Our last day in Antigua was spent looking around the museums in our hotel and watching the grandest of wedding preparations take place for a candle lit event that evening. Our afternoon involved basking around the pool in the sunshine, liberally coated with factor 15.
We headed into town in the late afternoon not realising that the weather had changed dramatically and that as well as being cold, it was beginning to rain. Rather foolishly, we ploughed on without returning for the fleeces we've been carting around to date.
After aperitifs our reward was a table in the highly acclaimed, but tiny (7 tables) restaurant called Hectors. By now, it was not only cold and damp, but very dark and our table was in a small hallway with an open door next to it. No photographs available, due to security restriction on cameras in the dark. After sharing an excellent beef carpaccio, we each chose beef bourguiginon which turned out to be a steaming, hearty, rich bowlful - ideal for a cold night.
HJ then had the excellent idea of returning to our hotel, ordering night caps from room service and lighting our in-room log fire.
Having checked with reception that we could light the fire, HJ set to work with a box of matches, and we soon had a roaring blaze. The chink of our SB glasses was interrupted by a phone call saying that our smoke alarm had gone off and was everything OK. Having reassured them, RM threw on three more logs and refilled the glasses.
We set off the next morning for our next location, Santa Catarina Palopo on the shores of Lake Atitlan, and surrounded by three huge volcanoes (Guatemala has 34).
We stopped at a famous Sunday market at Chichicastenango which the local Maya people flock to from the surrounding areas. We visited Iglesia de Santo Tomas a local religious centre home to a faith that blends pr-Colombian and catholic rituals. We observed an ancient Maya woman on her knees lighting candles to the various gods and scattering the area with rose petals. Finally she sprinkled local rum on the petals as it is meant to aid the conversation with the gods.
The drive took us through extremely mountainous areas on twisting roads. Eventually we reached the lake to find that burning stubble not only ruined the views, but left black ash floating in the atmosphere.
A full day trip on the lake to neighbouring villages is planned for tomorrow.
We headed into town in the late afternoon not realising that the weather had changed dramatically and that as well as being cold, it was beginning to rain. Rather foolishly, we ploughed on without returning for the fleeces we've been carting around to date.
After aperitifs our reward was a table in the highly acclaimed, but tiny (7 tables) restaurant called Hectors. By now, it was not only cold and damp, but very dark and our table was in a small hallway with an open door next to it. No photographs available, due to security restriction on cameras in the dark. After sharing an excellent beef carpaccio, we each chose beef bourguiginon which turned out to be a steaming, hearty, rich bowlful - ideal for a cold night.
HJ then had the excellent idea of returning to our hotel, ordering night caps from room service and lighting our in-room log fire.
Having checked with reception that we could light the fire, HJ set to work with a box of matches, and we soon had a roaring blaze. The chink of our SB glasses was interrupted by a phone call saying that our smoke alarm had gone off and was everything OK. Having reassured them, RM threw on three more logs and refilled the glasses.
We set off the next morning for our next location, Santa Catarina Palopo on the shores of Lake Atitlan, and surrounded by three huge volcanoes (Guatemala has 34).
We stopped at a famous Sunday market at Chichicastenango which the local Maya people flock to from the surrounding areas. We visited Iglesia de Santo Tomas a local religious centre home to a faith that blends pr-Colombian and catholic rituals. We observed an ancient Maya woman on her knees lighting candles to the various gods and scattering the area with rose petals. Finally she sprinkled local rum on the petals as it is meant to aid the conversation with the gods.
The drive took us through extremely mountainous areas on twisting roads. Eventually we reached the lake to find that burning stubble not only ruined the views, but left black ash floating in the atmosphere.
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| How many times can you say you can see three volcanoes from your bed |
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