Cities Visited On Lake Atitlan

So far we have visited four cities located around Lake Atitlan other than San Marcos where we are living. San Juan is known for its lovely murals. We took a tuk tuk (taxi), which is a like a gasoline powered, three-wheeled golf cart. They must be quite sturdy to hold up on rough, cobblestone streets and roads. Our one-way fare was 32 quetzales, or about 10 dollars round trip. The indigenous Mayans pay a cheaper rate. It seemed like many rough miles up and down the mountains and through a couple of towns. While in San Juan we shopped at a small hardware and the Guatemalan equivalent of a super market. See photo of SuperQuic

Another day we took a one-hour afternoon walk with granddaughter, Althea, along a dusty, winding road and up a long hill that juts out into the lake and then down to the dock at the village of Tzununa. Along the way we could see through the security gates of many beautiful, lakeside estates mostly owned by Gringos. Some are used for rentals. An abundance of beautiful yellow flowers were in full bloom and pervasive on every hillside. Guatemalans are skilled at raising corn in small fields that run vertically up the mountain. It is the season for coffee bean harvesting, so diminutive men were filling huge bags with beans and carrying them on their backs. A couple of more fortunate fellows loaded their bags in a tuk tuk. We were surprised to peer through a fence and find an old 34-foot Coachman motor home. We wondered how in the world it could have made its way on narrow, primitive Guatemalan roads all the way from the U.S. to this place a mile above sea level. Later, our son-in-law, Josh, said the owners failed to get the rig around one sharp mountain curve, at which time about 30 Guatemalans lifted the rear end of the vehicle around the obstacle. We assume that it is forever stationary and is serving as lodging for the owners

Twice we have visited Panajachel, a major market center. There is a good grocery and a quality meat market, both owned by Americans. The best way to get to Pana is via water taxi—a scenic, colorful, 40 minute ride. On one trip, there were 30 of us crowded on one small boat. At the ATM, the machine ate our credit card. We waited for one and a half hours for a service rep to come. He found six credit cards sealed by an abundance of Super Glue. The same estates that we saw on our walk with Althea are even more striking from the water.

Last Sunday we traveled to San Pedro. The water taxi ride is only about 20 minutes. Overlooking the city is a grand Baptist Church edifice with a spectacular roof that is visible on a clear day from San Marcos. We attended Sunday school and loved the ladies trio that sang many hymns familiar to us except for the Spanish words. After shopping at the marketplace, we visited a sweet, Christian lady, Lia, whom we met last March. She speaks English and owns a boutique not far from the dock. She gave us a gift which we will always cherish. It is a lovely, woven wall hanging which depicts Lake Atitlan and the words God Bless This Home. Lia’s small home is surrounded by her shop, her parents’ home and homes of other relatives. Guatemalans have a wonderful sense of family that North Americans could afford to emulate.