I arrived at Finca Ixobel in the rain at around 2pm and was shown to my treehouse, which was my little treat to myself, as I just want to get away from it all and chill out on my own for a few days. It is wonderful and exactly what I needed! Standing alone on land surrounded by trees, with streams running through, birds and butterfies weaving their way amongst the many colourful flowers, stood my little home for the next few days! There was its own bathroom downstairs and upstairs on the veranda was a hammock to while away the days in. The room itself could sleep 5 people! I felt kind of spoilt having this all to myself, and that it was a bit of a waste there was not someone here to share it with. However, the point was to spend time alone to recuperate and gather my thoughts, and this was definitely the right place to do it!
I settled in and wandered down to the swimming hole. This was a big lake surrounded by bamboo and even had a water slide and hammocks to chill out in! I was the only one there and enjoyed the place to myself for a while before heading back to my room to chill out in my hammock.
Dinner was served at 7pm every night, and was a delicious buffet where you could spend your time reading National Geographic, as they had so many copies, I am now hooked! It was also a place to meet people and share stories if you so wanted. I just spent the first evening alone and after dinner went to enjoy the peace and quiet of my veranda where I could sit and watch the fireflies lighting up the gardens. I was so tired and went to bed about 9pm where I stayed until late the next day. Breakfast was served all day so there was no hurry to get up!
The following day I just chilled out again and did absolutely nothing!!! No buses to catch, no bags to pack! It was bliss!
It tended to rain quite a lot here and as this was my last full day here now I thought I should make an effort to do something so I decided to go on a self guided hike to the view point. I was so relaxed now I forgot about the mosquito repellant and was eaten alive by mosquitoes. Then the rain came down! Maybe I should have just stayed chilling out in my hammock, which was the preferred option. Not letting this put me off I signed up for the horse riding in the afternoon. I was the only one so it was just me and my guide who could not speak a word of english! We ventured once again to the view point and my horse Bronze was so good all the way until we were almost home, then he just lost it!! Out of the blue he just totally freaked out at something, not sure what he saw, if anything at all, but he tried to run off in the opposite direction to the guide. I tried to turn him back and then all hell broke loose. He reared right up! I was so unprepared for this and nearly lost my seat and as I regained my balance I smacked my face into his head as he was still rearing!! Ouch!! Not sure who hurt more, me or him! But think it brought him to his senses as he calmed down and I called the guide back as he had cantered off in the direction of home. He returned, and as I took a moment to get over the shock, with my face and head pounding with pain, and checked that I still had all my teeth in place, Bronze returned to normal as if nothing had happened and we carried on our way home. We had another canter, as there was no way I was holding him back now! I spent the remainder of the day resting and nursing my swollen, bruised face and aching tooth! Ouch! Later the guy working at the lodge asked how my ride was. I described what happened and he asked me if I was riding Bronze. I said "yes" and he said "yeh, he does that". Well, thanks for the warning then!!!
I sat and ate dinner with a lady I had spoken to briefly the night before. It turned out she was living in Portsmouth for a while as she used to be in the navy. What a coincidence. We chatted about that and she was telling me how she lived in Nicaragua now and had been living and working out here for many years as a tour guide as she was married to a local before she got divorced. From the sounds of it she lived a very basic life here, but said she had not been back to the UK for about 10 years, and did not want to. she was very content with this lifestyle. I could relate to that, even though for the last week or two I have really felt the urge to return back home, and am missing my friends and the little family I have there terribly. I am trying not to wish this last few months away of this trip, but at the same time I long for the comforts of home for the first time! I am coming to the realisation that some kind of roots would not be so bad. I am living the dream, but it would be nice to have the people in my life that I love and care about to be near and to share the dream with me. What I would give right now to sit with my nearest and dearest and share some laughs over a bottle of wine! All in good time!!! Until then the dream continues!
My final day here arrives and I feel that it has gone way too fast! Heading back to Flores and onto Belize tomorrow morning. I run into Tyrell and Heather who were at Semuc Champey, and on the shuttle to Flores with me. we get talking and Tyrell tells me he is a photographer and shows me some of his work which he has won acclaim for! He is very good and passionate about what he does. We spend the morning chatting away and as these guys are from Vegas, hope to meet up again then. Tyrell is also going to be doing a writing course to fit in with his photography work, so maybe we could swap notes :)
My shuttle arrives at 2pm as I am busy trying to photograph a humming bird. I successfully manage to get a great picture, even if I do say so myself. It is not in flight which would have been exceptional, but beautiful non the less. There are so many hummingbirds here of all shapes and sizes. Some as small as your little finger! They are absolutely delightful to watch, hovering amongst the flowers and drinking the nectar before moving on. A perfect way to end my stay here!
Hurtling through the countryside on the way back to Flores I try to absorb the scenes before me of rural Guatemala, so I may remember it long after I leave. This has been my favourite country in Central America and I feel sad to be leaving with still so much here that I have not seen yet. The people are friendly and caring towards each other, stopping for a chat and a few laughs when they see each other going about their daily business. The people laugh here a lot!! That is something I have really noticed whilst travelling, people laugh much more in these places then they do back home. I guess it is hard to be miserable surrounded by family and friends that love and care for you, when the sun shines every day and there is beauty all around you in every direction you look! This really is a truly beautiful place, I gaze out the window, passing fields of cattle and horses grazing. Pigs running about foraging for food wherever they find it. Dogs sleeping by the side of the road. Chickens scratching through the dirt closely followed by their brood of chicks. Families sitting outside their houses in the porch ways. The men lying on hammocks swinging while the women keep busy preparing the food, or minding the children while they themselves find their own amusement. In the towns I pass through, a game of football is being played and watched by many locals. Not many people seem to be working here as there is much unemployment! Men standing around in their cowboy boots and hats just missing their spurs and horse! Horses are a big part of this country and are used as working animals which are heavily relied upon in the rural farming and cattle industry. Traditions of old have been upheld and still play a big part in the everyday life of a Guatemalan today! I think that is what I find so appealing about the way of life here. The country has suffered greatly in the past up until fairly recently, and its instability has taken its toll, but now it seems to be coming through and slowly building a brighter future for the next generations to come!
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