Fairytale Village Charms and Indigenous Mayan Culture Meet in Beautiful and Thrilling Guatemala

The journey began by taking a chicken bus from the border with Mexico down to Quetzeltenango, and from there taking a taxi to Lake Atitlan. Lake Atitlan deserves at least a week or more of your time. There are many different villages all around the lake, easily accessible by boat, and they all have unique charms and personalities. I started in San Pedro, which is the heart of the "nightlife" and very fun, plus you can hike the San Pedro Volcano and see amazing views of the lake! It's a good place to start, as it's easy to reach the other villages from San Pedro. You can also start in Panajachel, an extremely bustling and vibrant town with a very large local market full of all kinds of goods! There are vendors selling everything from clothes to pies to alcoholic drinks right on the street. It's a must-visit when in Lake Atitlan. San Marcos, San Juan and Santa Cruz are gorgeous and tranquil and have amazing workshops and local places to visit to learn about the traditional weaving, sacred cacao, beekeeping etc. You can also scuba dive right in the lake! Watch out for "Bandidos" while you're there particularly on long hikes - hike in groups if you can! 

Next up, a bus to Antigua! Antigua is a beautiful, safe, well-organized city that cannot be missed. The food is delicious, and there is a great combination of street food, local markets as well as French bakeries and diverse cuisine. Beware drinking the water/eating some street food - getting food poisoning here is very, very common! There are some lovely short hikes to viewpoints around the city, and anywhere you walk in the city will be extremely beautiful! This city is extremely walkable, but uber is also available for longer trips to the many nearby active volcanoes, which cannot be missed! There are also various farms in the surrounding area that you can walk or uber to. 

Then I took the chicken bus to a local village just 20-30minutes from Antigua. This village is a real gem to experience authentic life for Indigenous Mayan families. The prices are extremely cheap, the people are extremely friendly, and there are beautiful walks to take through the mountainside, providing you with views of the many active volcanoes in the area. I recommend spending at least a week or two living with a local family here to really appreciate the culture that has been maintained for many hundreds of years. While I was here I had the opportunity to learn backstrap loom weaving, handmaking traditional tortillas and Guatemalan dishes, working out in the farm harvesting wild-grown plants for dinner, hand grinding fresh coffee, making fans from bamboo leaves, and more!