Monterrico

The Hawaii-Monterrico Biosphere

The docks - Monterrico

Monterrico is located on the Pacific Coast of Guatemala, about 2.5 hours southwest of Antigua.  The brilliant thing about it is that there’s almost nothing to do.  No dive boats, no thumping clubs, no surfing.  The ocean, with an unforgiving break close to the shore, even discourages most swimmers. The small village has a rustic, laid-back charm.  A handful of seafood restaurants, black sand, stray dogs, political graffiti on crumbling walls.  

Our activities in Monterrico consisted of:

1. Floating in the pool

2.  Drinking Beer

3. Walking on the beach

4. Drinking beer

5. Eating Ceviche

….you get the picture!

Yes, that is a giant pelican...and he's not about to be pushed around!

 

There is one undeniably splendid attraction: the Hawaii-Monterrico Biosphere, an extensive reserve of mangrove canals home to caiman, iguanas, fish, crustaceans, and migrating birds.  We took a canoe tour organized by a fantastic guide from the “Tortuguero”; a local organization that protects nesting sea turtles and other wildlife. It was worth waking up at 5 am to see the spectacular sunrise over the distant volcanoes.  Due to the influx of fresh water during the rainy season, the canals were especially green.

Convento Capuchinas and Santa Clara

Courtyard of Convento Capuchinas

Outside of the San Francisco Cathedral

Convento Santa Clara

Covento Santa Clara

Guatemala wins first Olympic medal...EVER

Yesterday we watched Erick Barrondo race walk his way into history, winning the first ever Olympic medal for his country. It was pretty exciting and has undoubtedly been the topic of conversation on every street corner. When we turned back to the local station hours later the announcers were still recapping his victory. Not only did Barrondo win a silver medal, but he kept China from sweeping the top three spots. AND he is a good role model, using his Olympic success as a platform to encourage youth to make smarter choices and turn to sports rather than violence. Go Erick!

Reasons to Love Antigua - Views like this...

Taken from the rooftop terrace at El Sereno 

San Felipe de Jesus

Today we headed to the village of San Felipe de Jesus - about a 15-20 minute walk from our home in Antigua. There is a beautiful little church and the area is also known for its clay owls. They're kind of like piggy banks...kids save their coins and then break open the figures when they are ready to spend their loot!

San Felipe de Jesus - please note the men loading a table onto a bicycle in the foreground

The church

Owls for sale...

Volcan Acatenango

Below is a series of photos from our EPIC hike up the Acatenango Volcano. A friend and coworker who was soon to leave town was kind enough to include me in her plans to scale the mountain. Altogether, we went as a group of fourteen and drove part way up the mountain via entrance to a private finca (farm). The road up was quite harrowing: extremely steep, uneven, and muddy...it was like Indiana Jones, only real.

View of Agua from the summit

ACTIVE Volcan de Fuego

From the parking area the hike was roughly 1.5 - 2 hours; ascending from pine forest to barren, volcanic rock. The last portion was rather difficult given the steep sides of the crater and loose soil. At nearly 13,000 feet the altitude also leaves you feeling short of breath.

Nerdy self-portrait

Forest on the way up

 It was all worth it for the incredible views: Antigua, Ciudad Vieja, and Volcan de Agua off to one side, the ring of mountains surrounding Lake Atitlan on the other. We were also close to adjoining Volcan de Fuego, which is still active and occasionally let off a plume of smoke from it's angry red cone. Considering this is the rainy season, we were extremely lucky with weather. The skies were clear and blue for most of the hike and clouds didn't roll in until well after noon. When they did come, however, the wind picked up and the temperature dropped drastically. It was absolutely frigid.

Ascension...

Super bundled and extremely happy on the top...

The trip was probably one of the most amazing things I've done here to date. Though we didn't formally go through a tour company, the logistics of our excursion were organized by someone who works for Old Town Outfitters (http://www.bikeguatemala.com/)...so I would definitely recommend them for anyone considering the trek!

4th of July,

Happy July 4th! We did a ton of shopping and made some excellent veggie burgers with mashed garbanzo and black beans, onion, and garlic. Served with avocado, blue cheese, and delicious bread from Epicure.

Oh, this face...

Note the plantain chips...a little twist of Guatemala for 4th of July!