Today I have 12 days left in Belize. I'm in complete denial, so this week's blog post will be reminiscing a trip I took early on in my co-op placement- a weekend in Antigua, Guatemala.
It's been on my life dream to climb a volcano. So I set off to Guatemala for the weekend to check it off the bucket list. Base camp? Antigua. Honestly one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. I think it falls second only to Caye Caulker. The colors were unreal. Whether it was 5am before the fog rolled in, or late in the afternoon when the sun casted a glow off the historical buildings, the scenery never failed to disappoint.
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| Santa Catalina Arch |
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| Volcan Agua at Sunrise |
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| Craft Market |
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| Even the buildings were perfectly coordinated |
I decided to just go on a day hike to Pacaya, one of the smaller volcanoes, so I could have time to visit with some friends that were also traveling through Antigua. Several of the other volcanoes required a multiple day commitment, and I didn't bring enough warm clothes to Central America with me to properly camp at altitude.
Although it is "small", Pacaya did not disappoint. The hike was understandably foggy. The heat coming off of the volcanic ash combined with the cool mountain air makes for a pretty humid climate up there. But we still got a good couple of glimpses at the peak.
The best part of the whole thing was OBVIOUSLY the marshmallows. Although Pacaya isn't violently spewing lava everywhere, it's still an active volcano. Dig a just a foot down into the rubble and you'll have rocks hot enough to make a decent enough s'more! This also means that you can't stand in one place for too long- your shoes will start to stick to the rocks.
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| There she is! |
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| Pacaya disappeared behind the fog again |
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| Not your average marshmallow |
The whole experience has inspired quite a few painting ideas- but I'll be honest I haven't had time to carry them out. Here's a few samples of the sketches so far:
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