Gringotenango

Gringotenango is the nickname of Panajachel, by far the largest and most visited (and also most accessible) town on the shore of Lago Atitlán. Gringo means foreigner (in particular a foreigner from USA) and the ”place of the foreigners” is Guatemala’s oldest tourist hangouts. People in a semi-permanent exile have lingered here since the 1950s (with a drop down period during the civil war in the 1970s and 1980s, which made Guatemala quite dangerous).

Foreigners and ladinos (Guatemalans with Spanish descend) control the tourism sector in the area and make the big money while the indigenous Maya (as always) are downgraded to the handicraft sector and market trade, trying to make a living from selling souvenirs to wealthy tourists. Tourists are often incredibly stingy and bargain hard for their pennies, which brings profits down to almost nothing and puts the Maya in a very difficult economic position.

Panajachel offers nothing exciting as a town but it’s enough walking down to the lakeside to understand why so many tourists flock here. Boats take people across the lake to other villages.