Semuc Champey - A Paradise

This is a bonus blog because I just have to tell you about this amazing place we just visited.

Last week we went to Semuc Champey/Lanquin!  On Sunday we started our trip and went on a bus ride for about 4 hours before stopping for lunch. After lunch we drove for another hour and a half when we got to a quetzal reserve called Biotopo del Quetzal. We went on a two hour hike through the cloud forest looking for quetzales. Unfortunately, we didn’t see any. Even though we didn’t see what we were there for we still had a very nice hike where we saw a waterfall and some pretty cool plants and trees. My favorite part was the waterfall because at that time it was very, very foggy so it looked like we were at the edge of the world! I got a feeling of peace when I was standing there, almost as if I was really at the edge of the world. After the quetzal reserve we drove another two hours until we got to Coban, which is a big city in Guatemala where we spent the night. That’s actually where my dad lived when he was in Peace Corps. The next day we drove about another two hours until we got to Lanquin. Lanquin is a city famous for its caves and beautiful river. We went into the cave where we walked for a couple hours. We each held a candle so we could see the different rock formations that they had discovered inside. We also got lucky because even though it wasn’t the time to see them we got to see some bats hanging from the ceiling! That was the first time I had been in a cave (from what I can remember) and it was a really cool experience.

         That same day we made it to Semuc Champey. One of the first things I saw upon arriving was a beautiful river. If you know me you wouldn’t be surprised to know that I immediately had a strong urge to jump in. Luckily, my wish came true. Really close to the hotel where we were staying there was a bridge that was 30 to 35 feet high (like 10 to 12 meters) where some people were jumping off. When I first got to the bridge I felt pretty scared, especially when it was my turn to jump. Now, I’m not scared of heights at all but from that immense height I felt how people feel when they’re actually scared of heights. I was standing there while Juan, the assistant director of the gap year program, was battling the current waiting for me. Suddenly, I just jumped and was in a freefall. At first I couldn’t do anything but fall, but right as I was nearing the water I put myself in pencil form and plunged in. After the first time, I was perfectly fine and I went as many times as I could. What I learned after that was that even though something is scary to you (and I’m not scared of heights) sometimes you just have to jump, whether you’re scared of heights, you’re scared of failing, or you’re simply scared of spiders. Take the leap, face your fear head on, you might even pee your pants, but just do it.

The next day in the morning we took a thirty minute hike to a lookout point called “the Mirador.” The mirador looks out over the seven natural pools that are called Semuc Champey after which the town is named. When we got there I was the first one of our group to see it and I was awestruck. It was by far one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. When I regained my breath I called the rest of the group over and watched their reactions. We had to just stand there for a while because it was amazing. It reminded everyone that there are lots of beautiful places like Semuc Champey tucked into corners of the world that we don’t know about, or at least, I don’t know about. We then hiked down for another 20 minutes until we got to those same pools! They were amazing, with water as clear as glass. Each pool is separated by a natural barrier of stone and you go down pool by pool. Sometimes there’s a natural type of water slide where you slide to the next pool, or sometimes you can jump to the next one. I had a lot of fun going from pool to pool and just being in that amazing environment. I was sad to leave.

After lunch at the hotel it was time to explore some more caves. These ones were filled with water because of a river running through them. It was way different than what I imagined it to be. I thought it would be similar to the last caves where they were wide open just that this time there would be some water at our feet. Instead they were some pretty narrow caves where most of the time the water got over my head. There was a rope where we pulled ourselves along because it was hard to swim with heavy shoes. Also we had to climb ladders and jump off of rocks in a lot of places, it was like we were adventurers.  Surprisingly, about 1/2 of the way I was leading the pack. Carrying my candle, showing the way. I was well in front of everybody. That was super fun because I got to see everything first and then tell everybody what was coming. Too soon, we stopped to turn back. At the and there was a spot where you could climb to jump into a deep spot in the water and almost everyone did it. On the way back we got to go down a waterslide that was basically a hole that you fell through. It was weird because it was very short so when you got down you didn’t know if you were done or if you had to swim somewhere. When we finally got out everybody was relieved to get into daylight even though some people, not going to say names, wanted to do it again. We ended the day with a relaxing tubing ride where we freezed our butts off. The trip was amazing and I felt I could spend my whole life in Semuc Champey. I think I can officially declare it one of my favorite spots on earth.

On Friday, I’ll tell you all about our next work projects.