Latin America Collection

GUATEMALA CITY
is the capital of the country. It is the largest city
in Central America and has over 2,000,000 people. The city offers a variety
of accomodations, restaurants, old churches, English bookstores, historic
buildings, many museums and a whole lot more. The Mercado Central is
a good place to purchase tourist-oriented items such as handicrafts and hand
woven textiles. The Mapa En Relieve (a giant relief map) and Minerva
Park are two places tourists visit. Gualtemala City is a good layover spot
on the Pan-American Highway (CA-1). You can take a few extra days to
explore nearby areas, lakes and even make an excursion to the Mayan sites.
In general, Guatemala is an excellent country for sightseeing.

ANTIGUA
, is a city of 30,000 and is 45 minutes from Guatemala City.
It was the former capital until it was heavily damaged by earthquakes.
Here you can watch the Indian women weave the uniquely colorful and
beautiful fabrics native to Guatemala. Many Spanish-built structures, such
as the Palace of the Captains General, La Concepción and Capuchinas
Convents and the Popence House have been restored to their original
splendor after damage by earthquakes. Because of the dozens of Spanish
language schools in this city, there is always a large number of foreigners.
Antigua's is one of "the" places to go outside of the U.S. to study Spanish.
You can study as many hours a day as you wish. There are all types of
programs to suite everyone's needs. You can even live with a local family
to really immerse yourself in the culture.
CHICHICASTENAGO
, a most colorful town located very high in the
mountains about 87 miles from Guatemala City, is a highly recommended
side trip. Every Thursday and Sunday the Indians bring their wares to the
central market square. They are all dressed in the colorful woven costumes
of their home village, each with the distinctive patterns of that village.
Their wares include weavings, wood carvings, ceramics and local fruits and
produce. All of this is held in the square with the backdrop of Santo Tomás
church. If you want to stay by Lake Atitlán there is a bus from nearby
Panajachel to Chichicastenango. The highway passes through some lovely
landscape.
LAKE ATITLAN
, Sololá. This lake, some 90 miles from Guatemala
City is renowned for its natural beauty. There are three volcanoes
surrounding the lake: Volcán Tolimán, Volcán Atitlán and Volcán San Pedro.
Tourists are attracted to the colorful Indian settlements along the lake shore,
fishing and swimming in the lake's peaceful waters, and to climb the
surrounding volcanoes. The most polular town on the lake is Panajachel
nicknamed "Gringolandia" because of the many foreigners who visit or
live in the area. There are some watersports available there.

The view of the lake with the volcanoes in the background make this
place really magical. The temperature is about 70 degress all year long
making it an ideal place to live. You can take a small launch from the lake
front and visit several other towns located around the lake. The Indian village
of Santiago de Atitlán on the opposite of the lake is the most frequenly visited
village after Panajachel. There is a national park in this area and you can
even go on an excursion to one of the volcanoes. If you are in good shape
you can climb one of these volcanoes. The view from the top of Lake Atilán
is almost worth the effort. This area is perhaps the most beautiful spot in
Central America let alone the rest of the world.
RIO DULCE
, Izabel, some 170 miles from Guatemala City is the place
for the adventurous and nature lovers. Of particular interest are Lake
Izabel, the town of Livingston, the Fort of San Felipe built in Colonial times
and the Caribbean beaches of Cocoli and Costa de Palma.