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Monterrico
We arrived in Monterrico on a shuttle bus from Antigua that took just over 2 hours to get there. Lisa had been brave and pre-booked the hotel for 5 nights by telephone from Antigua. The only unforgettable thing was that Lisa’s name was now Lisa Lo, according to the hotel staff anyway! We got our room with a private bathroom but were informed it would cost Q120 per night and Q240 per night at New Year (bear in mind Raksheeta’s was only Q40 per night!). This was a shock to us as we had been quoted Q200 for the whole 5 nights on the telephone – possibly a scam or just a Spanglish breakdown. So before paying for our room, we locked our bags in it and scouted out all the other hotels in town. All of them turned out to be more expensive, apart from one which was only a little cheaper but had a room like a horror film and no pool. We even checked it out with the local tourist information, but they also told us that out hotel was the cheapest. So we decided to just spend two nights at the hotel, making full use of the pool, and to return to Antigua for New Year. We wandered on the black sands beach and stared at the huge Pacific rollers breaking dangerously on the shore. We then spent the rest of our time scorching ourselves next to the pool and dipping in to refresh ourselves when it became too hot. We visited a tienda (shop) to buy snacks so we could live more cheaply than eating in restaurants. We found lovely fresh baked break rolls, tomatoes, crisps water and juice. We went to the beach at night and found a beautiful red/gold sunset but we rushed away immediately as we were mobbed by a flying squad of mosquitoes. We went to our indestructible beds that were simply mattresses laid on top of huge concrete blocks build into the floor (no penes to break here) and slept soundly under the palapa roof listening to the calls of geckos. We spent the next day on the beach in the morning, but were harassed by kulak children (one had a huge knife) and wanted Lisa’s goggles as a gift! We then removed ourselves to the hotel pool to relax and enjoy the rest of our time here. Final Thoughts: Monterrico is nice but black sands are too hot and the sea is too dangerous to go in. Accommodation is too expensive due to New Year and there is little else to do than lie around all day.
Mark out of 10 = 5
Next time... Antigua 2.
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