Lakes, Volcanoes and Spanish Lessons

Down at the lake
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After an overnight bus down to Guatemala City we caught a small boat across Lake Atilan to San Pedro. San Pedro is one of many villages around the edge of lake, surrounded by three volcanoes. The town has a kind of hippy vibe, but the travelers seem to be part of the community here with many deciding to prolong their stay to several months.

The local people are friendly and welcoming as well as being very traditional. The ladies walk around carrying enormous baskets on their heads. A skill which must take a lot of practise to master. They carry anything from their goods to sell at the market to their clothes down to the lake to be washed.

Lake Atitlan
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There are also loads of coffee plantations. As you walk around almost every spare little plot of land is covered with coffee beans that have been laid out to dry.

We decided to stay and do some Spanish lessons for a week at one of the many Spanish schools here. After looking at a couple we chose to study at Flor Del Mais, a little school that is still quite new but we had read good reviews about it. The school prides itself on its community spirit, helping with local projects such as reforestation. The school itself is set in lovely grounds, a small organic coffee plantation of sorts, with lessons taking place in sheltered huts in the garden. We decided to opt for the maximum 6 hours a day tutoring as well as staying with a local family for the week.

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Our family consisted of Javier, Lola and their cute 5 year old daughter, Lolita. Lola is a very good cook so we tried lots of the typical meals of Guatemala, although most of them involved maize in some form or another! Maize for breakfast, maize for lunch, and unsurprisingly maize for dinner. The most common dish, which accompanies every meal, is tortillas. These are lovely pancake things made from....maize. And they go very with chilli!

The accommodation, as you would expect, is basic. This is what we wanted as we wanted to indulge in the local life. Staying in a hotel or hostel while studying (at least for a week or two) is not half as much fun. We were forced to communicate with our pigeon Spanish, thereby making sure we practiced what we learnt during the days.

Lolita
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We spent five days (all the time we have spare!) studying Spanish at the school. The teachers were really good and it was great studying with the sound of the birds in the background. They have some crazy birds out here that make the strangest of noises. One of them reminded of the scene from Monty Python's The Holy Grail, the scene with the nights that say neeeeah. There were also Humming birds in the trees which were lovely to watch. Some lessons took place at the lake side, where we could watch the local women cleaning clothes in the lake.

coffee beans
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While at school, we had some great traditional meals, including a big final meal with our teachers, watched films in Spanish and indulged in San Pedro life. This obviously meant we went for a beer or two after completing our homework!

San Pedro itself is a sleepy town, with many ex-pats who seem to run bars and restaurants. There are many many relaxed bars and restaurants catering for the backpacker, with food and drink reasonably priced. It really is a great base to study Spanish, the lake is beautiful and the surrounding volcanos are awesome. The weather was great too, which always helps.

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We were glad we chose to study here. Believe me, you won't regret doing so!