Volcan Pacaya and Flowing Lava

We didn't take long to get started on the adventures as we headed up Volcan Pacaya on Day 2 of our trip in Guatemala. Antigua is surrounded by volcanos which can be climbed at your leisure. Volcan Pacaya is however, the most active, and has been known to errupt when climbers are near the crater!

The shuttle left at 5:30 AM and took about 1.5 hours to get to the volcano. We drove past a few itty-bitty "towns" on our way up the volcano (I'd be scared to live there!) and then walked about 3km before we saw any lava. Apparently we had the perfect weather because the lingering clouds enhanced the red color of the lava! The first bit of black volcanic rock that we saw was 4 days old and had moved quite a distance from it's origin. The rock was warm but not on fire anymore.
Once we got to the top, you could hear nothing but the loud crack and pop of the burning lava. We were could get as close as we wanted (much to the guide's dislike) and some people were even stupid enough to climb on the "cooled" parts of the lava!
Our dinner that night was interesting because we tried Jamaica juice (made from the Jamaica flower and tasted like cranberry juice) and a few local dishes.

"Jenna, cats don't eat bread!" -Sarah about the starving cat that pounced my PBJ.