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    Is This the Isthmus? Tour – Guatemala Part 10

    Sunday, September 10, 2017
    San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala

    Your horse is ready at the stables of Moises in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Your horse is ready at the stables of Moises in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Moises leads the way on a horse ride in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Moises leads the way on a horse ride in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Moises leads the way down to the lake shore on a horse ride in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Moises leads the way down to the lake shore on a horse ride in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Today at 10:00 am, I walked over to the office of Asoantour, where I met up with an old man named Moises, who I had booked to take me on a one-hour horseback ride. After leading me on a walk through the back lanes of San Pedro for a half mile or so, we arrived at his rustic stables, where I somehow managed to climb up on the back of one of the four-legged beasts. This horse was considerably bigger and healthier-looking than the one I rode in Isla de Ometepe in Nicaragua, and fortunately, the saddle was softer and more comfortable. Both of these factors, and the shorter ride time–one hour instead of two–made for a much more pleasant experience.

    The lake shore in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    The lake shore in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Moises takes a break at the lake shore near San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Moises takes a break at the lake shore near San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Moises' stables in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Moises’ stables in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    During most of the ride, we proceeded through a labyrinth of narrow, paved back lanes and down a wider main road through the southeast part of San Pedro. It was really fun negotiating the tight spots around blind corners past picturesque shops and colorful murals, as well as navigating around a series of big mud puddles. At two different spots, we headed down to the shore of the lake for a quick view of the placid waters and misty mountains beyond.

    A psychedelic shoe shop in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    A psychedelic shoe shop in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    A Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    A Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    Detail of a Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    Detail of a Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    At one point on the main road, a dumb tuk-tuk driver pulled over to drop off someone right in front of my horse, which caused it to panic, suddenly swerve and run around the tuk-tuk. Luckily, I already had a tight grip on the saddle, or I may have got tossed off the back! Once my horse reached Moises’ horse, it slowed down. Whew! One other time on the way back to the stables, we got passed in both directions by a swarm of motorcycles and tuk-tuks that all converged around us at the same time. I was afraid my horse might freak out and buck me off, but luckily it stayed calm and everything went smoothly.

    A Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    A Sunday street market in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    A spectacular mural in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.
    A spectacular mural in San Pedro, Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

    After I said goodbye to Moises, I headed up to a chaotic and colorful Sunday street market in the middle of San Pedro to buy some bananas and apples for snacks, and to extract some money from an ATM. I was surprised to see three young Japanese ladies there, as I haven’t crossed paths with many of them on this trip so far. It’s also worth mentioning I had some trouble with the ATM that took a while to resolve, which resulted in some impatient man outside banging on the door not once, but twice.

    Words and photos ©2017 Arcane Candy.

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