We got yet another early start and hopped in the back of one of El Portal's pickups in transit to Lanquin. Once in Lanquin there was a bit of reshuffling and delays as these three Israeli girls failed to show up on time (turns out they were from our hotel also, and might've slept in or something.) Anyways, while their insistence on sitting together was keeping us from leaving (the two shuttles were already more our less full), the delay did give us a little bit of time to get breakfast from local shops around Lanquin. Two of the travelers got empanadas and another a banana, both of which we sampled and were excellent. I picked up some bread/ cookies from a bakery for almost nothing (I think around 15 cents a cookie or something, if even that much.) Finally, we were off.
The drive from Lanquin to Cobán, and then Cobán to Antigua, was not really that exciting. The only remarkable thing was the tasty fried chicken dish I grabbed on our rest stop as well as the heat and desert-like environment that we drove across, a complete surprise to me (Guatemala's landscapes tend to surprise you.) We did have good company, though - folks we had met in El Portal, including Mario from Xela and his Japanese girlfriend, Charlotte from San Francisco, and some sisters backpacking together around central america.
For anyone stumbling across the blog looking for travel times/ road conditions for this leg of the journey, here are my notes:
The cost of a shuttle from El Portal to Antigua was Q160 ($20) per person
We left El Portal at 7AM
20/ 30 minute delay in Lanquin
We were in Cobán by 10:15, had a bathroom break
We left Cobán by 10:30
By 2:50 we were in Guatemala City
By 3:30 we were in Antigua
Total travel time was 8.5 hours (7AM - 3:30PM)
As soon as we got off the shuttle in Antigua, we were instantly bombarded by a guy who was actually surprisingly helpful, when I had expected him to be imposing. It turned out he worked for Atitrans, a pricier shuttle company for Lake Atitlan trips (and by pricier I mean about 2 more dollars per person. Which was worth it on the way down, not worth it on the way back, but whatever, it's 2 bucks....) Because this was the last leg of our journey left to finalize, we decided to go with it for convenience's sake (much to the loathing of my mother, who was insistent that we were being ripped off as he walked us the mile or so to our hotel while we hauled our luggage.)
Like I said, convenience was worth it, because he led us to our hotel and organized the shuttle right at our hotel. Speaking of which, our hotel - Hotel Cirilo - was incredible. It's a relatively newer hotel (so most of the cab/ Tuk-tuk drivers have not yet heard of it) and a bit far from the main square, but that also meant it was far from the late night noise. It's built around an old church ruin, the rooms are spacious and luxurious, the water very hot - a total 180 from the hostel-style lodging of El Portal. The Cirilo staff even offered to prepare our complimentary breakfasts earlier than advertised, since we had to take a shuttle at 7. And they had wifi. And it was affordable. I'd highly recommend this place to everyone passing through Antigua.
The Atitrans people drove us back into town after scheduling the early morning shuttle to the lake. My dad forgot his camera though, so he took a tuk-tuk back to the hotel for I think no more than $1.50 each way and was back in fifteen minutes. While doing some shopping and walking around, we ran into an older couple that we had last seen in Tikal three days ago! We enjoyed catching up with them and asking them more about their trip while still in a bit of shock that our paths had crossed once more.
After that it was onto dinner, some drinks, a little taste of Antigua's night life, and then back to the hotel to take hot showers, unwind, use the internet, and relax….
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