FEBRUARY, 2005
February 24 - 26, 2005 & February 28 - March 1, 2005
Everyone tells you that Antigua is a must see in Guatemala, even President Clinton stayed there. So, when we showed up to what at first seemed to be a severly run down town with worse air pollution than Zona 1 in Guatemala City, we were a little bummed, especially after the short 1 1/2 bus ride which seemed like 3 days because of the air pollution and sardine style packed bus . However, after a shower, some food and about a half hour of exploring, we quickly realized that it is a very cool place. Plus, we got the chance to spend two days there, leave to Lake Atitlan and then return for twio more days, which really made us feel like we got the chance to get a very comprehensive feel for the city.
For starters, the plaza central is architecturaly beautiful (as is most of the city) and is surrounded by streets with several great boutique clothing shops, cafes, bars, restautrants, and decent day spas, where we took advabtage of affordable massages (Mike) and manicures (Ruthie), twice. And, as a huge plus, Antigua has by far the fastest internet connection of anywhere we have been outside of the United States, which was nice.
Another huge plus about Antigua is that it is close to Volcan Pacaya, which is the best 5$ you will ever spend. More on this on the nbext page.
All this, plus some pretty good food made Antigua worth the stop, even if the initial impression was less that impressive.
