A day in the 17th century

On Friday and Saturday, Joseph and I traveled to the 17th century town on Antigua Guatemala. This is only about 45 minutes from Guatemala City and it is always an escape from the millions of cars and buses... and people! The air always seems so much cleaner and most streets are very walking friendly (if you can handle the cobble stone). So after visiting a local children's home, we set off for the cross of Antigua. The cross is located high above the city and you can take daily tours to walk to the top, or you can drive up there like we did. Sadly we could not get a clear view of Volcan de Agua (water) behind Joseph, but I am sure that you can tell by it's width, just how huge it truly is!



Most of our time was spent gallivanting through the local ruins as seen below. They are incredible in their architecture and beauty. I most love the color yellow, because it seems that most of the places I captured had some sort of yellow in their paint. Antigua is a ancient architects dream!


As we were walking around, we looked up to see Volcan de Fuego (fire) puffing in the distance. It seemed to be very active the day that we visited.


Side note:
Antigua is a great place to enjoy some of the best food in the galaxy, on a travelers budget. I (Joseph) have been there twice and enjoyed the best burrito in Guatemala, steak and cafe lunch. Although the burrito was at an "American" restaurant, it had local touches that made it very flavorful (the corn was a great addition if anyone from Barbarito's is reading). Secondly I will discuss the cafe lunch. It was the last meal we had in the city and hit the perfect spot. A light but filling turkey salad sandwich (Kelly's favorite) and delightful french toast made me think of the Last Resort in Athens. Finally, the Casa Santo Domingo a restored monastary made into a hotel/restaurant has a great atmosphere. This was flat out unbelievable. Kelly and I both had a tenderloin steak with a potato, mushrooms, and broccoli. But, before that we had a black bean soup that I have determined to be the best soup in the Western hemisphere (sorry Mom). Oh yea, all had with a glass of red wine for a price under $30.00. Yet another for you to come to Guatemala.
Signing off for my first and last post on Kelly's blog:
Joseph Brubaker