Dearest FARA family,
I’m wiriting to you from Guatemala where we’ve had the most magical time and I want to share my guide of favourite things to do on Lake Atitlán with you!
We’ve had such an incredible time, I loved every sunrise and sunset at the Lake. when the sky was painted in dream-like colours of purples and pinks. So far, my most magical experience of my trip to Guatemala has been a trek to Indian Nose for sunrise – it was cool before dawn and a mist hangs in the air in the early morning light.. after just 40 minutes we were rewarded with the stunning birth of a new day.
From one of the lookout points, I caught sight of San Marcos where we stayed when we first arrived – we stayed at the lovely Lush Atitlan where we had more dreamy sunrises and volcano views. Lush by name, lush in nature – we were immersed in the abundant green of a nature reserve.
Lake Atitlán is a sacred lake to the Mayans and is at the heart of many rituals. Naturally the Mayans honour the waters of the lake as life-giving and revere fire as a great purifier – here at Atitlan we did our shoot by the lake surrounded by three givers of fire – three volcanoes – one of which is still active.
Selina
Early mornings at Atitlán were magical – we also stayed at Selina where there was yoga on the shores of the lake every morning. I love the vibe at Selina – it’s a great place to meet people. There was also a “beach bar” on the lake for evening sundowners.
Tul-Y-Sol
Back in San Marcos, I loved Tul Y Sol right on the shore of the lake with delicious cocktails, live music and epic views. I liked their ceviche and their taquitos.
Textiles at San Juan
It’s not just the vibrant colours of the sunset skies that have captured my imagination – I ventured to San Juan La Laguna for their vivid textiles. I really recommend you come here Fumie and Rachel – the streets are lined with textiles and colourful murals – there is a women’s co-op of weavers using natural dyes. We took the ferry from San Marcos to San Juan – life here revolves around the lake. I really like San Juan La Laguna as it is more chilled and arty vibes than Santiago. We headed to the garden restaurant El Gato de Perdido for a nice glass of wine and lunch.
Restaurante El Comal
It’s not so easy to find traditional Guatemanalan food – there are a lot of American run restaurants which serve amazing food but I wanted to try some traditional dishes – so we had Pepian here which is a chicken stew with pumpkin seeds. We also tried delicious tamales in the market.
I feel so blessed that we came here for this shoot – hope you like the magic we captured.
Love
Roos
