This trip is turning out to be more adventurous that i thought it would be. Yesterday I got to my beautiful hotel, Isla Verde, an eco-hotel on the bank of Lago (Lake) Atitlan. I was thinking to myself, man, this was too quiet!! I need more stimulation. Guess that wish came through.

I signed up for a traditional fishing trip on a traditional boat at 6am this morning which should last one hour. It started off perfectly! I woke up to a gorgeous sky and sunrise. Then i got on the boat. It was already very shaky despite the calm water. It was a shaky ride for 15minutes and I saw the water came coming in, so I told the guy to paddle to a private berth to take the water out. When we got there (luckily), the boat started to turn turn over and sank. I had to swim to shore but fortunately my camera and most of the stuffs in my bags are okay…when I got to shore I still managed to take photos of the sinking boat! Haha! Priorities!!

Then i had to return to my hotel along the banks of the river. And I had to trespass – jumped over fences and hike up behind the houses through the jungle to get back to my hotel. What a morning it has been!!!

I reward myself with a yummy breakfast! And just enjoying the view, the cosy hotel, and the dogs’ company. Such joy! I was shocked but I had a laugh after that passes.

I will go on a lake boat tour later today to three towns: Santiago de Atitlan, San Marco, and San Juan. Wish me luck with that trip 🙂

I did have a better experience with the lake yesterday. I decided to the the public “lancha” (fast boat) to my hotel. I paid 1/6 of the private lancha tariff (thats already the rip-off rate by the way) and I got to travel with the locals. The women looked amazing. They wear traditional outifit (the blouse is called huipil, the belt with mayan motives, headband, and the weaved cloth as their skirt). They carry things on their head. And all are very colorful!! They are all very friendly. I managed to get to know another local during the ride, who explained that there are 23 Mayan dialects in Guatemala. I asked him to write my name in one of the mayan languages, but he said there is no such sound in Mayan languages. Example “Juan” in Spanish is “Axuan” in Mayan dialect of Ka’qichel.

Yesterday, I also walked to the town of Santa Cruz La Laguna next to my hotel. I visited a sewing school for children, and the proprietor invited me to his rooftop for the view of the volcanoes. And I bought a skirt for my niece to support the school. The skirt was sown by a girl called, Monica Rafael. The people of the town is so friendly. And their main transportation is Bajaj (that is how we call the motorized tri-wheel vehicle in Indonesia. It originates from India). Anyhow I am going to enjoy the sunny morning (it always rains in the afternoon in September).