One week in Guatemala

The question is probably not so difficult to answer, if you have read the title 🙃 maybe you also wondered: "1 week for Guatemala? Such a big country?" - my answer: "No." - but at least I got to know the region around Antigua Guatemala a bit and I'm sure it won't be the last time I'm there xii :-)

When I landed, I took a shared taxi from the airport to Antigua Guatemala to the hostel "Big Foot". My colleague Luana, whom I met in Sámara, was already there with her colleague Tina, waiting for me.

They had discovered a Swiss restaurant the night before, where they had gone to eat a delicious cheese fondue together.

This gave Luana and me the idea to open a Swiss hut with fondue and other specialties in Sámara. The business plan is almost ready, we just need a few sponsors 😉

The next day we explored Antigua Guatemala a bit. It has a beautiful old town with beautiful houses, market shops, a park, etc.

Afterwards, we walked up a small hill for about half an hour, and from there we had a wonderful view of Antigua and the "Volcán de Agua".

For the next day, we booked a tour to the "Volcán Acatenango". It is over 3,900 meters high, but since Antigua is already at about 1,500 meters and we can also drive part of the way by car, we trusted ourselves to do the hike.

We got up motivated in the morning and started around 7:30 am after breakfast. We had to carry everything we needed for the 2 days (including overnight in a tent): enough drinks, food, warm clothes, etc. So we had to carry about 8-10kg on our backs.

As soon as the car dropped us off, it started going uphill. I realized from the beginning that it wouldn't be easy for me (those who know me know that I don't do that much sports every day 🤪).

But since we took a break every 30 minutes and I always listened to good reggaeton music, it was doable for me too 😉.

The hike was very steep and exhausting xii, but the beautiful view was definitely worth it xii.

After 5 hours, we finally arrived at our camp, completely exhausted, but also happy and somehow proud that we made it.

Unfortunately, the comfort and tranquility didn't last long and when I closed my eyes for a moment, everything started spinning and I felt really dizzy. At first, I thought it was just because of the effort, but after a few minutes when it didn't get any better, I asked the guide for medication. Unfortunately, he was a bit late with it and I had to overcome it in the meantime. This continued throughout the evening and I couldn't even hold a sip of water. It turned out to be a kind of altitude sickness, which actually starts as soon as you arrive up there and doesn't stop until you go a bit lower again 🙈 I had never heard of this sickness before, but apparently it can happen to anyone, even if you are used to the altitude (our guide had experienced it before).

In any case, I unfortunately couldn't really enjoy the fantastic view of the volcano, but I'm glad that Luana was able to take some beautiful photos 🤗.

As soon as the sun went down, it got really cold (up to -3 degrees ☃️). Since I couldn't hold any fluids or food (I didn't even dare to try 😅), I was even colder. So I went into the tent pretty early, wrapped myself in 3 different sleeping bags/blankets and used a protective foil from the Trance (it probably saved my life 😍). With time, it got somewhat warmer and I didn't have to vomit anymore (what a relief 🙈), but then it started with Tina. She actually spent the whole night outside the tent, even though I suspect she might have had some food poisoning (it started at night).

In any case, this was one of the worst and longest nights of my life xii and I could hardly wait for morning to come.

The night before, I had already decided that I wouldn't be able to walk down with all the luggage and I therefore hired a horse. I shared this with Tina and we took turns riding and walking. At least when we were walking, we could put the backpack on the horse and only carry our own weight. After 2-3 hours, we finally reached the parking lot and I was so relieved to have "solid ground" under my feet again. No one will ever get me up such a high volcano that quickly again, and if they do, only with appropriate medication 🙈.

The next day, we practically stayed in the hostel in Antigua and recovered from all the exertion. Finally, I could also drink some fluids and eat something and slowly regain my strength.

The day after, we took the bus to "Lago de Atitlán" (about 4 hours from Antigua). There we stayed in "San Pedro", a charming backpacker village right on the lake.

It is really small and manageable with one main street for tourists. There is everything you need: delicious restaurants, bars, shops, hostels. We stayed at "Casa Roberto" hostel, it's simple but totally okay.

We spent the day at "Playa Cristalina" by tuk-tuk. Although "Playa" is a little exaggerated here too, but it was enough for some sunbathing and reading.

Luana and Tina already went back to Antigua the next day because they wanted to continue to Nicaragua. I stayed one day longer and visited "San Marcos" on the other side of the lake. It's another small village, especially popular with ultra-hippies ;-)

On Sunday - aka today - I took the bus to Chichicastenango Market. It takes place twice a week (always on Thursdays and Sundays) and is very popular with both locals and tourists.

It's bustling with colorful, vibrant things and you can hardly get enough of watching. However, when you want to buy something, it is absolutely necessary to haggle. I noticed that they asked for completely ridiculous prices. For example, he initially wanted over 500 Quetzales (about $60) for a large, white, knitted hammock. After a long negotiation, we agreed on 170 Quetzales (about $20), which is also enough 😅. But at least I have a piece of Guatemala at home 🤗.

After about 5 hours at the market, we were picked up by the bus and taken back to Antigua. That's where I am now, in the "Big Foot" hostel, writing the blog post for the second time, because my phone crashed before and deleted everything (grrr 😡).

In any case, I hope you enjoyed reading my stories :-) until next time 🙋🏼‍♀️