This was kind of whirlwind of a trip and it has only been a couple of days. When we arrived in Cancun, we got a bus from the airport with two older couples from Minnesota that have been coming down to Cancun for the last 30 years on vacation. They come at the same time every year and have made friends with other geris that do the same thing. They were pretty funny because they were loud and obnoxious and tried to give us advise on how to get around cancun. We sort of took their advice and got the heck out of there. We went straight to the bus station and took an overnight bus to San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas ( this was supposed to be a 16 hour bus ride but tu
rned into a 20 hour trip because of traffic and accidents. Needless to say, we were pretty burned out by the time we got to San Cristobal. San Cristobal is colonial Spanish city with cobblestone streets and old colorful buidings. It is also one of the cities where the Zapatistas marched. They were still very popular with the people and there were t shirts and other zapatista propoganda through out the town.
We ended up staying at a hostel where we were the only people there. The couple that owned the place was a guy named Ernesto and his wife. They were very proud of their house turned hostel. It was interesting because as soon as we got settled Ernesto said he had to go to the capi
tal city Tuxla to pick up his son that escaped. It turns out that he is mentally ill and lives with them. They have no idea how he got to the capital city.
We went out and got tacos that night and went and explored the town. Ironically it was really cold and we were really lucky that we brought our jackets. We got back to the hostel and Ernesto answered the door in his tighty whities. He put some clothes on and then and told us that his son didn{t want to come home and wanted to stay in the shelter where he was at.
The next morning we got up at 5 am to go on a tour of Palenque, Agua azul, and Misol Ha. We went with a group of old german women that complained about being picked up last for the rest of the day and mexican 20 year olds. We first went to Agua azul which is a series of bright blue waterfalls similar to havasupai but smaller and that extended for miles. We then went to Misol Ha which was a
larger waterfall where I had been back in 2002 and was highly dispointed because the do not urinate here sign was taken down. But they had opened up a path so you could go behind the falls. We then went to Palenque which is spectacular. We got a guide who made it known that the mormons would tell you that the temple of the cross was because of Christ but that it was really about the sacred tree. Also that the royals would intermarry so that albinism and having six fingers was devine. We had a great time laughing at the american tourists with their white socks up their knees while wearing flip flops, blue flame t shirts with their sleeves cut off and their loud laughter. It made me proud to be an american in my skull belt buckle and tie dye shirt.
We got back on the bus and it was a total of 8 hours. We were pretty beat up after the day before and were thinking about what we were going to do. We decided to take another 8 hour bus ride and go to Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. The tour group was supposed to pick us up from the hostal but forgot about us until we called. We were waiting on the curb when Ernesto told us to come in and gave us bread and was making us oatmeal out of hospitality. Before the oatmeal was done our bus came and Ernesto told them they should wait while we ate. We explained that it was nice but we had to go and that there were many people waiting for us. So he brought out the oatmeal in a yogurt container and gave us a metal spoon and sent us on our way. He was really kind. We couldn{t finish the oatmeal as it made us naseated with the curves so we just held on to it.
We had an awesome ride and
this journey was definitely worth it. Our bus ride through the guatemalan highlands was incredible with volcanoes and patchwork hills covered in different vegetation and clouds that would get stuck on the tops of the mountains. It was an incredible sight. When we got to Atitlan it was awesome. It is a crater lake surrounded by steep mountains and three volcanoes. We are going on a boat tour tomorrow and then off to antigua and back to cancun.
Never the less the horrible journey it has definitely been worth it. It just sucks that I only have a week.
rned into a 20 hour trip because of traffic and accidents. Needless to say, we were pretty burned out by the time we got to San Cristobal. San Cristobal is colonial Spanish city with cobblestone streets and old colorful buidings. It is also one of the cities where the Zapatistas marched. They were still very popular with the people and there were t shirts and other zapatista propoganda through out the town.We ended up staying at a hostel where we were the only people there. The couple that owned the place was a guy named Ernesto and his wife. They were very proud of their house turned hostel. It was interesting because as soon as we got settled Ernesto said he had to go to the capi
tal city Tuxla to pick up his son that escaped. It turns out that he is mentally ill and lives with them. They have no idea how he got to the capital city.We went out and got tacos that night and went and explored the town. Ironically it was really cold and we were really lucky that we brought our jackets. We got back to the hostel and Ernesto answered the door in his tighty whities. He put some clothes on and then and told us that his son didn{t want to come home and wanted to stay in the shelter where he was at.
The next morning we got up at 5 am to go on a tour of Palenque, Agua azul, and Misol Ha. We went with a group of old german women that complained about being picked up last for the rest of the day and mexican 20 year olds. We first went to Agua azul which is a series of bright blue waterfalls similar to havasupai but smaller and that extended for miles. We then went to Misol Ha which was a
larger waterfall where I had been back in 2002 and was highly dispointed because the do not urinate here sign was taken down. But they had opened up a path so you could go behind the falls. We then went to Palenque which is spectacular. We got a guide who made it known that the mormons would tell you that the temple of the cross was because of Christ but that it was really about the sacred tree. Also that the royals would intermarry so that albinism and having six fingers was devine. We had a great time laughing at the american tourists with their white socks up their knees while wearing flip flops, blue flame t shirts with their sleeves cut off and their loud laughter. It made me proud to be an american in my skull belt buckle and tie dye shirt.
We got back on the bus and it was a total of 8 hours. We were pretty beat up after the day before and were thinking about what we were going to do. We decided to take another 8 hour bus ride and go to Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. The tour group was supposed to pick us up from the hostal but forgot about us until we called. We were waiting on the curb when Ernesto told us to come in and gave us bread and was making us oatmeal out of hospitality. Before the oatmeal was done our bus came and Ernesto told them they should wait while we ate. We explained that it was nice but we had to go and that there were many people waiting for us. So he brought out the oatmeal in a yogurt container and gave us a metal spoon and sent us on our way. He was really kind. We couldn{t finish the oatmeal as it made us naseated with the curves so we just held on to it.We had an awesome ride and
this journey was definitely worth it. Our bus ride through the guatemalan highlands was incredible with volcanoes and patchwork hills covered in different vegetation and clouds that would get stuck on the tops of the mountains. It was an incredible sight. When we got to Atitlan it was awesome. It is a crater lake surrounded by steep mountains and three volcanoes. We are going on a boat tour tomorrow and then off to antigua and back to cancun.Never the less the horrible journey it has definitely been worth it. It just sucks that I only have a week.
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