Exploring Antigua

This morning, both Suzanne and I had a little stomach trouble so we were a little nervous about how to proceed with the day. Our hotel offered a wonderful breakfast and I had the yogurt, granola and pancakes, which were delicious. Since Suzanne was not feeling well, Joyce, Joel and I headed to the Hotel Antigua where we could catch a shuttle to the Filadelfia Coffee Plantation. The free shuttle is a former army truck outfitted with seats and it rattles around quite a bit on the cobblestoned streets of Antigua. The plantation is only a 10 minute drive and it’s a very large property with beautiful grounds offering coffee tours as well as zip lines, paint ball and horseback riding. There is also a very nice hotel and a couple of restaurants on the property. The 11a tour was only in Spanish so we skipped that opting to stroll around the property on our own. As soon as we got close to it, we could smell the roasting coffee. We could also see where they’d laid out large squares of beans to dry out on a paved deck. There were dark brown beans as well as lighter ones spread out. Of course we had to try some out, so we sat for a relaxing sip of the local product. After picking up a few bags for souvenirs, we caught the shuttle back to town.

Suzanne was feeling a little better after we got back, so we walked to a place a few blocks from our hotel which has a café but is also a nursery. The gardens were beautiful and had many of the plants we have seen all throughout the trip although here they are labeled. The lunch was a very healthy chicken sandwich with a pepian sauce, which they called ‘tipico’ so it must be common Guatemalan food. It tasted like a sort of barbecue sauce. After lunch, we were all tired, so we repaired back to the hotel for a couple of hours rest. In the late afternoon, we headed out to the square for a stroll and some last minute shopping. Most of the wares seemed like stuff we’d seen at the Lake, but without the more personal touch that the small shopkeepers have there. They also have shops geared more towards city people with clothing, pottery, and other goods. We found a beautiful conch shell platter for Patsy and Kim’s wedding gift.

At this point we were totally shopped out so we headed to a nearby restaurant for a Guatemalan style meal. I had a delicious chicken soup with rice and a Guatemalan tamal which is wrapped in banana leaf and is a flatter shape than the Mexican tamales that I see in LA.

After a last tea and some local chocolates, we called it an early night, our last one in Guatemala. It’s been a really amazing trip, seeing a part of the world that I’d never thought to visit, and meeting some of the most amazing people. Truly a once in a lifetime experience.