Santiago Atitlán is one of the many villages surrounding Lake Atitlán in Guatemala. Upon arriving on Santiago’s shores, you will be greeted by tuk-tuk (or rather ‘moto taxi’) drivers eager to bring you on a tour of Santiago for a fee. I’ve been inundated with offers as low as 50 Quetzales, and offers as high as 100 Q. Always negotiate.

If my tuk-tuk guide is anything of a standard comparison, you will first be brought to the Mirador, from which you will get a view of the lake and Santiago, and also a distant glimpse of the Lavandería Maya, where Mayan women wash clothes on the shores between 8 - 10 a.m. and in the evening between 3 - 5 p.m., so I was told. The Mayan women can wash their clothes in their own homes, but it’s long since been something of a custom to congregate by the lake to do their laundry. If you want to get up close and personal with the Tzutujil Mayan women, walk down a little dirt slope to the lakeshore from the Mirador. My guide was Tzutujil (chances are it’ll be easy to find one) so he could converse with the people I met in Santiago and act as a translator for me, in Spanish. If you don’t speak even a little bit of Spanish it will probably be difficult. I say get right down to where the laundry-washing is going on, because the view is incredible. The Mirador view is a tad bit impersonal.

The 3rd destination is the Peace Park (El Parque de la Paz), the site to commemorate the victims of the 1990 massacre by the army, where thirteen villagers, including children, were killed.

Then you’ll be brought to the house of Maksimon, a god of the Mayans who actually smokes and drinks. There is a special committee designated to guard Maksimon, who entrusts him to a different house every year, and people are welcome to pay their respects to him for a small fee. It costs Q2 to enter, and Q10 to take a photo. It might be a bit bizarre for some of us to see a paper doll being fed cigarettes and cigars while someone leads a prayer to him, but those who believe in him take him seriously, so show some respect when you’re in his presence.

Your last destination will be the Catholic church, which is currently undergoing some cosmetic construction.

Aside from these places though, you can negotiate with your guide to take you somewhere else you’re interested in for an extra fee. I was interested in the small village of Panabaj, which was destroyed by Hurricane Stan in 2005. You will see the hollow remains of the Hospitalito, which is currently being rebuilt in a safer, more secure location, and which still needs donations. I also went to take a look at the temporary housing of the victims of Hurricane Stan. Three years on and they were still living in shacks in a open dirt field. It’s very much worth a visit.

As far as impressions go, Santiago is very much a workaday village, and much bigger than either Panajachel, San Pedro or San Marcos, which are more popular haunts of tourists and hippies. Santiago lacks the kinds of bars or restaurants we’re used to, and is probably not much fun if you’re traveling alone. In Panajachel or San Pedrogas (so nicknamed for its abundance of marijuana and cocaine activities, drogas meaning drugs) or San Marcos, if you’re eating on your own in a restaurant, chances are you will find company as you are shuffling burritos into your mouth, one way or other. But in Santiago, that will probably be more difficult. However, it probably offers a more accurate picture of what life in a Guatemalan pueblo really is like.

Where to stay in Santiago:

I stayed in Hotel Chinimya, which is a short walk away from the dock (’embarcadero‘) and its abundance of restaurants. Rooms are basic are perhaps a little cramped but comfortable nonetheless, with hot water and an attached licuado stand, useful if you need your fix of fruit shake every morning. It is also right next to an internet cafe, so that’s convenient. It’s one of the cheaper options, about Q70 for a private room with shared bathroom. It’s expensive compared to accommodation rates in Panajachel or San Pedro but considered cheap in Santiago.

For more luxurious - and accordingly, more expensive - options, try Hotel Bambu (which is rather far from the centre of Santiago, but I guess isolation is the point) or Posada de Santiago, which costs on average about $USD 50 per night for a private single room.

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