Semuc Champey / Antigua

Caught a shuttle bus from Flores to Semuc Champey / Lanquin for $100 Q a 7 hour bus ride that involved a car ferry (BC Ferries should outfit their boats this way LOL check out the motor, 1 on each side) at one point and the last 1 1/2 hours on a 1 lane dirt mountain road that makes the old Hope Princeton look like the autobahn, pretty interesting when 2 vehicles meet up.

Stayed at El Retiro Lodge in Lanquin, a really nice place lots of Cabanas and right by the river, dorm rooms are $35 Q a night and they have all you can eat diner @ $40 Q which was kind of lost on me as all I can eat isn't much but the food was great. They have swings as seats at the bar which was my favorite part of the place. Sadly the weather sucked it was raining and cold, I still would have stayed the extra day if it was just the rain as they have a great tour that involves caves and wading chest deep in water with a candle, a 10 meter bridge jump and playing in the river pools but wasn't interested in the cold and one of the locals told me it probably would not get better anytime soon so rather than sit and drink (unless you are doing the tour that's about all there is to do, not much in town) I decided to move on and return at a later date. So off to Antigua I go, $125 Q and another 7 hour bus ride. The shuttles are pretty comfy normally but this one was full so we were all a little squished.

Got to Antigua which is a beautiful colonial town, it used to be the capital of Guatemala until the earthquakes and lava hit then they moved it to where Guatemala city is. Lots of reminders of the quake many of the buildings are 1/2 fallen down which just adds to the charm of the town. Lots of Spanish schools and gringos. I checked in to The Black Cat Hostel, it is right by the main square, dorms are $60 Q and include breakfast in the morning so not a bad deal. Lots of folks here, met a guy from Kelowna, a chick and a guy from Oregon and more Brits. Got some great travel tips as most of them were working their way up from Nicaragua. Just did the 1 night here, I will come back on my way through to El Salvador and stay a few nights, I am going to be in San Pedro taking Spanish immersion classes for at least 3 weeks and I'm really looking forward to not taking a bus for awhile, I got a tip on a great hotel for $15 Q a night were you get your own room with a bathroom, I am so looking forward to that and unpacking, so I'll see how it pans out. Bus to San Pedro (Shuttle) $75 Q.

Czech girl from Flores just came in to the Black Cat to use the bano she is on the shuttle to San Pedro an hour ahead of me, Oregon guy from Flores is already there.. Small world, you find after a few weeks that you keep bumping into people in the strangest places. All very random, or is it? San Pedro should be good, they are both crazy :-)