Spontaneous Getaway to Monterrico

With all the holidays, employee vacations and many villagers working on the coast this time of year, things have been a little slow. So last week, with little to do here in the Ixil, we decided to be spontaneous and go on an adventure. We opened our guide book and randomly picked Monterrico: a scruffy little town on the west coast of Guatemala. It took 9 hours on several different chicken buses to get there. Exhausted, but excited we arrived at the beach. We found a hole in the wall, yet somehow charming hotel for only 120Q (about $16) which fit our spontaneous traveler’s budget just right. For two days we lay around in hammocks and drank a few fruity drinks. It was fun, but not your dream vacation. The bugs were almost unbearable, and the strong undertow made swimming nearly impossible. Several times both of us praised the Lord when we popped up after being sucked down by a big wave. However, the sunsets were incredible! One cool thing about Monterrico is the sea turtle reserve / hatchery they have there. We got to see recently hatched baby turtles awaiting their release and return to the sea. Now we are back in the Ixil (where it is still raining) and things are picking up again with Agros. Right now we are preparing a workshop for the youth of the villages to be held next week. More to come about that later…