Guatemala and El Salvador

The first things that strike us as we enter Northern Guatemala are the lack of shops compared to the high consumerism in Mexico- here there are mostly just small road side stands; the lack of variety in the food choices- mostly rice and beans or beans with rice; the high prices- ( we were spoilt by Mexican pesos!); and the vast majority of women, young and old, wearing traditional dress- a wrap-around skirt made from dark fabric embroidered with bright, bold patterns and a colourful often lacey, top.

The day of driving across Belize and the four border controls exiting and entering territories, fumigating and filling out forms was all worth it when we arrived at the magnificent Mayan site at Tikal. Towering temples rise above the jungle canopy and you are still allowed to climb up the tallest and sit atop this architectural feat, marvelling at the surrounding countryside and listening out for howler monkeys.

The following road south was central american driving at its best: 27 kms of wash outs, gravel, rain and omnipotent bus drivers took us 2 hours, but then the countryside changed again and we were in lush jungle with scarlet 'shrimp tail' flowers poking out from the underbrush, purple banana flowers and the bright red grains of coffee plants whose beauty helped us to forget that harrowing time!

This road took us to the famous Chichicastenango market- a must on the Guatemalan gringo trail which was, as promised, full of colourful fabrics, ancient incense, hand crafts, local produce and pickpockets :)

Another harrowing drive descending 1500m of switchbacks with very little to stop you going over the side and we discovered the chilled out and zenified hippie hangout of San Marcos on Lago d'Atitlan. We spent four luxurious days here to get our fill of Yoga lessons, massages, lake swimming and precious products like hummus, brown bread and almond butter - not very Guatemalan but such a welcome change!

Our time visiting the colonial gem of Antigua also bought along a welcome change as we spent it with our new French/Dominican Republic friends Tien and Ana and their two children. Sharing Lego, soft toys and having an extra two children to climb trees with hands down beats visits to Mayan ruins, colonial cities or indigenous markets for the kids so they were in heaven!

We followed Ana and Tien on to El Salvador, not knowing what to expect from this little, little-known country and we were completely blown away by the amazing beaches, the lovely people, not to mention the 50c cheese and bean-filled pupusas and Tien's fantastic cooking!

Flo and Max took the time to learn to surf, Pippa to get in more Yoga lessons, Zoe to learn more and more Spanish, and Olivia to body surf like a woman possessed! We hope you enjoy the photos, and we hope they inspire you to come visit this tiny country that holds a lot of surprises!