In the shadow of volcanoes

It was a long and winding road into Guatemala, but the volcanic vistas were stunning as we descended into Panajachel on Lake Atitlan. This must be among the most beautiful places in the world, with three grand giants surrounding the lake. This was once a massive volcano that imploded in on itself, eventually forming the lake. 

The day started with chocolate cake and a piñata for Glen's birthday! Captain American didn't stand a chance.

We took a bright blue boat to Casa del Mundo for a relaxing retreat, where every nook in the stone cliff has a table and chairs, or a hammock strung under a sheltered terrace. Up high is a cafe, where I got a surprisingly chocolatey frappuccino, densely packed with local chocolate and a twist of coffee picked in the region. 

Another brisk boat ride brought us to San Juan de la Laguna, where we experienced local living, spitting up and staying two by two with families scattered across the tiny town. After meeting Guillermo, our host, and dropping our bags, Leonie and I joined back up with the group for a walk around the village of 1,500. These are Mayan people very close to their ancestry, speaking the language, maintaining traditions.

This is an artistic town, with murals everywhere, all proudly displaying their history. Women mostly weave, and men mostly work the fields. At the weaving cooperative we were treated to an exceptional demonstration of how Mayan women collect cotton grown in town, clean it of seeds (saved for new plants), beat it to soften, spin it twice into threads, dye it in magnificent natural colours, then weave it into scarves, bags, sweaters and more.

The dyes are all natural, using ancestral knowledge. From light green of rosemary, red from insects found in cacti, blue from the leaves of the Zacatina tree, and wildly, fantastically different colours if harvested exactly during the full moon.

The colour is fixed by dipping the cotton in banana trunk water, then boiled in the colour concoction, and dipped again in the banana.

We next visited the artists' workshop, seeing vibrant bird's-eye-view artwork demonstrating Mayan life, picking cotton or corn, all in colorful traditional dress.

On to the herbal workshop, where we sat in the most fragrant garden learning what herbs are used for which ailments. These women here are attempted to rebuild lost Mayan knowledge.

Last stop: chocolate workshop! The cacao is picked and the beans inside are covered in a glue white membrane that has to dry, covered by banana leaves in a wooden box for a month, stirred occasionally. After the beans are roasted in a clay dish, the husks are removed and can be made into tea. The beans are ground with a stone rolling pin, and when mixed with molasses and orange juice, delicious chocolate!

Our host families came to fetch us for dinner, where Leo and I helped to make tortillas (surprisingly difficult! Very sticky) and enjoyed our omelets, beans, and rice with the family. Their daughter and her husband joined us with their seven year old son, Elfie. It was the most Spanish we've used yet and was a great challenge! Elfie was a lot of fun and enjoyed playing soccer with Leo, and we played cards until bedtime.

The next morning, we were up early, enjoyed an amazing coffee, and got back on the boat singing praises to the bright sunny day, on the way to Antigua.

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