pineapple pancakes at breakfast was fun!
Dinner was a communal buffet, with an Italian theme on the first night - the theme changes daily, and it was fine, though it was difficult to chat to other tourists and staff over the promised, awful 'doof doof'. Now, we have very eclectic musical tastes, but this was possibly the worst selection of 'music' we've heard. However, at the far, quieter end of the communal/hammock area we met an inspirational couple, Marie from Quebec, Karl from France, travelling with their young daughter, from Alaska to Argentina, on BIKES! They have been on the road for over a year, half little Kayla's life, with very little luggage and they mostly cook outside on a little one burner stove. Huge respect to them. Their story so far is related on their website: www.kid-on-board.com When they finally return home, they intend to write a book and make a film about their experiences to make enough money to set off again on their next adventure. Bonne chance, amigos!
View on our hike to the mirador
Next day, after breakfast by the river, we hiked to a mirador, accompanied by the lively and lovely volunteer, Maisha, from Indiana, who we'd met the previous evening. We walked for miles through the beautiful countryside and sweltering heat, meeting local people, some of whom spoke no Spanish, but were friendly with gestures when they confirmed the way. On the way back Maisha revealed that it was her 28th birthday. We were delighted and honoured to spend it with her - she's great fun and seems to have life far more sorted than we ever did at that age.
Official tourist map of the hiking route (all rights reserved)
Marca, one of the very friendly staff at El Retiro drew this map for us, and it worked!
Cows grazing among the trees in the countryside around Lanquin
Semuc Champey is absolutely stunningly beautiful. It is a 300m natural limestone bridge, on top of which is a series of pools, fed by cool crystalline water from the mountains, in which you can swim, from one pool to the next if you feel so inclined, in our case until you pickle.
Looking down from the mirador
After a fantastic time in the turquoise pools, we hiked up slippery. rain-polished rocks and scree to the mirador, way above. It was so much easier on the way up! In fact, on the scramble down, Anna lost her footing and, luckily, at that spot there were ropes on either side of the path, so she grabbed a rope with each hand and ended up suspended by her arms over the precipitous path. 'Good catch!' exclaimed a tourist passing on her way up. Nice to be appreciated.
At the entrance to the reserve there were several children selling discs of chocolate, made locally, flavoured with locally grown cardamom and vanilla. We had been told that Guatemala is the joint biggest exporter of cardamom, together with India. One little girl of about 8 or 9 asked us at the entrance to the reserve, in perfect English, if we'd like to buy chocolate and told us to remember her on the way out, imploring us not to buy from anyone else. Of course, child labour is definitely not to be encouraged, but her English was incredibly accomplished, her accent perfect, not to mention her well-honed entrepreneurial prowess. What chance that it will ever be possible, though, for her to put her obvious talent to good use for her future?
After a grand day out, we rode on the back of the pickup back to the hostel, our group joined by 2 Irish tourists our age or even older (!), who live in Ramsgate, Kent. They have the travel bug and are planning to let their house next time to fund further adventures. We'd highly recommend it!
Little minx must have snuck into our cabin when the door was open and spent the night at the bottom of the bed! She was sitting there washing when we awoke in the morning. Damned clever, cats... just imagine if they had opposable thumbs!
So, after a wonderful time meeting other travelllers, swimming, hiking, hammocking, eating and drinking, we headed back to Antigua, to a nice little hotel with a pool. We had been quite frugal the previous month, plus we both had rotten colds, so we decided to treat ourselves for 2 nights, taking advantage of low season discounts. We stayed at Hotel Casa del Parque, which was lovely, with views of the volcanoes from our room and...... deep joy....... hot water in the sink and great shower pressure for the first time in 5 months and crisp white cotton sheets. And, as we had not been able to dry our clothes due to the rain, we pushed the boat out and had our laundry done for us, for the grand sum of $3. What a great feeling when we collected our clean, unusually fresh-smelling, folded clothes. We don't feel hard done by, far from it; we feel incredibly privileged, but it was good to enjoy these treats, which we no longer take for granted. Unfortunately, the temperature was surprisingly chilly and it rained quite a bit during our stay at the hotel, so we didn't use the pool, but the other benefits were well worth the bit of extra money we spent for those 2 nights.
For the first time since we stayed in the hotel near Gatwick on our first night of the trip, we had no access to a kitchen. One evening we ate out in the very stylish Origami Japanese restaurant, where they serve great food, reasonably priced (for pricey Antigua). It's run by a Japanese former backpacker couple who visited Antigua, loved it and ended up buying and opening a restaurant. We loved the wasabi and orange sorbet! Strange, but delicious.
Origami at Origami!
Watch out for this riveting film - Ixcanul, Volcan - demand that they show it at your local cinema!
Walking through the streets of the city, we came across a cultural centre, where they were advertising performances of a Guatemalan film we'd read about, Ixcanul, Volcan, featuring non-actors from a village close to Antigua. It has been nominated for several international awards and has actually won the Berlin Golden Bear and the Colombian Film Festival in Cartagena. The dialogue is in the Mayan language (Kaqchikel) of the village, with Spanish subtitles. It has been so popular in Antigua that they have added several performances, all of which were sold out. We were advised to come back the following day, an hour before the performance, and cross our fingers for no-shows or returns. We were lucky enough to get tickets. The audience was largely expats, living in Antigua or Guatemala City, also we chatted to an Irishman who has lived at Lake Atitlan for the last 7 years and absolutely loves it there; and some locals, but no indigenous people. The film was stunning, extremely sad and hard-hitting, especially as we'd spent time with many Mayan women who were facing several of the issues addressed by the film. It was visually beautiful, too. We hope that it continues to receive the recognition it deserves ......and that it will be made accessible to Kaqchikel viewers.
Recipe - Shakshuka
It may seem strange that we have chosen to include a Middle Eastern/Israeli dish, but Shakshuka is available in so many places worldwide, brought maybe by Israeli travellers, who, after the rigours and discipline of their national service, burst out to travel and party across the world. We first came across Shakshuka in Bolivia of all places, during our last long trip 12 years ago. It is a great, nutritious and tasty one-pot dish, so ideal for travelling. We have cooked this wherever we've travelled so far and it's often available on menus in places where there are tourists. Alan had it for breakfast at El Retiro Lodge and was impressed. It's a bit like Huevos Rancheros (ranch style eggs), but the cumin seeds and preserved lemons or limes give the Middle Eastern flavour.
Ingredients:
8 ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 large red bell peppers, deseeded and diced into 1cm pieces
3 medium onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 tsps cumin seeds
1 dried red chilli (more if you like it spicy hot, or substitute chilli sauce to taste)
1 dessertspoon soy sauce (we use this in place of stock/bouillon, as it's not easy to get veggie stock)
2 dessertspoons oil
About 500mls cold water
2 good quality free range eggs per person (this recipe feeds 4, so you'll need 8)
1 preserved lemon or lime (pips removed), cut into 1/2 cm pieces (see recipe below)
Method:
Put the onions and the oil into a cooking pot large enough to take all the ingredients, with enough room to stir
Cook gently, without browning, stirring frequently, until just softening
Now add the garlic and continue to cook and stir for 3 minutes
Now add the cumin seeds and chilli and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes
If at any stage things start to get a bit dry, add enough water to allow the ingredients to move around
Add the bell peppers, cook for 5 minutes
Add the tomatoes and preserved lemons/limes, cook for another 5 minutes
Now, add the soy sauce, stir it through and then add enough of the water to cover the ingredients
Cover, and continue cooking on a slow simmer, stirring occasionally and adding water if the mixture gets a bit dry
After about 35-40 minutes, you should have something resembling a fairly chunky, thickish pasta sauce
Now make indentations in the mixture for each egg and crack the eggs into them
Cover and continue cooking gently until the eggs are how you like them
Don't worry if the eggs are not all neatly separated and it looks a bit messy; as long as the yolks remain intact, it's fine
Serve 2 eggs per person with one eighth of the mixture, with plain rice or coucous and/or the flatbreads from an earlier blog, plus a green salad - use the preserved lime liquid as a dressing
If you have some, sprinkle some za'atar on top (if we find our recipe for this we'll include it in a later blog!)
Preserved lemons/limes
We use limes when we're travelling, as they're more freely available than lemons, but either is good.
So, you're travelling slowly, you're gonna be in this little wooden shack for at least 4 weeks. What's the first thing you do when you arrive, after showering off the travel-grime? Get the preserved limes going, of course! (You'll need a glass/plastic jar with a screw on lid, which you have made as clean as you possibly can.) This is how you do it:
Preparing the preserved limes
Find as many limes as will squeeze into the jar as tight as you can get them. Wash them well
You'll need about a level dessertspoonful of salt per lime and enough oil to fill the jar to the top once the limes have been crammed in
Cut a cross into each lime with a sharp knife, starting at a pointy end, to just over halfway
Open the cross out, cram the salt in and then squeeze the 4 points closed
Put the limes into the jar, cut ends upwards, pressing them down really hard until you can fit no more into the jar
Now, drizzle in some oil until the limes are completely covered. It's important to cover them completely, or those at the top will go off
Screw the lid on tight and leave them for at least 3 weeks, turning the jar upside down and back to right side up once a week or so
They'll probably be ready to eat after 3 weeks, but will improve over time and will last for ages, as long as they're kept covered with oil (or you don't eat them all in one sitting!)
They're eaten as they are, skins and all, and taste like confectionery!
So, adios for now, glorious Guatemala. We will return, as there is so much more to see here... Tikal, which is generally agreed to be the site of the most impressive Mayan ruins; the island of Flores, the difficult to access Mirador, where archeologists are just discovering more Mayan ruins and artefacts, and, of course a return to Lake Atitlan......but, where do we spend the next few days before heading to Costa Rica? We read the spots off our well-thumbed Lonely Planet Central America on a Shoestring, scoured the net and consulted local travel agencies offering shuttles to various places. Originally, we thought that El Salvador may be a good place to spend our time, travelling the Ruta de Las Flores and maybe visit a beach, but somehow it didn't feel right, so... onward to Nicaragua, via El Salvador and Honduras, in one fell swoop!
ps - Jimmy Morales won the general election, with a 2/3 majority. Buena suerte, Guatemala...
Next post: Nicaragua, briefly (or Nica briefs?)
