Last night, we camped on Volcan Pacaya, an active volcano just over an hour from Antigua. It was truly one of those breathtaking experiences where as you're walking up to the active lava fields you're looking around wonder how anything could be so beautiful. Because we went at night, we hiked up to the volcano for about an hour and a half (with me realizing I am painfully out of shape), set up camp, and then climbed to the active portion of the volcano once the other visitors were leaving. We got to the lava just after dark, and had a truly dazzling (and very warm) sight to behold.
The trek back down was noteworthy as well, with the group of seven of us essentially sliding down volcanic rock for good portions of the way in the dark, accompanied by local stray dogs. We highly recommend OX, the group that organized our tour. Our guide Sophie from Montreal was fantastic. If you're ever heading down to Guatemala, we can't recommend enough spending the night on Pacaya.
We are now back in Antigua, and tomorrow will head up to Lago Atitlan for a couple days.
On another note, have you ever wondered where US schools buses go to rest? Probably not, but the answer is Guatemala, and they are not resting at all, but serving as the main source of public transportation (see below - painted in their wild colors)!
We'll post back soon.
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