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Live #14, Ek Balam Maya Ruins and X’Canche Cenote, Mexico



13/12/2014 The 2nd part of my Greenland Videos delayed my live updates a bit, sorry about that! I am currently in Antigua Guatemala and just came back from an amazing climb to Volcan Acatenango, overlooking the very active Volcan Fuego. Check out my Instagram Picture for a little preview before I get my hands on a report! In the meanwhile, I hope you will enjoy some more pictures from Yucatan’s Maya temples and Cenotes in this post

The Ek Balam Maya ruins are very close to Valladolid and combined with the great Cenote X’Canche, it was just something I could not miss since I skipped the world famous Chichen Itza ruins. I just don’t like the fact that they restored it so much (even removed all the jungle around it!) and that it is just swarmed by tourists. Instead I would use my time to get to the very remote ruins of Calakmul in the south, but more on this on another live update soon to come!

Cenote X’Canche was just awesome, for a few reasons: Looks extremely cool, not crowded at all, perfect sink hole shape and last but not least: Very safe jump from about 14m into into the cenote! Overall, it has been my favorite Cenote in the Yucatan!

Live #15, Merida, Dzibilchaltun and Uxmul, Mexico



17/12/2014 Another quick update from Mexico, only two more and I am ready to provide some pictures from Belize Together with some Couchsurfers, I visited the Dzibilchaltun & Uxmal Maya ruins close to Merida. Right now I am actually in El Salvador and just came back from climbing yet another volcano here!

The Dzibilchaltun Maya ruins were not on my list before coming to the Yucatan, but thanks to the advice of the locals I actually made it there and was really happy to do so! The experience I had there was just really different to the other ruins so far and for some reason I liked it a lot. Coming during the vernal equinox, you would be able to see the sun rising through two windows at the same time from the temple of the seven dolls. I did not witness that but just imaging it was cool and reminded me of Indiana Jones movies Ah, and the close by Xlakah Cenote was a little bit disappointing. We also came a bit late and I could only swim in there for five minutes, so maybe it is nicer if you can spend more time there!

Uxmal, on the other side, did not live up to my exceptions. The main pyramid is located just next to the entrance and I was missing the feeling of exploration when the main attraction was literally right in front of me at the entrance. The rest of the site was a little bit dull as well, maybe I was slowly getting a bit tired of ruins. I also got my first haircut outside of Europe in Mexico! Ha, what a milestone and a lot of fun it was

Live #16, Campeche & Calakmul, Mexico

Click the Link for the pictures!



19/12/2014 Turns out the west of El Salvador features some pretty amazing little villages, especially the one that I am staying in now, Juay�a. People here are so friendly and I can barely see any tourists at all on the beautiful streets. I will leave today heading to the El Imposible National Park; but before I do so, check out the update about one of my highlights in the Yucatan: The remote ruins of Calakmul, once one of the biggest cities of the Maya!

I spent hours figuring out the best and most direct way from M�rida to the area of Calakmul since I tried to avoid driving along the west side of the Yucatan. Due to a local bus strike, I was eventually forced to stop by in Campeche and make my way further down south and then east to my destination. Campeche actually turned out to be very nice so I was not sad at all to drive some extra km. The only trouble I had was getting a taxi to the ADO bus terminal to make it in time because all taxis were full and did not stop for me. In the end, I just barely made it though and even met a German couple that would go to Calakmul as well, so we decided to join forces.

Calakmul had always been the one ruin that I was looking forward to the most. The main reason being the fact that it is so remote. First you have to get to Xpujil and based from there either have a private car or hire a taxi to drive into the jungle for another two hours of driving. The other reason being the fact that it used to be one of the biggest ancient Maya sites, fighting with Tikal in Guatemala at some point in history, better check Wikipedia for that since they know the details

We stayed the night in a nice place (including a swimming pool) and organised a taxi driver for 1200 pesos, so 400 pesos or about 22€ each. This deal was pretty sweat actually since the driver would wait for us at Calakmul for about 4 hours and then another 2 hours and the Becan ruins on the way back. Usually they charge a bit more for that. The driver picked us up the next morning and after 30 minutes or so, I asked him if I could maybe drive a bit. He did not hesitate to stop the car and from then on I was in charge of getting us to the ruins, driving about 80 minutes through the jungle

As imagined, we were completely alone in the huge complex. Only one other car arrived before us but we didn’t really see the people since it’s spread out so much. The ruins were amazing, including some of the biggest Maya temples you will ever see. There is also a lot of wildlife around and you can hear and spot monkeys while you walk around the jungle from one temple to the other. Being on top of the biggest pyramid, we could even spot the El Mirador ruins in Guatemala way in the distance!

Jochen was driving us back to Xpujil, but before we could enjoy a final amazing Torta they would serve there, we had one final stop and it turned out to be my absolute favorite of all the Maya ruins: Becan. But more on that in a separate update in a few days!

Next update

Live #17, Becan Maya Ruins, Mexico Click for the Pictures!



21/12/2014 And finally� the last update about Maya ruins in Mexico! It ended with my favorite of them all, the city of Becan. Located very close to Xpujil, it is not as remote as Calakmul, but nevertheless only a few people go there. Check out this post to find out why it turned out to be my favorite in the end.

Part of our deal with the Taxi driver was to spend about 2 1/2 hours in Becan on our way back from Calakmul. It is very close to Xpujil and you could even bike there if you wanted to, but well we already had the Taxi for us The first thing that I noticed about that site was that everything just feels much more like it used to be during the times of the Maya. You can even walk around some small corridors and rooms and everything is in a very good shape without over-restaurating it like Chichen Itza for instance.

I especially enjoyed the main temples. One of them (as seen on the cover picture on this post) just looks awesome thanks to it�s shape and the fact that it is still surrounded by trees. And the other one (from where I took the cover picture) is half collapsed and allowed me to do some climbing while offering the great view. Becan just felt right, it is hard to describe but for some reason it was my favorite even though it is not as big as Calakmul or as famous as Chichen Itza. You should check it out if you make it down to Xpujil!

Happy xmas

Live #18, Bacalar, Mexico



23/12/2014 One more day until Christmas and I am back in Guatemala City once more to spend the festival in 29�C – a very strange feeling and my first Christmas outside of Germany! Keeping my pace for updates every 2nd day, I can now finally present the last part of Mexico in the beautiful Laguna Bacalar!

Bacalar did not play a role in my initial planning for Mexico, I simply had no idea until other travelers told me about it in Mexico. Quickly checking it out on Google, I did not hesitate to adept my plans so I could fit it in for a few days. Doing so was a brilliant decision since it turned out to be my favorite place in Mexico next to the Maya ruins of Becan and Calakmul! The water of the Laguna is great and comes in different colors and just chilling out their was really relaxing before heading onwards to Belize!

First update from Belize!

Live #19, Caye Caulker, Belize



26/12/2014 Christmas in Guatemala turns out to be quiet the opposite of Europe and is celebrated like New Years Eve here with a late dinner, fireworks and lots of parties all night long. After 5 weeks in this great country, it is time to move on now and a long distance bus will take me to the Copan Ruins in Honduras tomorrow. Hope you will enjoy this first update from Belize now, visiting Caye Caulker in the Caribbean Sea.

Caye Caulker in Belize was another location that I added to my itinerary last second, hearing about it from other travelers. The only thing I wanted to do was the Hol Chan Marine Reserve, based from San Pedro. Turns out that this place is packed with hotels though, whereas Caye Caulker has more of a backpacking vibe for it, making my decision to go there instead very easy. I stayed in the Bella’s Hostal just next to the Dirty McNasty’s, which seems to be the place-to-go for all those party hungry backpackers. I was glad I did not stay there.

The motto of the Island is “Go Slow” and it even changed my walking habits from a fast paced London style to the very relaxed and slow one of the island. The streets on Caye Caulker are also just made out of sand and the only vehicles here are gold caddys, making the place quiet special and cool! And did I mention they have great looking waters around there too?

We booked a sail tour for a complete day, visiting the local coral reef, the shark alley and the Hol Chan Marine Reserve. A pack of ten dolphins followed us on the way to the shark alley. Feeding the sharks there was great since you could swim right in the middle of them. They are all harmless obviously and very used to humans in that area. The Hol Chan features some more marine life such as turtles but overall I expected a bit more from that, guess it is better for diving than just snorkeling here so I missed out on a bit.

I can just highly recommend doing the tour and especially liked the fresh food provided or the all-you-can-drink rum punch happy hour on the way back. I think I had seven big cups in the end, a perfect way to start the evening! If you have more time, you can even do the three day tour including night stays on deserted islands going down to the south of Belize. Sadly we could not opt in tour due to a bad weather forecast, otherwise I would have ended up extended my stay in Caye Caulker.

On the last full day, we relaxed at the so called “Split”, the part of the island that was cut off my hurricanes. At least that is what the internet tells you, our captain on the boat however said that it was originally started by the americans, digging out just a tiny passage for small ships which was eventually broadened by the hurricans to create the split that you can see today. It is a great place to hang out though and good fun to swim to the other side of the split since there is a small current that will drag you out a bit.

We also hired some Kayaks (ree at the Bella’s Hostel) and used them to check out the other Island for a while. If you have a lot of time, you could even make a complete circuit but bring a lot of water for that. We just had an hour and were forced to turn back just shortly after we reached the other island. Still a lot of fun! In the end I can just say that I was very happy to come to Caye Caulker and I would only have one more major destination in Belize, the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) caves, coming up in the next Live Report

Just arrived in Honduras Chris vs Parrot

Live #21, Tikal, Guatemala



30/12/2014 Yesterday I arrived to the currently famed “most dangerous place on earth” and my second stop in Honduras: San Pedro Sula. I was supposed to leave to the Cusuco National Park today, but due to my slight delay and a booked flight to Utila tomorrow, I decided to do it after my return from the Island in order to spend two nights in the remote jungle. I will use the extra day to check out the city today and of course update my blog, reporting “live” from Guatemala for the first time. Coming from Belize, it was obvious that I would have to stop in Tikal, one of the most famous Maya sites in Central America!

Joined by Philip, a German guy I met before in San Ignacio to explore the ATM Caves, we made our way to the Border in a taxi and successfully dodged the extra fee that they are trying to squeeze out of tourists while entering Guatemala (just ask for a receipt and you won’t have to pay it). We missed the last bus due to the public holiday and were forced to take a more expensive private shuttle directly to Tikal, ending up paying a bit more than 200 Quetzales each. We arrived at 3pm and were just in time to get the 150Q entrance ticket that would be valid for the next day as well, so we wasted no time to drop our staff at the Jaguar Inn Hotel and made our way into the rainy jungle that surrounds the mighty ruins of Tikal!

Having not purchased either the Sunset or the Sunrise tour for an extra 150Q each, we were making the most out of our time anyway. The rain provided a great atmosphere and a good alternative to boring blue sky ;-) It got dark very fast and the ground was very slippery, nearly dropping us a few times. We headed straight to Temple IV, which was supposed to offer the best view. They built some staircases to reach the 64m high top plateau and the view is somehow limited as you can just see other temples peaking out. Before coming to Tikal, I was hoping to see some bigger structures from there but it was great in any case.

We only met two other people during the late hour of that day and joined up together on the way back, walking through complete pitch black darkness as the sun was gone around 6pm. Joined by the rangers that clean out the park so nobody sneaks in without having paid for the Sunset ticket – which would not have been great in that weather anyway – we made it back to the Jaguar Inn to have a suprsingly good and well portioned dinner there. Sleeping in tents they provide for “just” 15$ seemed like a good deal considering the fact that we were staying in the middle of the Park and right next to the Entrance gate. I could hear all kinds of monkeys and other animals (and also the snoring tour guide Caesar in a tent next to us) while trying to fall asleep.

The next morning, we woke up at 5:30 to make it to the entrance as early as possible to get in without the special sunrise ticket, meaning 6AM. The weather did not change since last night, so we were happy that we did not spend all the extra money. The sounds of the awaking jungle were still clearly present at 6AM, even though it should probably be even better getting in at 4AM. We walked a slightly different route this time and headed to the main plaza including the famous Jaguar Temple. Certainly a pretty cool structure to look at and a shame one is not allowed to climb it up! Some people have died doing so in the past after slipping down.

We returned to Temple IV again and had slightly better weather this time, still clouds dominated the sky though but I think it makes for a great atmosphere. Overall we spent nine hours in Tikal on both days and the rest of the second day was spent walking around through all different corners. Arriving at the Lost World Pyramid aka Gran Pyramid, we were waiting until everyone around us disappeared (it was not busy in that part of Tikal luckily) in order to climb it up. Climbing it is not allowed, but it is a very easy and safe climb, so we could not resist the temptation. The view from up there was amazing, actually it was my favorite view of them all because you could see all other major temples from a much nicer perspective compared to Temple IV. Just when we arrived to the top, some guy was waiving at Philip and we could hear a starting car engine, so we got down pretty soon after again. Turns out the waiving guy was just a Japanese tourist and not one of the guards when we saw him five minutes later to say hello :-)

It was already pretty late and we wanted to head back to the Hotel in time to catch the bus to Flores. However, Tikal made it really hard to leave as we spotted even more great places on the way out, for example Temple V, the second tallest structure at 57m and just very impressive to look at. All of the sudden, the sun came out again and we took some more pictures from the Jaguar Temple again. Even after nine hours, I could have stayed some longer and have to say that visiting Tikal is an absolute must for anyone interested in the Maya culture! One more Club Sandwhich and a nice shower later, I was headed to Flores to stay with a new Couchsurfer and relax a bit after all the walking at Tikal…

>> Link to the Photos

Live #23, Semuc Champey, Guatemala



03/01/2015 It�s pretty damn early here in Honduras now and I only have twenty minutes to get this update out, so gotta keep it short again. Semuc Champey in Guatemala was one of those things that I only heard about while being on the road already. It�s a serious of pools in an awesome jungle setting between Flores and Guatemala City. Takes a while to get there, but it�s totally worth it!

The shuttle left Flores at 8AM and I got a very good price of just 50Q for the long journey, maybe because I got in touch with the Company beforehand via mail. After a stop in Coban, we arrived in Lanquin at 3:30PM, where I was supposed to be picked up from a guy of the Greengo Hostel. He told me that he wants to wait another 15 minutes for the next shuttle to arrive, which eventually turned into a two hour wait and then another hour until we finally arrived at the hostal, leaving me a little bit pissed since it already got dark by the time and I couldn�t explore the area anymore.

The next morning started early for me, hoping for the pools to be not so busy already. First, I went up to the Mirador though, a high point overlooking all the pools and according to the sign, over an hour hike which I eventually finished in less than 15 minutes, so it�s not that bad Getting down to the pools, they were luckily not so busy and it was easy to put my stuff somewhere along the side while going in for a swim. This would have been a bit more uncomfortable if it would have been more busy.

The pools in Semuc Champey are indeed great, amazing views around on the jungle and you can even find some small fish in there that like to bit your leg, which is a pretty funny feeling. I spent about three hours just in the pools, reaching a waterfall in the end which was worth the extra small hike on the way back. In one of the lower pools you can get into a small cave, having just enough space for your head to pop out of the water. The hostel was in walking distance, so I could come back there easily to get my stuff and get back to Lanquin, about a 45 minutes 4�4 drive away. I quickly ran up the hill to get some pictures from above before hitching back down on a pickup truck.

Back in Lanquin, I checked in to the El Muro Hostel, a much nicer place with a cool Atmosphere and friendly people. I got back just in time to visit the Bat Cave, about 15 minutes walking distance from Lanquin. Every day at 6PM, you will encounter all the bats flying out of the cave while you walk in to it. It has been extremely muddy inside and the bats are not coming in swarms, still a cool side trip from Lanquin.

I got up at 6AM for the sunrise and was ready to leave Lanquin again in the 10AM shuttle. However, thanks to some drunk tourists and their late checkout from another hotel, we were two hours late to depart and then got stuck into a massive three hour traffic jam due to a landslide on the highway in the brutal heat � good times! At least I got a good price for the shuttle again and only paid 75Q instead of 150Q I was the only one to leave the shuttle in Guatemala City while everyone else headed off to tourist friendly Antigua�

Next video is ready!

>> Video (29mins) from Yucat�n, Mexico



Hope you like my next video, covering the Yucat�n Peninsula in Mexico. I managed to get everything in while staying under half an hour: Cancun, Tulum, Coba, Gran Cenote, Valladolid, Ek Balam Maya Ruins, X�Canche Cenote, Merida, Dzibilchaltun, Uxmul, Campeche, Calakmul, Becan and last but not least: Bacalar!

Next

Live #25, Lake Atitlan, Guatemala (click for pictures)



10/01/2015 I�m still in San Pedro Sula and tried everything to get into the Cusuco National Park and to replace my broken lens. Unfortunately, both did not work out in the end and I will now move on to Lake Yojoa without a working camera But let�s talk about the past, Lake Atitlan. When I first did my research about Guatemala, I quickly came across Lake Atitlan and ever since had the strong desire to go there. A lake surrounded by three volcanoes sounded and looked great and it was so worth going there in the end!

The chicken bus got me into Panajachel, the main tourist hub around the lake. The complete town is based on tourism and I was glad that I would not stay over there and instead go to the less touristic spots around the lake, hopefully getting in touch with the locals during my two scheduled couchsurfing occasions as well. Taking a lancha over to Santiago Atitlan, I immediately liked the atmosphere there much better.

Instead of all the backpackers walking around, I could now spot a lot of friendly locals on the way to my Couchsurfing place, which was pretty interesting and hard to find by the way! After making my way through a bunch of bushes and back alleys, I eventually made it to the Hotel which was supposed to be just next to the place and got picked up from there Their house looked great and my lovely host even let me use her room since they had another guest at the same time, already occupying the couch.

On the next day, I walked around the city to find the Maxim�n. Not being able to do so, I had to use my superb Spanish skills to ask the local people and eventually made it there. They wanted to charge me to take pictures inside, so I only got one from the outside instead. It was lunch time afterwards and I got four empanadas and a bag full of fruit for just 21Q (~2,20�) � streed food is just awesome!

Another great source for food was located just five minutes walking distance away from the Couchsurfer place: Las Lagartijas. Located in a small booth outside of town, it provides delicious food and you should check it out if you are in the area! After a cold swim in the lake here, tucked in between the three volcanoes, I eventually had to move on again, this time to another smaller village on the other side of the lake: Santa Cruz.

The prices for the lanchas were recently raised apparently and the information I got on the internet was not valid anymore. Now you have to pay 25Q (or 20Q if you negotiate like I did) to cross the lake. I had to change boats in Pana again and used the opportunity to buy a new mouse there since I had just broken mine a day before. Getting to Pana was a wild ride actually, the boat took on a bit too many people, leaving me without a seat in the front on the by far bumpiest ride ever! I had to hold on with both hands and was still jumping half a meter in the air while sitting on the ground and everyone was screaming as if they would be in a rollercoster. Just thinking about it makes my ... hurt again!

When I finally arrived in the small and relaxed Santa Cruz, I was picked up by my next Couchsurfer and his guest. A japanese couple decided to use this village as their base in Guatemala and I can totally understand why! It was just great there and thanks to my hosts, I could make the most out of my time. We walked around the town and had a great dinner together in the evening. Ironically enough, their guest used to be a korean WarCraft 3 programer as well and it was funny talking to him about the good old times with players like SlayerS_BoxeR, which we both knew from our time as a gamer. At that moment we wished to have two computers to play a round haha

On the next day, we had lunch in Posada Jaibalito, run for over nine years by a German guy called Hans. If you go there, say Chris said hi, you will easily recognize him thanks to his immense white beard He offers traditional German food and even bread for a very low price, definitely a highlight and hidden gem! The village of Jaibalito is great as well, no road is leading there and you either have to walk or take a lancha. The locals here are even more friendlier it seemed and you will see lot�s of kids playing around on the street. This afternoon was one of my highlights along the lake!

The next and final stop was the backpacker village of Lake Atitlan: San Pedro. I liked it much more than Pana, because despite having the same amount of backpackers, the village itself was just more pleasant. After staying in a pretty cheap place somewhere in the back of the village, I moved over to Hotel Mikaso for the other two nights. This place was perfect, located outside of the busy area but still close enough to walk everywhere. You will have some great views from there and even be able to enjoy the hot pool for free! They also had good Internet there and I could follow my team Frankfurt win against Dortmund with 2-0 in the German Bundesliga What a good day it was�

>> All Pictures

Just found this! Amazing that you are traveling the world.

I am really curious for your next stops. I will be heading to El Salvador and Liberia Costa Rica in March. So any suggestions would be great for either!

Live #26, Xela & Volcan Santa Maria, Guatemala



12/01/2015 It�s my second day at beautiful Lake Yojoa and I will check out the PANCAM National Park today before heading down south to Tegucigalpa via Comayagua. Today�s live update is from another location that was added to my journey last minute: Xela, short for Quetzaltenango. I would stay here for over a week to do a short spanish course and also to climb Volcan Santa Maria.

Getting there was pretty fun on the steep and serpentine road from San Pedro at Lake Atitlan in a Chicken Bus. I have met some people before that came down here with their own modified US school truck and they had been stuck in exactly this area for a few times because of it�s narrowness on the steep passage. Upon arrival in Xela, I waited at Casa Seibel to get picked up by Couchsurfer Becky, who owns a spanish school called Forest Academy, providing me with a teacher for a 25 hour class over the next week. She came together with her frien Moses, who would take good care of me in the following day and even let me sleep at his place. I was surrounded by nice people and could concentrate on my bad spanish

I had 1on1 classes from 10AM to 3PM each day and since my spanish was very basic, we had to cover exactly those first and overall did not have enough time to go into the past or future tenses. I thought that it would still be better than nothing and gave it a try. In the End, my spanish did not improve a lot, but this is not because of the teacher but more due to the fact that I am just a bad student, failing to look into my sheets ever since the course ended. I�m just so busy with traveling itself! Besides the spanish class, I also had enough time to check out Xela, a really nice city that still has a local feel to it and I had a lot of great people around me to enjoy the evenings as well. I will never forget the disappointment when I first saw the so called �climbing gym� or the moment we squeezed nine people into a small car!

Climbing Volcan Santa Maria was another thing on my ToDo list. The volcan offers a view on another active volcano, Santiaguito, and we were able to do the hike during full moon, starting at 1AM. It was pretty rainy and cloudy throughout the complete hike up to the 3770m high summit, but nevertheless I enjoyed it and was especially pleased by the moments the sun finally broke through the clouds momentarily after reaching the top. We also had a few eruptions of nearby Santiaguito and could see Volcan Fuego erupting far in the back as well. I tried to capture everything with my camera, even though it was a pretty hard task without gloves and freezing temperatures at the top. Back to Casa Seibel, which is a really nice play to stay while in Xela by the way, it was time for some relaxation from the hike before moving on to the touristic hotspot and former capital of Guatemala: Antigua.

>> Pictures

Video from Caye Caulker, Belize



This Video is actually pretty short � just under ten minutes! Check out how I was swimming with Sharks along with some Snorkeling in the Hol Chan Marine Reserve. And don�t forget to Go Slow� since we are talking about Caye Caulker in Belize

https://vimeo.com/116928793


Have fun!

One of the highlights of my trip so far! Hope you like it

Live #28, Volc�n Acatenango, Guatemala
(click link for pictures)



19/01/2015 Time for a new Live Update after finishing some videos. Sadly Vimeo causes problems with Copyright violations, so I might have to look out for another platform. If you have some suggestions, put it in the comments please! Currently I am in Granada, Nicaragua and will head to Isla de Ometepe tomorrow morning. This update will be the last from Guatemala and it is safe to say that climbing the 3,976m Volc�n Acatenango was one of the highlights of my trip so far. Getting to the top requires some effort, but the reward is incredible: Witnessing the super active Volc�n de Fuego right in front of you during night, erupting car-sized rocks every 5-10 minutes.

I arranged the overnight tour to climb Volc�n Acatenango from Antigua and got a decent last minute deal. The good news was that the other two people in the group cancelled, so it was just me and the guide! I got picked up in town and was transferred to the guide�s private house close to the Volcanoes entrance trail. Having a local guide actually helps against the occasional robberies, which only target tour companies that are not supporting the local guides and thereby the community�s job industry. At least that is what the owner of the company I used told me. Another group just got back from the mountain and was waiting for my car for a ride back into town. They told me I�d better have a sleeping bag and good jacket because it was so cold on the top.

My guide Eddie and I started walking up the street for a few minutes to reach the path leading to the Volcano. His dog Tarzan joined us all the way and was a fast and pleasant third member of the team, not slowing us down or being annoying like other people could have been It just takes five minutes walking on a gravel path until we reach the first group gasping for air. It was pretty hot that day and the gravel makes it hard to walk, but I was still very surprised to see the first girl crying out of exhaustion after a distance that took us just five minutes to walk! Anyway, I was looking forward to the rest as the climb was supposed to be one of the hardest you can do in the country.

Passing one resting point after the other and actually only using one of them for ten minutes, we make it to the summit of Volc�n Acatenango in just 3 1/2 hours. It was great to have a good and fast guide with me and being in a good shape as well as the mountain really will challenge you, especially if you do not rest a lot in between. I could feel my heart pumping really hard on the last steep gravel part up the top, each step sliding down half of the previous step again. It�s been a while that a mountain required this kind of effort and I really liked it! Once on the top, we waited for all the clouds to disappear until I could finally see (and not just hear) the first eruption of Fuego just meters away.

Luckily the clouds vanished even more and I could get some great shots of the crater and the landscape around us before we were running / skiing down the gravel on the other side to reach the camp spot, which was already prepared by Eddie�s dad. Just before we got there, Eddie climbed a high tree to cut off branches with his Machete for our bonfire. Having it set up, I felt in great company and even part of the family by now, even though my Spanish is not good and all of them spoke no English at all, we still found a way to communicate, sometimes using a stick to sketch drawings in the ground

As it got dark, the real show started. Volc�n de Fuego showed off his angry face and instead of grey smoke in front of blue sky and white clouds, we would now witness a red and yellow light show in the pitch black darkness every 5-10 minutes. Surprised by how active that Volcano actually was, it produced really big explosion every 20 minutes or so. The view on Volc�n de Agua to our left side of the camp spot was great too, being surrounded by all the yellow lights of the cities such as Antigua and even Guatemala City in the back. But back to the main attraction! I switched my location to get rid of some trees in front of me and spent ten minutes looking for a good spot to sit down and lay my camera on something to do long exposure shots. I eventually found a cut-off tree that would suit me as a natural tripod and even though it was very tiny and I had troubles to keep my camera on it, I still managed to get a few decent shots.

Spending three hours just sitting and watching Fuego errupt, I finally made it into my tent. I could still hear all the eruptions from there and in a reflex, would constantly open my tent to check if it might be an even bigger one than before. Eventually, I had to force myself to get some sleep around 1AM though, having had one great new experience that I will never forget in my life. I woke up just in time for a nice sunset and after breakfast, headed down together with Eddie and Tarzan while his dad stayed at the camp spot to clear the fire. It only took us 1 1/2 hours to return to his house, resulting in a pretty long two hour wait to get me picked up since we were just way too early. Eddie�s place and lovely family made my wait very pleasant though and I enjoyed the view on Lake Atitlan�s Volcanoes in the distant while having a nice hot tea�

Pictures >> Link