Saturday, February 16, 2019
Panajachel to San Pedro La Laguna
Slept in this morning, then went to the shared kitchen to heat water for our Nescafe. It's instant coffee and cookies for breakfast again today. We checked out at 11:00 but left our bags at the hotel, then walked over to the ATM at the Porta de Lago Hotel and refilled our pockets with quetzales, as we've read that the ATMs in the far-flung villages around the lake sometimes run out of cash, and we're moving to one of those villages today.
There are tons trinket vendors in Panajachel, but at least they're not super aggressive. I bought a couple of brightly colored textile coin purses from a street stall. I'm going to give one to my friend Charlene for watching Carlos the Cat and keep the other. Yes, I haggled, though I hate it, but when in Rome... Then we walked the lakeside promenade and watched the locals having a fun Saturday morning at the beach.
Along the Panajachel promenade
Saturday at the beach
Tom needed a blister bandage for his foot, and we ended up walking all over town trying to find just the right thing, which of course couldn't have helped the nascent blister. We visited three or four pharmacies before finally ending up at a large supermarket on Calle Principal that had just what he wanted.
We returned to PanaHouse for our bags, then took a tuk-tuk to the lancha for San Pedro. It was a rough 30-minute ride to San Pedro, and I hadn't taken any Dramamine. When we arrived, I felt a bit woozy and had to sit down for a minute before we walked to the hotel. I figured the nausea and weakness would pass shortly.
On the way to our lodging, we got lost twice, then a local man stopped us, as we were clearly didn't know where the hell we were going, and then escorted us to the hotel door. It turns out that the most direct route from the dock goes through a very sketchy-looking alley, and we'd walked right past it, not knowing it was a “street” worthy of being noted on our map. We were actually on a dirt path by the time the kind man found us, which was also a main route to somewhere, just not for us. Muchas gracias, Senor!
The route to our hotel in San Pedro
Anyway, we eventually arrived at the Restaurante, Bar y Hotel Jarachi'k, where a woman at the desk asked my name and then sent a small boy to escort us to our room. There was no formal check-in process, and no one looked at my passport or asked us for any money. The key to the room was in the door. We arrived at our room, number 4 of this eight-room hotel, at 2:15.
The room was clean but basic, with perhaps the scariest Frankenshower I've ever seen. There were some tiny black ants in the bathroom, but we didn't bother them, and they didn't bother us. The room was 175Q per night (about $23), or it will be, you know, if they ever ask us to pay. According to their listing on Booking.com, English is spoken here, but I can tell you it was not. Still, it's a great value, and won't be hard to find now that we know where it is. Breakfast is included.
Inside our room at Hotel Jarachi'k
Water and electricity too close for comfort
As it turned out, I wasn't motion sick after all. It was something I ate or drank, and I can't remember ever being so sick in my life. Tom has been periodically a little ill throughout the trip, but this is new for me. Yikes. I was sick, nauseous, weak, tired, and lightheaded. Tom went to a tienda and got me a 7up and some water, and it took me two and a half hours to drink the soda and eat a package of peanut butter crackers. In retrospect, I blame the “filtered” water at the PanaHouse in Panajachel. They should probably change their f****** filter.
Fantastic terrace
Foggy and dramatic
Several hours after our arrival, I went downstairs to the restaurant with Tom and forced myself to eat half a hamburger and a few fries, despite my zero appetite. I knew I needed some nourishment, though. Ughh! Being sick sucks!
San Pedro is the backpacker party town of the lake, and this was Saturday night, but no partying for me. Tom went for a walk in the evening and came back with a couple of small bottles of local hooch - a small bottle of purple stuff and a small bottle of orange stuff. I'm pretty sure it was fortified wine, like the local version of Mad Dog 20/20. Not awesome. I laid in the bed and napped on and off in a semi-delirious state until finally falling asleep for the night. I could hear music coming from nearby establishments well into the night, though, so it made me almost feel a part of the scene...
Not recommended
Tom
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