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Rio Dulce, Guatemala

by Brian on April 4, 2012 in Central America, Guatemala, Travel

After spending a bit too much time in the cities of Antigua and Panajachel, we were excited to get a couple of days on the tranquil Rio Dulce. We stayed in the wonderful Tortugal Hotel and Marina, where even the resident cats had bungalows.

We spent most of our time here lounging about and relaxing. We skipped visiting the nearby hot springs and local waterfall, feeling too lazy to put much effort into getting out and about. We did rouse ourselves enough to kayak down to Castillo San Felipe, a defensive fort built by the Spanish in the 1500s to combat local pirate activity.

Seeing the boats in Tortugal’s marina got us thinking again about the next leg of our journey. We’re drawn to the idea of sailing the seven seas, even if we currently know less about boating than we did about RVing when we set out. The thought of getting ourselves prepared for that kind of trip was more taxing than our mood allowed. Instead we just to watched the boats drift by, dreamed a little, and saved the details for another day.

Lake Atitlan, Guatemala

by Brian on April 2, 2012 in Central America, Guatemala, Travel

Commentary outsourced to Aldous Huxley:

Italy’s “lake Como, it seems to me, touches the limit of the permissibly picturesque; but Atitlan is Como with the additional embellishment of several immense volcanoes. It is really too much of a good thing.“

The Flavor of Culture

by Brian on March 30, 2012 in Central America, Food & Drink, Guatemala, Travel

el Frijol Feliz, Cooking Class, Antigua, Guatemala

Chef "Gaby" looks disaprovingly at Brian's cooking technique

For the adventuresome, food is the most accessible part of any culture – and the most enjoyable too. History and language tell us many things, but nothing else lets us participate in the daily lives of a people the way their cuisine does.

As travelers we usually find ourselves as outsiders looking in. Eating a local meal and drinking the local drink brings us inside the tent. In food, there is no language barrier to separate us. Our experiences: the flavors, aromas, and textures are identical. Understanding is immediate. In those brief moments, we are locals.

Antigua, Guatemala

by Brian on March 28, 2012 in Central America, Guatemala, Travel

Established in the 16th Century as the capitol of the Spanish colonial government for the Kingdom of Guatemala, which at the time included much of present-day Central America, Antigua is a living museum of Spanish colonial architecture.

Electrifying

by Brian on March 27, 2012 in Central America, Guatemala, Travel

If there is one thing I know, it is that water and electricity don’t mix; at least not in a good way.

Although I was aware of these hot water contraptions before arriving in Central America, that knowledge didn’t make stepping into an electrified shower any less unnerving. That switch on the front is the temperature control, which I left set at a comfortable “whatever the last person brave enough to touch it” left it on.