There was not much happening in Cotzal. The men wear black felt hats, as opposed to the straw hats of Chajul. The market was totally closed, and we hunted for a comedor (eatery) listed in Moon's Guatemala. We found it, and ordered eggs, beans, tortillas and coffee for $1.25. It was good though we were getting tired of the same foods. Fruits? Veggies? Anyhow, no milk for the coffee, no napkins, no salsa for the eggs, no change for a Q100 note (about $12.50). No nothing going on in Cotzal. Bus to Nebaj.
By this point, Geneen had become very travel-weary. We decided not to do anything else in the Ixil triangle, but rather to start heading south. We zipped off to Quiché, the departmental capital 2 hours away.
Selected a hotel from the travel guide, which cost twice as much as the guide said it would (Lonely Planet, it turns out, has the correct price of about $20 for a double). No toilet paper, towels, or soap. we asked, and received them. Only one pillow. we asked a nd got a second. Then at bedtime, though we had 3 beds in the room, only one had sheets. Asked and got that. In the morning, when we were ready to go, we had to wait 5 minutes for the receptionist to appear to give us back our key deposit.
Quiché was nice though. Very relaxed small city, with good food (we found fruits, veggies and pastries!!), easy to get around, very friendly.
The next day we went to Chichicastenango, 18km to the south. On Friday, Chichi is the deadest place you could ever imagine. We had planned to hit it on Sunday, which is market day, but thought it might be at least half as good on a Friday. It's not. We dragged about and killed two hours there and then found a van that was heading to Panajachel, just a boat ride from home.
We discovered that Pana is the most fun town around. Yes, it's touristy, but fun. For one thing, there is plenty of choice of restaurants. Our favorite has become an Uruguayan one, where for Q58, or about $7 US, you can get an unbelievable cut of meat, potatoes, veggies, and garlic bread. It's outside, so a stream of vendors and beggars from the street flows up to the table.
A 10 year-old Kakchiquel girl with a huge smile on her face comes up to us. She knows she's adorable, but tries to look pitiful. "Buy something," she whines. No one is buying anything today. I need money so the family can buy tortillas."
We resist, but she stays. I've said no to the first several, and the pressure has been intense. Her outfit is beautiful, she has a bundle of colorful chalinas (little shawls) stacked on head, her smile is amazing. After being denied in all my attempts in Ixil to photograph people, I try again: "I'll give you a quetzal (12.5 cents) to take your picture."
"Cinco quetzales!"
"OK, but I might have to take two or three pictures for that amount of money."
"If you take two pitures, ten quetzales. Fifteen for three."
The first one was perfect.
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