Guatemalan Frogger

Coatepeque – San Antonio Suchitepequez, Guatemala

One of the things that we were nervous about upon entering Guatemala was the roads. We had heard that they were full of potholes; we were afraid that they would end up rough and maybe just plain dirt and rocks. 

Thus far the reality has been MUCH different. Right from the start of our journey yesterday we have been on perfect pavement. Biggest complaint – the main road is often about two inches higher than the shoulder. The upshot is that it’s a little bit of a bump to go from one to the other. Not a big deal at all . . .

I will say, however, that there is A LOT going on on these roads. Mopeds. Tuk tuks – lots of tuk tuks. Big trucks. Cars. Pedestrians. Dogs – it’s Central America – never forget the dogs . . .

There’s a reason for this. Guatemala is over twice as densely populated as Mexico and almost five times as densely populated as the U.S. On the other hand, I did a little math and the U.S. has about 2 miles of road per square kilometer of land, where Mexico has about 1.1 mile of per square kilometer and Guatemala has about .4 miles of road per square kilometer. In other words, the U.S. has about five times Guatemala’s density of roads. What this means is that in Guatemala there may be fewer cars – but they’re all on the same roads. 

Sounds bad. But, really, all this chaos is pretty good for us. It means everyone is driving slower. And everyone is on the lookout all the time. Admittedly, it’s a little like playing a video game in that there is always something happening. But regardless of the situation you have to be paying attention on your bikes anyway . . .

Here’s the other thing, though. So far, Guatemala just seems to have more vitality than Mexico. There are billboards everywhere (basically no billboards in Mexico – which isn’t in and of itself a bad thing – but kind of demonstrates a lack of economic activity), new construction, and just a sense that Guatemala is on the rise. Mexico is wonderful – but it can feel like it is kind of stuck in time – especially in the smaller towns – and that time is yesterday . . . It’s nostalgic, but outside of Mexico City it doesn’t really feel like it’s going anywhere. 

Can’t neglect to talk about the mountain rivers and streams. They are literally everywhere. So pretty. And they look so unspoiled. As far as we can tell there is no real development along them. We haven’t looked into it much, but I’m guessing there are some great opportunities for white water rafting type activities. Like the jungle, another byproduct of all the rain I guess. 

And so far the people of Guatemala have been wonderful as well. Honking at us in that positive way – beep, beep! Yelling out the windows cheering us on. We even had a mountain biker ride with us for a bit this morning. 

We met two women at lunch today who were super fun to chat with – Glendy and Lily (not sure how to spell this?). They made us a fantastic pollo (chicken) lunch – with onions and potatoes. But the more fun part was talking to them. Glendy has two children – a boy – aged seven, and a girl who is, I think, two. They were very curious about our trip and the United States. 

Glendy told us that it was her dream to go to the United States and work for her children’s future. Kind of a common theme that we’ve run into again and again on this trip. 

Diana found us a fun hotel as well. Nothing fancy, but clean and nice, and we received a personal tour from Heber, who is renting the property and, I think, has been fixing it up over the last year. Heber spent about four years in the U.S. himself – where he refurbished hotels around the country. 

I guess the building was constructed about 140 years ago. A physician from Spain came to Guatemala and provided free medical care to the locals.

The building was his clinic and I guess he was also instrumental in bringing a train to Guatemala and the building was also a train depot at one time. Heber was very proud of the history and was super generous with his time to show us around and tell us the story. 

Especially because it’s Saturday night and the hotel is hosting a quinceanera tonight. 

There will be 200 guests. We are looking forward to seeing what that’s all about. Again, like in Pampapla, it sometimes feels like we have a front row seat that really should be going to someone else – like someone more local. But so fun, and we are so fortunate to be part of it all . . .

(A little note on the quinceanera . . . It was loud and fun and there was a lot of cerveza (beer), and the girl, Angela, seemed so happy.)

Switching gears for a minute . . . After our big day at the end of Mexico I maybe missed out on a little recap of some of the best and worst of Mexico. Best food? This one is easy. Diana and I are absolutely unanimous on this. Back in, I think, Tuxpan, we had some fried pork things that a street vendor was making as part of their Day of the Dead Festival. Oh my goodness. Can’t tell you how good it was. Melted in your mouth. Savory. Just so perfect. So they were pieces of pork – I think pork belly – that were about two or three inches in diameter. They fried them in a big – I mean really big – like maybe three feet across – wok-like thing – filled with boiling oil. When they were fresh they were just amazing!

Best city? I’ll have to consult with Diana on this – but I’m thinking that Mexico City was our favorite. Just so much going on. Such a great combination of parks and green space, perfect climate, incredible culture and museums, and the national palace. Obviously Oaxaca was great, Puebla we probably should have spent more time in, and parts of Monterrey seemed really nice as well. Basically all the bigger cities were fun. 

Worst part of Mexico? Probably our first step into the country was our worst moment. If you missed it, that’s when we messed up on our passport stamp and ended up having to go back later. An easy fix for Mexico. Just train their border people to be a little nice . . . Like virtually everyone else in the country . . .

Next few days . . . Tomorrow is the big ascent up to Lake Atitlin. We’re looking forward to a few days there. Then we’re headed to Antigua – an old colonial town that is supposed to be fun. While there we are going on a two-day volcano tour/hike. They provide the meals and tents up at 12,000 feet. Should be a super fun change of pace. And then on to Guatemala City and then Honduras . . .