Back in Guatemala and halfway through a long day of sitting in cramped minibuses, it was clear that reaching our favoured destination, Lanquin, was going to be a very tall order. Although Guatemala is nothing like as big as Mexico, getting around takes longer than you think. The roads have to zig-zag up and down mountains and even if they have tarmac on them, it takes a while. Plus you have to factor in stops and the sometimes agonisingly slow speed of Guatemalan life! Though this is all made up for by the stunning scenery.
So, a change of plan it was. Having lunch in the town of Sayaxche, with one eye on a fight between two locals, it was time to give in and head for Coban. It was, we were told, the better bet as the road to Lanquin is unpaved, would take another ten hours and is unsafe after dark.
Five hours later, we rolled into very wet Coban and picked a place called Casa D' Acuna to stay. As ever, you rely on a couple of sentences from a guide book to make your decisions on accommodation and as a result, never know what to expect. Well, it turned out we couldn't have wished for a better place! Clean, friendly and with all the services you need, Casa Acuna was a little haven. And very reasonably priced too. It came with free wireless Internet and a speedy laundry service and our room cost us only 100 Quetzales (about £8).
However, the best thing about the place was the restaurant. Adjoining the hostel, El Bistro served generous portions of delicious food biased towards an Italian cuisine. The service was impeccable, the staff genuinely friendly - and waited patiently while you tried some Spanish with them. And if thats not enough, they have a large selection of homemade cakes to further expand the waistline. Central America really does have a sweet tooth!
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