Nebaj to Huehuetenango:
Mostly a stopping off point for more interesting places, Huehue (way-way) offers few charms of its own, but I loved it for its true Guatemalan character. There are enough eating and sleeping options here to keep most people happy, and the sight of the Cuchumatanes mountain range (the highest in Central America) in the background makes for some striking scenery.
Huehuetenango to Quetzaltenango:
Quetzaltenango, which the locals kindly shorten to Xela (shell-ah), is the perfect Guatemalan town. Not too big, not too small. It has enough foreigners to support a good range of hotels and restaurants, but not so many that it loses its national flavor. The Guatemalan ‘layering’ effect is at work in the downtown area here once the Spanish moved out, the Germans moved in and their architecture gives the zone a somber (Gothic) feel.
Day trip to Zunil from Xela:
The pretty agricultural market town of Zunil is set in a lush valley and dominated by a towering volcano. The white colonial church that gleams above the red-tiled and red-tin roofs of the low houses is particularly photogenic. Other draws include the weekly market, held on Mondays, and the image of San Simón, an effigy of a local Maya hero venerated as a (non-Catholic) saint. The effigy is moved each year to a different house.
Next stage: back to Antigua and the border crossing into Honduras.
