The View

Days 6-8: Lake Atitlan & Tzununa

After finishing up touring Antigua, we hopped in the car and drove straight through to Panajachel, a small town by Lake Atitlan, which I have to admit is one of the most beautiful lakes I've ever seen. Lake Atitlan is surrounded by steep hills, picturesque mayan villages and massive volcanoes, one of which is still active and you can see it "smoking" in the early mornings. The first evening there, we stayed in the Hotel Atitlan and by luck, we were given a suite for the evening, which my parents enjoyed. It overlooked the gorgeous grounds, the lake and the volcanoes.

The following morning, we just walked around the grounds of the hotel enjoying all of the birds and flowers and took a dip in the infinity jacuzzi pool overlooking the lake and volcanoes. It was incredibly relaxing and I almost didn't want to leave the hotel.

Hotel Atitlan was gorgeous and had great views!

Dallin and I relaxing after a swim

Enjoying the infinity jacuzzi pool

After checking out, we headed into town and did some shopping at the mercado. This is where I bought most of our "souvenirs" from our trip. I bought some really pretty textiles, a few nativities and some really cute dresses for my daughter and toys for the boys. I love looking at the native mayans. Their clothes are vibrant and they carry everything on their heads... it's impressive. I don't know how it doesn't keep falling off, but they carry everything from clothing to baskets full of food, etc... on their heads.

Visiting the "mercado"

I love how they carry everything on their heads

We had made reservations at a really quaint (but remote) hotel called Lomas de Tzununa for the next two evenings, and we wanted to arrive there early because you could only get there by boat and then climb 400+ stairs to reach the cabins which were literally built into the side of a steep mountain. The beauty of this hotel was that it was away from all of the "tourist" stops and you had completely unobstructed views of the lake and volcanoes.

So after shopping, we headed over to the pier and got on one of the "ferry" boats heading to the various villages surrounding the lake. By now the wind had picked up a bit and the water was pretty choppy so the boat ride seemed a bit harrowing at times. We got completely drenched from the waves splashing into the boat and after what seemed an eternity, we finally made it to the pier at Tzununa. Like I mentioned, there were 400+ really steep stairs to climb, so we called the hotel who sent down 2 hotel workers to carry up ALL of our luggage. We had 5 pieces of luggage, 3 of which were BIG pieces and those 2 guys carried our luggage all of the way up the stairs. It was incredible. It was a workout getting up these stairs, let me tell you, and we all needed to sit down and rest a few times on the way up. But once you got up there, you were rewarded with FANTASTIC views of the lake and volcanoes.

A view of the hotel from the lake as we were pulling in

Getting soaking wet on the boat

Getting ready to climb the 400+ stairs

The next morning we woke up and enjoyed breakfast while overlooking the lake and volcanoes. Then hopped aboard another one of the boats and headed out to visit the many villages around the lake. Once we were in the villages, we had to board what they call "tuk-tuks." They're kind of what you imagine people riding around in India or someplace like that. They're like little buggies with a driver in front and room for 2-3 people in the back. Anyway, we visited the villages, enjoyed some local food and did some more shopping with the local vendors.

Bartering over a beautiful textile which I ended up buying!

Riding in the "tuk tuk"

Enjoying the views from Lomas de Tzununa

Enjoying a delicious breakfast on the hotel balcony

The Luxurious Part of the Trip

Day 4-5: ANTIGUA!!

So, I have to admit, I LOVED this part of the trip. Antigua is a small town that resembles the streets of Europe, I think. It's actually pretty small, in radius, but the streets are made of cobblestone and the houses and stores there are brightly colored. We arrived in Antigua in the evening and checked into our hotel, which was awesome. This was by far the best hotel we stayed in during the trip. It was called Meson Panza Verde, which really had kind of a rustic quality to it. Dallin and I splurged here and got a suite, which included a big canopy bed , its own fireplace, and a private balcony with this huge hammock hanging in it. The restaurant here was FANTASTIC!! By far, one of the best meals I've had in a LLLOOONNNNGGGG time! And the grounds were gorgeous -- made up of all kinds of exotic flowers and plants. At night, they'd bring in local artists to perform so people would sit around the bar and lounge or dance (and I've got some fun pictures to show you of this too!)

Enjoying some fine dining at Meson Panza Verde

Posing for pictures on the rooftop terrace

Mom & Dad shaking things up with a salsa dance!

Day 5: Elizabeth Bell

The next morning we had arranged for a tour of the city by a woman named Elizabeth Bell. She was absolutely wonderful. Her parents had moved her from California to Guatemala when she was only 11 and she's stayed ever since. Not only did she know everything about the history of Antigua and it's current political and economic state, she's also dedicated her life to improving the quality of life for the native people of Antigua, to cleaning up the streets, bringing in more tourists, and preserving the heritage and culture of the people there. She and the foundation she runs, have really started excavating some of the local buildings there and putting any of the "treasures" they find in nice museums , in hopes of luring more tourism dollars into the city. She was truly a fascinating and really inspiring woman.

Elizabeth leading our tour group

The rest of our stay in Antigua was spent walking the streets, visiting the different stores there and shopping, and eating delicious food. While in Antigua, we tried a new dish called pepian dish. It is a chicken stew with a tomato based broth and spices that I couldn't quite figure out what they were. But it was delicious!

Pepian Chicken!

Posing in the center of town

How do you add heat to a dish? Try one of these!

Antigua definitely had a rustic charm to it.

Hitting the cobblestone streets

And of course, no post about my Guatemala trip would be complete without me obsessing over the flowers and plants there. Everything grows big out there -- all of the flowers are HUGE, the leaves from some of the plants are almost bigger than I am, and everything is green. Its fantastic!
Check out the leaf! It's almost as big as my mother!

Zippin' Along

Day 3: While in Tikal, Dallin and I (my parents decided to sit this one out) decided to zip line through the jungle. I was terrified when we were climbing up the first tower to get all harnessed up. In fact, I was pretty much terrified the entire time... up until the very end. But it was really neat to go through the jungle this way. We were so high up that we got to see a bunch of howler monkeys up close and I think we would both do it again in a heart beat. Afterwards, we just relaxed and walked around our lodges to look at all of the cool birds, animals, and flowers until it was time to fly back to Guatemala City and head towards Antigua.

Here, Dallin is showing off and hanging on the zip line upside down!

I have NO idea what animal this is. All I know is that there were about 30 of them walking right behind our cabin.

Me and my mom just hanging out until check out time.

Welcome to the Jungle

We spent our first evening in Guatemala in a little town called Flores. After arriving there by plane, we went out and caught some dinner locally and then headed out early the next morning to Tikal. Below are 2 pictures of us in front of the quaint hotel we stayed in that overlooked Lake Peten Itza.

Days 2: Touring Tikal

Tikal is located in a thick, tropical jungle in the northeastern part of Guatemala. The ruins are still being excavated but archaeologists have found at least 3,000 structures. We hired a tour guide to lead us around Tikal and explain some of the history of the ancient city and the mayans that inhabited it.

Before we even began the tour, I was completely obsessed with the flowers, trees and shrubbery in this area. Being from Nevada, we just don't get to see this too often. First up is the ceiba tree which is an absolutely HUGE tree with enormous roots, followed by a picture of the most beautiful flower I've EVER seen...

Touring Tikal is somewhat exhausting because you walk for about 3-4 hours and end up climbing A LOT of stairs to the tops of some of the temples. But you are rewarded with breathtaking views of the rainforest, while viewing the peaks of the other temples around the ruins. I was so impressed with how advanced the mayans were back then with their architecture and building. It's impressive considering how limited their tools were back then, but they were able to build amazing structures that have stood the test of time.

Considering how tall some of these temples were, I was seriously impressed at how my parents were able make it all the way up the temples. My knees and joints were hurting after all of the climbing, but they didn't complain at all and kept up with us the entire time. After we finished our tour of Tikal, all I wanted to do was lay in bed, read a book, and let my aching legs rest up a bit. But Dallin and my Dad decided to go back into the park before nightfall to see if they could catch a glimpse of the moon from the top of one of the highest temples there. Unfortunately, it was pretty cloudy outside so they didn't get to see much but they had a fun time making it back to the lodges in the pitch dark!

Guatemala Bound

Dallin and I recently enjoyed a marvellous 10-day trip to Guatemala where we travelled at warp speed with my parents, and left our kids at home with my in-laws. The trip was great because Dallin got to experience and learn about our hispanic culture, we got to see relatives who I haven't seen in about 20 years, and we got to tour some absolutely beautiful parts of the country on our own schedule. I came home very appreciative of what we have here in the states: clean drinking water, a government system that works (although that point could be debated today considering our economy), and the lack of poverty that is so prevalent throughout the entire country of Guatemala.

Since this is a blog and my journal, I will include all of the details of our trip. But for those of you not interested in hearing EVERY detail, you can simply skim down and just look at the pictures. And since I can't write about our entire trip in one sitting, you will be stuck reading about it over the next several posts. So, enjoy!

Day 1: Getting There

We left Reno in the afternoon and as a totally random side not, we unexpectedly ran into my older brother at the airport in SLC. I had no idea he was travelling and while we were walking to our gate, I see him sitting at a restaurant with his laptop. We got to catch up with him briefly before his flight, which was a real treat for me since I haven't seen him in a while.

Anyway, continuing on, we arrived in Guatemala City early the next morning where my parents were waiting at the airport to pick us up. My father was born in Guatemala and lived there through his adolescence, so he and my mom agreed to tour the country with us. For those of you who have never travelled to Central America, driving in Guatemala is not for the faint of heart. There are laws, however most people, especially the bus drivers it seems, have little regard for others' lives and their own for that matter. People constantly swerve in and out of lanes, motorcyclists seems to appear out of nowhere, and crammed red school buses (nicknamed "killer tomates) that have people literally hanging out of them seem to own the roads there. So you can see why I wasn't about to let Dallin take the wheel there. So, my dad did all of the driving on our trip.

After getting picked up, we did a quick drive through the city and ended up visiting the LDS temple in Guatemala City, which was really neat.

After walking around the temple and a quick brunch, we headed to my great uncle's house, who I haven't seen in years. He was recently called as a member of the Seventy in our church and it was really neat hearing about how he received the call.

Afterwards, we caught lunch back in the city at a great place called Casa Chapina, where they serve typical Guatemalan fare while you listen to a live band that serenades you and you can learn how to make tortillas there too. The fried plantains were my absolute favorite while we were in Guatemala. We ate these all the time growing up and I can eat them for every meal and NOT get sick of them. They were sooooo good there!

Then we had to head back to the airport because we were flying to Peten, which is where the great Mayan ruins known as Tikal are. Below is a picture of Guatemala city that I took from a lookout point along the road.

BUSTED

I read this article this evening and was sincerely disappointed. Every day I either read the papers or watch the news and am saddened by what I see: Wallstreet Ponzi schemes and scam artists, war and destruction in other parts of the world, people here at home being tried for murders and other terrible, TERRIBLE crimes, the list goes on and on. So, one can see why when someone "good" comes along, the American public clings to them. It's always inspirational to have a role model to cheer for and look up to.

So, like I said, I was saddened to read this article about Michael Phelps. I cheered for him like everyone else in the U.S. during the Olympics and I guess I do hold him to a higher standard. He should know better. He should know that he is now in the public eye and should "behave." He should know that kids all over the country look up to him as a role model. Come on, Phelps. You just won 8 Olympic gold medals... find something better to do with your time!

Phelps admits 'bad judgment' after marijuana-pipe photo

(CNN) -- Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps admitted to "regrettable" behavior Sunday and vowed it wouldn't happen again after a British newspaper published a photograph of the swimmer smoking a marijuana pipe.

"I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way," swimmer Michael Phelps said in a statement released Sunday.

"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment," the record-setting American athlete said in a statement issued Sunday.

"I'm 23 years old, and despite the successes I have had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner that people have come to expect from me," Phelps said. "For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public -- it will not happen again."

Phelps won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, four years after he won six gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. He has received numerous corporate endorsements totaling millions of dollars.

His statement was also posted on his Facebook page, followed by comments of both support and admonishment from fans.

In a separate statement, the U.S. Olympic Committee said it was "disappointed in the behavior recently exhibited by Michael Phelps."

"Michael is a role model, and he is well aware of the responsibilities and accountability that come with setting a positive example for others, particularly young people," the committee said. "In this instance, regrettably, he failed to fulfill those responsibilities."

However, it added, "Michael has acknowledged that he made a mistake and apologized for his actions. We are confident that, going forward, Michael will consistently set the type of example we all expect from a great Olympic champion."

The picture, billed as an exclusive by the tabloid News of the World, showed Phelps using a water pipe during what it said was a November party at the University of South Carolina. In 2004, Phelps was arrested on charges of driving under the influence in Salisbury, Maryland. Phelps pleaded guilty and received 18 months probation in that incident, issuing an apology afterward.

"Getting into a car with anything to drink is wrong. It's dangerous and it's unacceptable. I'm 19, but was taught that no matter how old you are, you take responsibility for actions, which I do," Phelps told ESPN.

The Olympic swimmer is one of 12 Olympic athletes that have pledged to "My Victory," an initiative launched last year by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to keep competitive sports clean of cheating and drug use.