Guatemala is a country with perfectly shaped volcanoes. Six of 38 are currently active.
I spent my first night in the village of Panajachel, located on the shores of Lago Atilan. Lago Atilan is a beautiful lake surrounded by three volcanoes: Tomliman, Atitlan, and San Pedro.
From Panajachel I moved on to Antigua, a colonial town much like San Miguel de Allende in Mexico. Antiqua is also surrounded by volcanoes. Fuego and Pacaya are active ones. I decided to join a tour of the volcano, Pacaya. I was hoping to see a real active lava flow. I had no such luck. The tour group I was with climbed to 2300 meters and at that elevation we did see a few hot vents. The guide demonstrated the hot temperature generated by the volcano. He placed a tree branch atop one of the hot vents, and in a mater of seconds the branch burst into flames.
While taking a late night stroll around Antigua, I happened to look up at Pacaya and could see lava stream down one side of the volcano.
Javier from Mexico
Hot vents of the volcano
Government building of Antiqua