As I’ve illustrated in some past horror stories, long-term travel isn’t all glitz and glamour. Some days you’re riding high: you get a free bus ride, you meet some amazing locals and have amazing conversation, you grab the last tour time at a popular site before it closes, and you Read more…
San Francisco el Alto is perched high on a hilltop roughly forty five minutes outside of Quetzaltenango (Xela) in Western Guatemala. This remote little town is home to one of the largest weekly markets in Guatemala. Unlike the popular market at Chichicastenango, the San Francisco el Alto market isn’t designed Read more…
After ten days of studying Spanish and exploring villages around Lake Atitlan, Michael and I were ready to slow down for a few days. Luckily, our schedule presented us with the perfect opportunity: five days in cool, mountainous Quetzaltenango, a city perched high in the mountains of Western Guatemala. That’s Read more…
Santiago Atitlan is the largest city on the banks of the famous Lake Atitlan in Western Guatemala. It has a large, thriving Mayan community and is significantly less touristy than most of the other Atitlan villages. However, it is a destination famous for one sight in particular: Maximon. Maximon (pronounced Read more…
The next stop on our tour of Guatemala was a long one: a full week of Spanish lessons in San Pedro la Laguna. San Pedro la Laguna is one of the larger towns on the banks of the mystical Lake Atitlan and serves as the busiest backpacker hub in the Read more…