Having mostly traveled to Asia, I can say that flights to Central America are no easier, and if anything is much harder. From Montana (well, Idaho…but three hours later were in Montana), we have three stops and over a day and a half of travel with layovers. At least when traveling to Asia you get one long flight to sleep, watch movies, and …

The next day we headed out for Panajachel (Pana), a town most known for the lake it rests on, Lake Atitlan. Our three-hour drive to Pana took us through windy mountainous roads where we began to see the life of western Guatemalans. Along the way, we stopped at Comalapa market where we found our first truly local market experience. Textiles, …

After breakfast, Judith took us to the dock where we loaded a boat to explore Lake Atitlan! We visited San Juan first, where we learned more about traditional textiles and met the founder of a women’s co-operative who specializes in organic dying and weaving. We walked the streets of San Juan, sipping delicious Guatemalan coffee and learning …

This morning we left early for Guatemala City where we caught a flight to Flores, in eastern Guatemala. Along the way to the airport, we stopped first at the infamous Chichi market. Here, we were exposed to a larger version of the Compala market with many more tourists. Though there were some significant cathedrals to also explore, this stop was …

Today was our first day of visiting the Tikal region. Today we would go to Yaxha, an archeological site built around 600 BC, a former ceremonial center of the pre-Columbia Maya civilization. At one point, Yaxha was the third-largest city in the region. Here we would take a boat to ruins that were still being discovered in the jungle. The tall …

Unfortunately, and without knowing the cause, I woke in the night to find myself in the midst of a good round of food poisoning, or probably just as likely, traveler diarrhea. Having been up most of the night, I called our guide to see how long we could postpone our trip to Tikal before sending my partner to go alone. Thankfully, our guide was …

Since this trip was actually a 40th birthday trip for my significant other, we decided to end the experience with some relaxation time. Unfortunately, on this long day of travel, my partner acquired a bit of whatever bug I had the day before (I felt great, finally!). Travel days are the absolute worst days to fall ill so this day was long and …

Guatemala is known for its ocean fishing and my partner is an avid fisherman. Unfortunately, there weren't enough knowledgeable decision-makers planning this trip (myself included) and it showed by the end of the day.

Most fishing operators in Guatemala require you to stay at their resorts, paying easily $3-7K per person for a few days of …