EKOS Communications, Inc.

Lanquin is a small town near Coban, Guatemala. I was there recently, relaxing after a hectic week in Antigua. It is a beautiful place, nestled in the hills, beside a river perfect for tubing, and surrounded by Quiche Maya living some what traditional lives. I went on a sunset hike one evening with a local guide and was shown a plethora of interesting plants that are completely exotic to me. We saw how pineapple and cacao grow, and smelled the sap of a tree that is burned for incense. The highlight was being were invited into the home of a Mayan family. Their house is about a 30 minute hike uphill on a narrow footpath. There is no way a motorized vehicle could make it up here even if they could afford one! The house has a dirt floor, the walls are made of sticks tied together and are not anywhere near airtight, and for cooking there is basically a campfire on a raised platform. It was really amazing to see people living like this! We met the mother and her toddler, but she doesn't speak Spanish, only the indigenous Mayan language of Quiche, so we communicated through our guide who speaks both. We were treated to a cup of traditional hot chocolate and it was amazing! There is cinnamon, chilie and sugar added to the cacao, and it was kind of lumpy since they have no fancy machines to grind it. What an amazing experience! At the end of the hike we paid our guide the measly 10 quetzales each (about $1), and when I gave him a tip and told him that I'm a guide in Canada and I know how much tips are appreciated, he asked me how much money I make. Yikes! How could I tell him that I make about 50 times what he does? I told him that I make a lot more, and he wasn't surprised, saying that it's hard to make much money in Guatemala.