Weekend Trip to Lake Atitlan and Chichicastenago

Our big trip this weekend began on a coach bus in el parque central. We boarded at 8:00 a.m. and headed out to Lake Atitlan along absolutely gorgeous, steep, curvy mountain roads. The bus was comfortable, a typical coach bus as in the U.S. As we neared the enormous lake, we saw two giant waterfalls coming straight down the cliffs towering above one side of the bus while astounding vistas of the lake surrounded by volcano shaped green mountains rising on all sides. Upon arrival in Panajchel, the pueblo on the lake, we went to our hotel the Gran Hotel with notably pretty courtyards and notably ancient and, in some cases, disgusting mattresses but with hot water AND water pressure at the same time, a combination unavailable in our homestays. Then, off we went to explore this resort city with the feel of a Guatemalan riveria--many tourists, restaurants and vendors of native Guatemalan products. After lunch we met at the lake and boarded a large ferry with our group of 40. The trip across the lake to another pueblo called Santiago, took an hour and a half on our large boat, although smaller speedboats probably made it in a half hour. Once we arrived in Santiago, we visited a large, historical church and the image of a cigar smoking ex-saint that was kicked out of the Catholic church because the people prayto this saint for bad things to happen to other people. So, now, the statute of this saint is moved from one house to another and lives in that house for a year. Visitors must pay about a dollar to come inside and take a picture of the statute smoking a cigar and dressed in a hundred or so ties. While we were there, a man on his knees in front of the statute waived an incense ball in front of twenty lit candles at the statute's feet and prayed loudly for something (bad, I presume). Very bizarre.

On Sunday, we boarded our coach for the largest market in Central America--Chichicastenango. Here we again visited the large, historic church and then headed off through streets crowded with shops and vendors of native Guatemalan products. Students bought belts, blouses, purses, tableclothes, machetes, wooden masks, soccer jerseys and lots of other items while sharpening their powers of negotiation.