Quetzaltenango, Friday

0958 Unpacking a bit and topping phone up before heading out. Minor fuckup - I've lost the key to the padlock I use for the chain I like to use to fasten my bag to a bit of furniture in my room. (Yes, it's not perfect, but it's an extra line of defense against theft.) I do have a spare, and there's a slim chance the key will turn up somewhere in my bag at some point, but it's not ideal to be without a spare. At least this didn't happen while the chain was locking my bag to some bit of furniture when I needed to get off.

1301 At La Venesa bakery/coffee bar. Having coffee and a tostada integral.

Been to four Spanish schools. Want to write some notes before seeing more. All found on Google Maps with wandering.

Couldn't find La Paz school despite considerable searching.

1st school - Si* - seemed perfectly nice, about 5-10 students including one family. Showed me round. No discount for multiple weeks. 1150 for 25 hours a week (4.5h clases a day, 30m break - this seems standard). Classes 8am-1pm tho. :-( This seems semi standard. I didn't ask about other times but given size of school and structure of classes prob not possible. Activities perhaps mostly free here which may account for possibly higher price.

2nd school - M*C* - shown around by slightly 'floaty' woman who was helping out but spoke to possibly owner after. Maybe 15-20 students, some live in school. All places BTW offer homestays but I declined this. 8-1 is standard but I think they were willing to do 2pm-7pm for me; brochure does mention some afternoon classes 2-5. 25h classes 900. Owner did say something about she was taking students on a hike Sun, but I think all offer activities like this including weekend. They have lunch together on Friday.

3rd school - Ut* - entrance upstairs from one end of a big covered street of bars. I asked and 8-1 is standard but they thought say 10-3 would be doable. So far this is probably the most intuitively preferable time offered. School looked OK, has a roof terrace, maybe 10-15 students (I was told but can't remember).1075 a week but your fourth week is only 775 and subsequent weeks 980 and you don't have to book 4+ weeks at once to get this discount.

All schools seem to have wifi and coffee and so forth.

4th school - C*M* - only one to not actually show me round the school. Indigenous woman selling textiles in the large street entrance. Did have a fluffyish greyish cat on a table, though it looked a bit aloof and I didn't stroke it. Classes seemed to take place round large courtyard. 1680 a week for 25h, 8-1 or 2-7. DELE accredited, I think. 75 discount per week *if* you book for for 4+ weeks in one go. Of the four schools I think this is the most 'professional', but it's unquestionably expensive - I obviously want 'quality' tuition but to some extent I don't necessarily need these frills - I just need a competent teacher to work intensively with. Gut feeling is that this is ruled out initially, but if after a week or two somewhere else I feel unhappy it might be worth considering this (or some other very professional school)

General observation - if I am doing afternoon classes I won't usually be able to participate in any activities anyway.

Of these gut feel is for the 3rd, if they can do me a 10-3 schedule. I need to sleep on it (I think all said they would let me start midweek and more to the point I could sign up over the weekend by e-mail or in person) and see if this is maybe the worst of all worlds. I'm not overly interested in activities but some of them are little trips to see places and that might be nice. And there's obviously the social aspect. On the other hand, am I so bothered about these activities I want to be getting up 7:30 at the latest five days a week for 4-5 (maybe more) weeks?

If I do 2-7 I will essentially have no overlap with morning students, and apparently most students prefer mornings. If I do 10-3 I may - though may not - have some limited overlap with morning students. But I may not overlap with *anyone* else.

If I do 8-1 I have afternoons free. If I do 2-7 I have mornings free, but I am unlikely to get up early enough to go anywhere, and I'd be worried about not getting back in time even if I did. If I do 10-3 I don't have to get up too early and I can do any homework before going out at night, if I want. On the other hand I don't expect to be going out every night; even if I could just decree my perfect social life you'd be looking probably only one weeknight out anyway.

If I do 2-7 I suspect I'm going to end up bumming aimlessly around the hotel and/or having lunch before class and nothing more, then by the time I finish it's already evening.

I was hoping to get some limited social stuff out of this, if only acquaintances to chat with during the break. 8-1 is the obvious winner there, but it really doesn't appeal in terms of getting up in the morning. 2-7 has the advantage of being semi-standard so there might be other students on my schedule but I wouldn't want to count on it, it does rule out any organised activities which I am semi-paying for and it seems to leave me without much of an evening. 10-3 lets me get up at (for me) an 'I made an effort but one that feels diligent without being painful' time (TBH I often seem to be getting up 9:30ish anyway) and leaves me the late afternoon free, but it may be absolute social death due to no schedule overlap with other students and still probably rules me out of most activities.

I've nearly finished here, let's go interview a few more schools and then I can chew over these issues again later. I suppose worth bearing in mind there may be some flexibility - though I don't want to screw my teacher around too much - either on a day to day basis or by saying "I will switch to 8-1 for this week".

Oh, Quetzaltenango Spanish School was shut presumably for lunch; I could have tried ringing bell but didn't. The posted hours 8-12 and 2-6 didn't sound great for having 5h classes a day, though maybe they do given how standard it is.

1529 At small restaurant for another coffee; tempting to eat but not that hungry and will perhaps go to hotel and charge phone - something has caned the battery but no way to really tell what, I don't believe what Android is telling me.

Spoken with several more Spanish schools. Some notes:

5th school - K*B* - a forbidding and locked double-car sized door. No one answered bell after a few tries. I was about 35 seconds from leaving when a woman turned up - she wasn't a student and wasn't a teacher but didn't actually tell me what she was. We had a chat and eventually a bloke turned up and let us in. I might infer they were the owners but not certain. No other students (this was about 2pm) but that's the whole thing said before. They had two dogs - one 15 with no teeth and (I noticed) huge claws on its front paws which probably needed cutting - and a white cat with black splodges. Seemed quite nice people and we discussed things a bit, they do 8-1 and 2-7. USD110 for 25h a week. As I left the woman asked me for my phone number, I was going to give her my e-mail address but in the end she gave me hers. She offered to take me on some kind of tour up to some lake she had been telling me about. Not clear if this was conditional on being a student there and not sure what to do (I don't want to be rude) if I choose another school, but I should try to forget this aspect of the thing for now.

6th school - S*L* - this is the one I had found on web other day. No one there, I could have classes 8-1 or 2-7 but not eg 10-3 due to lunch. Q990 for 25h a week. Bloke seemed nice enough, we discussed things a bit and basically all students do morning. Didn't exactly show me round the school but I sort of did see it as we wandered between rooms getting info.

7th school - P*W* - this is in guide book FWIW - did seem very volunteeryish - USD150 cash for 25h - again 8-1 or 2-7, they said some of the activities (which were very volunteery) were in the morning, that I would be able to sometimes do mornings if I wanted or eg if an activity was a film they could show it me in the morning (tho I can sit and watch a film on my own at hotel or in London flat) - TBH I think I'm not volunteery enough to go with them, nice enough as they were - I don't really think I could take full advantage of the flexibility unless I was doing worthy things. Didn't show me round the school.

8th school - K*SS - wasn't looking for this but walked past (oh, I did walk past some other schools this afternoon on the offchance they'd look "busy" and it being afternoon that would be a good sign, P*W* was slightly, others weren't so I didn't ring bell etc) and they said 8-1 or 1-6 in the window. Bloke I talked to was nice enough, didn't show me round as such. He said 2-7, I didn't ask about flexibility. USD110 for 25h. I think most students prefer mornings but he said some who are volunteering do that in morning and have classes in pm. Incidentally he said weather would prob change soon (somewhat contradicting what woman who gave me phone number said during our chat) and it would be cold at night and in morning and warm in pm. I asked him if this made it better or worse to study in am or pm but he was quite vague, perhaps fair enough saying it kind of depended on the individual student and not quite getting my point.

Will resist temptation to waffle much more now, finish coffee and go home. Starting to think I should maybe bite the bullet and go for 8-1. I don't want my entire social life to revolve round the school and other students but it may be best socially to do that. I could possibly switch schedules from one week to another but probably not keeping the same teacher. Getting up at 7:30 or earlier would suck, but it would reduce temptation to drink too much during week and unlike when I'm working it would be voluntary, which makes all the difference. It would also be nice to go have a coffee and/or a croissant and/or lunch at 1 and feel I have the afternoon before me. I am also tending to wake up (and stay in bed half asleep) relatively early - though more like 8:30ish if I had to guess - anyway.

Oh, 6th school I asked about doing eg 9-1 so only 4h a day, and they said that would be fine and of course cheaper. I suspect most schools would do the same. But I'd really like to take this opportunity to bolster and escalate my Spanish with a sustained effort which might carry over into more sustained effort when I'm back in London, so I'd kind of like to do 5h a day.

Will go back to hotel and maybe have a Spanish lesson with my regular teacher and then come out (after dark, possibly) for dinner and a mull, though no alcohol...

Place is corner 12 avenida/3 calle - I asked the slightly bored looking woman at counter for coffee and she said Q3 almost like she was making price up on the spot. Will make it Q6 on my modified tipping rules. Cheapest coffee yet. Can't see name of place from inside...

1609 Back at hotel. In room 12 as I was at last hotel. Haven't put names of earlier hotels on here as I may want to go back to them and for completely voodoo half-remember-reading-something reasons I am not putting the names of hotels on until I've left them. I have my old e-mails if I ever do want to find out and I forget to put them on the blog later.

1927 Back where I had the last coffee. I had earmarked a cheap comedor type place a few blocks from the hotel on going back earlier, but when I came out it seemed to be shut or not exist. I think I went the right way but can't be sure. Couldn't see much in the way of eateries, especially cheap ones, so this will be fine. I did well coming out after dark. Not too scary although a few streets a bit deserted. Not intending to wander excessively at night until I get my bearings and can do it without needing to dredge phone out all the time to see where I'm going.

Talked my Spanish teacher's ear off about schools etc today. Also got her opinion re tipping and I think my as-yet-unwritten modified algorithm is acceptable.

Quite a few bars just off central park which don't look *too* intimidating but I am not drinking tonight, maybe not at all this weekend. I may be able to get some beers in with other students or something and I don't need to rush to get my feet under the bar, so to speak. Saw somewhere in that street of bars I saw while looking for schools which had live music Fri and Sun at 9pm Sun. I just *might* go for literally one or two beers Sun - given I will prob be starting school the next day - but I may give this weekend the complete miss in baulk and gently experiment next Fri/Sat/Sun if nothing turns up socially with the school. I don't want, as I said earlier, my social life to revolve round the school but it's a nice simple place to start.

2014 Back at hotel. Food not bad, not huge portion but at 20 for food and 5 for coffee can't complain, made it 35. Smallish steak, black beans, cooked veg (onion, tomato, plantain) and tortillas. Fingers crossed this doesn't go bad on me. Be good to have that place as a cheap fallback option if I'm going to be here for a while.

2035 Just washed some trousers in sink. Think it worked but the sink is (and was before I started!) very loose on the wall; I wedged it up with my knee so I could do the wash, but not sure how prudent it would be to do that regularly. A small black mark against trying to stay here for n weeks if the school plan works out. I'm sure there are laundries in town but given the sock incident the other week I'd really rather avoid using them if possible.

Going to indulge in one of those over-priced packets of peanuts (this one with cranberries aka arándonos rojos) I bought back in Antigua.

2133 Dithering re Spanish school. While it sort of sucks I am thinking I will give the 8-1 schedule a try. This however knocks out the 'easy' decision to go for school 3 because they were willing to offer 10-3.

However, that said, my own inclination and also something I read while trying to look for reviews is that whichever school you go to you will probably 'fall in love' with, so it sort of doesn't matter. It's a question of getting a *good* result, not the absolute optimal school. (One of Paul Graham's essays touched on this kind of thing in an informative way, but I can't remember the name right now.)

While it's complete chance the order I went in, all else being equal I kind of prefer going to one of the schools I saw in the morning because I got to see them during the 'active' 8-1 period. Not to say the others aren't good etc. Do feel a bit 'guilty' (irrationally) about not picking school 5 where they were very friendly, *but* the fact the place was locked up over lunch-ish for whatever reason doesn't bode entirely well. I also have no idea how many students they or 6 or 8 have - again, because I didn't see them in action.

School 1 seemed fine but with maybe 5ish students including an entire family studying there I think it may be a bit *too* small and intimate for me.

So it sort of comes down to 2 or 3, although I'm not super happy about ruling out the others on such lightweight grounds.

The thing about choosing 3 is that although I don't intend to go for the 10-3 option, *if* I can't stick 8-1 there's the possibility of changing times, probably having to change teacher but not school. Then again, is that such a huge bonus? If I have struck up acquaintanceship with any 8-1 people, I would hardly see them in school on the 10-3 option anyway, so I could more-or-less change school and see them just as much (be that little or a lot) since I would really only see them outside class times. I suppose any weekend activities would be with them, but this is tenuous.

I must also say that I didn't see huge numbers of students at 3. A group of 3-4 were being set up to watch a film in the lounge when I arrived (a bit odd in itself when 'most' people have classes 8-1), and when I got the tour round the rest of the school if memory serves - and it may well not, having seen so many - most of the classrooms were empty. (I did like the roof terrace at 3, I'm a sucker for roof terraces in any context.)

2 did seem to have a fair student population, I think I personally saw 10-15 at least. The 1-1 tuition was *not* in individual private rooms; this wasn't the case at 3 either, but there seemed to be quite a lot of spare space (the flip side of apparently few students) so you might get more privacy.

I am a bit unsure how/if I could sign up for 2 if I wanted to, given IIRC they said it is closed tomorrow for some national holiday and the founder is off on that hike on Sunday. But I could *probably* e-mail them.

(I find myself wondering what I would tell school 5; after that woman gave me her contact details I feel I 'owe' them an explanation, rationally or not. But I shouldn't let that influence my decision.)

2 does have some accommodation on site; limited, first come first served and not sure if it has private bathrooms. Not sure I would want this anyway - it would be like living in the office - but it does open up some options to help make the 8-1 schedule more palatable.

3 had that 'arcade' full of bars nearby but really that's irrelevant. I'm sure there's scope for going for a beer after class anywhere, and also if I am doing 8-1 that's not such a great idea anyway. Could also be noisy, tho prob not an issue with 8-1.

Spanish teacher suggested 2pm-5pm might be not devoid of other students, but I really want to do 5h a day as think waffled above so it would be 2-7 and that seems very unpopular.

Even allowing for the 4 week discount at 3, school 2 is about a tenner a week cheaper (10% less) - not a huge factor but not nothing either.

Need to remember if I am not happy I can leave at the end of the first week. But I may feel pressure (self-generated or from school) to 'try a different teacher' the following week. But I also suspect that whatever decision I make and whatever teacher I get, unless the school or teacher is terrible, the decision will 'grow its own legs' (to quote Robert Cialdini) and I'll feel it was lucky I made it.

As a side point from that, *if* I am really not happy with my teacher, I maybe need to say something after a couple of days, so if a change of teacher doesn't help I can then ditch the school at the end of the week, rather than giving it the whole week with the first teacher.

Age range at school 2 was by my perception quite wide, which is probably a good thing. The students in the lounge being set up for the film at 3 looked young-ish.

To repeat myself endlessly, whatever I do I am going to be rejecting perfectly good schools. That is simply not avoidable. I have semi-avoided this in the past by just walking into the first school I saw (Oaxaca) or browsing online then booking before I arrived. In many ways I've benefited from being able to at least try to get the feel of the schools in person today, it just means I also feel the choices open to me more strongly too.

2232 School 2 is maybe a couple of hundred metres closer to this hotel than school 3, but even with an 8am start that is not really significant, and any such advantage could easily switch if I change where I am staying. (Been reading a book while mulling this over in background. Not sitting actively thinking this out.)

Speaking generally, while I would like to eg go back to Lake Atitlan for some hiking and maybe do Acatenango near Antigua and perhaps visit Coban or Tikal, all that lot would probably fit comfortably in 2-3 weeks. Plus I can of course come back again if I don't get it all in. So *if* I am really getting into the Spanish study, I could stretch to 6 or maybe even 7 weeks of study. But I don't want to put pressure on myself to do this, and I may well do some time in a school in South America after Christmas.

Suppose for the sake of argument that I *know* in advance there will be no social benefits whatsoever from whatever school I attend. Would this influence school 2 vs 3? I suppose it would fractionally argue for 3, as I'd have the 10-3 option open - but as waffled above, any such switch is almost like starting over again as I'd have to change teacher, so I could just change schools from 2 to 3 if it turned out there was absolutely no social aspect to school 2.

And notwithstanding my reluctance to start at 8, as I said above I think it would feel quite satisfying to be going for lunch at 1 with the bulk of the day's work done, even if I did just bum the afternoon away drinking coffee or whatever.

I am also assuming it's low season here just as it is elsewhere, so presumably student numbers are a bit low - in fact school 7 pretty much told me this in passing, in context of allowing me some flexibility. In a way this is good as it means I *can* just walk up today and sign up for Monday etc, but it also probably contributes to the 2-7 option being very unpopular - if it was busier there might be more people for 8-1 but still quite a few for 2-7. And there's maybe a kind of network effect here; just as I am being pushed towards 8-1, so is everyone else, which creates a spiral.

2304 I think I'm going to move to bed. I will sleep on it but I am coming down towards school 2. Both schools have a modest number of generally very positive reviews when I do a Google search (this mainly seems to turn up Google's own reviews and Facebook reviews) but school 2 has more reviews and a higher score - since it's such a 'narrow' decision these kind of things help tip the balance. I think most of the reviews for both are recentish - school 5 for example has only about three reviews, all very very positive admittedly, from about three years ago IIRC. (If I strongly preferred school X having visited I would not worry too much any reviews, unless there were some very negative ones which sounded non-ranty. But here it's acting as a pseudo-tie-breaker.)

Just turned TV on by accident while checking the brochure for school 2, which was mildly creepy until I realised where the music was coming from.

2320 Bed. Did I say already pedometer app clocked up 19173 steps today? Sometimes it goes wrong and shows implausible 6+ digit counts, but I can believe this.

Oh, and maybe it's just a heart problem developing, but I did notice walking up some steeply inclined streets here this morning left me quite breathless, which I will assume is due to the altitude. (It's not high enough to get proper altitude sickness, and indeed I felt fine 99% of the day, but walking uphill did feel a lot harder than usual.)

Panajachel-Quetzaltenango

0613 Waiting in hotel reception. Cool but not cold. Feeling a bit tired but not too bad. Slight dread on waking up in bed, partly due to wanting to sort out Spanish school today, but its OK. If I can't I can't; I am pretty sure some schools at least let you start midweek. Tomorrow may be some national holiday which may make it even less likely schools (if only their public facing talk-to-prospective-student bits, not the actual teachers) are open tomorrow.

Saw mixed comments on my Xela hotel on Google Maps while starring its location last night. Not a big deal, I can move somewhere else afterwards if I like.

0905 At hotel. Paid 579.50 for 5 nights exactly as expecting. Room large, London Underground bedspread, no window but not too bad. I say room is large, the bed takes up a lot of it - I seem to have got a double for free - but still.

Picked up in an SUV by one guy about 645 and taken to the bus. Me and one other woman in it - we exchanged brief hellos but no more, from brief exchanges she had with driver I think she was on her way to Chiapas. We stopped at a service station outside Xela and I got put in another minibus - just me and driver - to come to hotel. I think the second driver might have had a chat with me but I wasn't feeling at my best and after saying 'si' 3 times in a row when he asked me if it was my first visit to Xela he left me alone. :-/

I am here early so nice of them to let me in, they seem OK here. Yawning. Will see if wifi works and send this.

Xela looks a bit gritty from the drive in but it's been grey and overcast right from Panajachel and I'm a bit tired and nowhere is going to look its best. I may splurge on breakfast before tackling any Spanish schools given how early I am here.

No private kitchen - I didn't really expect this, based on Google Maps review, booking.com listen was mildly deceptive - but do have private bathroom with standard suicide shower.

Panajachel, Thursday

1311 At Comedor Brendy in Santiago Atitlan. Having an unknown red juice with carne asada.

Women in next room were at it again from 7am.

Overheard pseudo-guide on boat on way over here talking about volcano hikes. Also saw quite a few tour operators in San Pedro at earlier stop on this tour today offering hikes; obviously it may be low season and they will deny they do it if you go in and speak to them. Of course I have committed to leaving tomorrow now, but if/when I come back through here I may try basing myself in San Pedro for a few days and see if I can get some walking in - I do hope to do something round Xela too, but guide book only seems to mention things which are for 'seasoned hikers' so fuck knows.

Just wandered round previous two stops (we had an hour in each), sort of cool, found a quiet sidestreet with nice view of lake to stand and loiter in in San Pedro but it's obviously all a bit harried - I really just wanted to get a feel for the area and take a trip across the lake.

First place was San Juan; don't think I saw any tour operators there BTW.

Frijoles (negros?) were quite nice, first time have had them this trip, but the steak was small and tough and there was a big dollop of red sauce on the plate which IIRC wasn't advertised. Meh. 28 as advertised for food+drink, will make it 40.

OK, didn't get very good selection of notes in change so have made it 38 as struggling for smaller bills. 1400 now, have to be back at boat for 1430.

Had to fend off quite persistent tout as leaving the dock. This is quite a big place, 60k ppl or something, but let's have brief wander and maybe an ice cream if I can find a cheap one...

1538 Been back maybe half an hour. At KZ Santa Barbara on lakefront after much dithering; seems the only cheap place to get a coffee actually on lakefront.

It's pretty sunny and warm. Sat by lake for a bit feeling a bit sad to be leaving, like I should have stuck around here longer, but then again in the face of the advice (inconsistently) received about low season and hiking what else could I do? I feel I need to sit here and stare at the lake while I have the opportunity, but putting it like that it becomes a bit of a chore.

As I think I said earlier, I'll probably come back through this region later.

I think I need to do a bit of research tonight re Spanish schools in Xela so I can direct my search tomorrow afternoon. All the ones listed in the guidebook - apart from probably being expensive just because of that - seem to have some fucking political agenda. It's not that the causes they support are inherently repugnant to me but that I don't want them shoving it down my throat while they're teaching me. Also, while I suspect classes will be one-on-one, I also hope/expect to have some interactions with the other students and I really don't want to be hanging around with people who are super earnest about helping out with whatever political agenda the school has.

There are some places open on the lakefront doing grilled chicken over coals (little shacks, not fancy and thus expensive places :-) ) and it's quite tempting with the smoke and the smell, not sure if these were open before, but it's a bit too soon to eat again and I am also a smidge worried about getting sick when I have to travel tomorrow. Whether they are in reality any more risky than e.g. the comedor I ate in earlier is debatable.

Was mildly chilly out on the lake (also a bit of spray) - I zipped my fleece up, but would have been OK without it if I had to. Sitting here with fleece on but open in shade and it's comfortable, fluctuating a bit between too warm and just slightly cool.

Think will get second coffee but owner is in detailed chat with friend and I don't like to interrupt. They have a very soiled Moka pot inside the little hut which I assume they use for the coffee.

Spanish bouncy version of 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' playing now. :-) ["Solo quiero bailar"] Was strangely heartened to hear Laura Brannigan's "Self Control" coming from somewhere (a garage maybe) in the first place we went today.

OK, have interrupted conversation to get another coffee. Suspect there's no bog here which is my most immediate concern.

1844 Popped back to hotel earlier then went out to Gretchel (or whatever it's called; I have a photo of the place somewhere) - 30 for the food, made it 40.

Back at hotel now, may have a Spanish lesson and need to look for Spanish school in Xela but no immediate rush. Hotel pretty quiet ATM.

2116 Pissing it down. FWIW the boat for today's tour was called Flory.

2219 It sounds like the world's largest kettle has been left to boil dry next door. I am assuming it's some sort of vehicle idling in the street and echoing round the building. On rare occasions what I assume is a big truck goes past and the sound is somehow louder than anything I've ever heard being in the street when a truck goes by. That doesn't sound like a kettle, but I am persuading myself I hear a sort of engine idling note in the boiling sound.

2222 It's stopped. Does that mean there won't be an explosion, or that we're about to have it?

2236 Incidentally, I think all the toilets here are of a subtly different design from the ones back home. The bowl is filled with a really quite large volume and depth of water, instead of the small bit sitting in the U-bend of the toilets back in the UK, and when you flush the big bowlful of water gets sucked down surprisingly forcefully before slowly refilling. (Some toilets have a deeper and fuller bowl than others, but all I think are bigger than in UK.)

2247 Had a shower. To be fair, the water was warm tonight, even giving suggestions of being hot for rare moments. Need to go to bed, I may not go to sleep promptly but I need to be up at 545 and not really doing anything except read on phone so no harm going to bed. Bus is nominally picking me up 630 but I have to be waiting 15 mins before then. While poking around re Spanish schools I was shocked to see on Google Maps that the hotel in Xela is only 25 miles away as the crow flies, but the road distance is 89km. (For all its undoubted use, I find the Google Maps app to be a user interface nightmare. The 25 miles figure comes up when I search for the hotel, it will not show up when I look at it in my starred places, instead then it shows the road distance in kilometres. I don't know why it mixes units either; I can't remember what my preferences are, but it should surely follow the consistently.)

Panajachel, Wednesday

1045 At hotel. Spoke to parents, essentially no news. I slept OKish, woke up cold about 8 but did put a blanket on bed. Got up about 940 but didn't go down to breakfast.

It's pissing it down.

I am half expecting cleaning staff to try turfing me out shortly. I suppose I could go loiter on lower terrace but rather not.

Plan is, in no particular order, to withdraw cash, book a tour for tomorrow (probably 6am start, yay), book a bus to Xela for Friday (as I'll be back too late from tour to do it Thursday and don't want to risk booking last minute on Friday) and book a ho(s)tel in Xela. Need to be careful re location as I may want to spend a few weeks there and I don't want to be accidentally lock myself into an undesirable area by going for a semi-randomly picked hotel and then starting at a random Spanish school nearby. I may also try to go to some Mayan archaeological museum if I can find it.

Weather forecasts all massively unhelpful. I care more about 'pissing it down' vs 'light drizzle' than x% chance of precipitation.

Forecast for tomorrow looks same, a tour round lake in these conditions may be a bit grim but survivable and less grim than hiking in heavy rain. I half feel I shouldn't be a wuss, but a) I was already lukewarm on hiking, as I wrote yesterday b) I see no point going out of my way to 'suffer' - sure, if I'm out on a hike and the weather turns bad no point getting upset, but don't go out of my way to experience this.

Let's have a look re ho(s)tels in Xela.

1112 OK, perhaps didn't go as nuts checking out the alternatives as I could but I've booked something for five nights at about 11 quid a night. No free breakfast but apparently there's a private kitchenette and a fridge which sounds good. Private bathroom too. It sounds like it's stopped raining so let's go out and see if I can get cash and check price of shuttle in a few places and book a tour for tomorrow.

1153 At Las Pitayas restaurant. Maybe getting whole fish, not sure. Think I forgot to order a drink, I was confused because it comes with 'fresco' which I guessed was a drink but no one asked me what I wanted; also supposed to have a choice of chips or rice but I didn't specify and they didn't ask. Meh. Waitress seemed a bit surprised I didn't order anything else, but surely just having one meal is not surprising.

Spoke to 3 agencies re shuttle to Quetzaltenango and also paid more attention to times shown outside some other places. There's essentially only one a day, at 0630 for Q140 (or Q150 at one place). There is one at 1600ish but first place I spoke to told me that wasn't safe - I guess because it would arrive after dark? I had hoped for one around midday. Given I understood these shuttles were esentially for tourists, I am surprised there isn't one not so ridiculously early in the morning - it's only about a 2-3h trip I believe - but there you go. I will go back to first place and book it from them after eating. I got some cash out, I was hoping to stash it in my hidden belt in bogs here but will see how I feel after seeing the food. Was a 5B machine and I withdrew 1k so no extra information on fees etc, used debit card as before.

Yeah, 'fresco' is a drink. Rain seems to have washed insect repellent off my head, quite a few flies here - not a great sign, perhaps - and they seem to be not keeping away.

OK, food pretty good, though usual difficulties with unboned fish. Got some kind of fruit drink with it.

1334 Back at hotel to drop off tickets and cash. Paid 120 for 3 villages lake tour tomorrow and 140 for bus to Quetzaltenango on Friday. May try to have Spanish lesson later, not at all sure, anyway, may pop out and see if that museum is any good.

I am going to get to Xela much earlier than I am allowed to check in. On the other hand, while it creates a certain pressure (I am not sure schools will be open on Saturday), this does open up the prospect of sorting out a school to start at on Monday without needing to start midweek (I don't know if this is or isn't a problem) or waste a week. On one hand I am a little bit reluctant to 'knuckle down' and study, on the other I seem to be struggling to do too much active tourist stuff and so it may be best to spend a bit of time in Xela and feel a bit more comfortable, plus all else being equal it seems best to study near start of trip rather than end so that a) I study during the wet season when it's harder to do things b) I can benefit from my improved Spanish for the rest of the trip.

Having said that, what if I *don't* like Xela and would prefer not to stay there for ages? I guess if I only sign up for a week - which I'd probably do anyway, since I may not get on with the teacher/school even if I love Xela - I am not really doing myself any major harm, I already booked hotel up to Wednesday morning so I'd only be compelling myself to stay an extra 2-3 nights.

Not entirely in mood but going to try that museum now. Apparently entry is Q35 which feels a bit steep but WTH.

1534 At Parrillada Santander for an I hope cheap cup of coffee. Food is not cheap (but not super expensive) but I sneaked a peak at the menu before coming in and coffee should be 5.

Museum (Museo Lacoste de Maya or something like that) was hidden away inside an expensive looking hotel. Moderately interesting if a bit small and didn't feel like great value for money.

Walked over to museum a different route which took me along most of the accessible lakefront. A few touts, not threatening but felt a bit awkward. There are certainly tourists here but unless they're all off on exciting jaunts I suspect they are outnumbered by the staff of the cafes and shops hoping to serve them at this point.

One tout shouted across at me at lakefront about hikes, but I'm obviously not going off on a hike with some random bloke and I have already booked to move on. Maybe I should have done the paragliding while it was quiet, but I'm not too exercised about it, and I'd feel happier doing it later if at all. I suppose my point is that unlike the walking where I *want* more tourists, the paragliding is inherently a solo (tourist) activity so it's less critical, but it's not a huge deal.

Feel a bit bored. I seem to just be hanging around and not really enjoying myself, either actively or passively. I am kind of waiting for it to be late enough to eat again, which cannot be good for my weight.

Maybe things will be better in Xela; if it is bigger and not so touristy it may not feel quite so half-dead. I suppose I should be enjoying the peace and quiet but you can only stare at the lake for so long at one time, and for safety reasons I can't trog out of town alone.

Lots of places offering cheapish alcohol but I'm having a few days off so doesn't help me.

The museum has a poster for a National Geographic "Mayan Atlantis" programme outside, and IIRC mention of a lost city under the lake. The text on the wall inside the museum didn't seem to mention this; it said the artefacts on display had probably be thrown into the lake from the surrounding villages either as waste or as religious offerings.

Quite a nice view of hillside with some terraced fields on from here which I might not have noticed had I not sat here and looked above the shops which line the street.

It's Museo Lacustre de Atitlan, actually.

1706 Back at hotel, perhaps briefly. Bought a bottle of water for 7. I miss shops with prices on the shelves. Especially supermarkets. Coffee was 10 for 2 cups as expected so made it 20.

May go to Gretchel for a second meal. Frankly I am not hungry, and I have a bag of tortilla chips I will probably guzzle regardless, and I sort of can't face what I perceive as the silent disapproval of the staff, but I am going on that tour tomorrow so I don't know exactly what will happen re food. Fuck it, will use bog here and then go to Gretchel. Facing down the disapproval will be good for me.

Was toying with getting fried chicken at one of a few places - some looking pretty 'chain' and thus we might hope reliably hygienic - but apart from not being super cheap, all seem to want to sell you a combo involving a 'salad' which looks in the photo like either coleslaw or potato salad and which I'd rather not pay for and discard.

I do kind of miss the ever-present 'half chicken and chips' option I remember in Peru. But the food is generally good, I just seem to be struggling to sate myself.

1803 Back at hotel. Main lightbulb in room seems to have blown but will make do with bedside lamp rather than drag staff in at this  Hapoint. Food 30, made it 40 as usual, not bad. Need to be at tour agency at 915 tomorrow for tour but that's not too bad.

2002 Stumbled across this (which I had read before): https://jlcollinsnh.com/2012/01/27/travels-with-esperando-un-camino/ Makes sense, sort of what I'm trying to do. It would be better not to be spending so many evenings in my hotel room but I do have my reasons and hopefully I will get better about this.

2307 Noisy and giggly group of women presumably in next room. Mildly annoying. Thought I overheard something about araña earlier but I also thought I heard culebra so hopefully a general discussion rather than anything actually happening. I may have imagined both words, of course.

In bed. Need to be at tour office for 9 tomorrow to be on safe side. Having to take my bloody passport because according to F&CO advice one of the towns we may be visiting is the sole place in Guatemala the authorities may fine or detain (!) you if you can't produce your passport or a certified copy on demand. Probably no one will ask but I fear a fine-collecting ruse on the part of the local authority and can't chance it. Not too happy at having to risk taking my passport out with me, especially around water, but can't be helped.

Panajachel, Tuesday

1158 At Restaurante Las Palmeras. Feeling pretty shitty, to be honest. Wandered down this long street to lake looking for food. Feeling sort of dead inside. Ridiculously overblown way of putting it, but trying to get the idea across.

The lake *is* impressive, I snapped a couple of photos mechanically and turned round. There are lots of other tourists here but I still feel on edge; not so much that I'm going to get mugged as exploited. A tout tried to get me in somewhere and I was pretty sullen with him.

Could have got up in time for breakfast but didn't. I couldn't face the inevitable lukewarm shower and it was cold in bed - I should have got up and put a blanket on, but I didn't. I didn't actually sleep that badly.

I am hoping food will perk me up. I need to ask about a hiking tour, but - current frame of mind? - I fear everything is either ultra extreme 'trekking' over multiple days or involves being shuttled around the circumference of the lake in motorised vehicles over the course of a day with hardly a second to take anything in. Right now the idea of talking to some tour rep who I inconsistently imagine to be both sneering and bored doesn't appeal in the slightest.

Only came in here cos of the economy menu; good job as regular menu is super pricey. Nearly went in a couple of other places but decided not to on totally irrational grounds. I feel I am losing the plot a bit. It's not quite homesickness but I sort of wish I wasn't here.

On the bright side, if my mood lifts there seems to be no shortage of cheap restaurants and I spotted a small shop which had big bags of crisps for sale.

Comedor from yesterday was Comedor Gretchel, I think - I saw sign outside as walked past earlier. I may go for dinner there before a quiet night in. 'Should' have got up for breakfast but what the hell. I was semi-forced out by a cleaner at maybe 1030, though she didn't come back which fortunately gave me time to shower (lukewarm indeed) and apply sun cream and insect repellent and get dressed and clean my teeth and it did all feel like a fucking chore.

Think food here is 35 and for all I know they'll stiff me heavily on the coffee (black) I'm having with it. Could have paid 25 elsewhere but I sort of figured I needed to just *go* into somewhere and eat.

Useless weather forecast on phone said it would be hot and sticky. I am wearing just short-sleeved T-shirt, it is OK but not exactly warm, I could have comfortably worn fleece, it's very grey too even though phone said UV 10. To be fair I met a trainee helicopter pilot in Antigua and he said even the professional forecasts are a bit shit IIRC.

1400 At small cafe in a kind of covered shopping-centre-ish courtyard getting a lemon tea. Food helped a bit earlier but no much. First tour agency I asked just tried to sell me tour of the lake by boat. Second one actually advertised trekking/mountain hikes outside, but I stood outside staring at the sign for fucking ages - maybe half an hour? - dithering. Was finally forced in by sun coming out and feeling I was burning. Anyway, despite my nerves - which weren't primarily linguistic but part of today's funk - I had quite an in-depth conversation with the two women at the desk. Basically it's low season so there are no groups doing any of these hiking type activities. I think if I come back in a month it may be different. I am rewarding myself with a drink here and then I'll go and speak to one more agency to see if I can confirm this.

Oh, I did go back to lake after speaking with second agency to look at it in a better mood. Might be more impressive if the volcanoes on the other side weren't largely hidden by cloud but still a pretty cool view. I wandered down to the shore; a few vendors and groups of guys loitering around but not overly threatening.

Anyway, if I get this low season business confirmed I think the thing to do may be to do a lake tour tomorrow or Thursday and then push on, perhaps to Quetzaltenango where I may - if I like it - consider putting in an extended stay to study Spanish. I'd then consider returning here in a month or six weeks nearer the end of the trip. This might also make me feel more comfortable doing the paragliding here; I have seen various signs but rationally or not I'm worried about breaking a leg on landing and while that would doubtless suck anyway, it would suck fractionally less towards the end of the trip. (I haven't yet spoken to insurance company to see if I could pay extra to be covered for this.)

Seen a sign, this is Restaurante Los Cayucos. (It's often hard to tell the name of a restaurant from inside once the menu has been taken away.)

1455 Nursed this tea, was going to leave but it's absolutely pissing it down so will have another. I did half intend to visit a museum this afternoon but I have all day tomorrow; I am probably not going to do the boat tour tomorrow as I am expecting news from my parents and don't want to be out of contact first thing.

Might have a black coffee this time actually. Can't see waitress so we'll see, I may have nothing if rain stops before she turns up.

Few wandering vendors have come up to me but not many and they leave without fuss after a "no, gracias".

1604 At Comedor Gretchel for breaded fish fillet and a regular coffee. Bought two big bags of crisps at a shop - no prices shown, guy charged me 22 for the pair, this may be tourist price but maybe not. Might get a chilled bottle of diet coke on way back to hotel. Living the dream, baby!

Got charged 10 for the lemon tea when a man (who had not served me) eventually turned up. Menu said 5 - I double checked as I was leaving - so I just gave him the 10 and no tip. Would have made it 10 anyway but bit annoying. Maybe he didn't know I'd had lemon tea but still, that's precisely his job. May or may not go back there.

Went into another tour agency and they seemed a bit reticent in a way I probably imagined but did quote me some prices around USD70ish for walking tours - every day - and I have a leaflet so may peruse it back at hotel. Bit dubious after being told by other agency it's low season - I somehow don't want to end up on a walking tour with just me and the guide. Meh.

It's still quite grey. Not cold. TBH feel the day is a little wasted but it's OK. My mood is not great but it's not terrible any more. On one hand a second night stuck in my hotel room might be depressing but on the other it might be good to just relax a bit.

Perhaps OTT having a second meal here especially when I bought crisps but WTF. In part I just don't want to go back to the hotel super early.

Did see a couple of banks so I can probably get some cash when I need it.

1655 Back at hotel. Food pretty good, 30, made it 40. Think name of place is Gretchel but maybe I keep misremembering. Bought two modest bottles of diet coke at shop with same name next door, MoS joked with me that it was 7 each or I could have two for 15. My slight ineptness with numbers made me a bit slow to get this. I did say it wasn't a good deal. I handed over 15 and I sort of waited until he offered me the 1 change before waving it away. Maybe dumb of me but I think I'd only be really annoyed if he had openly refused to give it me.

2227 Did some own laundry earlier for first time on trip. Have mostly just been reading books on phone - luckily the online library I have access to from my council is working over here. Have had a quick poke at guide book and I am thinking Quetzaltenango is a sensible next destination; F&CO site makes no specific mention of it, which is good. I do feel I'm perhaps not making the most of Pana but I will do that boat tour on Thursday and as I said earlier I may return later in the trip anyway. I am not sure about those hikes the last tour agency mentioned today; TBH I haven't even looked at the leaflet yet. Guide book does say there are some good day trips from Quetzaltenango, I don't know how compatible they would be with 'full time' Spanish school but I guess I could go at the weekend, or take a week off - just have to see how it goes.

Not feeling super chipper but probably better than I did this morning.

2333 Sounds like its pissing it down and has been for a while. Bed anyway.

Antigua-Panajachel

1158 In hostel reception, have checked out - ie handed my key in - and am waiting for nominal 1230 pickup to go to Panajachel.

I must be the luckiest guy in the world. I went over to the laundry on the offchance and asked politely if they'd found my socks - nothing ventured nothing gained etc - and they said yes, they'd handed them in at the hostel. So I asked at the desk if they had some socks for me - not a sentence I ever expected to construct, especially in Spanish - and they did. Pretty chuffed. :-)

Got up just in time to have breakfast here at hostel. Showered, cleaned teeth - there are more guests now, I have had to wait for the bathroom a few times over last couple of days - and packed really crappily - I've just shoved everything in my bag. Tis OK.

1556 In small comedor in Panajachel, waiting for coffee and filete de pollo al limon - hope I don't regret this. I was last one dropped off at hotel but no fuss getting here. Saw the lake from drive in; was misty but looked pretty impressive.

I am not sure if I like Panajachel or not yet. First impression is that it is very gritty - metaphorically and literally. Considering this is supposed to be tourist central I feel like the only one. I feel a bit on edge but I don't think it is actually dangerous. The rawness of the place does have a certain appeal after Antigua's super touristy feel. Anyway, I am just going back to the hotel after I eat for a quiet night in; I'm not planning on exploring the town today.

Hotel room is a bit dingy but pretty large, double bed even though I think I booked a single (ditto in Antigua actually), paid Q490, assuming I ever get my 10 change. Private bathroom with suicide shower but it's a private bathroom - luxury!

I keep imagining someone is going to snatch my phone even though I am sitting in the middle of the small restaurant. Not sure the waitress/proprietor/whatever likes me very much but maybe I'm being unfair. Menu is handwritten on whiteboard and has no prices on, so I may be paying tourist prices but at IIRC 25 for the food and 4 for a coffee I'm not complaining. I could possibly have had a different drink free with the meal but I'm not brave enough to order a drink which might have ice in here - it would probably be fine but baby steps.

1643 Back at hotel. Food was good, I think the coffee was instant (we had quite the debate about coffee; I have never had trouble just asking for 'cafe negro' before). Bill was 30, I made it 40. Not hungry but feeling indulgent I went into a couple of shops in search of a big packet of crisps. I couldn't find one but bought two small bags and a small packet of japanese peanuts for 9. Two blokes were milling around in the shop entrance and the MoS at the counter also came over to me; I was feeling really edgy and like maybe they were shut and I wasn't supposed to be in.

A funeral procession went past while I was in the restaurant; the coffin was being carried along and there seemed to be a lot of people walking along and on motorbikes, though maybe the latter was just traffic backed up behind the procession.

I think I'm suffering a bit of culture shock. It feels really 'odd' being here, like I really am off the beaten track - even though I'm evidently not, this being a very touristy place. Maybe the bit near my hotel isn't all that touristy, I dunno. In a way this is good of course, the whole point of travel is to see other places but still, I am feeling decidedly off-kilter. Things feel very foreign.

Oh, they gave me my Q10 change when I came back to the hotel.

People talking in the corridor outside room and it's getting quite annoying.

2047 In bed. Not exactly tired but I am sort of 'willing' to go to sleep now. It's very noisy here - in the street and the hotel - although saying that, I think it has got a lot quieter over the last half hour. Hotel rules say silence is expected from 10pm so I guess I probably won't be too disturbed during the night.

I feel pretty psychologically rough; I hope I'll feel better in the morning.

Antigua, Sunday

0954 Getting breakfast at hostel. Woke up about 3-4am feeling a bit itchy and realise I have mosquito bites on my back and in several other places. No idea how exactly. Will have to be experimentally rigorous with repellent including over clothes for a few days to see what helps. Felt a tiny bit trapped and alone and helpless but went back to sleep without great difficulty and feel fine now.

Need to shower and shave and clean teeth and get cash and do a bit of comparison shopping for a transfer to Pana and book a transfer. None of this is difficulty but the shower, shave and teeth cleaning steps seem a bit of a performance with a shared bathroom.

Hope to do 'something' touristy today before I go over to Snug maybe 5ish. I might leave everything at hostel (to prevent pickpocketing) and have a wander round the market and/or I think there is some kind of historic building right next to the hostel I might go over to. And of course I need to get lunch/dinner as well. It'd all fine, if I do nothing more than go see that live music and mill around in a hopefully enjoyably lazy way the rest of the day it's good enough.

Feeling a tiny bit concerned the trip is being more expensive than I'd like. TBH I think this is mainly because I'm contemplating USD70-ish for that paragliding thing in Pana, and - while I doubt I'd do it - I noted a day cycling tour for about USD45 (or was it GBP45?) in Pana too, which makes me wonder if the activities I want to do will be pricey. OTOH I am primarily interested in walking and I'd hope that's cheaper.

1212 Back at hostel. Asked two companies re bus, first was 70, second 75 so have booked for 1230 tomorrow with the cheaper one. Withdrew 1k, which should see me through the next few days of regular expenses and paying the hotel on arrival. Going to stash the cash and card away now and probably go for a quick wander round market, leaving phone, camera and virtually all cash here at hostel. This is probably excessive but WTF.

Trying to pay attention to ATM fees now so I can avoid paying more than necessary - on my Starling debit card the 5B machine today charged 31.20 fee on my 1k withdrawal.

Oh, dropped in some washing, paid 70ish for that and picking it up at 3.

1227 OK, it's absolutely pissing it down, judging from the sound of the rain on the roof of my room. Not sure what to do. May hang on here for another 10-20 mins and see if it eases off.

1404 Back at hostel. Had brief wander round the normal market - interesting but slightly intimidating in the standard market fashion - and the artisanal market (two quite attractive patios with fountain in middle with stalls selling crafts around). It then started to rain heavily - it was only spitting when I left hostel - so I sheltered briefly under an eave in the street and then decided to have an early lunch - popped into Delicias Chapin (sp?) and had steak and rice and salad (uncooked; I asked for no dressing and got it like that so I ate it, I figure I have to take small risks like this :-) ). 40 plus 10 for a black coffee, made it 60 with tip. Only just had enough cash without dredging out my hidden belt due to going out very light in case of pickpockets. Didn't have phone so couldn't read book but stared out of doorway at rain etc; not exactly fun but perhaps good to not always be reading on phone.

Food was OK but it seems to me no matter where I go or what I pay (I could have had cheaper options at DC too), I get about the same quantity of food. I'm not exactly starving or feeling hungry most of the time, but I always seem to wish there was just a bit more food on the plate. Maybe in this case leaving the guacamole 'explains' it - someone who had eaten the whole plateful would have felt fuller.

Had stopped raining when I left DC but streets ankle deep in water in many places. Managed to wend my way the short distance back to hostel without walking through anything too deep or getting splashed by a car. Hostel had shut door and put a sort of splashboard up against it, which I stepped over when the receptionist opened the door to let me in. We had a brief conversation, she told me a few months back the water had come halfway into the sizeable reception area (concrete floor, at least, no carpet) and they'd spent two hours sweeping it out. She didn't know if the water level in the street would go down over the next few hours or if it would rain again like that later. I may struggle to get across the street to pick up laundry if it doesn't go down, and I'll take my daypack across to carry it back to avoid dropping it. Also wonder if I'll struggle to get to Snug later without getting feet wet but we'll see.

Plan is to just camp out in my room for the next hour and then see if I can pick up the laundry.

My notionally waterproof-ish walking shoes do seem to be mostly living up to this; of course if I do step in some ankle-deep water it's just going to go over the tops of them and get in that way.

1543 Yay! Just collected laundry and instead of 3 pairs of socks I got 1 pair and one mismatched pair back. I went over to ask and after a cursory search they insist they don't have the other mismatched pair. So I'm now down 1 pair of socks, and 2 pairs if I actually insist on matching socks.

I had read advice that you should photograph your laundry before handing it in, but was I really supposed to tumble out a load of dirty underwear onto the counter in front of them and take a photograph of it? Fucking hell.

And yes, I have checked very carefully they are not somehow lodged inside one of the T-shirts I got back.

I didn't make too much of a fuss as ultimately what could I do? I cling to a faint hope they will find them later and drop them in at the hostel (it is right across the road) but I appreciate this is unlikely; still, this was one reason to be unhappy but not rude, insofar as my Spanish skills permit. No more laundry washes for me unless I am truly desperate, or I might take a single non-underwear item at once since I suspect the whole wash disappearing is less likely than part of it going astray.

The only consolation is that they weren't expensive socks, although I don't know how easily I will be able to buy more here, and losing some underwear or a pair of trousers would be way more devastating. If there's one thing I should in principle be able to buy without too much trouble it's socks.

1726 No denying I'm still pissed off about the socks. If I were in London I'd be annoyed but would simply trog over to the shop and buy some more. I guess buying some here - in Panajachel, I guess - will be a small retail adventure.

Raining lightly but will head over to Snug now. If it's no fun I'll just come home, no need to force things.