I don’t think I would have ever considered coming to Guatemala for a holiday. Even after 28 years, this trip marks the first time I cross into the Americas - North and South - and I still can’t believe I’m writing this update from the beautiful courtyard of my hotel.
We landed in Guatemala 2 days ago, after a uncomfortable four and a half hours on a plane made exclusively for short people. Within 20 minutes, we were cleared into the country and found our driving compadre who would take us an hour away to a place called Antigua Guatemala, south-west of Guatemala City.
Antigua is a historic city, comprised of a grid system of cobbled roads with colorful houses flanking each side. It definitely makes it easier to navigate as a tourist without a lick of Spanish knowledge as you’re always four left turns away from a full circle.
Waking up nice and early, I decided to walk towards the Plaza Major, to see if I can grab a bite to eat for breakfast.
Every few blocks, I was greeted by an old abandoned heritage site, mostly cathedrals that have stood there for centuries - a remnant of the Spanish colonial times.
Spanish colonial history wasn’t the only cultural sight of significance, as a few blocks down I was greeted by the local public transport system:
Pretty much all of the public buses are old US school buses or a blinged out version of ones. Definitely an interesting sight to behold as they pass by you picking up passengers on street corners.
Once I was in view of the Plaza Major, I heard the distinct cheer of a crowd, strange, as it was only 8am.
Upon further inspection, I found the source of the noise - a public viewing area for the football World Cup, complete with surrounding fan entertainment. Football definitely brings everyone together.
The plaza itself was a beautiful open garden, with benches shaded by a nice array of trees. At night, each tree is individually lit, giving itself a very christmas-y feeling. Old colonial arched terraces flanked the plaza with an old cathedral being the centre point.
Pushing on, I found a bustling market selling everything - from knock-off electronics, to fruits and veg and anything in between. Not at any point was I surrounded by peddlers wanting to offload their wares - they didn’t take too much notice at the tourists apart from the occasional “Hola, take a look at my shop”. A stark difference to other street markets I’ve been to in the past.
Next to the street market was an artisanal market, selling everything from handwoven blankets, to intricate jade necklaces and everything in between. The predominant popularity of the colour purple, yellow and blue made every store seem like an LSD trip as the brain was so overloaded with colour that you couldn’t even distinguish what they were selling.
At the end of the market, I was greeted by another school bus full of locals, which turned out was also the local bus terminus.
Rows of buses to god knows where lines the lot with bus drivers shouting out what I can only imagine were the routes?
Walking back towards the Plaza (and towards the area I was most familiar with now), I came across an Irish bar. Of course there’s an Irish bar here. Next to Christian missionaries, the most travelled European export the world has ever seen.
The sign outside of the bar caught my eye - “Showing Football - SUI vs. SRB 1PM” It was 1:04pm.
Darting in to catch the game, I did a double take, as I couldn’t really believe what I was seeing - Swiss shirts in a bar in Antigua. Neat - turns out there’s a large contingent of Swiss living in Guatemala.
After a well deserved victory and a lot of local beer I returned back to the hotel to freshen up for the evening.
The sole reason why I even travelled to Guatemala in the first place was that a friend was getting married here. Today was the first day we would all meet up in three years since we last met in Hong Kong.
The whole wedding congregation swarmed a rooftop bar for a whole lot of dinner and drinks for a celebration before the big day tomorrow.
Hehehe “cock” beer.
Definitely not a food photographer - but these were excellent fish tacos!
We finished the evening in a speakeasy, hidden behind an old English telephone booth. I got to experience my first ever Guatemalan rum and it blew me away.
Eventually, as the night grew to a close, we all decided to depart and head our separate ways. Was a good way to end the first proper day in Antigua!