Pacaya Lava Flow Video

I hope this works. Its the first video that I've posted. Every time we watch it we laugh. Keep in mind it was about 1000 degrees up there next to the lava and we thought our skin was going to melt off.

Reflections on our visit in Antigua

This is Anna (Debbie's Mom) sharing reflections on this visit with "travelers" Debbie and Rob (or Roberto as we occasionally call him this week).
First of all, the difference between "travelers" and "tourists". Irwin and I are tourists. When we visit a city we often pride ourselves at being able to "put that place under our feet in 2 - 3 days".  We can search out the highlights, find the good restaurants etc....fairly quickly and then are ready to move on.  I love to talk to the "locals' when I have a chance and am not shy about asking questions about life, politics etc....probably often to the embarrassment of my children.  Debbie and Rob are travelers.  They have a loose itinerary...go with the flow, stay in places I never would, and explore a lot of the nature opportunities and off the beaten path sights.

When you have children, you know that they will take your life in unexpected directions.....but I never expected to find myself climbing a volcano.  Below you will read Debbie's excellent description of the actual experience.  Let me share just some of my feelings.  We began talking about this shortly after our arrival here in Antigua....did a lot of research on various postings on line and read all the travel guides available to us.  Also spoke to the various tour guides and drivers that we met and also to some other travelers/tourists that we met along the way.  I was terrified about the whole thing and was prepared to wait at the bottom of the hill.  The other alternative was to take a horse up.  Not sure what was going to be better....walk, stay back...or take a horse (I am not very comfortable around horses).  As you can read below the horse won..
The challenging part was on the hardened lava climb. That had to be on foot.  The photos that Debbie posted tell it all.  We did it and the experience was exhilarating....a great feeling of accomplishment and thrill at succeeding at something a bit dangerous.
Guatemala....I don't think Irwin and I would ever have thought of coming here, except for the chance to spend time with Debbie and Rob. This trip has certainly opened our minds to visiting more of Central America.  The scenery is beautiful, people friendly and the pace is relaxing.....we have found good food and comfortable accommodations. What else do we need?
This is clearly a country in development, lacking a lot of the resources we are accustomed to.There is poverty and the needs for aid are great but the country seems to be moving in the right direction.Amazingly enough, almost everyone...locals, rich and poor...have cell phones.  Such communication will certainly change their world.There are a lot of untapped resources here and potential for a vibrant tourist trade.  We feel welcomed. Antigua may not be the "real" Guatemala, but it works for me.

Volcan Pacaya

Yesterday was our big trek to see the lava flows on Volcano Pacaya. This is THE thing to do in Antigua. Rob and I had planned on doing it and I was a little surprised when mom said that her and dad would be joining us. Honestly, I was a little relieved because I had been a bit nervous about it but knowing that they were coming put me at ease that we would definately be slow and that I might even be the most fit person in the group. Mom will be posting later with her own point of view, which I'm sure is very different than mine.

We were picked up in the morning by Blake, a great guide and nice Texas boy. We drove to the volcano which took about an hour. At the bottom of the hill, I decided that I wanted to hike the whole thing. We were followed by guys with horses yelling "Taxi" and after about a minute, mom said "I think I'll take the horse", dad immediately followed and the Rob shortly after. The hike was pretty steep and we were at a high altitude so I was immediately out of breath but confident that I could do it. Not too far up, I stopped for a break and realized that although I could make it all the way up, with everyone else on horseback, it would take me much longer than them so finally, I gave up and hopped on a horse. Boy was I glad that I did. We easily rode up to the lava fields which was as far as the horses would take us.

I found the rest of the way really enjoyable but mom and dad really struggled. It wasnt that it was so steep, it was difficult to get footing on the lava rock which is so light that it kind of crumbles beneath your feet. We went nice and slow with our wonderful local guide, Carlito, literally pulling mom up the volcano. Every few minutes, the volcano would...as Blake so eloquently described it...Sneeze! A few times we would hear the sound and look up and see rocks flying through the air. He said that they would find rocks from Pacaya as far as Mexico.

Blake had explained to us that the volcano was more active than it had been in a long time and that we would see some great lava flows. All of a sudden, it got super hot...almost too hot to take. I immediately grabbed the marshmallow stick and the marshmallows and started roasting. It was so hot that I knew that I didnt want to hang out for long. I barely glanced at the river of lava flowing about 30 feet from us. Once the marshmallows were properly roasted, we gobbled them up and all turned around, practically pushing each other to get out of the intense heat.

We made our way down the lava fields happy that none of our shoes melted and hoping that neither mom or dad would lose their footing. We really accomplished something yesterday. Everyone who knows my parents should be really impressed at this trek. This was not some little hike...we climbed what is officially (as of January) the 2nd most active volcano in the world. It was not easy and many people are injured on this trek. We owe Blake and Carlito a lot for making sure that we all survived in tact. I'm so impressed with my parents, though.

While researching the Pacaya climb online, I discovered that there is a spa on the way back to Antigua that someone had recommended.  What a brilliant recommendation.  After a really tough day, we pulled into Santa Teresita Banos Termales.  We were presented a menu of options and chose the "Thermal Circuit" and a 25 minute massage for each of us.  The thermal circuit had us spending a specific amount of time in 4 different pools of 4 different temperatures.  The first was hot hot hot.  The next was really really cold.  The third was pleasantly warm and then the 4th was perfectly cool.  Then...I think just to watch us suffer...she had us get back into the hot hot pool and then back into the freezing cold pool.  It was pretty funny and we followed her directions hoping that there was some sort of scientific benefit to the torture.  Eventually, we were brought inside, asked to choose our scented oil and taken for a wonderful and skillful massage.  The place was gorgeous and a perfect end to a very challenging day.

Monterrico

Yesterday, we went to the beach. It was absolutely stunning. We were told that this beach is packed on the weekends but yesterday we had it all almost completely to ourselves. It was perfect beach weather. The sand is black, the sky was blue. The surf was very strong but we enjoyed walking on the beach and getting wet. We hadnt realized how spoiled we had been with the climate in Antigua. Here, we are at a high elevation and even for the few hours a day that it is "hot" its really not very hot and when its not hot, its the perfect cool and dry. At the beach it was very hot and humid. I got eaten by mosquitos for the first time in weeks which I am really not enjoying today. I had forgotten how hot and humid it can get....not to rub it in for all you folks that are still experiencing winter. Its a reminder that you are experiencing what you dream about in August when you are sweating and scratching mosquito bites. But I'm not complaining...the pictures say it all.

Tomorrow, we will climb Volcan Pacaya. Its an active volcano and at the top we will see real lava flows. We are all pretty nervous since we have heard many reports about how the climb is 2 miles straight up and once you finish that you get to the real hard part...the lava fields. The lava hardens into rough, rocky patches that are difficult to walk on and will cut your legs. If you stand on the wrong spot, you can melt your shoes. Tons of people make the trek everyday so we know it cant be that bad. We have also heard that you can take horses up through the 2 mile hike part so that you are fresh when you get to the lava fields and have decided that we have nothing to prove to anyone and will probably opt for the horses right from the start. Everyone think about us and pray that we dont melt our shoes and that we all make it all the way up to see the lava.

Another little tremor?

I just finished my last post and was still sitting here surfing the internet and felt another little tremor or quake.  It was much smaller and shorter than the last but I have to say...a little freakier during the day when I'm aware enough to know whats going on.  The house shook again and all of the windchimes were singing.  I think I'm here by myself since Rob is dropping my mom off for a walking tour of Antigua...they probably didnt even feel it since they were in the car.  Not sure if dad went with them or not.

Wow, mom and dad have really been getting the full Guatemalan experience.

Earthquake!

Well, we all experienced our first Central American earthquake last night.  We awoke to about 15 seconds of rumbling...the bed shook and the doors rattled.   Then it stopped.  That was it.  It did seem to wake the roosters, who got pretty worked up...I could hear them crowing and crowing until I fell back asleep a few minutes later.

Reuters said that it was a 5.6 centered in another part of the country.  I'm pretty sure that this is pretty regular business around here and for Rob and I it will be the first of many.

Antigua Lent Part 4

Almost as amazing as the rugs and the procession was the cleanup. Following immediately behind the procession was the cleanup crew. Within minutes, all of the hard word of the rugs was gone. Before the parade, Rob spoke to some of the guys making the rugs and they said that they spent 6 days preparing and then anywhere from 6 - 10 hours building the rugs. The parade lasted about 20 minutes and the road was back open to traffic as soon as the cleanup crew was done.

Antigua Lent Part 3

Next came the big floats. They looked very, very heavy. It was amazing. You could tell that most of the people had been moved to tears and even I could feel the emotion.

Antigua Lent Part 2

Here is a family taking a family picture moments before the procession started.

There was a huge parade. We are not Catholic so not as familiar with the Easter story as we should be. The parade was very somber. A band was playing sad and slow music. There were Romans and others and it was obviously commemorating the crucifixion.  They were very careful not to walk on the rugs.

Antigua Lent

Today was really amazing. We decided to split up today to take a day off from each other. Mom and dad wanted to see the market and the church at their own pace. Rob and I went for some crepes for breakfast. It was really hot outside and we were very tired and wanted to spend the day napping. We hopped in the car to head back to the house and saw that the streets were closed and something was definately happening. We parked the car and headed off on foot and saw these wonderful rugs. We really had no idea what was going on but sat and watched the families creating these wonderful creations. They are made of completely natural materials...wood shavings, sand and flowers all colored with natural materials.