Guatemala

Anyone been? My company is sending me down there for a week in early December...Guatemala City and Antiqua are where I'll be, so any, and I mean any, intel would be greatly appreciated. Gracias!

You might want to read the Consular Information Sheet.

Of special interest:

Avoid close contact with children, including taking photographs, especially in rural areas. Such contact can be viewed with deep alarm and may provoke panic and violence. Rumors of foreigners stealing children to sell surface periodically and can provoke a violent response towards strangers. Foreign tourists have been attacked by mobs and one has been killed.

This is NOT a hoax or urban myth.

Bill/SFNM

It's been 9 years since I've been there. Tikal is not to be missed.

I don't know if it's changed since then, but if you choose to stay in the national park at Tikal, the hotels must turn off generators after 9PM to prevent disturbing wildlife, and it remains quite hot throughout the night without even a fan to stir the air.

But it's worth it to see the wildlife early in the morning, rather than the 30-mile ride from Flores (the nearest town).

Only had one meal there (we brought our own breakfasts in order to regularly feed our kids who were young at the time - peanut butter had to be smuggled across the border, peanut products were contraband), and I had an interesting tamal with chicken including bones within in. I did come down with a nasty gastroenteritis, though it could have been something in Belize too.

Can't help with Guatemala City as I bussed it directly to Panajacel and then to Antiqua. Antiqua is a beautiful old colonial city and has a fairly large expat community. Lots of language schools and cafes / coffee houses along with tipical Guatemalan places.

The most memorable meal(s) I had in Guatemala were from the numerous fried chicken vendors that roam the streets.Non factory chicken and fresh cut fries are done up before your eyes in large enamaled metal bowl full of boiling oil atop a propane burner on a push cart. Wash it down with an ice cold bottle of Gallo beer ...life is good!

You may also want to ask around here

Happy trails
JSM