2005
2/27
Traveling in Guatemala makes Mexico feel like a trip to Disneyland. There’s no point in having an itinerary because there is little structure here. After my scenic riverboat journey across the border, I hopped on a chicken bus to Tikal to explore the Mayan ruins hidden deep in the Guatemalan jungle. I arrived just in time to reserve the very last hammock and mosquito net, then took off to the ruins to watch the sun setting over the ancient temples.
Sleeping on a hammock in the middle of the jungle sounded so exotic, but it sucked. Hammocks are meant for napping, not sleeping.. And to add to the pain, my hammock was sandwiched in between two stinky hippies, one of which was constantly interrupting the soothing sounds of the jungle, with his trumpeting gas! I laid awake all night, begging the sun to show its face and put an end to my nightmare.
After climbing the ruins, I took a chicken bus to Flores, a tiny lake island a few hours from Tikal. Flores is beautiful but boring. I walked around the island a couple times, watched the sunset with a mojito, and was ready to move on. There was supposed to be a bus leaving in the morning at 7am for Coban, turquoise lagoons a few hours from Flores, but when I tried to book my ticket, the slimy English speaking agent told me that there would be no buses to Coban for a few days because a tourist was murdered on one of the buses a couple days ago. He said my best option was to take the night bus to Antigua, leaving at 11pm (Antigua is 7-8 hours from Flores). I was extremely hesitant because night buses are usually a NO NO in Central America, but he assured me that the 1st class buses have security.. so I bought the ticket.
The Santa Elena bus station was disgusting.. almost as disgusting as the night bus. 1st class my ass!! It was one step above a chicken bus. My assigned seat was in the back sitting with all the barrachos (drunk men), including the barracho sitting next to me who was still drinking mescal out of a brown paper bag. I could feel the panic coming on. How did I end up on a night bus, surrounded by drunkards.
My neighbor dosed off shortly after finishing the mescal. During his drunken slumber, his hand accidentally ended up on my leg. I shoved him so hard, if it weren’t for the armrest, he would have surely fallen into the aisle.
The rest of the ride went smoothly, actually smoothly isn’t the right word for a 7 hour bus ride on unpaved roads. But I arrived in Antigua as the sun was rising and discovered that it was worth every painful moment of the night bus. What a spectacular city!
3/2
I climbed an active volcano today! The first few hours of the climb were fairly easy and very scenic. Then suddenly it became very difficult. The last hour was climbing lava rock and ash. With every step up, I felt like I was sliding two steps back. Everyone had to wear face masks in order to breathe because of the constant clouds of sulfur combined with howling winds. I could barely see the person in front of me. Every 3 minutes I had to stop, just to breathe and close my eyes for a moment. As we got closer to the top, the ground was smoking and the air temperature rising. Once we reached the summit, we were able to see red lava bursting from the top (which I took photos of). Stunning!!! But a little too close for comfort. I was happy when it was time to head down. The descent was a lot like skiing down a black mountain.. until I fell on the sharp lava rocks. Ouch.