Guatemala has been absolutely wonderful, and for our final few days we decided to go rogue and escape the tourist shuttles and inclusive hostels. First we headed to Rio Dulce which was an absolute dream, staying in a place right on the river with hammock jetties (where we spent most of our time). The whole place was so stunning, we jumped in the water sharpish before reading our books as the sun went down and enjoying some amazing homemade lemonades. The next day we kayaked down the river, through the amazingly green canyon (and luckily didn’t run into any manatees) to arrive at Livingston.
This port town is the home to the Garifuna culture from Africa/the Caribbean and it was so interesting to sense the difference. Bob Marley tunes weaved their way into every corner and guifiti (the local herbal liquor) was everywhere. We also tried their candy (coconut and ginger), plenty of hibiscus cocktails and the culinary wonder that is tapado. This signature dish is essentially a coconut curry soup filled with plantain, shrimp, a fish and a crab – it was excellent and we couldn’t move afterwards. We found a lovely spot in the shade and read like maniacs before our hunger crept up on us and it was time for fish tacos. Discovering breadfruit was bizarre, a jackfruit relative that tastes like potato when fried (they serve it here like chips). We went on a tienda crawl for our favourite snacks and sat on the pier before moving on for our final stop.
We decided to cross the border into Honduras for a day before returning to Guatemala City for our flight, and so began an interesting journey. After a boat ride and three different colectivos (shared minibuses that cram everyone in) we arrived at the border. It was a hot journey but at least the roads were paved, and after a tree, chickens and a marriage proposal, we finally passed into neighbouring Honduras. A short bus ride took us to the town of Copán Ruinas where I thought it would be a good idea to sample all the local cocktails (an idea that I seriously regretted the next morning). The Mayan ruins here were amazingly decorated, with glyphs everywhere and intricately-carved statues filling the plaza. We had a trip to a tea shop to sample all the local herbal flavours, and smashed through some tacos before finishing our trip the only way possible, in our hammocks. From here we travelled back to Guatemala City to catch our flight home as Beth’s starting her placement year in med school and I’m off into the world of work. Mum and Dad, we are coming home!
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