So I found out about this refreshing mushroom, ideal to neutralize the heat and get some peace.

This pool is at the Hotel and Restaurant “El Muelle”, at the side of the road on your way to Tikal.

The hotel is located at El Remate, which is a commercial spot near Lake Petén Itzá.

You can enjoy delicious meals, stay the night or even buy a tour to the surrounding attractions.

The night is about 300 Qs, (US$40). Get in touch with them calling to the following phone numbers: 5514-9785 / 5581 - 8087.

They also offer transport to Palenque (a Maya City located in México).

The road goes around Lake Petén Itzá. Is one of the biggest lakes in Guatemala. The water is fresh, crystal clear and with white shores.

You can get to Lake Itzá right from San Benito or any point from Flores Petén.

Santa Elena is in fact an island surrounded by this beautiful lake.

Right on your way to Tikal you will reach Ixlú, which is exactly the turn to the left entering El Remate.

At this point you will see several handcrafts stores at the side of the lake.

There is a variety of hotels around, some are really cheap. This is just a view of Lake Petén Itzá that I wanted to share.

Yes, the water is fresh to warm, never cold!. Make your choice and stop here for a meal, to rest or to take a swim at the lake. (no crocs or anything dangerous, just fun and relaxin atmosphere).

How to get there?

Easy. Read the guide on how to get to Tikal. Want to drive? then read the following guide on how to get from Guatemala City to Tikal on a car.

Its been a while since I visited the museum so I have no clue on what kind of flower this is.

I just know (remember) it is the one preferred by the butterflies.

The mixture of colors is still fascinating to me: red, green and yellow.

Seed collection at the musem

This musem also shows a complete selection of local seeds, the variety goes from flowers to trees.

The Museum is located at the 6 street 7-30 Finca La Aurora zone 13. Phone: 2472-3612. The entrance costs only US$3 per person (tourists).

This is a view from the Central Park (Historic Center) of Xela at approximately 10:00AM after having some breakfast.

The city is way modern and is divided in two parts: the new modern like city and the Historic Center (also modern) but preserving the old eruopean (italian influenced) architecture.

I prefer this side of the city being more quiet and rich in art and peaceful places to hang out.

The whole park is surrounded by bars, coffee shops, hotels and beautiful ancient buildings.

But there is nothing like the clouds decorating the sky while the sun heats the windy day.

This is the picture of a friendly, sweet and (cute?) yes, cute parrot. As you can see, the forehead has no red spot. This means…

The red spot on the forehead means is a more aggressive parrot, a specie that rarely learn words and rarely says something, in fact when they do is almost impossible to understand what they said.

But this little friend here is from another specie.

The thing is, the ones with yellow, greenish or aqua color in their forehead are more easily to learn words,  a wide variety of words.

They are also more friendly, being the ones you can carry on your shoulder (or at the top of your head) with no danger.

So, this kind of lovely bird is ideal for pirates :), kids and everyone of us who enjoy a little company.

In this case, “friendly” doesn’t mean they are friendly by nature, it means they are easy to domesticate. Enjoy more moments like this among the trails of Petencito Zoo.

There is no easy way to describe this place but saying: amazingly beautiful and peaceful.

You can’t get enough… When I first described this place to some friends they finding it hard to believe… It was even hard to believe being there.

This place is on your way to Magdalena Lagoon in Huehuetenango. I bet my head you can’t imagine how beautiful this place is.

Some friends who have been there describe it exactly as I do: the perfect place to spend your last days and just die… peacefully and happy.

Ever seen the Windows wallpapers or the telettubie land? well, the picture looks pretty familiar but is not computer generated, is not a set and is not digitally manipulated.

BTW, there is a crystal clear river at just 200 meters from this place.

Cold as the ice but refreshing. On winter, the grass gets shines at night because the ice reflects the moonlight.

Here you can find amazing views like as you drive and travel around.

So yes, become a landscape photographer in 3 easy steps.

Trust me on this one (too):

1. Prepare your camera

   ALWAYS take a camera with you while traveling around Guatemala. The best route is to the west where you will find beautiful views anytime.Any camera will do the job. If you look for a special moment like this one, use a camera that allows low light condition pictures (allowing asa 400 to 800) or just bring a tripod.

2. Organize your schedule

   The best time for landscape photography is from 6:00AM to 10:30AM in the morning and from 16:00PM to 18:30PM in the afternoon. Making sure you are at the right time is a key for this kind of pictures. There are scenarios like this all around Guatemala, but yet again, remember, the west route has the better ones visible right from the road.The area close to Quetzaltenango (like 35 minutes before reaching Xela via CA1) has many spots with amazing views. The whole area of Tecpàn as lots of places too. Sololá (the land of Atitlán) has its own share of beautiful spots, speciall from the lookouts around Lake Atitlán.And don’t forget to visit San Marcos (also to the west) where you can find the best (best!!!) landscapes ever!!!. You can visit Huehuetenango too to find some more.

3. Bring somebody with you

   I’m not kidding with this one. Pretty often you will find people having a hard time to believe pictures like this one being taken without any filters. No, this picture is not “photoshopped”. Besides, it is a valuable view to share with somebody.

It is also advisable:

• Always keep the camera close to you so you can capture any special moment, even on the road.
• Avoid parking too close to the road as you might get caught on the moment and make a dangerous mistake of walking backwards as you prepare to shoot your picture.
• Keep your emergency lights on.
• While on the road, try to take advantage of the police spots parking near them, say “hi” and enjoy the safety of being around the cops. They usually choose strategic spots from where you can get a nice picture of several areas (from above).
• Keep your windows closed.
• Pay attention to the road. Pretty often you might find beautiful volcano views that will easily distract you.
• Keep in mind, here in Guate you can shoot pictures like this one right before the night falls down. You will have from 2 to 6 minutes of spectacular light and colors (the peak of the moment).

Don’t believe me? all of the pictures posted on this site have zero filters and zero photoshop. I believe myself and others who have been around this site: many pictures deserve being framed.

Enjoy your travel!

For some friends it is a variation of an ant (hormiga) also the cousin of an “alacrán” (scorpion), so it was named “hormicrán”.

The environment here is hot but windy. The winter is very cloudy, rainy and cold.

There are also some snakes around so you get the picture of the place being not that cold.

This little thing was walking peacefully around the crags.

Any idea on what is this?

Funny, it was about 18cm long, so no, it was not so little at all. In fact a little intimidating when rock climbing and appearing near your face by surprise.

The Central Park stays illuminated allowing tourists and locals to spend the early night among memorable talks, reads or just enjoying the music of some improvised musicians.

The Cathedral shines with the best of its details in front of the park.

Take a walk around to find other rich detail buildings such as the clock and bridge of Santa Catalina, a former bridge between the two parts of a convent and perhaps the most iconized image of Antigua Guatemala around the world.

You’ll find hotels and restaurants with beautiful and detailed facades that attract the lens of any photographer. My recommendations to you are:

• Cathedral of Antigua Guatemala
• Santa Catalina convent bridge
• Capuchinas
• Hotel Casa Santo Domingo
• Palace of the captains
• Central Park
• La Merced Church

Get the best out of your pictures

Take a tripod with you or put the camera on a flat and steady surface with shooting the picture. It is advisable to point and program the timer to shoot automatically so you avoid the movement of your finger on the buttons. Low light photography requires a steady hand or a tripod.

Luckily, most of modern cameras have some “night shoot” modes so allow low light condition pictures.

Pacaya Volcano has by far, the best landscape to see near Guatemala City.  Sometimes the clouds from a little “hat” over the summit of Agua Volcano, other times it just covers the highest part making the summit still visible.

Next time you visit Pacaya Volcano get up early and while you walk among the trails, keep in mind to look to your right for a nice view of Agua Volcano.

The funny thing about this area is that you can actually get here only to enjoy a little trekking even if you don’t reach the summit of Pacaya.

The fresh forest of the volcano protects you from the sun while offering a natural experience surrounded by butterflies and birds.

Bring some snacks and some water to spend the day around. Fresh clothes are advisable but keep in mind its kinda cold in the early morning.

Enjoy.

Read our guides for Pacaya Volcano and Agua Volcano if you want more information.