Down By The River

The weekend in Flores was nice. We had done a good deal of walking and climbing stairs the previous 4 days, especially in Tikal, so the legs needed rest. The town is small enough that we could leisurely stroll around to find cheap food and other services. Our hotel caretaker gave us a discount for extra nights and we enjoyed our small balcony despite the array of weekend noises (live music and cheering at 1am, firecrackers and blaring speakers at 6am, and the other usual street sounds). Being an easily accessible getaway town, locals flood in on their days off and the place was very much alive. Some even jump in the water near boat launch areas displaying acrobatic skill. We took a quick dip off a floating dock attached to a restaurant, but the water was dirty and not very inviting, especially after the crystal clear Carribean we had so recently enjoyed. 

The town has a malecón that encircles the whole island, although half of it is under water. Apparently the lake levels in Guatemala have risen a good amount the past decade, from what I can't really say. On the accessible parts of the waterfront are numerous boats offering rides and men fishing. At night, a few tents spring up with cheap pre-made burritos, fried tacos, tostadas, empañadas, cakes, and jugs of juice. Two of our dinners were done here and neither cost more than $5.50. Convienently next to the food tents and our hotel were numerous bars that offer ridiculously cheap happy-hours and lake views. Jamaica Margaritas for 10 Quetzal ($1.30) were what first caught our eye and the next night we found Mojitos and Daquiris for the same 10 Q. When you combine cheap lodging, food, and drinks with the beautiful scenery, you have a place that is tough to leave. 

                                                Strolling the flooded malecón

                                                  Food tents on the waterfront 

                 Good happy hour deals

After 3 nights, we left Flores on Monday morning for the village of Lanquin. Being a long and difficult journey, van shuttle service made the most sense and didn't cost much more than the public bus/collectivo combination that would have been necessary. So we spent 8 hrs in an a/c van with 6 other gringos, racing around corners and cutting in line for the car ferry across the river. We watched in horror as a tourist in the van ahead of us stuck his head out the window and left his breakfast in the middle of the road. The other scenery was green, hilly, and amazing. 

We arrived into Lanquin by late afternoon and settled into our hostal called El Retiro Lodge, a series of thatch roofed huts on a hillside leading down to a river. They have a nice swimming hole and a hammock area with a rustic ping-pong table. Our room was in a large hut split 4 ways; two rooms with doors on the main level, and then ladders on each side leading up to attic rooms with little headroom and curtains blocking the entry holes. We had a room with a door and the bathrooms were about a 50 meter walk away up the hill. A great setting despite being a bit gringofied (if you will allow me to make up a word). The lodge also has a bar/restaurant that offers buffet style dinners for 40-60 Q per person, but we chose to stroll into town the first night and paid 25 Q ($3.25) a piece for set meals of rice, tortillas, salad, horchata, and either beef or chicken. Being close to town and not isolated is one of the primary reasons we chose the accommodations. 

Tuesday: We hopped in the back of a truck for the 10 km ride out to Semuc Champey, a spectacular river valley with limestone pools. The main reason people come to Lanquin is to swim in these turquoise waters and explore the caves. We skipped the tours and enjoyed the area without being ushered around. A steep hike to the mirador gave us amazing views of the pools below. Then we descended and swam in a few of them. The site is technically considered a natural bridge since the majority of the river dips into a cave and flows under the pools. It comes out about 600 meters later where it spews from the rock in the form of a waterfall. 

                                     View of Semuc Champey from the mirador

                                          Julia diving into one of the many pools

                 The end of the natural bridge where the underground water comes out

After hiking back out of the park and lingering around a sketchy bridge, a little girl named Maria chatted up Julia. She was about 7 yrs old and very outgoing. You could tell she was well trained in the ways of selling to tourists. Her English was good and she asked our names and if we wanted beer or chocolate. Julia politely said "No thanks, i'm good", and then when a boy asked me if I wanted a beer, Maria jokingly replied "No thanks, i'm good". A few minutes later, as we were watching men try to help a Jeep that had gotten stuck on the bridge, little Maria came walking down the road toward us with a group of 4 white people in swimsuits, leading them in singing a Spanish song that included clapping. She called Julia by name and tried to get her to join, but gringa Julia didn't know the words. We boarded a bus back to Lanquin and said goodbye to Maria as she still tried to sell chocolate to Julia.

                                            Street-smart Maria doing her thing

        There are a few boards missing on the bridge and the jeep chose the wrong path

We relaxed the rest of Tuesday by our river and played some ping-pong. We skipped the hostal buffet yet again because we had taken box lunches up to Semuc with us but never ate them. Soggy sandwiches accompanied by happy hour drinks would be our dinner. 

Wednesday: Our hostal gives you a 3rd night free if you book one of their tours, so we took the opportunity and did some ziplininning that with the lodging deal, ended costing about $8/person. It wasn't quite a jungle canopy tour, but it did take us over some homes and had some sweet valley views. It was my first zip-line experience and I had a good time despite spinning around a little. 

                                           Entrusting our lives to a wire

         Julia on the last line which finishes by the small white roof you can see above her

The rest of Wednesday was spent jumping into the river at our place, laying in the hammocks, walking into town to buy snacks, and partaking in "Pizza Night" at the hostal, although we were disappointed it wasn't all-you-can-eat. 

Thursday (today): For the 2nd trip in a row, we took a shuttle to our next destination, Río Dulce. We promise not to make this a habit as we know you would rather hear about our adventures on chicken buses, but yet again the public transport option wasn't clear and the prices not that different. Our guide book used phrases like "involves ungodly departure times" and "transportation schedules around here are flexible at best". Although these words intrigue us from an adventure standpoint, the easy way seemed like the right choice. And yes, I feel the need to defend our tourist shuttle usage as they make me a little uncomfortable and I do not condone them. 

So after a 5 hour van ride along mostly winding rocky road, we are now on the eastern end of Lago de Izabal in the town of Río Dulce. Interesting fact: The US coast guard says this is the safest place on the western Caribbean for boats during hurricane season. Which means there are a few yachties running around and some big boats in the marinas. We will spend 2 nights here, getting one day to explore the area before we hop a boat for a trip down the river Dulce, northeast until we reach the Caribbean Sea. In a few days we will enter the "Bad Boy of Central America", Honduras. Hopefully you hear from us again.