I took a boat to a small Tz'utujil village

It's been raining like crazy. This type of rain doesn't happen in Boston, or in California. I've experienced rain like this in the South, but— thanks, American building codes!— I've never had the rain and the thunder shake the house like it does here.

So when it was sunny yesterday morning, I took the opportunity to flee across the lake. I went to the docks, tried (and failed) to haggle down the price of a trip, and took off— 

—45mph across the lake in a tiny blue motor boat. There are five towns scattered around the perimeter of the lake, which can be seen from the water.

I chose to go to San Juan La Laguna, a tiny village which is 95% Tz'utujil-speaking Mayan.

The town is stunning.

*To see the full album of pictures of my afternoon in San Juan La Laguna, click here.

As I was leaving, a villager, who had never used a camera before, took my picture.