As we carefully made our way down the winding road that connects Sololá and Panajachel, sparkling diamonds blinking in the twilight greeted us.

Lights clinging to the lake’s shores and dangling off the sides of volcanoes glittered for us as we viewed Lake Atitlán for the first time after 30 years.

Hotel Monterrey was our destination in Panajachel.

It reminded us of a 1950s hotel that was once the center of lakeside activity in its earlier years. Now it simply led a quiet life in repose offering hints of its faded glory.