Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

When I first got to Quetzaltenango (Xela), I wasn't very impressed with it. A mist that often rolls in from the Pacific obscures the view of the surrounding hillsides and Volcán Santa Maria. The town itself is dusty, polluted, and very much broken down - definitely a step down from México, whose political stability and resource wealth separates it from its neighbour to the South. To put it in context, Guatemala is still reeling from decades of violence, despite 2006 being the tenth anniversary of the country's peace accord. Those I have spoken to confirm continued widespread corruption and violence in Guatemala today.

So, when I got here , I really didn't like it much. I am going to chalk this up to a long travel day, because after a full day Xela is growing on me. The locals are very friendly and helpful, and are very patient with my broken Spanish. The tight and chaotic streets and markets are flush with colour during the day, and the place is packed with international travellers taking advantage of Xela's exceptional(ly cheap) Spanish language schools.

Despite the better impression, I still won't stay here long. It is hard to breathe here. Most cars and trucks, and all but a select few buses exhale plumes of smoke in shades of black and blue. Those that burn cleanly kick up an immense amount of dust as they rumble by on the cobblestone streets.

I missed the 3-day hike from Xela to Lago de Atitlán by an hour. The silver lining to this was that eleven others were booked on the hike. Instead, I pulled together a tour to Fuentes Georginas, a natural spring just outside of Xela. Seeing as the city was without running water this morning (water system upgrades have meant some week-long droughts for the city), the springs were a great addition to the day. We booked a hike up Volcán Santa Maria the next morning with ChilliTours - the same company that took us to the springs. We should be down be 1PM, which provides enough time for me to get to Panajachel before nightfall tomorrow.