After our first week in Xela, I stopped taking morning Spanish classes so that Logan (aka Ellie) could hang with the youngsters without her mother. I spent my time exploring the city and taking little trips with Marco.
One morning, Marco and I drove to San Martín Sacatepéquez and then hiked to Lake Chicabal, a crater lake in a volcano sacred to the Mayans. The morning we visited, two groups of women were performing ceremonies, chanting/singing on opposite sides of the lake.
We parked quite a walk from the entrance because the cobblestone street was too steep for the Mini Cooper to handle. We declined the 50 quetzal ride up the hill and set off on foot.
View as we headed to the visitors center.
Visitors Center
As I wasn’t far out from my Covid diagnosis and Marco was feeling oddly weak, we hopped a truck up the muddy mountain road for 10 quetzals each. A very good decision, as it would have been quite a hike up.
We arrived at the viewpoint a bit late, as the fog had already started to roll in. If you get there early enough, you can see three other volcanos in the distance. When a local learned Marco was from Xela, she made fun of us for not coming earlier. But I had not been in the mood to get up early enough for the view.
We then hiked down to the lake and had an early lunch.
We hiked the whole way back, discovering a long up-hill portion we didn’t notice the first time.
