El fin del viaje. After Copan, the end of the trip was inevitably drawing near. It sounds silly to say this, but we felt as though we had come full circle, in more ways than one. Not only were we exiting out of the same city we had arrived in nearly 8 weeks before, but this time our perspective of that same city had changed just a bit. This time we weren’t so eager to stay away. Nope, this time we were going to spend 3 days in Guatemala City (gasp)!

Actually, it wasn’t so bad. Brian booked us a room in the business district, which ended up being a suite (lucky us!). We took taxis to all the museums, checked out some good restaurants, watched some TV… oh, and went shopping at the mall (brian got some SWEET shoes). I’m glad we got to see that side of Guatemala before coming home.

But, as I just said, we came home - or the closest place to home that I’m going to have for a long time. Now, as I am sitting here drinking coffee from a mug showcasing a picture of my grandma on a harley, I cannot help but think about how good we have it here - hot showers, clean water, the ability to flush both waste AND paper down the toilet - but at the same time I miss the simplicity of life in Guatemala. Brian was right. He said that I would look back at our buggy time in Rio Dulce and laugh (mainly because I just picture Brian ducking and dodging a bat in our bathroom). There were so many great times to remember!

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Trip Statistics can be found here.

Trip Expenses can be found here.

Trip Videos can be found here.

Language Schools

• Casa Rosario: Spanish school in San Pedro. It is very cheap, and your contributions will help the owners work with underprivileged kids in the city. However, you might find yourself getting sick of the town after a week.
• Guatemalensis: Spanish school in Quetzaltenango (Xela). If you are serious about learning Spanish, come here and definitely participate in the homestay! We loved it! Just be sure to bring some warm clothes.

Tomorrow, I’m taking off with Brian for New York for experiences that could be nothing but the exact opposite of those we have had the past two months. He is about to start his life in New York, while I prepare for my extended travels abroad. Wish us luck!

It’s true. The name of the ruins is called Copan and the city itself is called Copan Ruinas. What kind of crazy person in Honduras thought that was a good idea?! Nonetheless, we went to both, the ruins and the city. The ruins were quite interesting, and the stella were very well preserved. Take a look at the pictures here.

After our fright by candlelight, we decided to finish off our Honduras stay by hitting up Macaw Mountain. Macaw Mountain is a bird sanctuary where injured, sick, or stressed birds can live out, most likely, the rest of their lives. We had a great time acting as human perches for some of them.

The sanctuary gets its money from admission fees, the restaurant/café, gift shop, and from the sale of Café Miramundo – the coffee farm on the premises. Brian and I both bought some to bring back to our families. Very tasty.

For the most part, besides the scorpion incident, our time in Copan was pretty laid back. We needed to relax after 2 weeks of non-stop go-go-go. The city itself, Copan Ruinas, appears to be growing with lots of construction everywhere. There are plenty of restaurants and horses. Man, are there horses.

We found ourselves in Copan Ruinas, Honduras around Valentine’s Day and decided to splurge on a nice place and dinner for the occasion. There’s a nice hacienda with 8 rooms scattered about just outside town that prepares gourmet food and runs mainly by candlelight. It’s a complete luxury style bed and breakfast in a rural Honduras setting.

We had a great afternoon and by the time the sun set, the entire grounds were covered in candles. Dinner consisted of five amazing courses all served outside under the stars. All was going well until I overheard a mother and daughter telling a story to their friends during the meal. I couldn’t really believe what I was hearing. Do we have to worry about that here?!

After dinner, we made our way back to our candlelit room where we were greeted with some delicious white chocolate and macadamia nut candies. It was wonderful to be so relaxed and not worrying about the questionability of the sheets on our bed. I decided to write in my journal for a bit while Brian lay in bed, when suddenly I heard it. It was the same “it” I heard the people talking about at dinner. There was a pattering across the rug – one of those reed woven rugs – that covered a large part of the stone floor. I cursed, grabbed my flashlight and confirmed they are indeed a threat here – black scorpions!

The little bugger was under the other bed (we had two double beds in our room) and then it disappeared. We had no idea if it was hiding still, or if it perhaps crawled out under the other door. Brian and I were frozen with fright. I wanted to leave and get help, from somewhere, but couldn’t get the courage to brave touching foot to floor! We’re from central Illinois. We don’t have scorpions and really knew nothing about how to deal with the situation. Do they climb walls? Could they possibly climb into bed with us? Were these super poisonous? The fact of the matter was that when you are in a room in the middle of the night that is barely lit by candlelight and see (and hear!) a black scorpion crawling about – there is just no way to feel comfortable.

I finally got the courage to run to the door (Brian wasn’t doing it – he was also frozen with fear!) to see if I could catch someone still in the main building. I put on my sandals – that’s all I had – and dashed to the front door, only to open it to a disappointing darkness outside. The candles were gone; the building looked abandoned. What was I going to do? It was Valentine’s Day and all the other couples were in their rooms in the other little buildings. I couldn’t knock on their door, let alone even get the courage to walk around outside in the dark now!

I freaked and hopped back into bed with Brian who hadn’t moved an inch. We used my little flashlight to check the corners, shine the beams above us, and everywhere else we could see. Every time we heard a slight clicky or pattering noise we jumped and used the flashlight to check where we thought it was coming from. I don’t know how we managed it, but we eventually passed out. I think we would wake about every hour and reassess the situation.

Surprisingly, when morning came, the hacienda took on a completely different light. I suddenly didn’t mind the bad sleep and continued to enjoy the sun-filled morning and awesome breakfast with an open mind. We actually just sort of thought that was common around here – that you just get scorpions in your room in Honduras – especially after hearing about the mother/daughter scorpion incident from the night before. We didn’t bring this up until we returned to town and picked up our bags at the hacienda business office. The owner asked us how it was and we responded that everything was great except for the scorpion in the room.

At this word, she freaked and became very concerned. “Where was it?!” she asked. “Was it on the wall?”

“Oh my God, they do climb walls?!” we responded with wide eyes and dropped jaws.

She went on about the severity of this situation. Apparently, this is a huge problem for them and now is the bad season. They spray for them, make the beds upside down (whatever that means), and when they come in and light your candles and supply the chocolates in your room, they are actually checking the room for scorpions! She apologized over and over again and made some phone calls (especially after I told her that we heard stories of other incidents). Eventually, she ended up giving us a fifty dollar (USD) bill as a refund for our troubles.

Scorpions! Just when you think the worst thing you could possibly encounter in your room is a giant spider, you meet the nasty, feisty scorpion with its curly stinger and claws. I don’t think we’ll ever forget this Valentine’s Day!

One of the most frustrating parts of traveling in Guatemala is never really knowing the true price of a service – a bus ride – or anything for that matter – a hotel room, a banana, or a shirt. It’s a little something we like to call a “gringo tax” since there is usually one low price for locals and any various price 2 or 3 times that for gringos.

Usually, when bartering for things in the market, we don’t mind it so much because we will only buy it when we reach a price both us, the buyer, and the seller agree with. We both win. The times that it really bothers me is when you are on a bus, the same bus as all the locals, on the same route, but are charged so much more… and you never really know how much more it is.

From Rio Dulce, we took a day trip to Finca Paraiso, a place that is interesting because it gives you the ability to stand in a cold pool while a hot waterfall pours from above. The bus ride takes about an hour and we were told by our hostel that it cost 10Q each way. We had a 20Q ready to go because we were determined to get that rate and nothing more. However, on the bus, when Brian gave the guy a 20Q he kind of stood there for a second. We broke the silence by stating it was for both of us. He responded that it was 15Q for each of us. Before Brian could reach into his pocket for more, I stopped him and told the guy it is normally 10Q for this ride. Brian joined in a little more firmly, and we could tell by the look on his face that he couldn’t fight it. We basically looked straight ahead and he eventually left to collect the rest of his fares.

Yes, we did good, but how good did we “really” do? I noticed the guy next to us only paid 7Q for his ride, so I made sure to keep an eye on where he got off. Well, it appears he only got off about a few hundred feet before us. After the ride, we met up with another gringo that was in the back of the bus and asked him what he paid for the ride. He, amazingly, only paid 8Q for the exact same ride! We were a little more than shocked because we felt good with getting it down from 15 to 10, but 8Q?! His strategy is one you might want to keep in mind if you are traveling in Guatemala. He generally starts with offering a rate of 5Q per hour bus ride, so for this ride, he held out a 5Q bill and was only upped to 8Q from that point. Very interesting, eh?! So, instead of basing your rates off what your guidebook says, I would suggest attempting something more like this.

On the way back, we decided to bypass the whole gringo tax issue and caught a ride in the back of a pickup truck. The ride was long and very, very bumpy – but the guy in charge was from the states and didn’t want any money in return. Ah, you just gotta love that!

After much deliberation, Brian and I decided our next stop after Tikal was Rio Dulce. We made our way in the morning to the place in Flores where the guidebook says is a bus stop, but in actuality it is just a travel agency that buys a ticket for you for the bus station in Santa Elena.

The only reason we decided to go along with this route is because the lady helping us said the bus was coming now. How convenient. We paid the guy in the office our money and the lady took off on her bike. Meanwhile, the guy in the office, who was obviously wasted at 9:30 am and still drinking, said we would wait at the office for the bus to come. I made it my job to wait outside with our stuff while Brian dealt with the drunken ramblings of the owner. The really crazy part happened when the guy opened his desk drawer and there was a gun sitting there. After he saw the look on Brian’s face, he responded with, “This is Guatemala. You gotta have a gun.”

Just then, the lady on the bike came back and said we needed to go the bus station to get the bus. Uhmm… ok. They did just tell us that we could wait here for the bus, but not today? They at least paid for the tuk-tuk there. We hopped on our bus, and there we were, on our way to Rio Dulce for something that tops all adventures had thus far.

Rio Dulce makes it difficult to scout out a hotel because the best ones, supposedly, are on the waterfront and require a boat to take you there. We made our way to Bruno’s to see if we could start there when we ran into a strange hippie guy from the states who was more than happy to help us find a hotel. Next thing we knew, we had a place to stay and a boat taxi all set up for us. If it hadn’t had happened so quickly, I can say I probably wouldn’t have gone for it because on the boat ride over to Casa Perico, I just heard the hippie guy’s words playing over and over in my head, “You’re gonna love it. It’s right in the freaking jungle.”

Casa Perico has a very interesting setup. It is run by some Swiss guys and has its own restaurant there (since its so remote) with a rockin’ buffet option (do it! People boat over from the town just for this!). Brian and I literally made ourselves sick by indulging both nights in the buffet! Since it was Friday, Brian and I weren’t able to get a private bungalow, but had to settle for a hostel dorm. The dorm bungalow has many beds in the bottom and an upper level with two beds and more privacy. We opted for the upper level, but the catch was it was open-air, meaning there was only an A-Frame roof with two sides open to the jungle outside. Even though we had bug nets, I couldn’t sleep that night. We had already encountered giant cockroaches, heard stories of botfly infections (see this video), and the sounds coming in from outside, and right next to my bed, were a bit too much for me to handle. And it was only made worse by the absolute pitch-black darkness that engulfed us out there.

The next day, we made it clear to the owners that we preferred a private bungalow, and luckily we got it. Oh yes! The building has its own bathroom, which meant that when I had to get up late at night to use it, I wouldn’t have to walk a mile of dock with the creepy sounds of things jumping into the water right next to me. Even better was the fact that the private room had 4 walls! The first thing we did was check out the bathrooms in the back to see what we were now working with for an extra $3/night. Brian went to open the shower door and immediately started ducking. Then something came flying out and swooping around. Brian thought it was a bat, but I thought it looked like a bird. I decided to use the toilet at that moment, being careful when opening the door at first. When inside, I took a look around at the ceiling to make sure no bird was hanging around only to find the biggest spider I think I’ve ever seen in my life straight above. There was no way I could use the bathroom there in good conscience! I showed it to Brian and even he was a little taken aback by the size. We started to leave the bathroom area in search of the public ones when we heard a high-pitched screeching noise behind us. We turned around to see a bat hanging out right there by the sink. Brian was right!

It was a very long two days, full of many close encounters. I would have probably slept better the second night had it not been raining so hard! I would definitely recommend Casa Perico to any traveler to Rio Dulce looking for an interesting place to hang out. For us, two days in the jungle bungalows were more than enough, but as hippie guy put it, “You’ll never forget it!”

Here’s a little video of me ranting about surviving the jungle. I claim being delirious from stress, heat, and lack of sleep because its clearly not me at my best. Enjoy!

It’s been a while since my last post since Brian and I have been on the move practically every other day. I believe we left off at Palenque, Mexico – the home of one of the best preserved (or reconstructed) ruins of such a grand size. We heard many stories from other travelers (we were guidebook-less for Mexico) on how the city of Palenque is the pits, and the true charm of the area is found by sleeping in a hammock in a cabana outside of town. I, being completely freaked out by the thought of sleeping out in the jungle, decided we should take a look around town first before resorting to this option.

Luckily, town has a great hotel/hostel area, and, dripping with sweat, we found a place we were happy with, and with cable TV. I’m glad we chose to not listen to everybody else on this particular route especially because we discovered a restaurant with THE BEST nacho chips we have ever had in our lives there!

The following day, Brian and I braved the sweltering jungle heat to explore the gigantic ruins. Being too cheap to pay for a guide, we often found ourselves wandering aimlessly and making up stories about each temple along the way. If you go to Palenque, make sure you hit their little museum (included with entrance fee) because it definitely helps to fill in the gaps. After sweating all day, we thought it would be nice to hit up Agua Azul for some cooling off, but unfortunately, we were unable to find proper transport from the ruins straight there and decided to just call it a day.

From Palenque, we booked a ride crossing the border back into Guatemala and all the way to Tikal. There was the possibility of booking this same trip back in San Cristobal, but for 100Q more. Brian and I both felt good about waiting until in Palenque to set this up. The ride involved a shuttle to the border, a jungle boat ride across the border, and shuttle after straight to Flores (the town that acts as a hub to Tikal). Don’t be fooled by the emphasis on “jungle boat ride” because in actuality it really just felt like taking a boat down a dirty river with little vegetation. Our ride was also saddened by some news we received along the way. We met up with a Belgium guy from our hostel in San Cristobal and he told us how another girl from the hostel, who we had hung out with a few days before, drowned at Agua Azul the same day we wanted to go. It was very sad to hear about. Apparently, there are some very unsafe places to swim there, so please be aware of the warning signs if you are planning a trip to this area.

The trip had a way of redeeming itself when we were dropped off at the Guatemalan migration office. This building was very interesting in the fact it was a) in the middle of freaking nowhere, and b) surrounded by nothing but cows. You could tell these guys were bored by the fact they found such joy in annunciating and nationalizing my name.

Finally, 8 hours later, we were in our hotel in Flores and wanting to crash, but unable to call it a day just yet. We heard about a sunrise tour they do to Tikal on the bus to Flores and were determined to shop around for a better deal. We only found one, but it required you to leave the park at 11am. We didn’t like the idea of being forced to leave at any certain time, so we eventually decided to pay the 300Q for the package, which included

1) the 150Q admission to Tikal (Be aware they recently upped this rate for foreigners. Our guidebook said admission was about $7, but it is now around $20!!!)
2) roundtrip transportation
3) ability to enter the park at 4am to climb Temple IV and watch the sun rise over the park
4) guided tour for 4 hours of the temples and jungle life

Also note that if you are wanting to do a tour like this to buy the packages that INCLUDE your admission fee to the park. The people on our bus that did not pay beforehand were actually skimmed of an extra 10Q each.

The sunrise tour was great, and not so much for the sunrise, but for the ability to sit in silence and listen to the jungle wake up. Howler monkeys, parrots, and crickets filled the air. It was also nice to see most of the park in the morning when it is less busy and a lot cooler. The guide was a great addition because he helped up see wildlife we would not have otherwise – spider monkeys, tarantulas, giant elephant beetles.

That night we slept like babies, only to rise and pursue yet another adventure.

Palenque to Tikal from Brooke Schoenman on Vimeo.

Normally, when in Guatemala, Brian and I would encounter countless kids on the streets that would break our hearts – begging for something, anything, just a measly 1Q for whatever worthless piece of junk they had in their hands. It is for these kids that we would really, truly want to help out. It’s amazing to see how a piece of gum, or a glass of agua pura, brings a little life into their faces.

Mexico has been like a vacation from traveling. We probably have a very skewed perspective of the country since we’ve only been to three very large cities where tourists come in droves, but so far we haven’t encountered any kids that have made us feel the way we did back in Guatemala. No, the kids here are craftier and definitely more vulgar if they need be, or so we found out.

Brian and I were in one of the main plazas in San Cristobal de las Casas, where we were approached multiple times by small kids wanting us to write our names in their notebook. “Please, please, your name here in English for my school,” they repeated in English. Finally, we gave in. Ok, ok, we’ll write our name. I went first.

“Here, write your first name,” the little girl said. I wrote my name.

“Here, now write your age and country.” I proceeded.

Now this is where the crafty part comes in. She had the notebook folded in half and then flipped it over and said, “Here’s where you write how much to give to our school.” Ah, I get it now. Little scammers. All the amounts from all the other people were written in the same handwriting. I looked over to Brian, just as the other girl was getting him to sign his name, and told him, “They want our money.”

I tried to give the girl back her notebook, but she wouldn’t take it back and just kept repeating, “Money, money for the school. Twenty-five for me, twenty-five for her.” Brian was trying to get out of his own mess now, too, and told the girl he didn’t have any money, which was absolutely true at the time on his part. The girl he was fighting with pointed to his pocket and said that the money was in there. Nope. Brian pulled out all the garbage from his pockets and proved there was no money there. Very frustrated now, the girls gave up, took their notebooks back, and loudly told Brian to “Fuck off,” and “Die,” as they stomped away.

Way to go, Mexico. Way to breed such aggressive little con-artists entrepreneurs. Even haggling in the markets here is more difficult! Because of the insanely cold temperatures in San Cristobal, the complete opposite of the sweat-pouring-down-your-face climate of Puerto Escondido, I was forced to buy a warm, wooly pull-over, but we definitely weren’t able to talk these people down too much. They’re good. Oh yes, very good.

Like I said, Brian and I have a very skewed perspective of this giant country. I am glad to point out a few things we’ve learned being here:

1) San Cristobal is like a very large Antigua – much richer and nicer. However, there’s not really anything to “do” inside this city, meaning you have to take day trips outside town for the real appeal – which is something maybe a Mexico guide book would have come in handy for letting us know ahead of time.

2) Sadly, I don’t like Mexican candy. I was drawn to the magical building that read “mercado de dulces” and was filled with multi-colored treats, only to be thoroughly disappointed in the end.

3) San Cristobal has a museum on Mayan childbirth. We opted not to endure the graphic display for a calmer museum on the Lacandon tribe. Supposedly, there are a few of the remaining 500 living in the area we’re traveling to next!

4) Puerto Escondido is good to go to if you are a surfer.

5) I’m good at sand art. Or so I like to think.
Here we have a turtle, fish, crab and whale. I usually prefer pastels, but will work with whatever medium I got.

6) The SuperBowl is not so much popular here, even with the Americans traveling. We enjoyed the game pretty much by ourselves in the hostel.

7) We are so ready to get back to Guatemala! We’re planning to take a more adventurous route back, which involves a jungle boat ride sneaking across the border!

Overall, our Mexico detour has been enjoyable, but we find ourselves aching for more Guatemala. Puerto Escondido and San Cristobal are very beautiful cities, so I would recommend stopping by if in the area, but also be aware that these are extremely tourist driven. Also, make sure to watch out for the sneaky “money for the school” girls in San Cristobal!