7/3/10 - day 88.

slept pretty well last night even with the swedish girl in the bunk above me sleep talking - in spanish bizarrely enough! spent most of the morning online and took ages typing up blogs etc. sorted out transport to the airport for the next morning, grabbed some lunch and then it was time to go up a volcano.

the bus there took about 2 hours and was pretty bumpy, people bouncing about a foot high outta their seats at some points. pacaya is in a national park, and when we got there, there were local kids everywhere trying to sell sticks for the hike by just shouting "stick amigo! stick! necessary!" i didnt buy one. and it wasnt necessary. also on the way up the volcano, there are guys on horses who every now and again say "taxi amigo? taxi?" targeting the people that looked the least fit, the most overweight, or the most out of breath! i didnt get a taxi either. the actual hike up there wasn't too strenuous, despite warnings id had to the contrary, and the closer we got to it the louder the bangs were that were coming out the top. smoke was constantly seen coming out as well. needless to say, volcan pacaya is a very active volcano.

when we got a bit higher, we were walking on black rocks that we were really hot due to the lava directly beneath them. looking down i was able to see red glowing and lave running in the cracks in the rocks. it was mental. honestly, i dont know how this is legal as really, its certainly not safe. it was that hot to walk on, the front of one of trainers started to come apart! there were several lava flows which look so cool just a few feet from where we were walking, was amazing to see it spewing upwards and then running down the rocks. people brought marshmallows up there, popped them on a stick and shoved them in the cracks in the rock where the heat gave them a nice toasting!

at 2300 metres high it was pretty cold up there and biting wind. but as i stepped up onto the hot part, it was roasting and on certain parts difficult to stand in the same place without my feet feeling like they were burning. we stayed up there for about half an hour or so, watched the sun setting in the distance behind 3 other nearby volcanoes, and then began the hike back down.

got back to the hostel about half 9. there were 2 canadian gorls in the dorm who informed me they both had coughs. excellent. so, a possibly noisy night ahead but and the threat of catching it. before a long haul flight the next day. i went out for some strategic food - by this i mean i had to be careful what i spent as i didnt want to have to withdraw any more money, bought some tactical tacos that were dirt cheap. and to be honest, not that great. packed everything up and got to bed about half 10.