A Second Pass Through Guatemala

Monday

We took off from Hotel El Canja in Chiquimula and drove all the way to Antigua. Fortunately, most of the highway was a four-lane, divided highway, which made the long drive easier. We even had enough time left by the time we arrived to arrange to get some laundry done and do some shopping. Colonial cities are interesting—there are tons of churches, cobblestoned streets, uniformity to the buildings.



Although there is plenty of things to do in and around Antigua, we only stayed the night. We had already seen a lot of volcanoes, etc.



We went shopping for a few items, including a stop at the chocolate museum. We sampled their chocolates. I only tried the white chocolate, but I discovered I am not a fan, about the only white chocolate I can stand is that which coats Reese’s white chocolate peanut butter cups and Hershey’s special edition white chocolate and cranberry bar. Jonathan tells me that is more sugar and fat than any chocolate, which would explain it. On the way back, we passed a delicious-smelling bakery, where I picked up some banana-nut bread.

We stayed at the Asistur (tourist police) complex. They allow RVers to camp there for free, although donations are accepted. The place had a bit of a rough quality to it, though. Kinda looked like the block had been burned down before it was inherited by the tourist police.



Our morning had started off poorly when the front, swivel fan stopped working—at least usefully. It would turn on only in specific directions, like straight down, which wasn’t helpful. Handyman that my husband is, though, when we got to Antigua for lunch, he pulled off the fan, diagnosed the problem and fixed it. Later, with a vengeance,  he also removed the obnoxious reflective stickers we had to have for Honduras.





While we were there, some place in Antigua seemed to shoot off something every hour. At first we thought it was a bomb, or something, it was that loud. But as no one seemed to react to it, we figured they were just target shooting guns. Then we discovered that it would happen at about every hour. As we began our workout that evening, they started shooting a display of fireworks from the same location from which the sounds had been coming. Not sure if July 15 is special to Antigua or Guatemala, but the display was nice, if a bit loud.

Tuesday

From Antigua, we headed to Lago de Atitlán. Instead of following CA1, we followed the JED's (the GPS) instructions to a more “direct” route. I don’t know if it can be claimed to be shorter with all the switchbacks we went on that weren’t on the GPS route, but it wasn’t too bad. It did eventually degrade to a dirt-road mountain pass, but it wasn’t near as bumpy or as narrow as the road we took to Semuc Champey, so were good.

Atitlán is apparently a lake formed a long time ago from a crater of a volcano. Driving along the rim of the old volcano, it is incredible to think that there was volcano big enough to create this six-mile-diameter lake. I know there has been erosion and all that, but still…That is one large volcano!

In the background, you can see two more volcanoes (with much smaller craters).

Although Aldous Huxley has described Atitlán as the most beautiful lake in all the world (it is beautiful), I personally would say that Lago de Yojoa in Honduras was prettier. That didn’t keep me from exploring its pretty shores from my kayak.



That evening, we decided to eat out at Hotel Atitlán, supposedly the most elegant place to eat in Panajachel. The food was mediocre, but the view and the gardens were great. Unfortunately, it started raining as we finished eating. We waited as long as we dared, but the rains showed no sign of letting up, so we had to walk the kilometer back to our camping spot in the rain. Weren’t completely drenched, but we were pretty soaked by the time we got back.

Wednesday

We had planned on crossing into México on Wednesday, but I had apparently underestimated the time and distance to the border and to the next camping spot. So instead, we decided to make a stop in Huehuetenango, visit the Zaculeo ruins, and camp.

The ruins weren’t large or impressive, especially for the price—Q50pp (US$6.28). The only thing they have going for them is that they are shaped a bit different than the ones that we have seen so far. Very angular. We ended up staying here for the night, they even let us park inside with the ruins, and I got a great view of the sunset from the top of one of the temples.

Adventures in Honduras

Friday

After lunch on Thursday, we headed north to Lago de Yojoa and D&D Brewery. We stayed there two nights. I liked D&D Brewery, if only for their flowers and cats. They had a pregnant orange cat, that I got to cuddle with me the last morning. And, they had a stray kitten that had wandered into their place and they were trying to get rid of. It was an incessant beggar and constantly hungry. Had the most expressive little eyes, though. The flowering vine under which we parked one night was beautiful, even if it was inconvenient.



Friday morning, I tried their famous blueberry pancakes, but was unimpressed—they were more like a blueberry explosion, slightly burned, and no real pancake texture. After working on getting some blogs out in the morning, Jonathan and I went to the Pulhapanzak waterfalls. Everyone recommended taking the tour to behind the falls, so we decided to try it. I am beginning to think we were a bit crazy to do so. When we first signed up for a tour, it was just going to be Jonathan and I, and we were only going to have to wait 10 minutes. Our tour guide said he needed to change and to go wait for him in front of the waterfalls. We went and waited and waited. Finally, we decided to go up and find out what was going on. Turns out, he was the only guide available and now we had 12 high-schoolers joining us. Whatever, we just want to experience it, check it out, right? It will be just like any other tour, hopefully the kids aren’t too obnoxious. Well not quite.



First of all, we aren’t given any protective gear and then he just tells us to start walking along the path, he will catch up. We go as far as we dare, and he catches up with us. Repeat. No counting, no diligent watching. Then we jump off rocks into the pools of water at the bottom of the falls. So far, not too bad. But then we start walking close to the pouring water and on very slippery rocks, where if we slip we could go careening down the river through multitudes of rocks, just hoping you don’t hit your head on the way. While very adrenaline-pumping, fun, and entertaining, I highly recommend bringing your own life jackets, water shoes, and water goggles, maybe a helmet if you have one. We literally walked along the cascading water for several feet and ducked into some very small caves underneath. We had to go in two groups of 7ish, so that our guide could “safely” escort us to the caves and back. All the while, you are freezing with the intense wind and water flying through area. Not for the faint of heart, I tell you.



After we dried off and got some lunch, we decided to try for a calmer adventure: kayaking on the lake. I am sure I have told you before, but I LOVE kayaking. It is quiet, peaceful, serene. You are propelled forward with your own strength. Waves can give you just the right amount of excitement. Well, this expedition was no exception. While the area occasionally smelled a bit fishy, and we had to paddle upstream in the canal, it was a wonderful trip. There were fish that swam along beside us, occasionally jumping into the air. Spotting many different varieties, the birdlife around the lake was astounding. The scenery was great. We didn’t see a single motor-propelled boat. It made for great exploring. Lago de Yajoa is definitely one of my favorite places in Central America.

Sunday

Saturday we spent driving to Copán. Sunday, we rose and arrived just as the gates to the ruins were opening. I think Copán is one of my favorite sites. The impressive stelas and details were plentiful and amazing. You could even see the colors on some of the remains.

There were hieroglyphics on every single stone of the stairway. When they found it, only the bottom 15 steps had remained intact.

They had a macaw reintroduction station there at the ruins. We learned they are loud and obnoxious birds, even if they are pretty.



Sadly, while we were exploring the ruins, my hat fell out of my backpack and I lost it. I went back several times to find it, but someone must have picked it up and took it for themselves. So again, I am hatless.

After the ruins, we crossed the border into Guatemala. This was one of the nicest, quickest borders we have crossed. There were only two semis to bypass on the Honduras side (maybe 10 in the other lane on the Guatemalan side). The Honduran side had nice-and-new-looking buildings, and the Guatemalan side was at least clean and organized. There was plenty of space and parking, and we managed to go when it wasn’t crowded. We probably made it across in under 30 minutes.

Honduras-Guatemala Border Crossing at El Florido

Border town: El Florido
Direction: Northbound
Costs: None – if you already have your vehicle permit.
Copies: None – they make their own copies.
Notes: We already had our 90-day vehicle permit from our southbound trip. We knew we would be returning with plenty of time to exit the country again before the permit expired, so we just got our permit marked on our way out of Guatemala last time.

Procedure

Honduran side:

1. There is a swing-bar roadblock at the entrance of the border. You will be directed to enter and to continue to drive forward until you reach the reddish building that says “aduana” on it. NOTE: For us, there was no one directly at the gate, they had tied it tilted up, so vehicles under 10ft could pass. The agents were chilling in the shade at the booth directly in front of the bar and just waved us forward—no checks or anything.
2. Park at the reddish building on the left that reads “aduana” on the side of it. The first entrance is immigration.
3. Enter, and at the next available counter, tell them you are leaving Honduras and entering Guatemala, since they don’t seem to have separate entrance and exit sections.
4. The immigration officer will stamp your permit, take the yellow copy of your entrance form (from the last border you went through), and return your passport.
5. Next is aduana. They are the next door farther west to the border in the building, once you exit immigration. There is a little reception area where you can fill out the customs form, and then you enter to the office beyond. NOTE: You have to PULL on the door (not push—if you push, it feels locked).
6. The customs officer will take your permit and stamp the driver’s passport, which cancels the permit, and then hand back the passport.
7. You are now free to pass over to the Guatemalan side.

Guatemalan side:

View of Guatemalan Aduana (left side, white building behind orange cone) and Migración (right side, blue and white building) from the parking lot.

1. There is no official line or officers here to check your documents. The only giveaway is the Banrural sign, which is a bank of Guatemala.
2. There is a large parking lot off to the left (across from the Banrural and the blue and white building) where you can park.
3. The blue and white building on the north (right) side of the street is the Guatemalan immigration. Go to the window that says “Entrada.” They will ask for your passports and want to know how long you plan to be in Guatemala. After they stamp it, they will return your passport.
4. Aduana is the white building on the right side of the street that is directly before the next swing-bar roadblock.
5. Hand over your Guatemalan permit (if you have one, if not this is where they will issue one). They will stamp it and make a copy of it himself, then hand both back to you. The copy (not the original) is for the customs guy at the swing-bar roadblock.
6. Return to your vehicle and drive to the Guatemala swing-bar roadblock. A customs official will take the copy of the permit, verify the information is correct on the vehicle, and then let you pass.
7. There is a police officer just down the road monitoring traffic. He may stop you to inspect the vehicle. Then you are free to go.