We checked in to the Jungle Party Hostel, which despite the ridiculous name turned out to be a great time.
Robynn, Allison, Molly
Our first day in Antigua we got up early to hike Volcano Pacaya, an active volcano about an hour away from Antigua.
Robynn and me waiting for the shuttle at 5:50 am (it arrived at 6:30)
We had talked to Katie and many other travels that had done the same hike and they told us how you can actually walk on the hardened lava around the top of the volcano and get right up close to liquid lava and poke a stick in it. Unfortunately for us the volcano had been exploding the three days prior to our visit and it was restricted to get too close. Our guide said that there were police guarding the access and if they took us too close they would loose their guide license. At first we were very disappointed and didn’t even think it was worth going because it seemed just like any other hike through the forest…until we came up over a ridge and saw the top of the volcano and a mass of hardened lava in front of us.
The abrupt line between normal vegetation and black lava was incredible and to see the volcano smoking and hear it grumbling was well worth the trip even if we didn’t get to see lava. Other groups with more adventurous guides did get to go right up close however…
Can you see the little people?
Although we were a little jealous I was okay with not taking the risk of being killed by an exploding volcano. I found it interesting that people didn’t really have any fear of being so close to an active volcano. I think there was an unfounded assumption that if we were allowed to do it on a guided tour it meant it was safe.
Molly, Allison, Robynn
Sunday November 9th was Molly 25th birthday, but we decided to start celebrating on Saturday night. We bought a cake and shared it with everybody at the hostel, which included Irish, French, English, Canadian and American travelers.
The Irish boys bought Molly an American bear which we decided to name Uncle Barack and for the first time we all felt proud to be Americans.
Molly with the Irish boys
Molly took Uncle Barack with her everywhere that night and kept him by her side the whole next day as well.
Allison, Molly, Robynn, Uncle Barack
We woke up Sunday morning and had breakfast at the hostel and watched Sex and the City the movie on huge bean bag chairs and then relaxed the rest of the day.
Monday we headed back to Honduras for a buffer night in Copan Ruinas and then finally got back to site on Tuesday.
Overall the trip was amazing! Molly, Robynn and I got along wonderfully the entire time (we didn’t even fight once). Guatemala was beautiful and it was interesting to see the similarities and differences to Honduras, just across the border. Guatemala has a much more developed tourism industry while people traveling through Central America often tended to skip Honduras L. Many people retain their indigenous culture, including dress and language, while in Honduras virtually nobody dresses in traditional clothing on a day to day basis. Most of the people we met were from Europe (with Holland in the lead) and Israel, and only a few Americans.
Traveling made me feel very good about my Spanish language skills, because despite the large number of tourists, many locals did not speak English. For example, our guide at the Volcano did not say one word of English the entire time so we translated for a few lost Americans. It also made me realize how comfortable I feel living and traveling in Honduras since I feel like I really know the country and how to get around. I know when I am being lied to and if I am being ripped off, but in Guatemala it was a little harder to judge.
Traveling also inspired me to travel after Peace Corps. When I finish my service, Peace Corps will either buy my plane ticket home or give me the money for it, which means I can use the money to travel, which I may very well do…
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