Guatemala - Day I

I’m back!! Did you miss me? Did you know I was even gone? Either way, here it goes. The trip to Antigua, Guatemala was wonderful. The weather was like San Diego weather – cool and overcast in the morning, afternoons warming up to a balmy 78 degrees, the cloudless sky painted a beautiful blue; evenings required a sweater for the ladies, children, and the elderly, and short-sleeves for 6’4” sweathogs such as myself. I perspire at the thought of sweat, so to have glorious weather for a week was like a dream come true. The gastronomy was just as good, and the people there were even more hospitable that imaginable. I only wish Americans could be as nice. The majority of tourists, predominantly Americans, were the most unfriendly while we were down there. Enough about that, though.

We arrived in Guatemala City close to 1pm; by 2:15pm, we were in Antigua, the 3^rd capitol of Guatemala. Antigua, which means “city of antiquity”, is a Spanish colonial city of around 30,000 people. It is surrounded by mountains and three volcanoes: Volcán de Agua, Volcán de Fuego, and Acatenango. They are collectively known as Tres Hermanas, or Three Sisters, and Volcán de Fuego is one of three active volcanoes in Guatemala. Back in the late 1700’s, Antigua was destroyed via lava; the Spanish then moved the crown to Guatemala City, which is still the capitol as of today. We got to our hotel, which was stunning (see below). We then ambled through the nicely designed grid comprised of colorful Antiguan streets. I am still very tired and have to study for an exam, but wanted to say “hello!” and leave a few photos for you to enjoy until I get better acclimated to home life. All I can say about day one was that as nice as it was, the trip got better. Much better. Next post will be coming soon!


Fountain in our private garden


Dining area of Meson Panza Verde.


Rooftop view of colonial houses and mountains.


Pool at the hotel. Small, but cool.


Overcast hides mighty Volcán de Agua.