Livingston...the Caribbean coast of Guatemala

I arrived on the Caribbean coast yesterday morning after spending two nights on the Rio Dulce, a river leading out to the Caribbean ocean and the only-reachable-by-boat Garifuna town of Livingston. The Garifuna population is a black community here in Livingston that resembles the Belizean and Caribbean island culture. Its quite different after spending so much time in Mayan-majority areas of south and western areas of Guatemala. There is still a Mayan and ladino population here, so its quite a mix and kind of neat to be honest.

Nonetheless I haven't done anything too strenuous today - Ive been trying to stay very still in an effort not to drown in my own sweat (a beautiful idea, I know) haha. I am dying here...I am excited to get Peten and Tikal over with in the next couple days and get back to the beautiful lake that allows me to walk around in pants and a long sleeved shirt in the evening, but still get a tan if I want to go kayaking before the rain starts in the afternoon. So, all in all, this is probably what has helped me reach my current travelling weight...trying not to move...haha

Although! I did walk aobut 2 hours yesterday with a group of Irish girls and a guy from England who I met in Casa Iguana, the hostel that I am staying at right now here in Livingston. I unknowingly accompanied them into town, I wanted to buy a watch..and once we got to the water they told me they were heading to Siete Altares - a lesser version of the Semuc Champey pools...smaller and less brilliant but lovely to swim in after that walk.

After waiting over an hour for someone to come back to their boat to give us a ride back to Livingston (none of us wanted to walk back haha) I went back to the hostel for dinner, which was amazing! Vegetable kebabs, mashed potatoes, corn and some stuffing...I was about to sit down when I heard my name being yelled from the other side of the patio...it was people I had met at Yo Mamas Casa in San Pedro. Mor and Gal (some hilarious Israeli girls), Igor (an Australian who is sailing his way through his travelling days, and is probably the best candidate for a pirate out of anyone Ive met so far), his sister Nina, her Italian roomate Francesco, and Ritchie, their friend from Guatemala City. They had all met up in Rio Dulce, docked the boat half way down the river in Texan Bay and taken a dingy with a motor here to Livingston. So after eating we went to go find them a room at another hotel with the help of Rusty, the owner of Casa Iguana, since the hostal was completely full. We then ran to a comedor to find them some food - ran, because it was pouring. We were completely soaked afterwards, and walked down to the beach to find a non-existant reggae bar but spent some time dancing at another beach-discoteca.

But, now to account for the trip before Livingston...

After my last post, I grabbed something to eat and literally returned to Zephyr just as Mike was loading up the tubes in the truck. I had enough time to just throw my bag in my room and grab my bathing suit and we were on our way. Tyler was our "guide" which was ridiculous because..well..who needs a guide to go tubing? But then I realized that we were again dealing with some inexperienced people..there were two English girls who came with..one of which, after literally one minute in the water was stuck in a tangle of tree branches, haha
So, Tyler had to call out "left" or "right" for dodging obstacles in the middle of the river, but a couple of people also didnt quite get the concept of paddling...
We stopped in a little cove and had a drink..and were off on our way again. It was another feeling of normality in a strange place. I was so comfortable and I couldve just been tubing at home..but wait, I'm in the middle of Guatemala. A really bizarre feeling!

That night I went to bed pretty early before dinner - I was starting to feel a bit sick. Tyler came to wake me up when my dinner was ready but I felt like vomitting everywhere so I graciously declined. I woke up later...around 1am...where I had the wonderful chance to hang out groggily with the late night drinkers, which I ate what was left of my pizza...someone had nabbed two pieces in my sleep. I'll blame the bar shots, haha

The next morning I packed my things and made my shuttle wait about half an hour while Tyler helped me put new music on my ipod...at the hostel you can get music switched over for a fee...but no one did it for me, though they had my list and iPod in the safe for two days... Then I was off on a pick up truck to Rio Dulce. We got there around 1pm and then I caught a 1 hour boat to Finca Tatin, a hotel in the river, up a tributary about 20 minutes from Livingston and 45 minutes from the Rio Dulce town. It was nice, though I still wasn't feeling the greatest - still a little nauseous and gross. I went to sleep once I got settled in, got up for dinner, couldnt finish, went to bed again and woke up the next morning feeling a little better.
I actually got Finca Tatin recommended to me by the woman who owns the Travel Bug, a travel store in Kitsilano, back in Vancouver. It was pretty nice, set in a really lush property, witha beautiful hangout area and spot right on the river. There were a lot of mosquitos, though, and the crowd there was a bit older or couples. Electricity ran for 4 hours each night, but that really wasnt an issue. BUT! I saw a ridiculously huge spider and almost had a heart attack. I knocked the mirror in the bathroom and grabbed it before it could fall. After I grabbed it I felt something on the back and turned it around and this gross, big, brown, hairy thing jumped into the sink. It was the size of my hand and made my heart stop for a second. I backed out of the bathroom trying to think of something else while I got to safety...

That day I went kayaking - thats the only way to get around, and all of the tiendas, the stores, are accessible by boat only. So they all look like docks, and fit into the houses that dot the strip along the water. There are a lot of people from Guatemala City that have huge houses here and big water toys (boats and jet skis..). Anyway, I kayaked over to Agua Caliente, where there are some hotsprings that flow into the river. I ate there as well - tried some tapado, which is a typical Garifuna dish that consists of an entire fish, shrim and a whole crab inside a coconut milk based soup. It's one of those things that almost every tourist is encouraged to try when they come to Livingston and the Rio Dulce....

So after a couple nights at Finca Tatin, I came here to Livingston by boat and checked into the Iguana..and the rest of my days have already been explained haha.

Tomorrow I will be heading to Flores, which is in the north of Guatemala, in the departemento of Peten. I will probably spend the night in El Remate and go to the famous mayan ruins of Tikal the morning after. I met an Israeli guy here who said he bribed a guard and spent the night IN the ruins. I don't know if I have the nerve or guts to do it. Im sure I'd wake up from some crazy dreams...if I could get to sleep of course...