crater lake

We`ve moved to San Marcos La Laguna, another pueblo on Lake Atitlàn. It is a much more picturesque little town, nestled in the rocks. We`re staying at a place high up on a hill with a beautiful view of the lake and volcanoes. The only downside is that San Marcos is a bit more expensive than San Pedro, where we paid about $3 for a room (Hotel Ti-Kaaj). We intended to camp up on this hill, but after setting up the owner told us that it was too dangerous, so we put our tent inside their kitchen for the night for free. Now we are staying on an open air deck with a view of the lake, and a really HOT shower!!! I havent had a nice shower since my birthday!
At this place we are paying $10 a night (Xamanek).

While San Pedro is the gringo-party town, San Marcos is totally focused on meditation, spirituality, yoga, etc. This weekend there is a Festival of Consciousness. It is a nice place to relax, enjoy nature, and jump off rocks into the crater lake.

A few days ago we attempted to hike up the San Pedro Volcano. Unfortunately, our guide was a kind of burro, hiking to the volcano directly from town, rushing us up really steep paths, acting annoyed when we needed to take a breather. By the time we got to the first vista, about two thirds of the way (after two hours of hiking), Ian and I felt like we were going to vomit. Unacclamated to the elevation? Out of shape? Who knows. We stopped there, took in the vista, said goodbye to the guide and made our way back down.