San Ignacio to Flores (robbery on return home)

Another long ass day! We all met for breakfast and said our goodbyes to the Dutch friend. He was to remain in Belize while we headed back to Guatemala.

We were at the bus area at 9 am waiting for either a bus or a taxi when someone offered us a ride to the border, Benque del Carmen. 10-minutes later we are crossing another border and paying the Guatemalan Immigration Officials another 10Q. We paid another person 10Q to take us just a few miles away to wait for a collectivo mini shuttle to take us to Flores. It was a hot and exhausting 2+ hour trip to Flores. In retrospect, I would never do this again. Just too risky accepting rides from strangers and I felt our safety with the vehicle and the shuttle itself were jeopordized. I did way too many risky things on this trip to save a buck. It was not my doing, but part of the compromise traveling with others who were on a much tighter budget than me.

We arrived at the Flores Bus Terminal and I went ahead and purchased my Fuente Del Norte Premier Class ticket for the next day to Guatemala City. We all fit into a tuk-tuk to town to look for lodging. We ended up at Don Goya II. Once again we got 2-rooms so we could have air conditioning. By this time, my skin is suffering from the heat, sun and humidity. I am having a terrible reaction and have a red itchy rash on my arms legs and face. The hotel was pretty basic but we had a nice view of the lake. I loved their rooftop terrace. We walked around town a bit during the heat of the day and most things were closed on a Sunday. We had happy hour at a nice place with lakeside views. I drank more alcohol on this trip than I usually ever do. A freak windstorm blew over umbrellas and tables and broke some glass at the restaurant. It was over as quickly as it blew in. Dinner was lovely and at La Villa del Chef. I recommend their Falafel Dish. By now I am tired of company every day as this is my first attempt to travel with others. It became increasingly difficult as the days progressed. My Antigua friend was flying back to Guatemala City early the next day and the British friend was hanging around Flores for several days longer on her own so she could visit Tikal.

By 10 am I had taken a tuk-tuk to the bus station for my premier ride. I was finally alone. I hate to sound so negative, but they do not maintain anything in Guatemala. The bus windows had not been cleaned and you could not even see out them because they were so filthy. The restroom did not have any toilet paper and was a disaster. The air conditioner barely worked and the driver constantly opened his window to get more ventilation. I sat right behind the driver and for 9-hours I had a clear view of numerous near miss head-on crashes. I witnessed him counting money while driving several times. He made personal stops for bananas, pineapples, fruit juice, lunch to go, dropped off the lunch to his family, he picked up laundry, and picked up friends. It was a 9-hour nightmare! I could not get the seatbelt to work. I kept thinking if we can just make it home safely I will be one lucky woman. Well………we almost made it. We rear ended a small car in Guatemala City. Luckily, it was just a fender bender. But because I saw it coming, my entire body tensed up in preparation for the crash. I was sore upon impact. I was the only tourist the entire day and my Spanish is still limited. Everyone got off the bus and I asked someone if she spoke English. She said she another bus was coming for us and she would have a safe yellow taxi pick me up at the station. I gave her my name and she gave the dispatcher my description. Within 15-minutes we are in another bus and a yellow cab was waiting for me and motioned me over. I get home at 8:15 at night and am exhausted, rattled and starving. I tell my neighbor I am home, she says she made it back safely from her flight. She hadn’t eaten either and says, “Let’s go get a quick bite”. I said give me 5-minutes. I removed most of my stuff from my purse including passport, credit cards and most of my money. We walk out by 8:30 pm. Within 30-feet of stepping out our front door and me talking about my exhausting day, my friend tells me to back-up. I look up and 2-men are on a motorcycle about 10-feet in front of us and coming closely to us. We knew what was about to happen. One young guy gets off the motorcycle, pulls out a gun, points it at us and says something in Spanish. I immediately throw my purse at him. My friend does not. She looks him directly in the eye and keeps saying “Get away from me” as she backed away from him. I yell, “Just give him your purse, Chris”. He cocks his gun and points it closer to her face. She does not give him the purse. He gives up as cars and people are starting to get closer to us by now. We run over to a nearby tienda and say we have been robbed and what is the number to the police. The two boys in the tienda say “I don’t know the number and you rich Americans can afford to get robbed”. I’m shaken, we run back o our house, but fearing they will come back and we don’t want them to know where we live. Our landlord calls the police. The police pick us up shortly and take us to the station to file a report. Not a good ending to an already challenging trip! The police station was about what I expected. It took an hour and a half. My landlord had come with us and acted as out interpreter. The police said we should not be out after 9 pm as there had been many robberies in the area. Everyone I know has had their credit card comprised though the ATM’s. I had not expected this much crime here. My little place in paradise is ending!