About Guatemala

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Casa Ati & Jack’s Cafe

Published at September 2nd, 2008 in Atitlan and Cafes.2 Comments

Casa Ati & Jack's Cafe
A few months ago, the cultural magazine Revista Ati and Jack’s Cafe join efforts in order to bring a different proposal to Panajachel. This proposal made Jack’s Cafe the art central at lake Atitlan, with different activities everyday going from live music by several local bands, to puppets theater, poetry and Guatemalan films among others things. Casa Ati/Jack’s Cafe is located in Calle de los Arboles.

This place also offers a nice variety of drinks and food at a really reasonable prices. Definitely a place you should not miss while you visit the most beautiful lake in the world. Casa Ati/Jack’s Cafe is located in Calle de los Arboles really close to Santander Street.

Revista Ati organize as well every 2 months “El Festivalito”, a small cultural festival that brings together the best artist of the region and the country. To check the dates, places and activities of El Festivalito, check the calendar event in “Revista Ati”.

The following video is from a concert that took place last march. The Cuban song/writer Michel Peraza sings V.I.P, part of the soundtrack of the movie with the same name, one of the last Guatemalan films released. And I know… the image sucks.

Hostal El Portal (Semuc Champey)

Published at September 1st, 2008 in Verapaces and Hostels.23 Comments

Hostal El Portal
El Portal opened about a year ago, is located just 50 meters away from Semuc Champey. The Hostel is clean and they have a pretty good menu, offers different activities and counts with a really nice staff.

The dorms in the second floor are just Q35 per person and they have the best view you could ever find in hotels around this area, a really romantic budget getaway. The Dorms in the first floor cost Q40 per person and you can get a private room with enough space for 4 or 5 people for Q200. They also rent you space for tents in case you have your own, and would like to save a few Q’s.

El Portal is owned by Lico, a local guy that for many years worked as a guide in this area, which makes him the perfect person to talk about the different activities you can do around here. He actually sow different local plants around the hostel area, and every day in the afternoon when guests ask him, he takes them in a small tour where you can see plants of Cacao (in case you always wonder from where where chocolate came from), Copal three, Pineapple or Cardamom among other things.

His Wife actually makes home made chocolate, and if you are lucky enough and you stay for more than a day, she even might show you how to make it yourself.

Among the different activities you can do are: visiting Semuc Champey, Tubing trough the Cahabon river or visit the caves of Kan Ba.

Semuc Champey is one of the most beautiful places in Guatemala and Central America, and El Portal is a great option to enjoy of it.

El Sapo y la Rana

Published at August 28th, 2008 in Restaurants and Antigua.4 Comments

Giant Pupusas
The Toad and the Frog might sound like the name of a British pub butthat is not case in Antigua Guatemala. ¨El Sapo y la Rana¨ is a small dinning room on Santa Lucia street, and even it might not seem anything special, it really is.

Walking in Antigua one day, I turned my head to this small dinning room and saw a lady making a 14¨ tortilla, so out of curiosity I stopped and ask her what she was doing? She told me she was making a Pupusa, which is a tortilla filled with melted cheese and different ingredients with a cabbage salad on the top. My surprise was not the pupusa itself, but the size she was making it so I decided to sit and try one.

After I sit the lady lend me the menu so I could choose the 3 ingredients I wanted and imagine my surprise when I saw that I actually asked for the medium size pupusa. Yes, they have them even bigger, a 18 inches pupusa and you can put 4 different ingredients, so I could not resist temptation and changed my order.

They have some other things in the Menu, but after I saw and tried my first Pupusa I never looked to the menu again but to see which ingredients I will put in there. The medium one cost Q20 and the big one Q30, and it worth every single cent. They also made a delicious salvadorian Horchata, perfect to join your giant pupusa.

El Sapo y la Rana is on the north side of Santa Lucia Street, right next to the hotel Pasabien II. They also made a delicious salvadorian Horchata so do’nt miss is neither.

One of Antigua’s best kept secrets.

Euros & Mexican Pesos to Quetzales

Published at August 26th, 2008 in Tips.No Comments

Euro
I decided to write this post because I met a couple of travelers the other day in Guatemala City who were having some troubles finding a place where to change Euros to Quetzales.

They manage to make it all the way to the City from Flores since there is couple of places around who will take Euros (try in restaurants or hotels), but the problem with this places is that they will give you a bad exchange rate, in some places they even will just pay you around Q8 per 1 Euro.

Banco Uno is the only bank in Guatemala who will take them, and even the rate is not the best it is not so bad either. If you buy quetzales, they will pay you Q10.20 per 1 Euro.

The Central Bank offices are located in Boulevard Los Proceres Edificio Unicentro Zone 10, just a few minutes away from the airport by taxi in case you just arrived and would like to exchange money. And if you are staying in one of the hotels located in Zone 10 (Zona Viva) just ask for directions because you can reach the bank by a few minutes walk.

Also, if you happend to have Mexican Pesos and not really planning to head back in that direction, you can get rid of them in Banco Uno as well. The exchange rate is about Q0.60 per 1 mexican peso.

But keep in mind you can save a lot of troubles if you just bring american dollars

Hope this post is helpful for you, and have a great time in Guatemala.

Posada Belen Museo Inn

Published at August 25th, 2008 in Hotels and Guatemala City.No Comments

Posada Belen Museo Inn is One of the most authentic XIX century style Inns in the historic center of Guatemala city. Built 1873 and opened in 1973 has become for many reasons one of the best options during your stay in Guatemala.

The rooms, spacious and beautiful decorated, count with a safe deposit box where you can leave all your values while you go out to explore the city. And if you have doubts about going out on your own, the staff can arrange a guided tour trough museums, the relief map and other interesting spots you don’t want to miss.

They count as well with a computer with internet access and provide Wi-Fi service in case you bring your laptop.

One of the things I enjoyed the most while staying in Posada Belen Museo Inn was spending time in the dining room, where you can enjoy of a relaxed atmosphere while read a book and listen to Marimba music in the background, or drink a delicious coffee from the highlands in Huehuetenango and observe the marvelous collection of Mayan ceramic vasels they have, or check out one of the famous paintings from San Juan Comalapa decorating the walls.

And if you need help about where to go and what to do in Guatemala, they can provide you with tons of information and even help you booking tours, transfers or hotels trough their Tour Operator:

There is different options and prices according to your needs, starting at $39 for a single room or $45 with breakfast included. Doubles are $49 or $60 with breakfast, and if you need there is Triple and Quadruple rooms. The meals have a price of $5.50 for continental breakfast and $15 for lunch or dinner. There is vegetarian meals as well, and they will pretty much adapt to your needs.

I hope you enjoy your time in Posada Belen as much as I did. Happy Travels

Acatenango

Published at August 20th, 2008 in Activities and Volcanoes.One Comment

Acatenango Volcano

With a summit elevation of 3,976 m Acatenango Volcano is one of the highest peaks in Guatemala and Central America. It will provide the experience hiker one of the nicest hikes of the area and those who are not used to hike even they might find it difficult at some points, it will worth every step to the top (I promise).

Perhaps a lot of you people climb Pacaya already while you were in Guatemala, so if you think is going to be as easy or there will be horses to take you to the top in case you get tired you are totally wrong. Pacaya is a walk in the park compare to Acatenango and you definitely will need a guide there.

I would divided the hike in 4 stages, been the first part one of most difficult with lots of volcanic sand that makes every step exhausting. My friend saw me having a hard time here and lend me one of his walking sticks and it made wonders, so if you are doing this trip make sure to bring yours since they will help a lot. The second part is the easiest one, with some trails that makes things much more easier so take your time and enjoy the view. The part that follows is a bit more difficult, and it will lead you to the top of the first peak and once you do it you will be one hour away from your goal. Also, take at least 20 minutes once you reach the final stage of this part since the view is already breathtaking and if you have nice weather with no clouds you will be able to see almost all Guatemala from here already. The final part is only an hour, but it will be the most difficult one, with a lot of sand like the first stage but add more inclination and altitude.

It took me and my friends to reach the top in 7 hours, we were exhausted, dirty but with a big smile in our faces. We just lay down there, feeling the burning sun in our faces and watching Fuego Volcano right in front of us while we ate the rest of our food… that we deserved so much.

But then happiness suddenly fades away when you remember you still have to get down and don’t think it would be easy, after 7 hours of hiking the muscles will feel every step down as well.

Without a doubt one of the best things I ever done in Guatemala, and looking forward for more experiences like this.

The sad part is since I done it, I heard there is been some safety issues in Acatenango. If you would like to do this make sure to do it with a travel agency and ask what is the situation on the time been.

Casa Perico

Published at August 14th, 2008 in Hostels.3 Comments

In a last minute call we went to Casa Perico… 5 minutes later after arriving I was regretting it thanks to some vicious over sized mosquitoes that were eating me alive, and 48 hours later I was asking for job openings at this place which without a doubt is one of my favorites hostels in Guatemala.

After killing a few dozen mosquitoes and borrow a bottle of deet I decided to give this place a chance. It was the final leg of my trip trough Guatemala and Belize, so I was looking forward to relax, to rest after so many bus and boat rides, to have some time to finish that book I started long time ago… just wanted to bee lazy… and this was the perfect place for it and more.

But is not just a place to be lazy, they have kayaks for the guests to use for free. You can go either to paddle a bit trough rio dulce or head to the plataform not far away from the hostel where you can enjoy of a good swimm.

It is also a great place to meet other people and travel buddies if you are looking for one. I spend hours and hours having nice chats not only with the guests but with some of the cool swiss owners of Casa Perico that you will find behind the bar most of the times always ready to help you with anything you need.

The whole place is just beautiful, you can get beds in the dorms for Q40 or private rooms for Q45, both with shared bathrooms. They have one hot shower and one cold, and believe it or not the hot shower is just too much, I doubt anybody can take it… great for those who complained during your trip trough Guatemala about not finding really hot showers . And if you are looking for more privacy you can get one of the nice Bungalows for Q200 per person.

Casa Perico works with the trust system, that means that you will pay everything on the check out, so make sure you have enough money when you arrived in case you are not planning any trips to town, because even the they offer you a free ride when they pick you up and you check out to Rio Dulce, any extra trip by boat will cost Q20 both ways. They can also arrange a boat to pick you up in case you are heading to Livingston for Q100.

Last but not less important (at least for me), they have a book exchange which is perfect if you are going to spend a few days here, since you will have lots of time to read.

Ohh, I almost forget. To get there if you are coming by boat from Livingston just tell your boat driver to drop you in Cas Perico and if you arrive to Rio Dulce by bus then just go to any of the restaurants like Bruno’s or Sunset and ask them kindly to call Casa Perico by radio to pick you up.

Enjoy your time at Casa Perico and let me know if heard about any job vacancies….

Guatemala City trough a Music Video

Published at August 13th, 2008 in Guatemala City and Videos.4 Comments

The Wave Pictures, Just Like A Drummer from RadarMusicVideos on Vimeo.

Guatemala City is that place most travelers want to avoid, some say is ugly, others just say is not really Guatemala, but the truth is a really interesting place to discover, with amazing characters telling a story in every corner.

I found this music video the other day, and those who’s been in Guatemala City will recognize a lot of the places where it was filmed. Filmed in Zone 1 and Zone 2 it shows up places like the Central Park, The small amusement park in the relief map, Mercado Sur and the 6th avenue to mention a few places. It shows a bit of those characters I mention above, from the jewelery guy in el portal to the hot dog (Shukos) guy on the street.

I decided to share this video with all of you for two reasons, one because I think visually it represents Guatemala City very well, and two because if you been in this places I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Directed by Eduardo Benchoam
Productora Colectiva
www.colectiva.tv/colectiva1.htm