What we miss from Guatemala

So this will not be difficult now to describe what we miss from Guatemala. We miss Guatemala. Point. End. Finished.

…

…

…

Yes really. You don’t have to read any further. Nothing more comes. We miss Guatemala.

OK, so a little more detail then. So… when we crossed the border, up at Melchor de Menos (already in Guatemala), we didn’t find the little town to be very intoxicating. Why? It’s not pretty. We then drove to Laguna de Yaxha and spent the night there at the lake. Läck… this view of the lake. The sunset fabulous (see cover picture).

What we miss from Guatemala

Again… I’ll keep it short. We miss Guate. 🙂 Guate is short for Guatemala and even the locals use it that way. So let’s do that too. The forests around Laguna de Yaxha are deep green. So there is plenty of water here. We also visited the ruins of Yaxhaalthough everything was closed. So locked because already closing time when we arrived. But we asked the military, who guard the access to the park, where we could spend the night. Then, after a little discussion among themselves, they told us that we could spend the night in their parking lot on the condition that we do not leave the vehicle at night. And the lieutenant was not concerned that the night guard might accidentally shoot us, but that there would be many poisonous snakes. OK – with a heavy heart we comply with the condition not to leave the vehicle at night. Who wants to enter into a toxic encounter. There are enough toxic encounters in life than you need more of. 😉

The green state Peten

Yes, the state of Peten is very green. It is also the northernmost state and the largest in Guate. Geologically, it is part of the limestone plate of the Yucatan Peninsula and is perhaps the most important Mayan center. The ruined city of Tikal is also breathtaking. We left very early – around 7 a.m. – and had the whole city to ourselves for about an hour. And it is definitely worth it.

We miss the colors

Guatemala is colorful – and how. Even the cemeteries are colored. The graves or family tombs are sometimes very large and each of these resting places is painted in one color. The traditional dresses of the Guatemalans are also colorful. This gives a nice mood and brightens the mind. Even the buses are not simply painted in the cantonal colors as in Switzerland, but are basically works of art.

Conclusion

We really enjoyed Guatemala enormously. Yes, there are dangerous areas that should be avoided. But where are there no dangerous areas today? Even the USA makes headlines again and again because of rampages or in Switzerland deaths are counted because of criminal acts. We especially liked the region around Rio Dulce. We spent an even 2 months there. Maybe also because we met so many great people from all over the world. Sailors, to be precise. We had a great time with Brigitte and Kurt and we want to keep in touch with them. We also had great conversations with Heike and Herwig and always had a lot to laugh about. The proximity to the water and the green surroundings also had their effect on us.