Shanta left South America shortly after Uruguay and took off to Neera's bachelorette party in Mexico. I stuck around Buenos Aires for another week with Juli and her sister Orne. We hopped on a bus to Rosario, about five hours away from the capital. Rosario is a somewhat rough city, but we had fun and it was a great end to my portion of South America.
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| Shanta making an appearance in Rosario |
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| The culmination of Neera's bachelorette party in Mexico |
Seven months after arriving in Colombia, I left South America and flew to Guatemala. A half-day flight to Guatemala brought sunny skies and much less humidity than BsAs. I meandered around the capital for a few hours, and quickly became 'homesick' from what I was used to in Argentina. My first reaction was that the city had little to see, was dirty, and seemed dangerous. After this initial reaction, I quickly realized what was beneath this layer: nice and hospitable people, great food, cheap prices, and clean Spanish. Shanta arrived later that day, and we checked into a hostel and planned out the rest of the trip.
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| Plaza Mayor |
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| Catedral |
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| Another view |
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| The sky was turning quickly |
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| Shanta trying on a native dress |
We had two weeks to spend in this exciting country, and we weren't going to waste a minute. We spent one day in Guatemala City, then took a 30-minute ride to the small city of Antigua. After three days in Antigua, we took a quick drive to the small town of San Pedro on Laguna Atitlán. Both places were amazing. Antigua has a touristic feel but amazing architecture and you can tell the government tries hard to keep its authentic feel. San Pedro was a lazy little town on the shores of Lake Atitán. We rented kayaks, jumped in the water, and hung out at the restaurants overlooking the water. We spent an afternoon at one particular bar a story above the lake. There was a sunny deck with an opening in the railing where people could jump into the water. We had a beer, jumped in the water, ate some food, and repeated the cycle again and again.
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| On the school bus to Antigua |
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| Church in Antigua |
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| Volcan Atitlan |
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| Super cheap, extremely tasty Guatemalan breakfast |
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| Señorita bonita |
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| Entryway to Antigua, built by the Spanish |
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| Rooftop restaurant |
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| Reminds us of Cartagena |
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| Awesome market for cheap, touristy trinkets |
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| On an old converted school bus to Lake Atitlan |
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| Kayaking around with our new friend who jumped onboard |
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| Hanging out at our restaurant with a view |
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| It also has a spot to jump off of! |
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| View from the dock |
After relaxing for a few days on the lake, we took an overnight bus up north to Tikal. Tikal is famous for being the capital of the Mayan empire, however it was not discovered until the 19th century. It was a massive complex with impressive temples and a maze of walkways. It was hard to imagine an entire capital city filled with people and life as we walked through with only a handful of tourists. We left Tikal after a day of exploring and headed to the serene land of Semuc Champey. The bus ride was long but well worth it. The highlight is a set of waterfalls connecting crystal clear pools a few miles outside of the town. We spent hours swimming in the cool water and finally using our underwater camera for its intended purpose.
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| One last picture before home |
<3 Kisses, Phill!
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