Guatemala has many faces; it seems to be partially (if not
full blown) bipolar. She has both her manic and depressive phases. Its
fertility seduces the eye which is lucky enough to lay sight upon her. Large
trees with unique texture and full of life can be seen from border to border.
Beautiful lakes surrounded by volcanoes and waterfalls paint the scenes of
fairy tales. Volcanoes covered by shaded
coffee plantations makes one look forward to the following morning just to savor
a perfectly brewed cup of coffee. Rugged mountains test the strength of our
legs as we climb and descend the steepest roads we have seen yet. Powerful women
travel these mountains wearing intricate Guatemalan weaves that cover a strong,
dark, and stubby body carrying heavy loads on their head. Perfectly maintained
colonial towns at the foot of volcanoes teleport you back in time to a magical
utopia.
She is not without her depressive phase, her dark side. Just
like a young child who’s been abused, she knows not proper behavior at times. Towns become strong hold for local gangs where kids are no longer kids; they
are lost souls with hard stares. Though prostitution and drug dealing are not on my traveler’s To-do
list, they are too evident when you look closely. Little concern for her ecological well-being
created a country whose beautiful roads are lined with plastic garbage, her
rivers contaminated by pesticides which eventually cause uncontrolled bacterial
growth in once pristine lakes, her high plateaus and valleys covered in mass produced
monoculture, and she smells of burning garbage far too often.
Guatemala is small but mighty. Her mountains gifted me great
humbleness, her summits hypnotized me with unbelievable views. I’ve been
touched and transformed by this land. She granted me passage
unharmed, in good health, and with high spirits, and has gained every ounce of my respect. Tomorrow we hit the next frontier, El Salvador. Check out the link below...
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