Believe it or not, we are entering our final week of Spanish language studies in San Pedro La Laguna. It is incredible how fast time has gone! So during our penultimate weekend here, we wanted to make sure we did things that we have been putting off for some time. Namely, doing a deeper dive into the culture and beauty of San Pedro La Laguna!
When in Doubt, Call in Reinforcements
Seeing as there are so many hidden gems here, we decided to enlist the help of a guide for the day so we didn’t miss the best stuff. And in this case, this meant hiring our Spanish language instructor Francisco!
Rhonda and I started our day with a bit of shock and awe over the breakfast that our homestay mother Rosa made for us.
It will be difficult to leave her home when our time in San Pedro ends next Sunday.
Our experiences with Rosa deserve their own blog post and she has encouraged us to write about them. You can check out our post here!
First, Some Cultural and Geologic Orientation
Francisco met up with us at 10 am sharp, and we were off on foot to our first location – Museo Tz’unun Ya’ San Pedro.
The museum is small but very informative! Not only does it house exhibits describing the volcanic origins and geologic history of the Lake Atitlan area, but it also explains the Mayan culture and way of life in San Pedro in the times prior to the influx of modern infrastructure.
Tickets were 35 quetzales/$4.52 USD per person, and we thought this to be a good introduction to provide context for the landscapes we would see throughout the day.
Mural in the museum lobby.
We first were ushered into a small theater where we viewed a 10-minute silent film from 1941 that showed scenes from the daily lives of the indigenous Mayan people living in San Pedro (or as the local Mayan people prefer to call it, Tz’unun Ya’) at that time. One of the most amazing things to witness in the film was how the people lived their lives in such a beautiful, but physically treacherous, landscape.
Navigating steep inclines was a daily occurrence for these people, who did not have any modern infrastructure or transportation conveniences at that time. Basically, everything was done by hand, horse, or livestock.
When the film ended, we moved into a room showing the geologic history of the Lake Atitlan area. Despite our basic Spanish language skills, our experience with the geological sciences afforded us a good understanding of the transformation of the area throughout geologic time.
The museum curator was very friendly and made a point to explain the exhibits to us, despite our limitations with the Spanish language. We were glad that he was eager to talk because understanding what he was saying in Spanish was MUCH easier than our ability to ask technical questions at our level of Spanish proficiency!
We then moved onto a room that displayed various pre-modern artifacts from the region…
And then into another room depicting, in mural form, the typical pattern of life for the people of Tz’unun Ya’.
Also shown was a mural of the Mayan calendar, which emphasized the connection of its timing to the natural world, as well as the lives of the Tz’unun Ya’ people.
Last, we moved into a final room depicting many photographs of Tz’unun Ya’ from the 1940s/1950s that showed a number of the buildings and landmarks still in existence today.
The museum did a great job explaining the history of the area. Highly recommended for anyone visiting San Pedro La Laguna!
Next – Drinks With A View
Now that our perspectives were primed, it was time to put them to practical use. Francisco then led us through the winding streets and alleyways of San Pedro clear across town.
In fact, he led us out of San Pedro proper to an area just on the outskirts. He suggested that we would be going to one of the two best miradores (= viewpoints) to see all of San Pedro.
This viewpoint was also, coincidentally, at the cafe Kayib’al San Pedro.
We climbed up the hill leading to the cafe and took advantage of the view!
And took advantage of the drinks!
We got two fruit smoothies for 15 quetzales/$1.94 USD each, but there were other drink options, as well as food available.
It was a wonderful place to sit, drink, and talk with Francisco about the landscape, the town, and the challenges that the people of San Pedro face in the 21st century.
It was also a prime place to juice one’s Instagram page! If only we had one…
A lovely place, but it was time to move on to our third, and final, stop of the day!
Last Stop – Mirador Plaza Maravilla
Francisco’s last stop was on the opposite side of town and up some serious elevation, so he summoned a tuk-tuk to carry the three of us to our destination – Mirador Plaza Maravilla.
Apparently there is a rule that Rhonda & I can’t hire in a tuk-tuk unless there are at least 5 people riding.
Tuk-tuk transport for three across town to our destination cost 30 quetzales/$3.87 USD in total.
Mirador Plaza Maravilla cost 5 quetzales/$0.65 USD per person to enter and enjoy the view.
And what a view it was!
And had many places to stage dramatic photos.
We got a completely different visual perspective of San Pedro.
From this angle, the town topography actually appears quite flat, unlike the previous location where buildings appeared much more overtly built into the slope of the mountain.
And of course, we had to take advantage of photo opportunities at this place!
Francisco, unintentionally reenacting “What is best in life?” from Conan the Barbarian.
Time for Food!
It was after 1 pm in the afternoon at this point, and the heat was really picking up. So we made the long trek downhill on foot to retreat from the heat and fill our bellies.
Francisco knew of a number of great places to eat, and we ended up deciding on Ariana Hotel and Restaurant, where the hamburgers were supposed to be outstanding.
The hotel was actually quite close to the Community Spanish School where we study, but we had no idea that it was there as it was down a long alleyway with minimal signage.
But the burgers were outstanding!
I present to you, the “Del Chef”!
We each got a “Del Chef” burger, which includes a 6 oz burger patty, fried egg, bacon, caramelized onions, au gratin cheese, sweet and sour sauce, and hand-cut fries. It was one of the best burgers I’ve had in recent memory, anywhere.
Our lunch was more decadent than normal price-wise, but we earned it with all of the walking. Each Del Chef was 69 quetzales/$8.91 USD and our local beers were 15 quetzales/$1.94 USD each.
Bellies full, we parted ways with Francisco and went back to our place to rest and do the homework that he gave us for weekend.
A wonderful day and our thanks go out to Francisco for showing us the culture and beauty of San Pedro La Laguna!
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2 thoughts on “The Culture and Beauty of San Pedro La Laguna”
Lovely pictures and talk about San Pedro Laguna!!
The time has gone by so quickly. Enjoy your last week.
Beautiful pictures! Also great historical facts.