Finally! A little downtime, four hours enjoying the scenery and stopping at a paper making village and a rice whisky village. We were able to sample the three runs of the whisky; first run is cloudy and sweet and not too strong. The second run was red and and sweet and more like wine, the third run was the real deal, rice moonshine! Back on the boat and on to Pak Ou Cave. During war times the local people would hide the royal Buddhas in the cave, now it is a place of worship and is filled with thousands of Buddha statues.
Lake Atitlan is surrounded by many villages, in which Maya culture is still prevalent and traditional dress is worn. The Maya people of Atitlán are predominantly Tz'utujil and Kaqchikel. The Maya weave textiles and each group has their own pattern. Santiago Atitlán is the largest of the lakeside communities, and is noted for its worship of Maximón, an idol formed by the fusion of traditional Mayan deities, Catholic saints and conquistador legends. The institutionalized effigy of Maximón is under the control of a local religious brotherhood and resides in various houses of its membership during the course of a year, being most ceremonially moved in a grand procession during Semana Santa. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lago_de_Atitlán The rain was starting to let up as we walked through a maze of cobblestone alleyways to the house of Maximón. The courtyard was was thick with the smoke of incense and the light drizzle of rain collected on the blue plastic...











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