Marlowe often asks when we can go back to Guatemala. I’m not surprised– I mean, you guys know that we love it there. But for her, since making new friends, well, she’s constantly waiting for the day that we can return. I tell her that “we will go back soon” but I’m not really sure how accurate “soon” is. I guess it’s all relative.
The whole *choosing to travel less* thing makes it pretty difficult. But maybe this summer. Just maybe. I wasn’t planning on it, but Alex is asking for a return trip too. And well, I’m pretty lax and easily convinced in most things so we’ll see.
I mentioned to you guys that we didn’t explore quite as much during this time on Lake Atitlan. We mostly spent days wandering on foot. And we spent as much time as we could with Marlowe’s friends, Caroline and Angela. Well, I’m not sure how it came up, but we had mentioned San Marcos at one point and learned that they had never been. The girls and their family live in Patanatic. It’s truly a tiny village, with very little there other than homes and maybe a few other shops. It’s only about 20 minutes or so by car (when the roads are accessible) to Panajachel. From Panajachel, you can jump on a boat to just about anywhere on the lake. Well, we learned that while they’ve lived in the area their whole lives, they had never made the trip across to San Marcos. And we learned they wanted to visit.
So of course, we did.
Alex, Marlowe, Linda, Angela, Carolina, and I all boarded a lancha to San Marcos.
It was a wet and windy ride for sure. I’m sure I mentioned it, but we don’t always love the lanchas. They’re fine, but they can be quite an adventure when the wind rolls in.I’m still in awe to see such big waves come onto a lake in the middle of mountains and volcanos with no ocean in sight. I’m sure it’s not the craziest thing, but it’s not an idea I grew up with.
The thing about San Marcos is that it’s so incredibly small. There really isn’t much there. We tried to explain that, but I think it’s one of those places you have to visit in person to truly understand first hand how tiny the town is. There are no real roads– just walkways to the shops, hostels, restaurants, and the school in town.
But we all agree, that despite its small size, it’s really a great place. Unlike Panajachel, the town was designed with the community in mind. It’s just more people and nature-friendly and less about getting giant transport trucks through. While the girls may not notice as much, we adults loved the number of flowers and trees and safety the space creates.
The walkways.
Small counter markets.
He’s extra handsome in a jungle-vibe situation, don’t ya think?
He makes more friends there too, haha.
I took a photo here last time we visited. And I decided I would make it a tradition to do it every time I visit.
After lunch, a bit of exploring, and a lot of play for the girls, we made our way back down to the lake with an idea ot visit the nature preserve. But we were racing against a clock at this point because those afternoon wind and waves can be brutal! And so while we knew a hike through the nature preserve would be amazing, we all agreed that we very much dislike the rocky boats and it’s be better to save the preserve for another day.
We have yet to visit it. But we hope to do it at some time and point. Maybe next time. Something to look forward to.
And so we made the rocky boat ride back to our home base, Panajachel. We gave the girls a minute to unwind in our favorite spot in Pana, Hiptipico. And probably (though I don’t remember) tuk-tuk-ed back to our Airbnb shortly after. Next time we’ll visit the preserve first– bright and early. But even though we skipped the natural spot, we had a great time showing our friends one of our favorite tiny villages on Lake Atitlan. And we look forward to more adventures with them in the future. Hopefully sooner rather than later.
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