Xela to Huehuetenango and Nebaj

Chicken bus to Xela

Sorry for another long break since our last blog. Lots has happened and loads of plans have changed, hopefully for the better. One of our objectives when going away was to go with the flow and take opportunities when they arise and hopefully in the next couple of posts you will see what I mean. For now I want to describe our reasonably straight forward and fun filled time in Xela aka Quetzaltenango.

Fresh off the bus from San Pedro La Laguna, Xela was a bit of a shock. A lot more crowded than the picturesque Lake Atitlan, Xela is the second largest city in Guatemala and offers itself as a vibrant new urban scene, if a little rough around the edges. It is a city reflective of a developing economy with new bars and hipster restaurants but bad roads and a lot of stray dogs. 

View of Xela from roof of Kasa Kiwi

We quickly found ourselves at Kasa Kiwi, the most reasonably priced hostel in the City. We found it to be very welcoming, clean and safe, with a good kitchen and lots of communal areas. The clientele were mainly English speaking and after a week of almost exclusively speaking Spanish it was slightly strange to get used to English again.

After settling in we explored the market and bought supplies for the volcano we were planning to climb the next day.

Mayan people worshipping at the summit of Volcan Santa Maria 

We awoke before dawn and made our way to the bus. After two bus journeys (we got off at the wrong stop) we arrived at Pinal, the village at the foot of the volcano. Surprisingly, the surrounding fields were frosty and children going to school were wrapped up in layers of scarves.

View from top of Volcan Sanata Maria

We started our climb to the base of the volcano through fields and plantations. On reaching the base of the volcano, the trail rapidly steepened and zigzagged it's way up. The climb was tough due to the steepness and the altitude- Xela itself is around 3300 metres above sea level to begin with. Pine forest finally gave way to scrub as we passed the tree line. On arriving the top w were met with the earie sound of a Mayan ceremony. Volcan Santa Maria is a religious site where Mayans come to worship their gods and leave offerings. The view from the top was outstanding as the cloud had cleared. After waiting for 10 minutes, the cloud cleared further and we caught a glimpse of Santiaguito- an active volcano on the side of Santa Maria. A few moments later and we heard a gentle hiss and Santiaguito erupted with a large plume of smoke and gas.

We ate our sandwiches (and I ate Bryony's jam sandwich) and watched the view and some resident lizards for a while longer, before returning to the base for icecream and to catch the bus back to Xela.

After buying some pupusas de chucharron (tortillas stuffed with pork scratchings, served with salad and chili) from a market stall, we headed off to bed.

The next morning we had intended on going for a walk to a crater lake, but having walked up the volcano the day before, decided to have an easy day instead. We headed to the cemetery- a must see for anyone visiting Xela, and spent several hours wandering around the graves, looking at catacombs  and pyramids. We headed for a few more sights including a japenese viewpoint and a gothic church and then ate waffles at a cafe. I went in search of some fried chicken while everyone else ate pupusas de queso (tortillas stuffed with cheese).

Graveyard at Xela

The next morning we planned to leave for Huehuetenango after breakfast. However, we took a spontaneous trip to some concrete slides on a hill with our new friend Ashley from Las Vegas. The hike there was lovely but we were most certainly lost, luckily we came across some Policia Turisticos (tourist police) who showed us the way and joyfully watched as we took to the slide. The slide was steep and fast with a concrete wall at the end to stop you falling down a cliff. As we had been informed, the best way to go down is on a squashed plastic water bottle (videos of us will follow). Also at the top of the hill was a beautiful mirador were we could look over the sprawl of Xela. After our fun filled morning it easy with a heavy heart we finally had to say goodbye to Ashley and our other new found friends and head for Huehuetenango.

Xela from the hill near the concrete 

Our guide book reported Huehuetenango to be a common stop off point on the way to Mexico with a 'welcoming if scruffy character'. What we found definitely exceeded our expectations. Hotel Mary where we were staying was slightly seedy but it was cheap with a large private room and ensuite. The town was vibrant and busy with large markets and lots of places to visit. Alas, we were there for barely a day and would leave early the next morning. We decided to make sure we found the best cheapest restaurant in town. La Tinaja is highly recommended by the Lonely Planet guide and serves a selection of local dishes. Rolando, the owner, was very attentive and gave us a lot of information and history about Huehue, the surrounding area and our delicious food.

Church at Nebaj

In the morning we wandered round the market to buy some breakfast before finding the bus that would take us towards Nebaj. After changing buses at Aguacatan and Sacapulas under the instruction of friendly locals, we arrived. 

Corn with sauce in Nebaj!

We checked into our hostel/hotel- Popi's Hospidaje, which turned out to be a dump: mouldy, damp rooms and bedding, a prostitute and Evangelical church next door. We had a look around the town, an archaeological museum and the church, bought some local food. In Nebaj, the traditional dress of women is a red skirt, compared to San Pedro and Xela where women wear skirts in bright and intriate patterns. The traditional clothing or Traje is of great significance to the people of Guatemala as a link to their cultural heritage for which they have even been persecuted in the past. Whereas in most of the world traditional dress has been relegated to special ocasions or lost completely, in Guatemala it is still the woman's everyday armour of choice. As previously alluded to colours and patterns hold significance for instance representing where they are from or even language group. 

Meadows on walk from Nebaj to Acul

Next day we went for a walk from Nebaj to Acul which involved a 2 hour hike over a mountain. As suggested by several other blogs, we visited Hacienda San Antonio in Nebaj. This Swiss style cockerel breeding, cheese factory, built by an Italian family, sells cheese in big wheels. Unfortunately for us, you can only buy cheese as a wheel. We were served a glass of fresh lemonade and a cheese toastie (with tortillas rather than bread) and then hopped on the bus back to Nebaj. 

Our next destination from Nebaj was Lanquin and the famous Semuc Champey. While researching Bryony came across a hostel featured in Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild. I encourage you to watch the episode. New blog on our time there coming soon!

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Feliz Viaje,

Greg & Bryony