Volcan Tajumulco

I have been to a few of the most amazing places on earth. And I get to add one to the top 5 list! At 13,845 feet, Tajumulco is the tallest point in all of Central America. Six students and our teacher/guide met at our school at 10 PM and drove to the trail head getting then by 1:30 AM. Then set off on the hike. It was pretty tame except for the elevation. The rest of the group was not really prepared. The guide was supposed to bring food and water. He brought food for breakfast and a huge jug of water, but we didn’t really have enough bottles for people to have more than 1 liter each. None of them really brought any snacks either. No worries though, I had several protein bars, some cookies, and plenty of Aleve and Tylenol to keep everyone happy.

The site from the top is one of the most incredible that I have ever seen. There is no way a picture could do service, because it is a 360 degree view of green and clouds for a hundred miles. There is nothing coming within 2000 feet in the area. Absolutely stunning. I took lots of pictures. But you can’t see any of them.

When leaving the door to the airport I always go through a list of essential things that I cannot forget. 1. Passport 2. 2 credit/ATM cards. Everything else can be purchased, looked up, and simply done without. I usually have to buy some “essential” item when I arrive in country. In packing for this trip I distinctly remember unplugging my camera battery charger, wrapping the cord around the charger. And well that’s it. And it certainly did not make it to Guate. So, I have a very nice camera that I was able to use for only a week before I drained the battery. It won’t charge from the USB (which is stupid) and I don’t even have enough juice to copy my volcano pictures to my computer. So, you will just have to see those when I get home!

Here is the picture of my new super-duper camera. Taken with my netbook camera.

I think it is made out of the cheapest materials possible. I had a few requirements for this beauty, since it is going to become my new international backup. 1. Purple (yes, I was able to find a purple camera…what luck!!) 2. Cheap—only 60 bucks 3. Uses regular ol’ batteries 4. Takes an SD card for memory.

This sweet baby meets all of the requirements. I think it is a great investment for my future grandkids, so they can have pictures of the last 3 weeks of my Guate trip.

Next post is all about Lot’s Wife. Seriously.