Miriam and I departed from Xela at 4AM after a night of debauchery with our Xela crew. I'll admit, it was difficult to rally under the circumstances, but we made it to the bus on time and due to the exhaustion “slept” our way to Guatemala city (4 hours transit). We were lucky in that the bus depot we needed to change over to was only two blocks away and we spent very little time in the peligroso ciudad. We headed to Coban around 8:30AM on a nice only semi-sketchy pullman bus. It was nice to see more of the countryside and it was a good reminder that Guatemala is indeed beautiful and green and not as smoggy and congested as the cities. We arrived in Coban around one in the afternoon and decided to take a break. Coban really doesn't have a lot to see and is generally used as a resting stop for travelers headed north. We ate disappointing meals, napped and made arrangements to leave for Semuc Champey the following morning.
After a windy rough ride, we arrived in Semuc Champey at El Portal Hostel in the late morning and decided to take it easy for the day. We settled in, ate bad tourist food, drank a beer and booked our tours for the following day. Our tour began with Semuc Champey, a beautiful natural limestone bridge with pools of water on top and the Cahabon River flowing underneath. To get there you hike through an awesome jungle-y wild life reserve. The hike is only about thirty minutes but it is considered dificil. It is hot and muggy and a constant upward climb. At the top you have a great view of the Semuc Champey pools and the surrounding mountains. Que bonita! After the vista we headed down to swim in the pools which are a welcome refreshment after the hike. The pools flow into one another and provide excellent swimming and lounging areas. Our guide really stretched my limits of adventuring by encouraging jumping off several rocks into unknown depths of water, sliding down the smooth/slippery rocks, and getting massaged by mini waterfalls. This was fun and all, however, a bit dangerous. I say this because I am still nursing a broken finger (okay it might just be a jam but it is painfully bruised, swollen and stiff) and scraped bruised bottom. Also, I found out the next day a girl was jumping from the rocks (with the same guide), didn't go out far enough and cut up her entire right side resulting in a visit to the hospital. The guide is suspended for six months so at least there is some accountability.
After Semuc, we headed back to our hostel to pick up tubes for floating down the Cahabon River. This was quiet and relaxing and a nice way to prepare for lunch. After eating and RICE-ing my finger we moved on to the caves of Kan'Ba. I will preface this story with, they would never let you do this in los estados unidos. The caves are filled with pools, waterfalls, stalactites and stalagmites. They are super dark (duh, caves) so the guide gives you a candle to light your way. I had a head lamp (thanks to someone's excellent suggestion) and didn't have to try to navigate the cave with a broken finger and a candle occupied hand. We swam, climbed up and over rocks, and made leaps of faith into the darkness. It was really scary in parts but I enjoyed it. About half way through I scraped my foot pretty badly while climbing up onto a rock from a dark pool. It was quite a bleeder and is currently nicely bruised. I limped my way through the rest of the cave sustaining no further injury. It was definitely worth it despite the questionableness of the situation. After this exhausting day we headed back to our hostel for a much deserved beer and a bit of relaxation.
We left Semuc Champey on Tuesday morning for Antigua (where I am currently composing this posting). Antigua is a beautiful city however, expensive and mega touristy. I am enjoying a touch of class but getting frustrated with people responding to my Spanish with English and paying higher prices for just about everything. Miriam and I are planning a week at Lago de Atitlan to get away from the city for a bit and reunite with our Xela amiga Monique. Just under two weeks left and back to los estados unidos and mi vida. Well, sort of.
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