This morning we were awake quite early as we went to bed early the night before. It’s good that we were awake as the owner started shooting confetti from the top floor around 8:00am. If this would have been our morning wake-up call we would have been scared to death from the loud bangs. As we didn’t have any supper last night we went into town and had a good healthy breakfast at ‘Cool Beans‘ whilst looking out over the lake and the local animals.
After breakfast we went to the car repair shop recommended by the waiter from the ‘Sky Bar’ (we got into a conversation with him during our evening walk in Flores). The garage was not hard to find and the mechanic was super friendly so we asked if he could have a look at the exhaust. He fixed it without any issues (without any protection as well!) and we could drive further south towards Coban.
At Sayaxche we went east, which seemed to be a wrong choice. Unknowingly we had opted for the unpaved mountain road (although still called a ‘highway’ officially). So whilst we were getting closer to Coban, the roads started getting worse and worse and smaller and smaller. Later we noticed there was another road to Coban going west which was in perfectly good condition. Yeah well… even at 10km/h… at least we were moving forward.
Luckily after 80 kilometres of shaky roads the asphalt returned (hallelujah!) and we could speed up a little. Due to this unexpected mistake – and rain and darkness setting in – we didn’t manage to reach our camp ground before dark so we are staying in what is probably the most expensive (and damp) hotel in Guatemala. Well, it’s a good thing that at least we didn’t end up like this poor butterfly. We were not dead and nobody was pulling us forward. 🙂
Tomorrow we will be fully charged and ready for the next challenge. Tonight we will enjoy the accommodation of the hotel.
Let it flow, let yourself go
Slow and low that is the tempo!
Keep Calm and Drive South 
So, after driving in latin america for a while now
Did you feel at any time a normal car for example Honda civic would have gotten you stuck ?
I am reading your blog intentely in anticipation of my own road trip but only in a four door saloon car
What you think ?
Hi Terry,
It must be possible to do this in Latin America in a Honda Civic if you stick to the Panamerican Highway mostly and you’re not in the rain season. The only times you will need some off-road capabilities is when you are entering national parks or more remote locations. If you are planning to drive up to Cusco in Peru, maybe this will be less comfortable in a normal car – but then again the local population don’t all drive 4×4’s either! I’m not sure how a Honda Civic will deal with the altitude (up to 4.000 – 4.500 meters), because even that is a test for an off-roader like our 4Runner.
I would be most concerned with how much stuff you can pack in a Civic if you go camping – the 4×4’s typically have a lot of storage space and that’s also an advantage.
We met people in all kinds of cars on the road… I’m sure a Honda Civic could do the job.