GUATAMALA: Lake Atitlan and the Guatamalan Highlands. Guest Post by Tom and Susan Weisner

Local market, Lake Atitlan, featuring tomatoes, corn, onions, avocados, chile verde and other locally grown produce.

A few weeks ago, our friends Tom and Susan Weisner traveled to Guatamala and have graciously shared some of their photos. Tom, an anthropologist at UCLA and specialist in children and families, is on the Board of ChildFund International. The first part of the trip to Guatamala involved visiting families and program sites supported by ChildFund along with other members of the ChildFund Board. In the second part of the trip, Tom and Susan went to Lake Atitlan, staying at the very nice Arca de Noé Hotel and Restaurant in Santa Cruz la Laguna.  This area is rightly famous for its natural beauty and colorful Mayan villages. Tom and Susan visited villages around the lake and took a hike with a local guide. Lake Atitlan is the deepest lake in Central America at 1120 feet. It sits in the caldera of an ancient volcano. The surface of the lake is at an elevation of 5125 feet. Here are a few of Tom and Susan's photos and comments about their trip.

Lake Atitlan. Our breakfast table view from the Arca de Noe Hotel and Restaurant, San Cruz Atitlan. No road circles the lake, so communities are reached by boat or mountain roads.

Santiago Atitlan is the largest community around lake Atitlan and is noted for its worship of Maximon, a Mayan saint-healer. An effigy of Maximon is carried through the streets during Santa Semana (Holy Week).

Back-strap weaving cooperative, San Juan la Laguna, Guatemala. Lake Atitlan is surrounded by many villages in which Maya culture is still prevalent and traditional dress is worn.

Susan with pictures of plants and fruits used to dye fibers for weaving.

Susan showing photos of our grandchildren to a local Mayan family, Guatamalan Highlands.

Mural showing a bone setter healing a youth, Lake Atitlan.

Our lovely hotel room at the Arca de Noé Hotel & Restaurant overlooking Lake Atitlan, Guatemala.

Tom enjoying breakfast. A typical breakfast at the hotel was veggie omelets with tacos and local bread and coffee.  

ARIZONA WHIRLWIND, Part 3: Antelope Canyon and Grand Canyon, Guest Post by Owen Floody

Upper Antelope Canyon, Arizona

Our friend Owen Floody traveled in Arizona last September.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken numerous trips that allow him to pursue his passion. Here is the third part of a reflection on his Arizona trip and some of his excellent photographs.
 
So far, my tour had proceeded remarkably smoothly.  But an unpleasant surprise met me in Page, where I expected easy access to the two slot canyons (the Upper and Lower Antelope Canyons) that are one of this area's major draws.  Unfortunately, it turns out that nearly all access to the canyons is now limited to guided tours, most of which are filled well in advance, at least in the busier times of the year.  All of this may be especially true of the more popular upper canyon.  Here, it seems essential to reserve a place on a general (1 hr, $25-40) or photographic (2 hr, $80) guided tour.  In addition to their greater length, guides privilege photo tours by directing traffic so as to give their participants the best unobstructed views of the convoluted rock walls and of the amazing colors that can develop there, especially when the sun is relatively high. 

Upper Antelope Canyon, Arizona

At the time of my visit, the situation in Lower Antelope Canyon was a little different.  Again, most visitors are enlisted in 1-hr non-photographic guided tours.  Well-equipped (DSLR plus tripod) photographers, however, were permitted to purchase a "photographic pass" that allowed one to wander unguided for 2 hr.  This was a great experience, though it sounded as though the tour operator may have been in the process of phasing it out. For a time after my arrival in Page, it looked as though I would strike out completely.  Luck intervened, however, providing an open photographic pass to the lower canyon and a late cancellation of a reservation for a photographic tour of the upper. I thoroughly enjoyed both.  

The upper canyon is larger and easier to negotiate, but is much more popular and crowded.  The lower is generally more narrow, with some especially narrow bottlenecks.  It also involves more elevation changes, some effected by steep metal stairs.  On the other hand, it is much less heavily visited and may make for the more relaxing and enjoyable tour.  Importantly though, both canyons come through with the amazing patterns and colors for which they are known.

Grand Canyon, Arizona

The final stop on my circuit was, not surprisingly, the Grand Canyon.  Here, I needed to stay in the campground to secure a place in Canyon Village, close to the canyon and its viewpoints, something that was especially important in stalking sunrises and sunsets.  In fact, much of my time was spent looking for the perfect viewpoints from which these events could be viewed. The fact is that most or all of the viewpoints offer stunning views, and at most or all times of the day.  Also, I found the sunrises and sunsets to be complicated by a canyon so deep as to create big differences between the times at which the  illumination would change near the rim versus floor. 

Grand Canyon at Sunset

In general, this trip perfectly illustrated the advantages and disadvantages of a whirlwind tour.  On the one hand, I was able to see a lot in a short time, including many major parks and attractions.  On the other, I could easily have at least doubled the time spent at each of these sites and still not exhausted all that they have to offer.

 

ARIZONA WHIRLWIND, Part 2: Canyon de Chelly and Monument Valley, Guest Post by Owen Floody

White House Ruins, Canyon de Chelly, Arizona

Our friend Owen Floody traveled in Arizona last September.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken numerous trips that allow him to pursue his passion. Here is the second part of a short reflection on his trip and some of his excellent photographs.
 
At Canyon de Chelly (pronounced Shay), I was determined to catch a sunrise at the White House ruins, the only ruins on the canyon floor that you can visit on your own rather than as part of a guided tour.  But I arrived at the ruins much too early, failing to anticipate how long it takes the sun to clear the canyon walls.  This forced me to spend several hours at these ruins, reducing the time available later to visit viewpoints on the canyon rim. 

View into Canyon de Chelly from the Canyon Rim

On the other hand, I did catch the initial illumination of the ruins and also enjoyed views of the sun's rays playing upon higher parts of the canyon walls that I passed up on the hike down to the ruins.  And I didn't completely miss views of other parts of the canyon.

Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, Arizona

Guided tours of Canyon de Chelly struck me as optional, something to be done on a second or third day but perhaps not as the top priority.  In contrast, I made full use of tours at Monument Valley, going on most of those offered by my campground hosts (Gouldings).  In particular, I began with a Full Moon tour, having planned my trip so that I would be in the valley within three days of a full moon.  I found this pleasant but not compelling.  You see the moon as it rises behind the Totem Pole (a famous rock spire), but do not have a chance to see other formations illuminated by the moon.  On my next day, I went on a Sunrise tour followed immediately by a more general Deluxe tour.  The only one I missed was the Sunset tour. 

Moonrise behind the Totem Pole, Monument Valley

Of the three guided tours of Monument Valley, I most enjoyed the Sunrise tour, despite its 5:30 am start.  This resembled the moon tour in that it began by taking us to a point from which we could view the sun rising behind the Totem Pole.  What I enjoyed even more, though, were the many views we had of other rock formations glowing in the early sunlight.  Some such views were prominent from our initial vantage point near the Totem Pole whereas others emerged on our way out of the park, as we stopped at several other viewpoints.  

(Continued next week: Part 3, Antelope Canyons and the Grand Canyon)

 

ARIZONA WHIRLWIND, Part 1: Portal, Petrified Forest, and Painted Desert, Guest Post by Owen Floody

Hummingbird, Portal, Arizona

Our friend Owen Floody traveled in Arizona last September.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken numerous trips that allow him to pursue his passion. Here is the first part of a short reflection on his trip and some of his excellent photographs.
 
In early September of 2014, I headed for Arizona, my excuse being an invitation to visit friends in Portal, near the state's southeastern corner.  Since I flew into Tucson, I was able to visit several attractions before making my way to Portal.  In the immediate vicinity of Tucson, these included the wonderful Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and the Rincon Mountain district of Saguaro National Park.  Closer to Portal, I enjoyed stops at the Amerind Museum in Dragoon (a small museum specializing in Indian history and artifacts) and the Chiricahua Desert Museum in Rodeo (worth a visit if only for the reptile displays).  Once in Portal, I spent a pleasant week catching up with old friends.  This was further enriched by hikes and excursions to exploit the bird-watching (perhaps especially hummingbird-watching) for which Portal is famous among birders.

Cactus in bloom, Saguaro National Park, Arizona

Once my week expired, I spent an additional week in Arizona pursuing a counterclockwise loop that took in Petrified Forest National Park and the adjacent Painted Desert, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, Antelope Canyon Navajo Tribal Park, and Grand Canyon National Park.  Throughout, I was trying to concentrate my sightseeing and photography in the mornings and evenings, reserving the afternoons for the longer drives between parks.  Each of the places I visited was wonderful.

Petrified logs in Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

In the Petrified Forest, I was most struck by two things.  The first related to the volume and distribution of the petrified wood that is the park's focus: Petrified logs are everywhere, making it great fun to wander the many trails, perhaps especially early or late in the day, when the colors in the stone are best illuminated.  

Fragments of petrified wood in Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

Some of my favorite views were of gullies, through which petrified logs seemed to tumble down, attesting to the number of such logs and the natural processes that continue to reveal them.  Second, it was impressed upon me that petrified wood comes in all sizes and shapes.  Though the logs are clearly impressive, I also was much taken by the small but colorful fragments of petrified wood that litter the ground in some places.

(Continued next week--Part 2: Canyon de Chelly and Monument Valley)