A week travelling so far... I sit in the Central Park of Antigua in Guatemala. The cool air is refreshing and I am surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, trying to avoid the tiny blessings from the pigeons in the trees above. A little boy with a t-shirt that says "Monster Rally" drives his remote control truck into the flocks of pigeons and yells at them. Really, this could be anywhere, but Mayan women walk by with baskets on their head, selling many beautiful things for tourists or just little bags of seeds to feed the pigeons. Bells ringing, and little wooden flutes are played to entice us tourists into buying them. Some guys are taking Christmas lights down from the trees. Backpackers meet up, and locals and tourists alike sit on the park benches eating, resting, meeting friends, and I sit and write in my journal.

Thinking back over the last week. Qué viaje! What a journey.  From the very first minutes at the Cancún airport losing my little folder of very important papers, putting my spotty Spanish to the test in a stressful moment, reminded of the challenges of travelling.  Even when you plan ahead, you buy your bus ticket to make your arrival smooth and easy, things happen and you lose the ticket, so you have to wing it. It's fine though, as long as you are flexible. And this is something I am quite practiced in. So I got to my hostel a little later than planned, hot and sweaty, knowing what true gratitude feels like, gratitude for a simple bed and safe shelter.

Arriving in Tulúm in the peak of peak tourist season was a bit overwhelming at first, but I got the hang of it. The first day walking a couple miles to the ancient Mayan ruins, sometimes in the pouring rain which was welcome on such a hot day...walking back along the beach, beautiful but full of hotels and their guests. 

The next day, after renting a bike, I found myself on side streets, where the locals live, where everything does not exist solely for tourists. The bicycle gave my feet a rest, and rode out to a cenote to do some swimming. This part of the country is full of these cenotes, limestone sinkholes filled with cold fresh water where you can swim into caves, bats flying around you. I'd say this was my favorite part of my time in Tulúm.

After 4 days and nights, I ventured to Belize with a long, but comfortable, bus ride. Crossing the border took a little longer than expected, and I got off the bus at a town called Orange Walk, so I wouldn't have to backtrack from Belize City. My next stop was Crooked Tree Village. I caught a local bus to the road to Crooked Tree, which is a small island surrounded by lagoons and rivers, reminding me so much of my island home, except that instead of berries, pumpkins, and corn, cashews and mangoes were the main crops here (although sadly not in season).  And instead of sandhill cranes and geese, there were ibises, egrets, jacanas, and the elusive jabiru storks, which can be 5ft tall with a wingspan of 7ft! I did not see these storks, but saw many other beautiful birds, butterflies, and turtles... Even those lizards that run on their hind legs. The museum here taught me that Belize is the birthplace of Creole culture, as well as some of the history of the Mayan people, as well as the people living there before the Mayans, and European colonization.

After one full day here, I was already off to Guatemala. Another long bus ride, but this time my bus driver dropped me off right in front of my guesthouse, when we weren't even supposed to stop in that town.  While I never expect people to go out of their way like this, I have learned not to be surprised by these acts of kindness, especially when travelling. It had not even been a week, and this was the second time someone had helped me get where I was going without even being asked. (I can't tell you all the stories here😉 I have to leave some for when I get home.)

So this first stop in Guatemala - El Remate - was my home base for visiting Tikal, which I believe is one of the biggest sites of Mayan ruins. What an amazing place with huge stone temples and buildings hiding in the jungle, with spider monkeys and howler monkeys and toucans in the trees, knowing the jaguars were sleeping somewhere nearby too. I imagined a Humming Hive in Tikal as I walked through the jungle, with the howler monkeys screaming - it sounded like dinosaurs or some other large and dangerous creatures calling back and forth to each other.

 The view from the top of the tallest temple:

Another short stay, followed by the longest bus ride yet, all the way down through tiny rural villages, through Guatemala City, a giant city where we sat in the worst traffic I've ever experienced, and finally arriving here in Antigua. Today is my only day here, but I'm so glad I stopped here, colorful cobblestone streets with the volcano towering overhead.

I am looking forward to my next stop being longer - 10 days on a family's permaculture farm next to Lago Atitlan, and then a month in Xela at a language school.

Thank you for reading. Everyone always asks if I am travelling alone. Yes, I am. But even when I am not connecting with people on my travels, I feel my friends and family are with me in spirit.