Lago Atitlán is a gorgeous crater lake surrounded by mountains, volcanoes, and small Mayan villages. San Pedro is one of them- quaint, friendly, and despite the significant number of foreign Spanish students manages to be essentially non-touristy. There are lots of guesthouses, Spanish schools, and restaurants catering to backpackers, but they neatly blend into the village… the tourists are still just guests- they haven’t claimed the village for themselves.
- Every road in the village is violently steep.
- In the morning you can hear the clapping sounds of women making their tortillas for the day.
- In the afternoon you can hear the incessantly repetitive thump of reggaeton- apparently the only music to listen to if you’re young in San Pedro.
- At night you can hear the haunting cacophony of the millions of stray dogs.
- There is barely any car traffic- only the zippy red tuk-tuks (moto-taxis; curiously, they’re called tuk-tuks in SE Asia as well and it’s not just the tourists who use the term).
- All of the women dress traditionally, with lacey blouses tucked into long, colorful, woven skirts. Most of the men dress in boring modern fashion, but some of the old men wear the traditional striped Capri pants, colorful woven button-down shirt, equally colorful woven belt, and huaraches and Stetson hat. They look awesome.
- Guatemala is a very Catholic country, but Evangelicalism is enjoying major growth in popularity. A major reason is that it denounces drinking and domestic abuse, making it very popular with women. San Pedro is very Evangelical. For the one Catholic church in town which honors patron Saint Peter,
there are several bright, new Evangelical churches. All over town are brightly painted slogans like “Jesus – la única esperanza para ti” (Jesus – your only hope), and “Jesus es el Señor de San Pedro” (you can figure out what that one means). - In San Pedro, when it rains, it POURS.
