beauty and the beach

north-west side of lake atitlan, looking down on san pablo (foregorundtown) and san marcos (last cove).
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lago de atitlan. what an amazing place.

here is where i have spent so much of my guatemalan time. it is a place so beautiful it is the only place i return to just to see it again. imagine if you will a lake about half the size of lake tahoe, yet twice as gorgeous. imagine pristine waters nearly devoid of watercraft, surrounded by three towering cloud-catching volcanos juting into the sky. imaging very little urban development, and a dozen mayan villages dotting the shores. put in perfect weather, a clear pollution-free sky, cool clean water to swim in, and you are getting a good idea of the natural beauty of lake atitlan.

one of the volcanos over lake atitlan
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san marcos la laguna

for my first visit here i came to san marcos la laguna, on the north-western side of the lake. shannon and i picked this town because the guide book made it sound less developed and more indigineous than many of the surrounding towns. and indeed this is true. the village itself contains about 3,000 mayan people, all of whom speak the kakchikel language, one of 31 mayan languages that have survived, and in fact this village is the only place in the world where that language is spoken. like everywhere else on the lake, gringos own and control most of the tourist industry, but here the relations between foreigners and locals seems more intigrated and casual.

shannon in the boat taxi
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visiting the town is itself an interesting journy. a chicken bus from xela drops you off at the side off the pan-american highway, and another chicken bus there takes you to san pablo la laguna. there you find one of the toyota pickup taxis that are everywhere in guatemala and get a ride to san marcos.

san marcos must  be the most interesting town to get around in. the tourist area has no streets; instead it is a series of footpaths through the jungle, with green canopy everywhere overhead. two main paths run from the main road to the lake about a half-mile down; numerous side paths criss-cross around and beyond them. restaraunts, hotels, and most especially massage and healing centers are scattered throughout the forest here.

shannon in the boat taxi
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this is the perfect town to relax in! massages run about $20 and hour and are available in almost any style. at the more new age end, healing retreats, tarot reading, crystal healings, and almost anything else you want is available. courses are available as well, in everything from massage to reiki to nlp.

i stayed in several hotels here. la paz was rather peaceful and comfortable. el unicornio was the best place to meet fellow backpackers and it had a free kitchen. los pyramides was cheesy and the staff was rude. but best of all had to be hotel aaculaax. what an amazing piece of art that entire place was! a terraced patio restaraunt offers amazing views of the lake and volcano. the rooms are each an individual art project. a stained-glass studio keeps putting out pieces that decorate every window, nook, and cranny. even the tile work in the bathrooms is excellent. and the beds and showers are literally the best i had in latin america. Q120 a night for the basic room, and Q500 for the top of the line room seems steep until you convert it to dollars and find they range from us$15 to us$65 per night. and the top room is literally the top; after a hundred-step climb up winding stairs carved through a terraced gardin on the cliff face, you are perched high over the lake with an amazing view.

boat taxi dock
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san pedro la laguna

san pedro is a short boat ride across the lake. much larger than san marcos, it sports over a dozen restaraunts, many more hotels, and even a bank (where, occasionally, the ATM will work). it is also much touristed, mostly by a young hippy backpacker party crowd.

yes, parties. drugs of all kinds are cheap here and the parties abound. the next day after some of the more serious parties you can see the hippies walking like zombies coming down from their various cocktails. personally, i found this aspect a little ugly. c´mon people, you can party at home. you are in guatemala now. why don't you explore a slightly different culture? but to each their own.

view of lake atitlan
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there are several hotels that offer solar-powered tubs in their gardens, some with a view of the lake, and i highly recommend these. and some of the restaraunts are quite good. this town is certainly worth a look.

panahachèl

this is the third town i visited at the lake, and in some ways my least favorite. it is very tourist oriented, and has been called antigua-by-the-lake. personally i prefer to get as far away from your typical american tourist as possible, the people who come to gawk and be loud and rude and who don't bother to learn any local culture at all. but the guatemalans themselves seem to love panahachel, and use it as their own favorite weekend getaway spot.

san pedro street scene
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i only stayed here for one night, although i passed through several times. the main drag is a long paved road from the center of town to the docks at the lake, and it is filled with tons of craft shops, food, and drink. and austrailian steak bar dominates the top of the road, boasting fresh kangaroo burgers.

if you could only come to one place in guatemala, i would come here to the lake. it is peaceful and retains more of it's natural beauty that much of the rest of guatemala. the locals and the gringos who run the shops are all very sweet. the swiming is awesome and the rooms rates are some of the cheapest in the country. i think you'd enjoy it.