Lake Atitlan

This past weekend we visited the beautiful Lake Atitlan. The road to Lake Atitlan was very narrow and winding and lasted about 2 hours. When we reached the lake we took a boat tour to visit the smaller villages surrounding the lake: San Marcos, San Pedro and Santiago. Our tour guide explained that the lake formed through volcanic explosions for millions of years, eventually creating the lake. Smaller volcanoes rose out of the lakes thousands of years later. 

The weather was beautiful on the first boat ride to San Marcos. We stopped by several stores that sold handmade textiles. At one of the stores, our tour guide explained the different ways the Guatemalan women dye the yearn they used to make the different textiles. The Guatemalan women dye their yarn with bark, green tea, coconut, insects etc.

After spending some time at the art and textiles stores at San Marcos, we all took 'tuk tuks' (a motorcycle with attached seating) to the next town, San Pedro. Tuk tuks are very common in Guatemala as a cheap form of transportation for short distances. They are apparently called tuk tuks because of the sound they make. 

From San Pedro we hopped on or boat again to the last village, Santiago. On our way to the boat, the sky turned grey and cloudy and we also heard very loud thunder. 

At Santiago, we visited Iglesia Parroquial Santiago Apostal. Which was built by the Franciscans between 1571 a d 1582. There were several Mayan figures of corn (which humans were formed, according to the Mayan religion) within the Catholic Church. At this time, the rain was really pouring down to the point where we had to sit in the church for a few minutes to see if the thunderstorm would pass. Eventually we realized that the rain storm was not going to die down anytime soon. We tired our best to dodge the rain puddles by using the plastic tarps the small fruit and textiles stores put up to keep their belongings dry but there was no use. Because the morning showed promising weather, most of the group did not have the proper attire to adventure through the rainstorm like true Washington residents. Also the Guatemalan rainstorms are VERY different from Washington rainstorms. Guatemalan rainstorms come out of no where, contain massive raindrops and can last several minutes or up to several hours.Unfortunately, this rainstorm lasted for hours.

When we got to the boat, the storm was in full blast. Fortunately, the captain of our boat put a tarp over the sides and front of the boat to keep us dry as we hit the rough waters. The waves were very choppy and the ride was very bumpy. We were all so relieved when we finally reached land!

At the time, the rainstorm was uncomfortable and seemed like a burden. However, looking back on it... The rainstorm was an unforgettable adventure and a great memory of Lake Atitlan!