Good bye Guatemala!

Thursday was the day to say goodbye. Goodbye to Hostel Tropicana, goodbye to Antigua, and also goodbye to Guatemala. Furthermore, my paths diverged from Andy's, who continued on to El Salvador on Friday morning.

Tropicana was a perfectly organized party hostel with a pool, two bars, entertainment program, happy hour until 6 p.m., and commercial excursions. Our dormitory accommodated five triple bunk beds. The farewell was easy.

We paid a final tribute to Antigua by having breakfast at the most beautiful McDonald's. Behind thick walls, the guest opens up to a courtyard reminiscent of past times, with a fountain, arcades, and landscaped garden, along with a fantastic view of Volcano de Aqua.

The farewell from Guatemala was a bit bumpier. On Friday morning, I took the ordered taxi. Without traffic jams or roadblocks, I reached the airport well ahead of time and enjoyed a last Guatemalan breakfast. Then the security check. I was asked to surrender my nail scissors. The scissors with rounded blades have never been objected to before. Ridiculous, I wanted to demonstrate to the security officer that this blunt pair of scissors posed no danger by attempting to hurt myself with them. Both attempts were in vain. The same fate befell my two lighters.

I already hated airports before ... enclosed spaces clad in glass, overpriced endless shopping passages, coffee at astronomical prices, the apparent arbitrariness of the security staff, full body scanners, belts hastily undone, pants sliding down, the humiliation of even elderly ladies tiptoeing through the lanes barefoot and having to empty their toiletries in front of ignorant strangers afterwards... not to mention border controls and so-called racial profiling.

What followed was the boarding for my flight via Panama City to Bogota. I felt well prepared. My vaccination status was sufficient for entry, Panama itself did not require a triple vaccination until Sunday, and transit travelers were not affected anyway. Furthermore, I had duly registered with the Colombian Immigration Authority. Then the question about my outbound flight ticket... excuse me?

Colombia required proof that I would also leave the country by air. Traveling by land or water was not an option. The tickets can also be cancelable. The friendly airline employee pointed out that I had ten minutes to book an online ticket. Result: 120,- for a changeable flight to Lima in March. Airports, the ninth circle of hell.

My short stay at Panama City Airport did not change this assessment in the slightest. Long corridors, plenty of space for shops, hardly any space for travelers with luggage, who were just a nuisance here, few seats, free internet for 30 minutes... in 2022.

Three hours later, approach to El Dorado Airport (not a joke!) in Bogota. One hour of queuing for my entry stamp, followed by the brief question about the reason for my stay, tourism, and the day had reached its destination.

Biographical information about Panama:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_Noriega