Panajachel and a visit to San Pedro

Bliss! Silent night. Saturday night is party night in Panajachel, thankfully Sunday night was as quiet as  can be. My wonderfully deep sleep was only finally broken by the inevitable roosters but even they had the decency to have a lie in.

Today it was time to venture across the lake. Mornings the waves are calm,  though the cool air coming down from the mountain hitting the warm waters makes for choppy seas later in the day. The boat piers perch unsteadily on poles swaying disconcertingly. The boats themselves are basic wooden ancient models, not a trip for nervous sailors.

Ferry port!

Heading out over the lake

I ventured out with my USA friends, Kari and Troy, and their 2 year old daughter Sage, and we thoroughly enjoyed the 30 mins to San Pedro on the opposite side to Pana. Sage charms everyone with her golden curly hair and angelic smile, the locals love her and that makes life easier, they hand us samples of their produce, bananas, avocados, oranges, result!

San Pedro is a smaller version of Pana, but built into a slope, up it rises from the lake and up we walked ..the town is suffering from water levels rising, the remains of flooded hotels stick up out of the shallows. There is a unique Mayan temple buried deep under thus lake but the modern ruins are far more obvious!

Lakeside Living

The family are moving here for a few days, they want a more upmarket room, a choice I can empathise with, but needs must. We admired their new lakefront pad before ambling around the streets and into a great coffee place for sweet pancakes and superb coffee.

Lake view from San Pedro - with coffee growing in the foreground

By mid afternoon the waves were rising and I made a hasty retreat to the boat. The return was bumpy to say the least, climbing out onto the pier at Pana almost impossible due to the rising winds. My bottom is bruised, again.

Waiting for the boat back 

Another evening wander, Pana is more touristy than San Pedro but I like the fiesta feel, the sunset gatherings on the front. The streets are easier to ramble, unlike the cobbled uneven paving of Antigua s ancient ‘roads’, although being run over by errant tuk tuk an ever present danger, and there are plenty of places to sit quietly and gaze out at the aqua blue waters.  Lake Atitlan is an ever changing kaleidoscope of colours, shapes, shadows, its truly mesmerising.