Things to Do in Guatemala: Visit a Safari Park, AutoSafari Chapin

AutoSafari Chapin - Guatemalan Safari (32)

If you’ve been around this site for a while, you know how much I *absolutely* love and try to inspire you to think of and see travel differently. Sure, a vacation is a beautiful thing, but…

My past trips to Guatemala had been your garden-variety-type vacations. By that I mean I was:

a) Rushing around from tourist attraction to tourist attraction to “see it all.”

b) Spending money like a drunken sailor to “get the full experience,” aka “the prepackaged touristy stuff.”

These experiences have taught me something important:

The one who spends the most money

doesn’t necessarily have the best travel experience.

It turns out when you run from attraction to attraction, you might miss all the cool stuff in-between. Such as a freaking awesome safari experience in the middle of Central America!

I’d read in passing about AutoSafari Chapin before, though I had never had the time nor the desire to go during my earlier short stays here. Now that I’m slow-traveling through Guatemala, I’ve had time to check out the lesser-known/visited attractions.

This one blew me away because I wasn’t expecting to enjoy myself there as much as I did.

AutoSafari, in short, was the brainchild of two men who thought to build a natural reserve in the middle of nowhere and laid it out as a driveable, safari-like experience. I have to say they succeeded tremendously.

Heading out on the road to Taxisco, off of CA-9 (the road that leads to the Pacific Coast), you’ll find a few well-placed signs advising you how long until you arrive at the park’s entrance. This entrance is well-marked with the huge sign you see below.

Entrance sign for AutoSafari Chapin

AutoSafari is open every day, except Mondays, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You get the option to drive yourself or be driven around in their minivan for a guided tour.

Whatever option you take, your entrance fee entitles you to another go-around late in the afternoon.

AutoSafari Chapin Hours – Closed Mondays

Macaws will greet you at the door.

So close you can touch them – don’t!

Something that I’ve noticed here is that parks don’t gouge you when it comes to food and drinks. They acknowledge they are the only vendor in the park and seem not to use the opportunity to squeeze you for every last cent.

Who knew that building an attraction that was both enjoyable AND affordable could be a sound business strategy?

Visit restrooms at the entrance – a good idea

Entry fees are pretty affordable. Tickets for adults are Q60, for children 2-10 years old Q50, free for anyone under two. You can also prepay for food, which I highly recommend.

For only Q30 extra for adults and Q35 for children, you get a ticket for a meal combo (burger, fries and a drink). Pony up Q55 and you get a huge Churrasco and potatoes meal.

The burgers were surprisingly humongous too, and one burger is enough to feed two starving children, as I found out.

Prices at AutoSafari Chapin

At the ticket booth, you’ll get a map of showing you the layout of the park. The park is divided into sections and numbered gates separate them. It’s not necessary, as the road that goes through the park does not have any turn-offs.

With tickets in hand, we went towards section #1. A park attendant checked to made sure we had bought tickets. Once cleared, the massive wooden doors were opened, and we were off!

Immediately we were awestruck when we realized we’d be not just close to the animals, but right next to them. We slowly inched forward while zebras leisurely moved off the road.

Zebras at AutoSafari Chapin Guatemala

You’re allowed to have the windows rolled down, except when moving into the section housing the lions. I was so close to the zebras I could almost touch them if I stuck my arm out of the car.

Zebras up close

I believe the animals below were yaks. For the most part, my experience was that the animals regarded us with as much curiosity as we did them.

Yaks? – AutoSafari Chapin Guatemala

Each section was numbered.

The park is divided into sections

There were signs with the names of animals present in each particular section.

Signs tell you what animals to look for

Emus were wandering around freely.

Emu at AutoSafari Chapin Guatemala

Emu up close

Another treat was the Hippo section.

Hippo section was a favorite of ours

As we drove up, a hippo eyed us from the water and decided to put on a show.

Hippos going for a swim

The hippo slowly made its way out of the water, walked across the road, literally 3 feet in front of the car, and just stared at us for a bit.

Hippos up close

Once it got bored of us, it turned around and just waded into the water for another swim.

Hippos must be bored of tourists

There were a few different species of goat and deer throughout the park….

African goats?

… as well as lots of spider monkeys.

Spider monkeys playing

Going for a drink

Spider monkey watching us drive by

Deer at the side of the road

I believe this is what they call a six-point buck up north. Much more prone to jump in front of your car in the US. This one here just seemed content to watch me drive by.

Deer up close

An ostrich watches us go by…

Ostrich

Spotted Agua Volcano. We know we’re not too far from home whenever we catch a glimpse.

Agua Volcano in the distance

Another favorite of us was the section housing giraffes, which seemed to be curious about every car that passed by.

Giraffe section

I’m sure the kid below got a memory of a lifetime, as he peeked at a giraffe while sticking his head out of the car’s sunroof.

How. Cool. Is. That?

Peeking at giraffe through sunroof

The giraffe above headed to the shade under the canopy. We thought we’d have to be content to watch them from a distance…

Avoiding the midday sun

… until the same giraffe started walking again and headed straight for the back of our car.

More giraffes

The giraffe slowly made its way around, and I managed to get a quick shot off as it checked us out from behind.

One giraffe found us interesting

The giraffe got so close to us I couldn’t even fit it all in one frame. It was so close I could’ve touched without sticking out my whole arm!

It got very close

Close enough to touch

Eventually, it walked away after it got bored with us. The kids just sat in the car with mouths wide open.

It strolled away…

Heading into the section that housed the lions, all signs advised us to roll up the windows. Sunroof-kid wisely ducked inside the car again.

Fenced in lion section

Again, we were able to get pretty close.

Lion didn’t seem to mind us

Windows must be up when in lions’ section

Rolled down the windows just a tad to get a clear pic. The lions seemed not to pay any attention to us.

I dared lowering window a bit to take a better pic

Just in case, a guard watched from a tower high up, in case anybody got crazy enough to get out of the car and pet the lion.

Guard watching lions closely

Halfway through, there’s a section where people can pull over, use the restrooms, and get some refreshments. It also had a nice observation tower overlooking the giraffes’ section.

Giraffe observation tower

I liked the open-area setup. The animals had plenty of room to roam, and they all seemed to be cared for well.

Open spaces

Giant iguanas

By far the smelliest section was the warthog section. We couldn’t get past it fast enough!

Warthogs smell bad!

Large iguana

Not exactly the African plain, but close enough

At the end of the driving trail, one arrives at the other section of the park, which contains the restaurant, pool, another zoo (traditional kind) and an artificial lake.

Signs for pool, restaurant, and other sections of the park

We parked and headed straight for the restaurant to eat. The installations were huge and pretty clean. The menu has your standard park fare and beer on tap.

Restaurant counter

Two pools, an adult-sized one, and a kiddie one were a welcome relief since it was very hot, as it tends to be in this part of Guatemala.

We went pretty early, which explains why there are barely any other people in the pics. The pool area filled up later when the latecomers began streaming in after 1:00 p.m.

Clean pools

There were different colorful birds throughout the park’s grounds.

Peacock

Toucans

Royal toucans up close

Guacamayas

These birds are large and striking up close

Included in the admission price is a pleasant ride on a gondola-type launch, which circles “Monkey Island.” It took about 10-15 minutes to go around the lake.

Entrance for launch to Monkey Island

Launch fits about 12 passengers

Monkey Island residents

Curious little monkey

Naughty Monkey

After the gondola ride, we went on the walking trail to explore the mini-zoo.

There’s a nice shaded trail for the little ones

Small Zoo

Cougars

They seemed relaxed

Jaguar up close – near impossible to see one in the wild

After spending a few hours at the park, we were pooped. We had no energy to make use of that second go-round pass.

I’d say that this park was one of the highlights of my trip, a real feat considering I’ve been to some amazing places already.

And I totally would’ve missed it again had I not been exploring Guatemala slowly, at my own pace, instead of frantically trying to have an excellent vacation.

*****

What are some off-the-beaten path places you love,

even though they’re not huge tourist’ attractions?

Visit Guatemala City’s Cathedral and Sexta Avenida

For part one of my visit to Guatemala City’s historic downtown, click here. Besides Plaza Mayor’s imposing green building, known as The Big Guacamole, there is another structure that catches everyone’s attention.

Metropolitan Cathedral

The Catedral Metropolitana (Metropolitan Cathedral), has been a fixture at the plaza for a long time, having been built between 1782 and 1815. Well, the main building at least, since the towers flanking each side were finished in 1867.

Guatemala City’s Catedral Metropolitana (Metropolitan Cathedral)

Here, I’m supposed to tell you that the Cathedral was built in a Neoclassical style. What that means is that it’s not as fancy and ornate as earlier buildings (Baroque), but a simpler, more classical style. One of the reasons why this cathedral doesn’t rate as highly in the “looks” department as other ones.

The cathedral was damaged in 1917 when the city was hit by 127 (not a typo) tremors in the span of fewer than 24 hours. The temple was reconstructed and reinforced in the following years. Good thing too, as another huge earthquake struck the city in 1976, which damaged it severely. It would’ve been reduced to rubble if it hadn’t been reinforced.

There are 12 pillars in front of the church (8 visible below), which have inscribed on them the names of hundreds of people that had “disappeared” or had been murdered during Guatemala’s recent and bloody civil war.

Facade of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Guatemala City

Monument to genocide victims in Guatemala’s Civil War

The Pope has visited the cathedral twice.

“Holy Door” – Not the size, I mean what the inscription on the door says.

View of Guatemala’s central plaza from the Cathedral

The interior is somewhat elementary, but it goes with the style in which it was built.

Inside the Metropolitan Cathedral in Guatemala City

Holy altar at the Metropolitan Cathedral

The picture below almost got me in trouble with one old church lady. It turns out you can take pictures of anything you want in the church, but not this particular sanctuary.

“Why?”, I asked the lady.

“Because Jesus is there,” she answered.

I looked again but didn’t understand which “Jesus” she was referring to. If anything, there was a pretty big cross with Jesus’ image, located on the main altar. Nobody had a problem when I took a picture of that. Maybe she meant the Archbishop or another religious figure?

“Which Jesus…?”

“God… Jesus. And He doesn’t like pictures,” she answered back. I promise you this is what she said.

A five-minute theological “discussion” ensued, in which she pretty condescendingly explained to me that Jesus’ body was there, within the Eucharist trays that were placed in front of the sanctuary. There was no way I was going to:

a) Argue with an old church lady and b) in her house of worship.

So I politely thanked her, stopped taking pictures, and moved on to the other attraction outside, Sexta Avenida (Sixth Avenue).

Transept at Catedral Metropolitana, Guatemala City

Sexta Avenida Guatemala

As my family and I made our way to Sexta Avenida, a commercial street closed-off to vehicular traffic, I encountered a game going on, involving rods and who could grab on to them the longest. No way I’m making jokes about that… you’re on your own there.

These gatherings are opportunities for pickpockets to work their craft, so I quickly moved on.

Street performers at Sexta Avenida in Guatemala City

Sexta Avenida is one of the oldest and arguably the most important street, historically, in Guatemala. It used to be known by the name of Calle Real (Royal Street). It was the first street to get candle-lights in its corners, switched later to petroleum, gaslights came later, and finally electric lights.

In 1877, all roads were changed over to numeric designations, which is how SixthAvenue came to be known by its current name. In fact, the street became such a hub for activity and commerce, which strolling around Sexta became a verb, “sextear” and “sexteando.” Which awkwardly can be translated as “sexting“.

Trees and striking sculptures dot the landscape along the avenue.

Entrance to Sexta Avenida

Sculptures in Guatemala City

More sculptures

Pasaje Rubio, Guatemala City

Hotel Pan American, below, was once one of the most famous in Guatemala, back when it was known by the name Hotel Astoria (no relation to the hotel in New York). It is here where visiting dignitaries stayed and where special functions were held. It had the advantage of being very close to the National Palace and offered a great view of Plaza Mayor. It still operates to this day. A cafe occupies the first floor.

Hotel Panamerican (formerly Hotel Astoria)

Another landmark that stands out is Cine Lux, a movie theater built in the 1930s. One of the few that survived the 1976 earthquake.

It was remodeled last year and is now a very happening cultural center.

Cine Lux – Sexta Avenida, Guatemala City

Restoration is still ongoing, and not all buildings have recaptured their former glory.

Old buildings in Sexta Avenida

Sexta Avenida on a bright day

Engel Building, Guatemala City

You can spot all kinds of performers on Sexta. Sometimes you might find a ninja (or is it a mummy???)

Mummy, Guatemala City

You might run into Captain Jack Sparrow too.

Jack Sparrow in Guatemala City

Church of San Francisco is also on Sexta Avenida. Closed to the public that day, unfortunately.

Church, Guatemala City – Iglesia San Francisco

Right next to the church is the National Police Palace, an attractive building with Moorish touches. San Francisco Church can be seen in the background.

National Police Palace, Guatemala City

And so concludes a VERY brief tour of historical Sexta Avenida. We barely walked half of it and didn’t even get the chance to visit some interesting museums and other sights around the area.

♦♦♦♦♦♦

Have you visited Sexta Avenida?

What did I miss?

Guatemala National Palace: Visitors Guide

Guatemala City is divided into 25 “zones”, with the historic downtown designated as Zone 1, or Zona 1. While an interesting city and the largest in Central America, Guatemala City does not have the best reputation as far as safety is concerned. The good news is that it isn’t the danger zone some make it out to be. I touched on this topic on Wednesday, incidentally.

After deciding I had put off visiting the historic area for far too long, I ventured over to Zona 1 to check it out. It turned out to be quite enjoyable. There was so much to see, that I decided it was best to break it up into parts.

Today I’ll show you the Guatemala National Palace of Culture (Palacio Nacional de la Cultura), one of Guatemala’s most imposing buildings. Built with 100% Guatemalan materials and with an all-Guatemalan design and construction, the Palace is a source of national pride. But first, a word about Zone 1, a dangerous place or upcoming area, depending on who you ask.

Safety in Zone 1

While this was a big concern for a long time, the government and local businesses have really stepped it up and revitalized a once super-sketchy part of the city. This has done wonders for tourism (watch the short video midway in the post here).

One of the first things I noticed was the heavy police presence. There were a few “shady” characters milling about, but everyone, it seemed, went about their business without a care in the world. Even late in the afternoon, when Police presence dwindled a bit, there were still lots of families walking about. From what I hear, Police presence is plentiful even late at night.

I’d say that as long as you follow basic safety rules (don’t get drunk and walk back to your hotel, don’t flash cash or jewelry, avoid lonely alleys, etc…) you should be OK.

Plaza Mayor

The first place I visited was the main city square, Plaza Mayor de la Constitucion (it has had many names in the last – including Plaza de Los Lamentos (Laments’ Plaza) at one point). Lots of history has happened here and presently it serves as the grounds for a farmer’s market on weekends.

It has served as a political demonstration area, and for military exercises of ceremonial importance. Executions by firing squad have also been carried out here, though not recently, as the death penalty is no longer legal in Guatemala.

Originally, the plaza was designed more like a park, with abundant trees and walking paths. These were torn down in the 1980s to make way for a now-public underground parking lot.

The huge flag you see below was installed in 1996. To the left is Catedral Metropolitana (Metropolitan Cathedral – Guatemala’s main Catholic church), and the one-story building immediately behind the trees is Portal del Comercio.

If you’ve ever been to Antigua Guatemala, all this may seem somewhat familiar. It is by design.

Antigua Guatemala was originally Guatemala’s capital, but earthquakes in 1773 (7.5 Richter scale) obliterated the city. Spain’s government, who had been already thinking about moving the capital somewhere else due to space constraints of Antigua, made the decision to rebuild the capital in its present location.

Plaza Mayor is very similar in layout to Antigua’s Parque Central (and to many other Spanish city plazas for that matter). Even Antigua’s Arco Santa Catalina was recreated in the new capital. I’ll take you now through a tour of the Palace.

Guatemala National Palace

Construction of the Palace was ordered by President (Dictator, really) Jorge Ubico and started in 1939. It took four years to build and at a relatively low cost, since prisoners were forced to work in the projects for a measly 0.25 cents a day, back when Guatemala’s currency had the same value as the dollar.

Incidentally, in the Palace’s current grounds had been a big Chinese Pagoda, donated by the Chinese community living in Guatemala in the early 1900’s. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in an earthquake, after which Ubico hatched the plan to build the Palace.

Sidenote: For whatever reason, Ubico did not like the prominence of the Chinese community and enacted a law that prohibited admission to the country of “yellow people… and black people.” This law was amended in 1944 to limit the country to a total Chinese population of no more than 657, after which point a Chinese person could only enter when one of the 657 died. This law is still on the books, although it was deemed unconstitutional in the early 1980s. Today, China and Guatemala have good relations.

The building was built out of brick and concrete. It gets its green color (the dictator’s wife favorite color) because of the mix of concrete and oxidized copper used to coat the building. This was to avoid having to constantly repaint the building.

Not surprisingly, the building’s affectionate nickname is “El Guacamolon”, or “The Big Guacamole.”

Many artists in Guatemala worked during the construction of the building, and most were forced to do it for free. The craftsmanship is excellent.

Tour Hours & Cost

Tours are scheduled every working hour and are free to Guatemalan citizens. English-language tours are conducted at 11 am and 3 pm and foreigners must pay a Q40 ($5) fee upon entering. The guides are knowledgeable and the tour lasts about 45 minutes.

Entrance to Guatemala National Palace

Right at the entrance to the Palace, there’s a marker indicating “Kilometer 0”, from which all roads into Guatemala lead out of. Of note is that while this is the true “zero point”, another symbolic marker exists in the building. We’ll cover that later.

The interior of the building is elegant and nicely designed.

The tour led us right into the courtyard, where it the tour’s narration part was to begin. The groups ahead of us were already moving on.

Palace’s Courtyard

Dictators can be kind of fickle and superstitious. Dictator Ubico liked the number “5” so much, he sought to incorporate it everywhere he could. That’s why there are five “main” arches on every side of every courtyard, and five stories to the building, among other details.

What used to be an open-air courtyard, is no longer so. This is to protect the building from further damage.

Monument to Peace

Guatemala endured a long and violent civil war not that long ago. Finally, in 1996, both sides made peace and it was here at the Palace that peace accords were signed. To commemorate the occasion, a bronze statue, the “Monument to Peace” (below) was installed.

Notice there are two left hands reaching up, representing each side of the conflict. This was to signify this was a sincere truce since the left hand is the one closest to the heart.

The 16 interlocking arms signify the Guatemalan people, locked in arms, determined to sustain peace and liberty, the big rock which the arms lift up.

The Changing of the Rose

Of note is that the original design called for a dove to be represented above the hands, signifying the release of peace. Somehow that plan was scrapped and a white rose was selected as the symbol of peace.

When the monument was created, the rose was replaced every day, at 11 am, in a formal ceremony. This was to signify that peace was a process that required a renewed commitment every day. A pretty nifty idea, or so I thought.

Noticed I said “was“, which I didn’t learn until I had made the effort to be there in time to see the ceremony.

Turns out someone figured that this was too special a ceremony to be carried out every day, so instead, a “peace committee” decided that the rose would be changed every 29th day of every month, to honor the date of the accord. People that shed blood and tears trying to bring peace to Guatemala were naturally chosen to carry out that honor.

That went on for a while until the peace committee again decided this was too special of an honor to let “normal” people place the “rose of peace.” Instead, they would choose a special “Ambassador of Peace” to do it.

So today, only people of importance, as designated by the committee, are honored, such as the Dalai Lama. Or UN Secretary Ba-Kin Moon. Or the President of the International Football Federation. Or very successful and influential businessmen. Or political appointees.

In short, people that had little to nothing to do with bringing peace to Guatemala. Oh well… at least the initial sentiment that started it was right. And at least the flower is real, not a plastic version (I checked).

Just behind the peace monument is another monument, to the “anonymous heroes of peace.” This one has an ever-burning flame kept on to honor those who died to bring peace during the conflict.

Touring the Rest of the Palace

After we were done with the courtyard, we swung by a relic: Guatemala’s first switchboard console. Below is the original equipment.

The building has various styles mixed throughout. Ubico liked Spanish-style buildings as well as Arabic accents, such as the fountains below.

Historic Murals

Scattered throughout the building are huge murals depicting Guatemala’s history. From Mayan ancestors, through Spanish rule, all the way to Guatemala’s independence.

Below is a depiction of a bird being sacrificed. No human sacrifices needed that time, apparently.

The Spanish came and fought the Mayans…

… and the Mayans lost.

The rails on the stairs are made of brass, recovered from spent bullet casings. There were a lot of shots fired apparently. Par for the course during a dictator’s run.

Also, rails have a copper bar running through them, installed so that they could be heated or frozen, depending on the weather, to prevent people from leaning into them.

Sheesh… jerk move, Ubico…

The Finest Salon in Guatemala

Below is the reception room, one of the finest in the country and reserved for special ceremonies, such as the appointment of new ambassadors. The floor has a symbolic star signifying “Kilometer 0”, although the true location is right at the entrance.

The chandelier is huge and weighs 2 tons. In the back, lower center in the picture is a “3D” representation of the Guatemalan flag, which contains a stuffed quetzal, the super-rare national bird of Guatemala.

The finest talent available in Guatemala was on hand to create everything, from design to execution. Below are the stained-glass doors that lead to the presidential balcony overlooking Plaza Mayor.

Traffic Lights… Inside a Building?

A curious design feature was the installation of “traffic lights.” Ubico did not like people milling about when he was walking the hallways, so he installed a light system to warn everyone about who could be outside.

Different lights indicated who was allowed about, so it was best any worker be on their best behavior if they ran into any of them. Lights were also inside the rooms, so it wasn’t necessary to poke one’s head out to see what the state of the hallways was at any time.

Red Light? Ubico was out and about, so nobody better be caught unless they ran the risk of incurring his wrath.

Yellow Light? Only government functionaries were to be walking the halls.

Green Light? Anyone, including janitors, could move freely around the building.

Another interesting fact is that every single door handle at the Palace (over 500!) bears Ubico’s thumbprint.

Even though Ubico was in power over 15 years, he was removed only 8 months after having moved into the Palace. And so ended the tour. Pretty interesting and made me learn more about the history of Guatemala. If you’re ever near Zone 1 in Guatemala, I would highly recommend it. At the right time, you might even catch some goats feeding at the Plaza.

*****

Have you visited the National Palace?

Share below!

How To Stay Safe Overseas And In Guatemala

Friends and family were dumbfounded when I told them of my plans to move to Guatemala. They reasoned Guatemala was dangerous and not a good place to live at all. Of course, none had ever set foot here before.

This is fairly excusable if you are to believe the information put out there by other governments that Guatemala is a dangerous place where caution must be exercised at every turn. And they have stats to back it up, as Guatemala is one of the top 10 countries in the world when it comes to homicide.

But not all is as black and white as the numbers would lead you to believe. While the murder rate is high, it’s almost half that of El Salvador and Honduras (currently most dangerous country in the world), it’s two neighboring countries.

Mexico has seen a huge rise in crime in the last two years, and now has 5 of the top 10 most violent cities in the world, with Honduras (2), Brazil (2), and Venezuela round out the top 10. Still, many Americans choose to make Mexico their home and find it safer than the US city where they came from.

How could this be?

Not All Cities Are Created Equal

It all depends on whether you have done your homework before making the transition. Just like many people have no problems living in beautiful Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, I did my homework and found my ideal city to live in Guatemala.

Turns out, when you use crime statistics to gauge the safety of an entire country, not only are you doing a disservice to its people but missing out on great places to visit. It would be like saying you don’t want to visit Disney World because crime is high in Detroit.

In Guatemala, crime stats are heavily skewed by what happens in Guatemala City, the capital. And not the entire city at that, but zones (the city is split into sections known as “zones”) where gang violence and crime are much higher than everywhere else.

Watch the video below about urban renewal in the capital’s historic downtown, known as Zona 1, which I’ll cover more in-depth Friday:

[youtube]vkgnlrURkzA[/youtube]

The city I live in, Antigua Guatemala, is an example of an easy “transition city,” which are cities that are less likely to throw your world upside-down upon first arriving. They also have the advantage of being reasonably safe for foreigners.

What Makes a Good Transition City?

Everything is exciting and new when you first arrive at any country. You might recognize a few global chains dotting the landscape, such as McDonald’s and Starbucks. But aside from those, things will likely be very different from those back home.

In addition to looking for a safe place to live, a few other factors will help your move be a successful one. What are those factors?

Make sure you consider these factors as they relate to your transition destination:

Built-In Expat Community

A transition city, assuming you have moved into a non-English-speaking country, will have a moderate to a high population of expats from your home country. Having an established community makes adjusting to the new surroundings much easier. Plus they can point what are the best places to live.

In Antigua, the best way to find out about local happenings is Que Pasa and Revue.

You can meet with like-minded people for all sorts of things, whether it’s over your shared love of curry and Indian food, or to get involved with local volunteer groups.

Language

This is another stumbling block for brand-new expats and world travelers, especially if the expat community is small. And doubly hard when the language is hard to learn.

Antigua Guatemala is well-known for its many quality Spanish schools. Spanish is relatively straightforward and easy to pick up for most westerners. The same can’t be said for other languages in popular expat destinations, such as Thai and Japanese.

Something to keep in mind if planning to live overseas for the first time. You’ll feel less anxious and less awkward around the locals when you can understand the language and assess any situation quickly.

Availability of Comfort Food

If you’re kind of adventurous with your food, this shouldn’t be a problem. Not everybody is so quick to adjust to new flavors and spices, which is why having the availability of at least ingredients to prepare your favorite meals is a big plus.

Antigua has no shortage of restaurants catering to all tastes, including a very nicely appointed McDonald’s. Occasionally you’ll crave a few things that are hard to find, if not impossible (haven’t found Nathans hot dogs, yet), but you learn to adapt to what’s available.

McDonald's Courtyard - Antigua Guatemala — Ronald McDonald Never Had it So Good as He Has it in Antigua

Best to keep yourself looking at the positives and learn to find new favorites. Plus it’s nice to save some cash by eating as the locals do.

Stay Safe Overseas

Finding a great place to live overseas is not a perfect science. Do your due diligence and learns the ins and outs of your new location before you make a move. It helps to connect with fellow expats online, or even better, make an exploratory trip before you commit to a city and ask the local what they think.

Safety should not be your primary concern when in the country if you chose your neighborhood wisely before settling in. Knowing what to expect realistically will make the transition that much smoother.

Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun!

Clowning around in Antigua Guatemala

*****

What’s most important to you

when moving to a new city?

Lake Atitlan: Heartbreak at The Most Beautiful Lake in The World

Check out the Part I of my visit to Lake Atitlan here.

To recap, we stayed at Hotel Casa del Mundo the night before and by next morning were ready to do some exploring around Lake Atitlan. Lake Atitlan has many villages, some big, some small, but each has its own vibe and character.

We had decided to travel to Santiago Atitlan, home of Maximon, a strange Mayan/Catholic effigy that is the object of worship. Not to visit Maximon, but to walk around town and take in the sights.

As we were looking for a launch to ride, one of the attendants mentioned that the “patronales“, or patron saint festivities, were underway at San Juan La Laguna. Not wanting to miss a chance to take some great pictures, we headed towards San Juan La Laguna, so named after Saint John the Baptist, not the apostle, as it turned out.

San Marcos La Laguna, Lake Atitlan

The launch’s first stop was at San Marcos La Laguna, the mecca for all things hippie and New Agey. It is reputed to be the prettiest village on the lake. We’ll make it a point to visit it in-depth at a later date.

San Marcos claims to have the cleanest shore, suitable for swimming. It’s a haven of massage and holistic therapies, yoga, meditation, and other interesting activities for spiritual seekers, who claim this site has a special energy of its own.

Whether this is true or not, I cannot attest, since we didn’t disembark at the village.

The place certainly seemed peaceful.

As we motored past San Marcos, we saw an imposing structure located lakeside. Whether a private or commercial residence, I’ve yet to figure it out. If anybody has any info on this interesting building, I’d be glad to hear about it in the comments.

Tropical Storm Agatha Wreaks Havoc

As we arrived at the dock of San Juan La Laguna, the damage caused by 2010’s Tropical Storm Agatha was evident. The storm brought so much rain that the water level at the lake rose 7 feet in a month. This was aggravated because the storm occurred during summer, smack dab in the middle of the rainy season.

The storm hit the lake area pretty hard, causing mudslides and with them, death and the destruction of many homes.

The level of the lake has reportedly risen 18 feet total since the storm, leaving many structures near the shore underwater, such as the one below.

It is uncertain how much time the long, makeshift boardwalk will remain in place.

San Juan La Laguna, Lake Atitlan

The town of San Juan is pretty pleasant to walk around in. More so than other bigger towns, which can be somewhat crowded and a little chaotic at times.

I’ve heard that if you’re at Lake Atitlan to learn Spanish, you go to San Juan. If you’re there to party, you go to San Pedro, the village next door.

San Juan is known for weaving and painting and that was obvious as soon as one stepped off the launch. Weaving going on to the right, art galleries dotted the entire street leading into town.

Below, a tuk-tuk awaits for passengers looking to catch a fare. Tuk-tuks are a fairly fuel-efficient mode of transportation. At the core, they’re just low-powered motorcycles with a small carriage attached to the backseat.

Many a time I’ve been just about ready to bet that the little engine was about to blow up, exhausted from the weight in the backseat. But somehow those little-engines-that-could pull the load up the hill against all odds.

I was wondering why anybody would need one, given San Juan’s size. My answers would lay just around the corner.

Rising Waters

As I made my way from the docks, up the very steep hill, I couldn’t help overhearing a tour guide talking to his group about Lake Atitlan’s former water levels.

According to his account, water levels at the lake have risen and gone down wildly throughout its history. Old time villagers, the guide continued, claimed that water levels had at one time been as high as the point where I stood to take the picture you see below.

At first, I thought this might have been a tall tale to impress tourists. Or maybe the guide was honest and the old timers had amused themselves playing a mean joke on the guide, as one would do when telling a child ghost stories.

However, there seems to be some truth to the cycle of rising/decreasing water levels, just like what the Elder Mayans around the lake talk about.

In 1996, divers discovered an ancient Mayan site, dating back 2,000 years. At the site, there were five stone docks, submerged 115 feet!

While it certainly would’ve seemed impossible to those ancient people to expect levels to one day rise to what they are today… how do we know the current water level couldn’t rise much higher, as the Mayan elders have claimed it has in the past?

For more insight into how the rising water levels have affected expats and locals living around the lake, read this heartbreaking piece by local expat and homeowner Joyce Maynard in the New York Times. Eye opening.

After we got to the top, I stopped for a breather and some pics.

Holy Wars Heat Up

The festivities for the patron saint would officially be held Sunday, but the party was well underway. Music could be heard almost all the way to the dock. There was a reason for this, as you’ll see later.

The population around the lake is split between Catholics and Evangelical Protestants. Lately, the Evangelicals have been winning and have the big churches in town to prove it.

Not to be outdone, Catholics in San Juan are rallying and making their presence known by doubling the size of their church.

Below, you can see the outline of the old church to the left, and the much bigger addition being erected to the right, which effectively doubles the church in size.

Below is the Evangelical church, currently the tallest building in town.

Childhood Memories

Carnival rides on this side of town were not yet set-up. Even though it would’ve been tempting to see the lake from atop the Ferris wheel, there was no way I’d be getting up on one of those.

Let’s just say upon close inspection, they weren’t in the best mechanical shape.

The ride below caught my attention, as it displayed the characters of El Chavo, a beloved Mexican TV series that generations of Latin American children grew up with. All the show’s running gags are well known and catchphrases can be readily identified by nearly anyone that grew up in Latin America during the last 30 years.

A curious note is that the show has been transmitted in all Spanish-speaking countries, except Cuba.

It is easily the most-translated Spanish show in history. It’s still being shown here in Guatemala and I can tune in to get my fix three times a day: at midday, at 1 pm, and at 6 pm.

From right to left on the merry-go-round, the characters are El Chapulin Colorado (superhero parody character – missing its antennas, Chapulin is the basis for Bumblebee Man in The Simpsons), El Chavo, La Chilindrina, and Quico.

The World’s Largest Bazooka Speaker

After some more walking around, we finally found the source of the loud music.

A lonely band, playing what sounded like Tex-Mex music, was on stage performing for virtually no one. And no surprise, since there were at least 25 SPEAKERS BLASTING MUSIC AT EAR-SPLITTING LEVELS. Speakers that were conveniently turned away from the band, who seemed oblivious to the loudness.

How those poor souls inside managed to sit through it for more than 10 seconds, I’ll never know. I guarantee you someone came out of there with a permanent hearing loss.

After being unable to take in more than the 15 seconds necessary to snap a couple of pics, we moved on to walk the streets and see what else was going on.

Che Needs a Haircut - San Juan La Laguna — When I think of a haircut, I don’t think scraggly-haired revolutionaries. But that’s just me.

Something I’ve had trouble with here in Guatemala is finding shoes, of any type, in my size (12.5US). Manufacturers here don’t have a need to produce them since it’s a rare size.

So imagine my excitement when I came across a store advertising American shoes.

The joy quickly disappeared, as I noticed that the merchandise was just haphazardly spread around the floor in a big pile. I did not feel like digging through a pile of used shoes to see if I got lucky finding a pair, so I moved on, disappointed. Didn’t even set foot in the store.

San Juan’s central plaza is not laid out in the typical fashion of Spanish towns. This is after all a semi-remote Mayan village. While the plaza was small and not in an apparently central location, the walls were at least freshly painted and the grounds very clean.

Located between the huge auditorium and facing away from the direction of the speakers, the plaza was as good as any place to enjoy the music.

Streets of San Juan La Laguna — The streets are in better shape than Antigua’s. It helps that vehicular transit is almost exclusively limited to tuk-tuks.

San Juan and San Pedro have the advantage of being connected to the Panamerican Highway (CA-1). Unfortunately, the shuttles that travel that road are few and far between, since safety seems to be mixed heading out to CA-1 from here.

The recommended option is to arrive at the lake via the well-traveled road to Panajachel and take a public launch to any of the villages around the lake.

A Brush With Danger?

Once we had our fill of San Juan, it was time to visit San Pedro La Laguna, the much more lively neighboring village.

There are two ways to travel between the two villages: by launch or by tuk-tuk.

Since we had already done the launch, we decided to go via tuk-tuk this time. We hired a nice, young man, who for 15Q drove us to San Pedro and pointed sights along the way.

One such place was Indian Head mountain, below. Popular with locals, they offer guided hikes for tourists as well.

Indian Head mountain is named so for its shape, though the politically correct name is “Mayan Face” – “Indian” is a slur, as the locals preferred to be referred to as “indigenous”. If you need a hint, the highest peak is the nose, eyes are to the left, mouth to the right. San Juan’s docks are at the left-center of the photo.

We caught a glimpse of San Pedro, which definitely seemed much bigger than San Juan. The big building towering above all? San Pedro’s Evangelical church.

The driver mentioned a lookout point, just past the entrance to San Pedro, on the road to Santiago Atitlan. This road is well known as holdup central, and it’s been said that anyone who travels it runs a 99% chance of being robbed.

If you look at it on Google Maps, it is a lonely, long stretch of road, meandering behind San Pedro Volcano. Which is why it’s recommended that anyone wishing to go to Santiago Atitlan from San Pedro, do so via launch.

The driver assured us the lookout point wasn’t very far in, and that we’d be ok to visit, take a few pictures, and return to San Pedro.

As we went past the entrance to San Pedro, towards the lookout point, I began to feel uneasy, since the road quickly became very desolate. It didn’t help matters when halfway up, we encountered a Police checkpoint.

The Police officer questioned the young man about where he was taking us. The young man stammered a bit and seemed at a loss for words. I had to step in and tell the Officer where we were going. Since the lookout point was supposedly only half a mile up the road, the officer reluctantly allowed us to continue.

At this point, the driver got eerily quiet. I was close to asking him to turn around when we reached the lookout point.

Just as the driver had said, the views above San Pedro were stunning.

Cool Soccer Field - San Pedro La Laguna — Best location I’ve ever seen for a soccer field.

By now I was on edge. I took a few pics while keeping one eye on the view, another on the tuk-tuk. I was there for less than a minute when we hurriedly came back down to San Pedro.

I didn’t relax until we hit town a few minutes later. Not totally sure how close, if ever, I was being the victim of a planned hold-up. The young man seemed nice, so I’d like to give him the benefit of the doubt.

San Pedro La Laguna, Lake Atitlan

The driver dropped us off in front of San Pedro’s main plaza.

The town was in full-swing, preparing for their own Patron Saint celebrations (Saint Peter), which were to occur right after San Juan’s celebrations ended.

The main plaza and church were definitely more picturesque than San Juan’s as well as more crowded.

The huge Evangelical church also towered over everything else in town. Even over Saint Peter’s giant, colorful statue.

San Pedro has a deserved reputation as a backpacker’s paradise due to its abundance of cheap lodging, flowing alcohol, and easy-to-acquire drugs. It seems the party never stops here.

Although to be fair, most of the action is concentrated at the establishments near the docks (San Pedro has two of them). The upper part of town is more family-oriented and quieter. It is also home to a large influx of expats and long-term vacationers.

San Pedro La Laguna Docks — The road to the launch dock.

Handcrafts for Sale - San Pedro La Laguna — Handcrafts for Sale – San Pedro La Laguna

Since we didn’t want to get caught by evil winds on the wrong side of the lake in the afternoon (read the first part to know what I’m referring to), we headed out to Panajachel in order to make it back to Antigua before nightfall.

San Pedro’s dock, below, showed signs of rising water levels. A platform had to be constructed to allow the public to pass on through to the shore.

San Pedro La Laguna Public Dock — Definitely one of the more crowded docks.

As we were waiting for the launch to depart, a roving “band” of street musicians played rollicking Spanish-rock songs for the crew and passengers. Great entertainment.

On the return trip, we saw more signs of rising water levels.

While I initially lusted after the lake’s houses, with their own docks near the lake, I gained a new appreciation for the houses higher up on the hills.

Tzununa Dock - Lake Atitlan — Docks for Tzununa. Too small to be a village, it’s more considered a hamlet.

A hotel that rivals Casa del Mundo in the views department is Lomas de Tzununa. While lacking in the charm department compared to Casa del Mundo, Lomas de Tzununa more than makes up for it in expansive lake views.

More beautiful houses… oh so close to the lake’s shore…

A hotel/restaurant well-worth checking out is Club Ven Aca, an oasis inside an oasis if you can imagine such a thing.

Club Ven Aca is right next to Casa del Mundo and it’s an excellent option for lunch or dinner (call ahead for the latter) no matter where you’re staying at on the lake.

Excellent food, reasonably-priced cocktails, and an infinity pool overlooking the lake, I’d be willing to drive from Antigua just to spend the day there.

And so ends a virtual tour of the lake and a small sample of what it has to offer.

Knowing what I know now about the water-level situation around the lake, it really makes me appreciate more the beauty of the surrounding areas. I can only hope that the situation is resolved without further loss of life or property.

It would really be a shame to lose such a pretty place, but as it’s been said, nature always goes to bat last.

♦♦♦♦♦

Have you been to Lake Atitlan?

Share below!