Cathedral in San Cristobal Del Las Casas

San Cristobal De Las Casas is a medium-sized city in the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico. It is a popular stop on the 'backpackers trail' and has many affordable hotels, guest houses and good restaurants. We were happy to find a hotel that offered secure parking, free internet, bottled water and a room with two beds for $15 per night. The city had its fourth annual Cervantino-Barrocco festival going on with various cultural programs at the main square each night. There was everything from local dancers and singers to a jazz band from Cuba and a Chinese ballet. Women and children from the local indiginous community were selling woven scarves, belts and bracelets. At times the children became annoying because they would not take no for an answer and would cling to us whining, Com-pra-lo (buy it). After 3 nights in San Cristobal, we rode to the Guatemalan border. Not knowing how long it would take to get through the border crossing and how far we would need to ride to get to a hotel, we opted to stay in Mexico for one more night. The hotel was dormitory style and not very clean but provided security for our motos. We met several other motorcyclists passing through that evening, three on Kawasaki KLRs and one on a BMW. The border crossing the next morning was very easy. We turned in motorcycle permits at Mexican customs, and went through Mexican immigration, then drove about 3 miles to the Guatemalan border and first had to have our bike fumigated, then purchase tourist visas at immigration, then temporary importation permits for the motorcycles at the customs office. We didn't have to wait in line at all and it took about 30 minutes on the Mexican side and 45 minutes on the Guatemalan side of the border crossing. The total cost to get into Guatemala was about $20 for both of us and our motorcycles.

We were surprised to find the highway in Guatemala in excellent condition most of the time. Most of all there were no more of the bothersome 'topes' (speed bumps) so prevalent in Mexico. There were a few spots where the pavement gave way to gravel and a couple of areas where the road had been completely washed away so the traffic was routed around it.

Where's the Road?

The road climbed to climbed to nearly 10,000 feet and it was cold so Deb stopped to put on another jacket. One of the guys we met at the border the night before rode up behind us and stopped to talk. He was an Englishman named Mel and with green duct tape covering his bike, helmet and pants. We were on our way to Antigua but he told us that we really should see Lake Atitlan and told us about a town called Panajachel. We took his advice and road down a steep twisting road to the town at about 5,100 feet. On the way down the hill, we came upon a temporary bridge called a bailey bridge. Large trucks and tour buses were not allowed to drive over it, in fact, a pick-up truck that was loaded with people had to unload and drive across while the passengers walked.

Panajachel was a small town also well known on the backpackers trail with many hotels, guest houses and restaurants to choose from. We stopped in a small grocery store and spoke to the owner, a woman originally from Wales. She told us a little about the town and where to find a Spanish language school. We followed her directions and found the school but it was closed so we started hunting around for another school. We met a guy named Bobby, originally from California who took us to another school that had a good reputation. We made arrangement to start school the following Monday. Bobby then took us to a very nice hotel where he knew the owner and negotiated a rate of $25 a night. We stayed in the hotel for two nights then moved in with a local family for the next week while we were in school. It cost $110 for two people for five hours of lessons per day for five days and $110 for both of us for room and board for seven days. The family we stayed with were an older couple, Francisco and Amelia. Amelia owned a restaurant a couple of blocks from the house. We ate breakfast at the house, then lunch and dinner at the restaurant, Comedor la Tipica. Amelia was a very good cook, all of it done on a wood fire but we knew every time she put a new log on the fire because a plume of ashes would billow over the wall and drift onto our table, chasing the flies away.

On the Sunday before our classes started, we took a boat trip with Bobby and his family. Panajachel is located on Lake Atitlan with a spectacular view of three volcanoes. Bobby was anxious to see some of the damage from Hurricane Stan as he had a friend whose house was destroyed in the town of Santa Cruz. We got off the boat and walked inland to the house that was closer to the lake than it used to be. Where once there had been a beautiful home with a wide front lawn, now was a gaping crevasse with a small stream running through the middle of it. Only the skeleton of the house was left.

Lake Atitlan

We got back onboard and cruised around the lake to Santiago Atitlan. We stopped at a quaint hotel and restaurant and had a late lunch. Afterward, we walked to the village of Panabaj. This was the village most devastated by the aftermath of the hurricane which dumped six days of rain in the area. Over one-thousand people lost their lives in a mudslide that buried the village at night. Because the victims could not be recovered, the area was consecrated and declared a cemetery. As we walked down a road at the edge of the village, children were playing soccer and laughing at Dave who momentarily joined them in their game. We were surprised by their resilience just one month after the disaster.

While in Panachel, we ran in to Miah one night - one of our friends from Creel whom we hung out with in Parral and Durango. The other guy, Allan, showed up a few nights later with a friend named Sacha. It was great to see Miah and Allan again and to meet Sacha, all of whom we hope to see again as we travel farther south.

Deb With Women Selling Scarves

Girl Selling Clothes

Friday is market day in Solola, one of the largest Mayan towns in the country, about 6 miles up the hill from Panajachel. We took a crowded 'chicken' bus there. People travel to Solola from all over the highlands dressed in their traditional attire to attend the market. At one point it we found ourselves caught in a crush of people pushing from both directions but going nowhere. At first it was funny and we were laughing along with everyone else, but as the crowd grew and pressure increased, it became scary. Since we were so much taller than everyone else, we could breathe but we were concerned for the children in the crowd who were crying and could have easily been suffocated. After about 15 minutes we were able extricate ourselves from the throng. There were thousands of vendors selling vegetables, CDs, knives, weavings, kittens, puppies, ducks, chickens, rocks and 'snake oil' and after plenty of people watching, we crammed ourselves onto another bus with about seventy other people for the return trip.

Women Near Solola Market

On the street in Panajachel, we stopped to talk to a man with a shiny white BMW F650GS like ours. His name was Richard and he lived just outside of town. He invited us to have lunch with him but we had to get to our class so he invited us out to his house over the weekend. On Saturday morning, we packed up and stopped to have an extension welded on to Dave's kickstand before heading out to Richard's. Richard and his wife Sylvia have lived in Panajachel for 15 years in a beautiful home on the lake with a breathtaking view of the volcanoes across Lake Atitlan. They designed the home themselves including the furnishings, all done in the craftsman style. There was a separate bungalow for us to sleep in and even the shower had a gorgeous view of the lake. Richard and Sylvia stay in Panajachel about half the year and travel the other half. For the last nine years, they've been exploring Europe by motorcycle on their overseas trips. We stayed we them two nights and really appreciated their hospitality. Richard gave us tips on places to see in Central America and entertained us with stories about life in Guatemala.

Us at Richard and Sylvia's House

Sylvia and Richard

Our short ride to Antigua was quite adventurous. We took secondary roads through the mountains that made a pretzel look straight. There was a lot of damage from mudslides and at one point we thought we would have to turn back. A sign blocking the road said the pass was closed due to a mudslide but a man on the side of the road waved us around the sign. They think we can go anywhere because we are on 'big bikes'! Deb got her rear wheel buried in the flour-like sand on a hill in the construction zone where the road was still being cleared. A construction worker was offering to help but since we had our radios on, she declined the assistance and asked Dave to come back down to help. Dave got on Deb's bike and fish-tailed his way up the hill to firmer ground and Deb almost needed oxygen after walking up the hill due to the altitude.

Road Closed Signs Don't Apply to Big Bikes

We arrived in Antigua and checked out several hotels before finding an inexpensive one with secure parking. We went out for dinner and felt sticker shock compared to the prices in Panajachel that we thought were a little high. We plan to stay two nights before moving on toward Honduras.