What a lovely bunch!

Sweat. Sat in my room at the Selina Hostel in Playa del Carmen, I was sweating profusely.

With no aircon, and only a creaky run-down fan to battle against the thick heat, I was a lost cause.

Although all the sweat wasn’t wholly surprising given that’s my body’s natural reaction to being in the Yucatan Peninsula, there seemed to be an added layer to it.

In a very Lose Yourself manner, in addition to my palms being sweaty, my knees were weak, and my arms were heavy.

Shorthand: I was nervous.

I was sitting in my room, anxiously watching the minutes pass by until the G Adventures Welcome Meeting. It was officially Day 1 of the 32 day tour through Central America.

Defensiveness creeped in with my nervousness. I thought to myself, “Why didn’t I just do this same route by myself? I was just fine in Mexico, I don’t need a tour!”

Let’s take it back to November 2021.

Although the Omnicron variant was hanging over the country like a black cloud, I had started entertaining the idea that one day soon the whole lockdown/freedom saga would end and I’d be able to go travelling.

At this point, I wasn’t doing too bad financially. The whole staying-at-home-and-doing-nothing vibe from Covid, coupled with living at home and enjoying mates rates from my mother, meant that I had already saved more for my travels than I had originally planned.

So, I started contemplating extending my travels, in the form of Central America.

The theory went that I could start in Mexico and travel over land and sea until Colombia, seeing an entire region in the process. Perfect!

Just one problem: some countries in Central America are a bit dicey for a solo female traveller. After years of political and/or social instability, certain countries such as Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua weren’t exactly at the top of the list for safety. Less perfect.

I raised my dilemma over dinner with my best friend Elsa, who simply replied: “Why don’t you see if G Adventures does a tour through those countries?”

Seeing my perplexed reaction, Elsa went on to explain that G Adventures is a group tour company, and that she’d done one of their tours in Bali and had loved it. The stars were aligning.

I’d never done a travel tour before, and I hadn’t even considered it for my stint in Latin America. At the first opportunity, I was furiously searching for the answer to my prayers on G’s website, and viola, I found it: the Central American Journey.

The tour intinerary.

Starting in Mexico (but not actually travelling through it, so I’d still be free to do my own thing there beforehand), passing through every country in Central America, and finishing in San José in Costa Rica (where I could then continue south onto Panama and Colombia), I’d hit the jackpot.

Visiting some amazing countries, making new friends, and having other people sort out all the tedious admin and bureaucracy for me - the tour sounded like a dream.

Belizean sunsets were awaiting.

Fast forward to sweaty and nervous me in September 2022, the reality of the tour was setting in.

In truth, after being solo for a fair amount of time, I was anxious about making friends and staying with them for so long. Will I like them? Will they like me? Will we actually become friends, or will we all just tolerate each other for the duration of the trip? Will I even get on with anyone?! Panic!

Travelling solo and moving on every few days meant that there was always an opportunity to find like-minded people. But the fear grew as the countdown ticked down and it was fully setting in that I’d be with the tour people 24/7 for over a month. What if we hated each other?!?!

(This, in hindsight, is very funny - but no spoilers).

As the Welcome Meeting countdown reached 0, I dusted myself off, psyched myself up, and left my little sweatbox of a room.

When I arrived at the rooftop fashionably late by a couple of minutes, only 5 other people were sat there waiting for our CEO (Chief Experience Officer, G Adventures’ answer to a tour guide) to begin the meeting.

After having spent the previous hour anxious about meeting 17 other strangers all at once, this felt a little bit underwhelming. Our stressed out CEO went onto explain that everyone else would arrive later that evening, or tomorrow, and that some people had run into issues (mysterious).

Just 6 out of 18. How intimate.

During the meeting, Lola, our Puerto Rican/French CEO, anthropologist, Planeterra rep, and salsa teacher, asked us to introduce ourselves to the group.

It appeared that in our group of six, four of us were British. Dan from Brighton, Ben from Lincolnshire, Isabel from London, and myself. Dutch Michelle and Swiss Nina rounded off our little OG group.

Lola explained that the month-long trip was actually split into two parts (hence two part blog post, so you didn’t have to read a thesis-length one parter, you’re welcome).

Lola would be with us for the first half in Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, before another CEO would take over for the rest of the tour. The same went for the people on the tour, with 14 of us doing the whole month, and 4 getting subbed out at half time.

(Given the above information, it feels important to note here that you’re gonna be reading a lot of the same names. Not a surprise when we spent all our time together, but consider yourself warned. Lots of new characters unlocked).

After an extortionately priced dinner together (the resorts in Yucatan Peninsula are 10000x more expensive than the rest of Mexico), the six of us scoured the Playa del Carmen strip for a watering hole to get to know each other better.

Our destination: Dick and Willy’s. Complete with dildos on the tables. So quaint.

Amidst the live band blasting out rock classics, we bonded. Ben, Dan and I were all 24. Ben and Nina had also quit their jobs. Nina could also speak Spanish. Isabel had finished school in June and had a summer of travelling before uni started. Dan and Michelle were both taking unpaid leave (it was the first day, okay! Small talk reigned King). The list goes on.

Between the chats and the drinking games - poor Michelle had to translate the Piccolo instructions from Dutch to the rest of us - my nerves almost fully settled down. Everyone was so open and friendly, you could just relax into the night.

What a wonderful high quality picture. Our faces slapped on a tequila bottle was tempting to commemorate the first night, but not for the $30 price tag. That's PDC for you.

My second day saw me lazing by the hostel’s pool, as most people went out to do the activities on offer in Playa del Carmen. Chilling by the pool, I was feeling much more positive and calm than the previous day. Thankfully only heat-induced sweats occurred.

In the afternoon, Dan and Ben returned from their Whale Shark tour (where they ironically didn’t see a single whale shark), and more new characters slowly joined us at our table in what felt like a scene picked straight from a GCSE school play.

So buckle in for all the names (and make sure you clap for each new entrance).

Firstly, Emily, a girl from California on the tour with her cousin Rob, who were flitting in and out of conversation with pina coladas in hand (this becomes a theme with these two).

Next up, Joe. A recent uni graduate from Northampton, who sat down after having paid the equivalent of £11 for a bottle of beer, because he didn’t understand the value of pesos.

Enter stage right, Isabel and Michelle, returning from their day trip to Tulum, with 3 sweet Belgian girls - Anke, Annelies, and Ina - and a smiley Dutch girl called Femke in tow.

Last but not least to join us on our ever-growing table was Dan. Yes, another Dan. From here on in I’ll differentiate between them as Big Dan and Little Dan. Our new character here was Little Dan from Cheltenham, who is also 24 and had quit his job (another theme in the group it seems).

Although Kayleigh and Ella (two more from our main cast) were absent from the aforementioned scene, I met them later at the hostel’s bar. Some of the final introductions for the following few weeks. Two cousins from Hampshire, they were the mysterious duo which caused our CEO Lola’s stress on the first day. Ella had managed to leave her passport in the toilet at Cancun airport, almost causing a Code Red situation before they retrieved it from lost property hours later. All the while it was Ella’s birthday. The drama of it all!.

With the arrival of each new person, my optimism for the tour grew. Even though it was early days, there was definitely potential there. We were already getting on well and bouncing off one another. Honestly, we could’ve been an advert for G Adventures.

Send this pic to G Adventures HQ. I wanna be on the website.

Filming for our very own G Adventures advert continued for the following few days as friendships started to blossom. But, it wasn’t until we were in Caye Caulker in Belize where nearly all of us did an activity together: snorkelling in the Hol Chan Reserve.

"Go Slow" is Caye Caulker's slogan. And the white sand beaches make the perfect landscape for going slow.

Caye Caulker, a beautiful, laid-back Caribbean island and backpacker hub, happens to be located on the Belize Barrier Reef (the world’s second largest barrier reef).

The trip to the Hol Chan Reserve on the reef promised us a fun-filled day of snorkelling, with chances to see nurse sharks, turtles, stingrays, and fish of every kind. A nature lover’s paradise.

We were also promised lots of food and rum punch, which sweetened the US$95 price tag a little. Belize’s prices did often bring a tear to one’s eye. We’re not in Mexico anymore.

The trip consisted of 3 stops. First, to Coral Garden, to swim amongst the vibrant and beautiful coral reefs teeming with marine life. The red marks still on my leg to this day are my own little souvenir from the reefs. Coral reef 1, Lottie 0.

Seems like everytone was too busy snorkelling to take a pic of the reef. So here's one from Google. Trusty Google.

Then onto Shark and Stingray Alley. I’m sure I don’t need to spell out which sea creatures we saw there.

Years of feeding the sharks has meant they associate the sound of boat motors with food, and so they come all the way up to the boat to say hello.

So close to the boat!

We raced to jump in and swim around them. Thankfully, nurse sharks are harmless, so I’m happy to report that no Jaws-esque incidents occurred that day.

This was by far my highlight of the day. Being surrounded by sharks and stingrays on all sides almost felt other-wordly, and I can still so clearly remember it.

Finally, we went to the Hol Chan Reserve itself, where we saw countless animals, including our little turtle friend:

Crush the turtle has strayed from the EAC!

But before we even got to any of the stops, we were blessed with a good omen: a manatee.

Beforehand, our CEO Lola told us to not get our hopes up about seeing a manatee. Only about 1/10 groups have the chance to see one. Aka, forget it, it wasn’t gonna happen.

But low and behold, about 20 minutes into our journey, there was a little (big) sleeping manatee waiting there just for us. It’s like he knew!

Sleeping beauty.

The snorkelling trip was almost unanimously voted as one of the best parts of the trip. With the beautiful weather, the incredible opportunities to see so much marine life all in one day, and the chance to sit and enjoy time on the catamaran with some cold rum punch, we were in heaven.

Happy smiley group pic!

However, it wasn’t long until heaven turned to hell.

In less than 12 hours, I went from sipping rum punch on a catamaran in the Caribbean sea, to crying uncontrollably on a dusty track road in Caye Caulker town.

The cause of my fall from heaven to hell? My missing phone.

Yep, my phone got stolen in Caye Caulker.

Let’s rewind slightly.

After the snorkelling trip ended, many of us were keen for a night out. We hadn’t had one up until that point, and it seemed like the perfect opportunity. Especially after all the rum punch on the catamaran.

Before it all went wrong.

A bunch of us decided to hit the bars in town. The drinks flowed, and we went with the flow. We danced through the night, and people came and went, until just myself, Isabel, and Little Dan were left. The troopers. And we were having a whale of a time.

Or we were, until I noticed that my bag was gone.

Panic set in straight away. My heart dropped to my stomach and I could feel the colour drain from my face. Where the hell was my bag?!

Searching frantically all around us, the panic grew as it was nowhere to be found. Isabel and Little Dan joined in the search. We searched high and low, retracing our steps and asking around for help, but to no avail. It was gone.

My mind went straight to my phone. I refused to believe my phone had been stolen. It was my lifeline. It had everything on it. Photos, all my travel information, and most importantly my money. All my bank accounts were on mobile apps. With a stolen bag, and therefore without my phone and my cards, how the hell would I access my money?

This is when I started to cry. Hysterically.

With Isabel slightly indisposed (aka drunk), Little Dan had to bear the brunt of my hysteria (as well as control Isabel). Dan tried his hardest to console me, but I was already too far gone.

As we abandoned our search until the morning and slowly made our way back to the hostel, I felt defeated, but incredibly thankful to Little Dan and Isabel for sticking with me.

I also felt incredibly guilty that the stolen bag had ruined not only my night but theirs. Little Dan said he lost count of the amount of times I said sorry as I wailed and yearned for my phone. How embarrassing.

Waking up the following morning feeling hopeless, I crawled into Isabel's bed for a cuddle before we went hunting again.

Unsurprisingly, our hunt was unsuccessful. My phone’s Find my iPhone wasn’t working, so we were just walking around without any real sense of purpose. A trip to the police station to file a report later, we returned to the hostel with my tail between my legs.

With no phone, no card, or cash, I was a bit fucked. I technically did have spare cards with me - I had also brought an AMEX card and a Monzo card to go travelling. But apparently, nowhere really accepts AMEX in Central America, and my Monzo card didn’t have any cash loaded onto it, so it was essentially a useless bit of plastic. Bad luck.

But thankfully, I wasn’t just stranded.

Although we’d only known each other less than a week at this point, so many of the group offered their support, and did whatever they could.

Joe straight away offered that we use his phone to contact home, specifically to contact Starling (my bank) to ask them to block my stolen card. After we repeatedly couldn’t get through to Starling, we then attempted to use his Starling app to ask for help. Naturally, the customer service advisor wasn’t able to help us, but it’s the thought from Joe that counts.

Isabel kindly offered to buy my food and drinks for the following few days before I gained access to money again. Real sugar mommy vibes (ignoring the fact she’s 6 years my junior).

A couple of days later, when I could finally contact banks and insurance at home (thank the lord for Skype and my laptop), Ben nobley offered that I use his phone and phone number to download the Starling app, so I could login there and regain access to my travelling money.

Anke and Annelies came on a wild goose chase with me around San Ignacio, a small town in Belize, to see if my Monzo card would actually work if I did transfer money onto it. The feeling of pure, unadulterated joy that we all shared as I paid for an iced coffee with my Monzo card must’ve looked really bizarre to the cashier.

And Lola too, our CEO. She was such an enormous help with the admin side of things. She even gave me her Guatemalan phone number to use for my new phone (an iPhone SE, bought outright from a tiny little tech shop in San Ignacio), so I’d have access to WhatsApp again.

I was so incredibly grateful to everyone for their support. Not to be dramatic, but I don’t think I could’ve kept travelling without them. I kept thinking that if I had my bag and phone stolen whilst I was solo, I would’ve been completely lost.

So, every cloud has a silver lining. The stolen phone fiasco might’ve been a logistical nightmare, but it did help solidify friendships with the people I’d become closest to on the tour (in a non trauma-bond way).

1st pic taken on the new phone. A selfie sent to el boyfriend Pat. Look at the sheer relief on that face.

Armed with a new phone, I was feeling back on track.

And good thing too, we were off to Guatemala the following day.

Whilst travelling in Mexico, I’d met so many travellers who had absolutely raved about Guatemala. With its stunning landscapes, welcoming and friendly people, and notoriously cheap prices, the small country is really becoming a backpacking favourite.

With suggestions coming left, right, and centre, and many travellers spending weeks - if not months - in Guatemala, a part of me was slightly disappointed that I’d only spend a small amount of time there with the G Adventures tour.

That being said, Guatemala was thankfully the country where we spent the most time. 10 whole days. And our very first day there was arguably the most eventful.

Starting our day at an eye-watering 5:30am, we made our way to the Belizean-Guatemalan border. After travelling for 2 months in the same country, one thing I naively forgot was how difficult borders can be to cross. Being able to tackle all the bureaucracy with our CEOs to guide us was an absolute godsend. Especially in the second half of the tour, but I digress - that’s a story for another day.

Back to Guatemala.

After seamlessly crossing the border, there was absolutely no messing around. We headed straight for one of Guatemala’s biggest tourist attractions: Tikal Ruins.

The impressive Tikal ruins.

Located in the heart of the Guatemalan jungle, Tikal - like Chichen Itza in Mexico - was a major city for the ancient Maya. In fact, thanks to its central location, Tikal was akin to the capital of the whole civilization.

With our tour guide to enlighten us, we spent hours learning about ancient Mayan culture, all whilst looking at some of the temples, plazas, carved stone monuments and public squares in the complex, dating from as far back as 600 BC.

Impressive, yes. Undeniably so.

Although it was sometimes hard to concentrate when we were busy being eaten alive by the millions of mosquitoes feasting on us. Slaps, scratches, and swear words galore.

Mosquito bite ridden and very sweaty atop Temple IV..

But before we could dwell on our plethora of bites too much, we were already being hurried back onto the bus to head to Flores.

Flores - a picturesque small island town located within Guatemala’s second largest lake - was the destination we’d been looking forward to most on our hectic day.

Why, you ask? The booze cruise that awaited us that afternoon.

From ancient Mayan ruins to a booze cruise all in one day. The duality of man.

Now, before you call us uncultured swines, hear me out.

Although we were around a week into the tour by this point, we still hadn’t been on a night out as the whole group. The night I got my phone stolen was the closest thing we’d had, but still even then, only a handful of us went to explore Caye Caulker’s nightlife. So, it was long overdue.

With the promise of our own private boat on the lake, an open bar, and complete control over the aux cord, who wouldn’t be excited?

Lovely ladies!

After informing us of our 3 hour bottomless-brunch-style time limit, our CEO Lola left us to our own devices on the boat, along with the skipper, and what seemed like all of his immediate family. It was a family business after all, but we were all a bit apprehensive about his 10 year old daughter watching us get drunk. The shame of it all.

But the unphased family had clearly seen it all before, and immediately brought out drinks for everyone. So when in Rome, ey?

As it always does, the 3 hour time limit went by in a flash. But it was so much more fun than any of us expected.

My darling Ella and I. The booze cruise was the start of a lovely friendship!

Between the cheesy sing-along hits, swimming in the lake, and seemingly endless drinks, it was exactly what we wanted. As the sun set and drinks flowed, the quieter members of the group really came out of their shell. Not even a spot of torrential rain could stop the shenanigans.

Spot Femke, Ina, and Isabel boogying in the lightning and rain. This video was taken by the skipper, with his 10 year old daughter sat next to him. Oh the things they've seen.

Karaoke was even brought out at one point. Seeing the Guatemalan family’s confused reaction to Joe and Kayleigh singing along to You and I by Bru-C was priceless.

The perfect drunken bonding session to round off our first week of getting to know each other. So much so, some people got to know each other especially well. Wink wink. No mentioning of names though, my blog isn’t about to turn into Gossip Girl.

After our time on the boat came to an end, we continued on for what seemed like hours and hours, but in reality we were practically all in bed by midnight. That 5:30am start at the beginning of our eventful day had well and truly destroyed our stamina.

Post booze cruise grins ft Isabel and Little Dan - my Caye Caulker heroes.

Amidst all the fun, however, it seemed the ugly curse of the stolen phone was still hanging over the group like a dark cloud.

Don’t worry, I didn’t have 2 phones stolen in the space of 5 days. I actually left my new phone safely locked away in the hostel, just in case. If I had lost that one too, I think I’d have just gone home.

Big Dan, however, was unfortunately the next victim to the curse.

Whilst out in Flores, Big Dan had that all-too-familiar panic when he couldn’t find his phone. Unlike me, however, it was just his phone that’d gone missing, and the clever boy had come travelling with a back-up. Why didn’t I do that?

The poor boy was still rattled though, worrying about whether the thieves could somehow access his money. After some calming down from the group, though, he started to feel better. With his backup phone in hand, the following few days saw Big Dan painstakingly long for his stolen phone on Find my iPhone.

2 stolen phones from 2 nights out. A 100% success rate. The curse of the stolen phone played on everyone’s mind for the rest of the trip: who would be the 3rd victim?!

Thankfully, the next ‘night out’ in Antigua a few days later was much more tame. No more missing phones. All safe.

Our reigned-in drinking habits were influenced by our need to be fresh the following day. Why? To climb volcanoes. How wholesome.

Beautiful coloured buildings dominate the the cityscape in Antigua.

The city of Antigua was once the colonial Spanish capital of Central America. With cobblestone streets lined with brightly coloured colonial buildings, countless charming cafes, and the volcanoes looming in the background, the city is beloved by everyone who visits.

Cobblestone streets galore! How charming.

In true G Adventures style, there were many different activities on offer in Antigua. The ones that took our interest the most, however, were the volcano hikes.

With 2 volcanoes to choose from, the group split up.

Firstly, Pacaya Volcano. Pacaya is an active volcano, and tourists have the opportunity to get up close and personal with the freshly dried lava flows at the base. With the hike only being a few hours long, Pacaya was the more chilled out option of the two.

Then there was Acatenango Volcano. The big boy. Acatenango is a dormant volcano, and a very challenging hike. Starting at 2000m and climbing to an elevation of 3900m in half a day, Acatenango was the more intense option.

Guess which one your overly competitive gal went for.

Yep, the intense one: Acatenango.

When travelling through Mexico, I’d met so many people who had done the Acatenango hike, who all urged me to do it. It was THE thing to do in Guatemala.

But, conscious of how notoriously hard it was, I was hesitant. Because let’s face it, with no gym or consistent exercise since I left home, and a pretty unhealthy diet (I miss vegetables), I wasn’t my fittest.

Nevertheless, when everyone started choosing either Pacaya or Acatenango, I knew I’d regret not trying it. So Ben, Femke, Anke, Emily, and I all took the plunge, and became the Acatenango crew.

The hostel pick-up selfie. Oh look at our naive smiles.

The plan was relatively simple. We’d start hiking at around 23:30 (yes, as in, nearly midnight), and trek through the night. The idea was to reach basecamp to see Fuego (an active volcano opposite Acatenango) erupting whilst it was dark, and then reach the summit for sunrise. Simple (in theory).

We spent the day prepping. Something I’ve never done for a hike, so I knew it was gonna be tough.

Due to how strenuous the Acatenango hike is, our CEO Lola advised us to eat as much as we could, to stay hydrated, and to rest. Although the hike is 6-7 hours uphill on difficult terrain, that’s not necessarily the kicker (sadly). The worst part is the elevation, and the potential for elevation sickness. So, all the food, liquids, and sleep were an attempt to avoid that from the outset.

Lola also advised taking many layers, snacks, and 4 litres of water with us on the trek. So my little backpack got heavy quickly. Really heavy. This on top of my inability to take a nap on the day meant I started to worry a little. Lord have mercy.

From volcanic sand, to farmland, to cloud forest, to pine forest, and back to volcanic sand for the end, the Acatenango hike can be split up into sections, all with their own little quirks (read: reasons why you want to cry).

But off we went. With our tour guide Juan rounding off our group, we were as ready as we’d ever be.

The start of the hike humbled us very quickly. The beginning is not only incredibly steep, but the volcanic sand means it’s also soft and slippy. So as you take one step up and immediately slide back down, it does make you question why you signed up in the first place. We did thankfully have walking sticks to help stabilise us. Well, all of us apart from Ben, who managed to break his walking stick on his first step on the volcano. Not ideal.

After just over an hour of battling against volcanic sand, you reach the first checkpoint. Or rather, the starting sign that says ‘Welcome to Acatenango’. Quite demoralising when you’re already red and severely out of breath.

After a 10 minute rest, smiles were back in full force. Peep my tomato red face.

Although it was only the end of the first section, we were already flagging a little. Especially Femke. She had been ill a few days before, and it was catching up with her. Water, a snack, and a few minutes sat down at the checkpoint sorted her out, but we all vowed to take short stops often to make sure everyone was okay.

After the first long break, the scenery around us changed from volcanic sand and farmland to a damp cloud forest. Equipped with our head torches, we climbed uphill over giant roots and along muddy paths. The air started to cool as we hiked, and we slowly started to put layers on. It was tough, but at least we weren’t sliding down in the sand anymore.

A couple of hours and many little rest stops later, the scenery began to change again. The tropical trees became pine trees, the ground began to dry up, and the humidity in the air changed to a cold breeze. More layers.

However, not long into the pine forest section, the mood started to change. Until that point, we’d all been relatively upbeat. We chatted as we walked, and the vibe was generally quite positive even though we were tired.

Taken at 2:05am, Anke and I were still feeling positive.

As the trees in the pine forest cleared, we could see the glowing lights from the sleeping Anitgua.

But as we reached our 4th hour, and had long passed the 3000m elevation mark, the group became much more quiet. Even Ben, who had previously been leaping around like a mountain goat, kept his head down.

Headaches and dizziness had started to creep in, and our stops became ever more frequent as we got out of breath increasingly quicker. The elevation was getting to us.

I’d never experienced hiking at elevation until then, but it is so bizarre. A path you could easily walk at 1000m elevation suddenly becomes incredibly hard. After a break, you’ll start panting again about 20 seconds later, already desperate for another break.

This was definitely not the Peak District.

For the trek, el boyfriend Pat asked for hourly selfies to document my exhaustion. This one, taken at 4am at base camp, was the 5th selfie of the evening. And a particular low point. Clearly.

By the time we reached base camp at 4am, I was a broken woman. The pain in my legs was almost unbearable, and I was just so exhausted. The other 4 were in similar states, and as we sat on the benches at base camp, we ate our sandwiches in silence. The mood was at an all time low.

Then, suddenly, Fuego erupted.

Oh Fuego, ya beauty.

I cannot begin to describe how beautiful it was. The bright red eruption electrified the sky, and as the lava oozed down, Fuego’s outline was illuminated for all to see. It was like something straight out of a nature documentary.

Lavaaaa!

It was then that we decided we would go the whole way.

With the Acatenango hike, there’s an option to stay at basecamp rather than go all the way to the summit. Many people suffering with altitude sickness, or just outright exhaustion, tend to choose this option. And honestly, I was tempted too when we first sat down at base camp.

But with that display from Fuego, we all agreed we’d do it together. The final push.

Even so, bloody hell, was it hard. The final section is by far the worst. The terrain once again turns into volcanic sand, and coupled with the altitude and general compounded tiredness, the hike becomes a mental battle as well as a physical one.

As we neared the summit, the sun started to rise. Agua, another volcano surrounding Antigua, came into view as the rising sun lit up its silhouette. The view was so beautiful it was honestly distracting as we tried to get to the summit as quickly as our legs and lungs could take us.

The sunrise and Agua volcano.

One final push, and we did it. First Ben, then Femke and Anke, then me.

As I sat down on the summit, a mix of tiredness, relief, and the fact I was so proud of myself meant that I immediately began to cry. As did Femke.

All sat in a line, Anke hugged Femke, Femke and I held hands, and Ben hugged me, and we all teared up as we looked over at Fuego.

Emily, who then arrived a few minutes later (after having a nature poo), sat down with the overly emotional group.

We’d done it! We climbed Acatenango!

The Acatenango crew had made it! Sadly we couldn't take a pic in time with the view, but I swear we are at the summit.

After a short while at the top, the clouds came in, obstructing our view of Fuego, and the temperature dropped. At over 3900m elevation, the temperature at the summit was around 2 degrees. So we put every remaining layer on, and got moving again.

Going down the volcanic sand was much quicker than going up it. Many many falls ocurred.

The way back down was interesting to say the least. You’d think that it’d be easy going downhill, but the steepness just meant your knees and shins were on fire. On the bright side though, it was now daytime and we could see all the beautiful scenery we’d previously missed trekking up in the dark.

The lovely scene revealed itself in the daytime.

When we finally reached the bottom of Acatenango after 3 hours, we were all beyond relieved. I was so happy to have completed the hike, and that we did it together as a group. Encouraging each other all the way to the top, the hike was a real group effort and I’m not sure I could’ve done it without them.

Thinly veiled tiredness behind those eyes once we reached the bottom.

After we returned to Antigua from the Acatenango hike, we were reunited with the rest of the group and whisked off to Lake Atitlan, where my final highlight from Guatemala took place: the Mayan homestay.

Photogenic place. It's a shame my new phone's camera doesn't cooperate :/

G Adventures place a big emphasis on giving back to the communities they visit. One of the ways they promote responsible travel is by letting travellers get to know local people groups, in the form of homestays. For our tour, we were to spend a night in San Juan la Laguna, one of the picturesque towns on Lake Atitlan, which is home to the Maya Tz’utujil people.

Lake Atitlan, located in the heart of the Guatemalan Highlands, is the deepest lake in Central America. The beautiful turquoise lake is surrounded by volcanoes and dotted with small, colourful Mayan towns, just like our home for the night, San Juan.

Colourful streets everywhere you turn!

We were placed in pairs or small groups, and allocated to families. Isabel and I were placed together, and we were introduced to Debora, our shy 14 year old host dressed in traditional Mayan clothes.

Debora lived in town, and we chatted as she escorted us on the short walk back to her home. There, we met her abuela, her brother, and her father, and with all of us speaking Spanish (including Isabel, who remembered an impressive amount from her GCSEs) we all got to know each other.

We helped the abuela make tortillas to eat at dinner (not very well I might add - Isabel and I dropped 4 on the floor between us). Abuela had made us the homemade traditional Guatemalan Pepián de Pollo (a yummy chicken and vegetable stew), which we all ate together at the dinner table, where the family tried to teach us some words in their native language Tz’utujil (which again, didn’t go too well, but hey we tried).

Later, Isabel and I played card games for hours with Debora, her brother, and his friend. This is where all politeness quickly went out the window as vicious competitiveness creeped in. Starting out simple with Uno, we then upgraded to Spoons, and then graduated to an incredibly stressful game called Ligretto. I had absolutely no shame in my brutal tactics. And, it seemed, neither did Debora. Game recognises game.

Shit got serious when the spoons came out.

Staying with Debora and her family was an incredible insight into local living. Although we had learned so much about Mayan culture during the trip, this was our first experience getting to know Mayan people, and how their world is so different in many ways.

That being said, there is some quiet relief that even in a Mayan village deep in the Guatemalan highlands, there is a teenage girl who is equally as vicious as me when it comes to Uno.

Isabel and I with our lovely family.

Although the planned activities we did were amazing - and tend to steal the spotlight when thinking about stand out moments from the tour - some of my favourite parts were just the simple things. Moments that were relatively non-descript according to our itineraries, but helped bring us closer.

On one bus journey in Belize, Ben and I spent the whole time chatting about our respective lives - the highs, the lows, the dramas - and I always consider that’s where we became good friends.

In Rio Dulce in Guatemala, many of us had a free morning where we just all messed around in the hotel’s pool. Little Dan perfected the slug (a slow and graceful flop into the water with your eyes rolled back). Isabel tried to make a whirlpool in one of the smaller pools. We played a makeshift volleyball game in the pool and your gal got the winning shot. Just a bunch of big kids.

The slug, as performed by Little Dan.

Again in Rio Dulce, Isabel and I spent hours chatting, laughing, and gossiping as we laid in the little twin beds in our cabin, whilst the rain crashed against the tin roof.

In San Ignacio in Belize, our CEO Lola tried her hardest to teach us salsa (to varying degrees of success), whilst half of us (but mainly me) were sweating uncontrollably in the hot and stuffy room. Apologies again to Joe, Big Dan, Ben, and Rob for having to dance with sweaty me that afternoon.

Even all the horrific pictures that Joe took of me. And there were so so many of those. I was infamously unphotogenic on this trip. Each photo represents a funny moment when we were just waiting in a queue, or on a long bus journey, or out for food.

Alexa, play Isn't She Lovely by Stevie Wonder.

Like I said in my last post, it’s not about where you are, but it’s about who you’re with.

This sentiment made the goodbyes all the more difficult when we returned to Antigua from Lake Atitlan. Anke, Annelies, Ina, and my own tour bestie and roomie Isabel were all leaving to return home.

It’s weird how close you can get to people in such a small amount of time. 16 days is nothing in the real world, but in our little tour bubble, it might as well have been months. A sombre mood hung over the group.

With promises that we’d see each other at home, Isabel and I had one last hug in our hostel in Antigua, and off she went. Stiff upper lip and all that.



But when one door closes, another opens.

Anticipation had been building in the days leading up to half time in Antigua. Who was going to replace Isabel and the Belgian girls? There were 4 spots up for grabs. What would they be like? Where would they be from? We were all itching to know.

The same went for our CEO. Lola was only our CEO until Guatemala, where another one would take her place for the remainder of the journey. Despite our incessant nagging, Lola kept her lips tightly sealed on the identity of her replacement. The not-knowing was killing us.

So stay tuned for Part 2, to find out who our new characters are, as well as new countries, new laughs, and new highs and lows… you won’t wanna miss it!

Spanish update: I did not have high hopes for my Spanish on this tour. Between Belize being an English speaking country, and the group consisting of 8 Brits, 2 Americans, and everyone else speaking a very high level of English, I thought it would be safe to assume that there would be nada de español. However, I was pleasantly surprised. In Guatemala, I found that when we were left to our own devices, I became the group’s resident translator. I fully assumed this role for the Acatenango Volcano hike, where, at first, I quite liked being the group’s translator and having little chats with our guide as we walked. However, as the altitude rose, and the tiredness set in, I began to loathe it. It should be a crime to have to speak in your second language when you’re so exhausted you can barely speak in your first.

Tan update: I started out strong with a day in the sun in Playa del Carmen, topped up further by the snorkelling trip in Belize. But sadly, all good things must come to an end. After leaving Caye Caulker, this half of the tour’s itinerary didn’t visit another beach (nor any other remotely sunny place for that matter). Rainy season and its clouds really had a death grip on the weather forecast, so I was as pale as a sheet of paper when we got to half time in Antigua. Back to the drawing board.