San Pedro de la Laguna

After classes and a teachers' meeting on Friday, I headed off with Christie and three other volunteers at the school for the hippie town of San Pedro de la Laguna which is on the southern side of the huge Lake Atitilán. We arrived at night to a lovely little town where we got a cheap hotel with a hammock on our porch with an incredible view of the lake. We had a fabulous dinner and I even found Rosa de Jamaica juice! I never knew to look for it in the states, but if you see it you should try it--it's great!

I awoke the next morning at 5:30 a.m. because I thought it would be fun to climb the Volcán San Pedro, which sits 3020 meters above sea level. Though Christie, Jenna, Steve, and Chris initially said they wanted to go, too, they decided sleep was the better option, so they slept in and went on a relaxing kayak ride while I set off with a nice French guy and two U.S.ans. I couldn't keep up with their ridiculously fast pace, so I convinced them to go on ahead and let me go my own pace. I ended up climbing much of the way with three Guatemalan Spanish teachers who were having an equally difficult time and who were left behind by their spritely students.

For three hours and fifteen minutes I sweat and panted more than I ever have before, to the extent that about halfway up my body started conserving water and I actually quit sweating entirely! The path winds through corn fields, then coffee and avocado plants, and finally through cloud forest in which many vines and bromeliads grow on the trees. Granted, I rarely looked anywhere other than at the muddy or rocky path, but every now and again I'd look up for a nice view. What was I thinking?! Climbing volcanoes is not fun. It is torture.

Once at the top, I found my group sitting on the large boulders that offer impressive views...of the clouds. On good days you can see the whole lake and the surrounding villages. On days like today, you can't see five meters past your face. That's okay, though, because I'll just buy a postcard of what I would have seen had it been clear.

After 20 minutes of rest in the cold rain, we started the descent back to town. For equally inexplicable reasons as during the ascent, my guide and group literally ran down much of the volcano. I kept up with them for the most part, but was pretty sure I would sprain an ankle while doing so. Also, though my lungs were pleased to have no more demanding work, my knees protested almost immediately, shouting their rally cry to stop with each painful step. We did stop briefly halfway down at a lookout point (still clouds), but getting up after sitting just made me realize how sore I really was!

Though the guide book said it takes about 6-7 hours round-trip, we arrived back in San Pedro after 5.25 hours, exhausted and hungry. I met up with the others and had a tasty lunch before I gleefully hobbled into the shower. After some reading/napping time in the hammock, I'm more than ready for my one-hour, $17 Swedish massage! ¡Qué lujo! And apparently it's salsa/merengue/cumbia night at a nearby discoteca so I'll see if I can't muster some energy for that.

Update: Kata, my masseuse was incredible! I don´t think she was quite as good as my one previous masseuse, but it was just what I needed to relax!

We dined at this great German place called Picasso that had random artwork about; a bed that, though confusing at first, came in especially handy for a sleeping baby to rest on; and a one-pound portion of spaetzel that was impossible to finish. Here Christie shows how full she really felt!

None of us had energy to go out dancing, so back to the hotel we went for a great night of sleep.