Antigua, Guatemala

Posted 17 February 2010

We arrived late in the evening in Antigua and the first 2 hotels that we wanted to check in, were fully booked. We did find a spot at Hotel Casa Rustica. This Hotel turned out to be pretty good for a very reasonable price. It is 1 block from the centre of town and have great facilities. It caters more for the budget conscience traveler which were great with us. The hotel also have kitchen facilities where you can prepare your own meals if so prefer.

Antigua is a beautiful city, very clean and the volcanic mountains very closed by. The architecture is Spanish colonial and the roads are pebbled. The roads are sloping down towards the middle of the road, which was constructed that way to help the flow of water when it rain.

The first day we spend at the coffee plantation. This was very interesting as both Dinis and myself love coffee. Genuine Antigua, Cafe Azotea, are planted at an altitude of 5000 feet, under a canopy of shade tees. The coffee are Arabica coffee beans that are ripen slowly to bring out their rich and complex flavor. Also the coffee is roasted on the plantation and sealed, still hot, in bags with a one way valve to preserve the freshness. The tour included coffee tasting and we ended up buying 2 bags of coffee.

At the coffee plantation they also had a museum of Mayan culture involving music, music instruments, religion, clothing and gastronomy. This was very informative and the Mayan lady that gave the tour did a fantastic job. It is amazing that the Mayan people still speak the language of their ancestors on a daily basis.

The next day we went exploring the city, ruins and parks. Just a feeling of peace about the city. We took lots of pictures. In the afternoons they have some events in the centre of town. We listen to a local orchestra which kept their audience attention. What lovely music, a person just got rooted to a spot until they finished. After all the walking we spend the evening in the hotel after a lovely dinner at a restaurant.

The next day we were on our way to see another historic building when Dinis was bitten by a 'Rattlesnake'. Now, no need for alarm it was the very talented music group 'Sol Latino' and the famous song 'Cascavel', which translate to rattlesnake. Again a person just could not help but be riveted to a spot and listen. We enjoyed it so much that we followed the group for their live music at 'La Pena de Sol Latino Restaurant'. We had a fabulous night of dining and listening to the Andean music.

We bought a CD and asked the leader of the group 'Paco' if we are allowed to post the videos we took of them performing at the park during the day on our blog. With his consent we posted the famous 'Cascavel' video and also another video that unfortunately I do not know the song's title. Anybody interested in 'Sol Latino' music can contact Paco at paco_sol_latino@hotmail.com

The next morning is was time for us to head back to Guatemala City for our bus ride back to El Salvador. We had an uneventful trip back and again was lucky enough to occupy the front seats of the double deck bus. We were picked up in the evening in San Salvador by a taxi that was arranged by the Hotel Myers House B & B. Again we were spoiled at the B & B with a great supper and lovely company of Donna Patricia.

The next morning we said our good byes and did a big shopping in San Salvador and took a taxi back to Barillas Marina. We were the only boat in Barillas Marina when we left, but on our arrival back there were 4 more boats. Most of us were checking the weather for the next leg of our travels and it was decided to have a cruisers farewell at the restaurant that evening. We had a great time and the next morning (9 February 2011) S/V Maja and ourselves left following the pilot boat out to the ocean.