Guatemala / Belize Part #6
Updated 7/29/2006
San Pedro Festival
We arrived in San Pedro during their Patron Saint Day week long celebration. A carnival atmosphere with many parties, much music and very loud fireworks greeted us!
The end of our journey was no less spectacular than the rest of it.  After a grueling 2 weeks as students in Spanish School, we moved on to Lake Atitlan.  We visited 3 towns on the lake; San Pedro, San Marcos and Panajachel.

We caught a minivan from Antigua to Panajachel which took about 2 hours over mountain roads.  We had a very special driver.  He had a cold and had obviously taken a lot of cold medication, but he counteracted it with lots of caffeine and speed-salsa music if there is such a thing.  We held on tight and kept our eyes closed most of the way.

Lake Atitlan is a collapsed volcanic cone that is filled with water over 900 feet deep.  It is surrounded by three volcanoes;  Volcan Tomilan, Volcan Atitlan and Volcan San Pedro.

Background Photo:  
Mural on wall in  Shanti Shanti, A restaurant in San Pedro, Guatemala. Groove with the vibes baby. Peace!
Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
San Pedro Boat DockLeft: The easiest way to get to San Pedro is by lancha from Panajachel. It takes about 45 minutes, but the important thing is to take note of the wind direction before picking a seat or you'll find yourself soaked on arrival in San Pedro. The picture shows the dock for arriving/departing lanchas.
Main Street in San PedroSan Pedro Festival
Above Left: San Pedro is a small village that appears to be divided into 2 sections. The 'local' side; where you'll find traditional food, tiendas (stores), etc... The picture above shows a typical street on the 'local' side. On the other side of town you'll find many ex-pat and bohemian travelers (hippies) some of whom liked it so much they forgot to leave. Restaurants were eclectic and interesting wall art was abundant. We enjoyed both sides of town equally!

Above Right: A view of carnival week in full swing with a volcano in the background. The party usually broke up about 4AM. Boy, can those Mayans party!
Santa Clara Market near Lake Atitlan, GuatemalaWe decided to sign up for a tour to hike up to Indian Nose (more later). We left San Pedro by chicken bus and climbed up steep, switchback, mountain roads to reach our hike starting point in the village of Santa Clara. We were fortunate enough to arrive on market day. The place was packed with people selling everything imaginable. The colors were amazing!
Indian Nose viewed from San PedroHiking on Indian Nose
Lake Atitlan and San Pedro viewed from Indian NoseAbove Left:  A view of our destination, Indian Nose, from San Pedro.

Above Right:  The hike was pretty steep at times, especially on the way down.

Left:  Looking back at San Pedro from the tip of the Indian's nose.
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