People need routines (at least I do)

I'm getting careless when it comes to my blog.😅 Actually, it's because I haven't done too much in the last few days. I was in San Pedro until today (03/04/24) and just enjoyed it. It was just good not to have planned anything. Get up, do sports, shower and have breakfast every day. I was somehow missing the routine and I was able to live out that for a few days. Just not driving anywhere, not worrying about the next city, but just living a “normal” life. I also had a "single room", actually it was a tent, for just under €8 and I just enjoyed that. Most recently, apart from the hostel in Santa Cruz where I was the only guest, I had this in Oaxaca, my second place on the trip. Just being able to relax and spread your stuff out as you please, sleep when you want and not have to take others into consideration is what you need sometimes.

Of course I wasn't idle either, I went kayaking a few times or looked at other places around the lake. One day (02/28/24) I was in San Juan, a neighboring town of San Pedro that is within walking distance. I was already there when we came back from the hike, but it was only for a short time. So I strolled along and had dinner in a good comedor. By the way, comedores are my absolute favorite here in Guatemala, a healthy and wholesome lunch with a drink for around €3, simply perfect.

The nature around the lake is breathtaking, several volcanoes and many mountains, the only problem is the bandits who occasionally attack tourists. I don't know how often this happens, but the locals warn against going up without a guide/alone. Of course you can get up there without a cell phone and just a little money, but it wasn't worth the risk to me. So I decided to just take a short hike from one place to another. The Lower Mayan Trail went from Santa Cruz la Laguna to San Marcos. Since robberies occasionally happen here too, I only brought my old cell phone with me so I could use Google Maps to find my way if necessary. Of course, I didn't mark the start of the hike because, according to a blog, it's "easy to find." After walking around for 50 minutes and asking several locals, I was shown the entrance. Ultimately, I could have been on the way after 5 minutes, but that would be boring... Since there was nothing signposted, I had to roughly orientate myself along the lake. At some point I thought I was lost, but luckily I met a French couple who had directions on their cell phones. So I joined them and the three of us walked the path. It wasn't a crazy hiking trail, you only had a good view for 20 minutes, the rest of the time was pretty mediocre. But you feel productive and I also wanted to explore San Marcos. A "hippie village" by the lake, I expected a lot from it but I didn't think it was particularly great. It's interesting that the tourist scene has developed so much there, many vegan restaurants, superfoods, yoga workshops, "natural products" and much more. But everything was just super expensive and somehow artificial, even the otherwise cheap Comedore were all €5 without a drink and I don't need to start with the vegan restaurants. If you have the necessary money and are into the stuff, you're in good hands there. But I didn't find it authentic and the tourist scene was too extreme for me. It was still interesting to take a look. At around 2 p.m. we drove back, the two of us to San Juan and I to San Pedro.

The next day (03/01/24) I went with Max the Frenchman to another city, Santiago Atitlán. We wanted to take a boat at 1:30 p.m., but since we were in different cities and I don't have internet, we just had to hope that the other one could make it. I was still sitting in the Comedor at 1:20 p.m. and suddenly looked up from my watch in a panic... sprinted to the hostel with a full stomach, grabbed my things and then ran to the dock 1:29 p.m., not bad. I was told "No boats to Santiago" so I had to go to a dock at the other end of town. Since it is a small town, I was there less than 10 minutes later and was able to jump straight into the boat and then wait another 15 minutes until the boat was full to leave. In Santiago I looked in vain for Max. After waiting for 40 minutes I then started asking people about hotspot to ask him where he was. But then the boat came with him on it. He had to take a TukTuk to San Pedro and then wait for the next boat...of course I didn't know anything about it without the internet. Well, the reason we were in Santiago now was Maximon. Don't ask me how Max decided to visit him. It's a smoking and drinking saint who can rid you of just about anything, unemployment, relationship problems or epilepsy. Every year the location of the saint changes to a different house in Santiago. A room there is always completely decorated with Maximon and various other dolls as well as lots of incense. There are always two men sitting next to Maximon, traditionally dressed, who have been given permission by Maximon to drink all day long. Entry costs €0.6 and taking photos costs twice as much (that's why there won't be any photos from me, but you can see them on the internet). So two drunk men sit there next to a doll for a year and locals and tourists come in every day to look at it and use it to finance their alcohol? Exactly!

After this spectacle we walked through the city and it is much more authentic there. Even the men wear traditional clothing, otherwise only the women and in general we were almost the only tourists there. Very nice in any case.

The next two days weren't really spectacular, they were just everyday life.

Today we went to Antigua, my last stop in Guatemala. The journey went a little differently than I expected but the people are all very helpful and always show you which bus you have to change to. But since the next bus was waiting for the previous bus, there was no time for a pee break. The journey was supposed to take another 2 hours and the jerking of the bus didn't exactly help my bladder. When paying, I asked if we would take a break first. He said something I didn't understand and went back to the front. Another 20 minutes passed with just one thought until we stopped on the road and I was waved forward. In the middle of the street, with a small supermarket behind me and the bus in front of me, I should pee...😂 Different countries, different customs or as the saying goes? I'm not proud of it but it was necessary😅.

When I arrived in Antigua, I first had to buy something to eat and walk around a bit. My first impression is too touristy, tons of souvenir shops and everyone is selling you something. I don't like it that much but maybe that will change tomorrow.

I'll be on a meditation retreat for a few days starting Wednesday, so the next post will be a little later.