Estanzuela

A turn-off on the road between the Río Hondo junction and Zacapa leads to the sleepy village of Estanzuela, one kilometer (0.6 miles) from the highway. This quiet town with quaint cobble-stone streets has a pretty square at 1a Calle where local ladies serve up tasty snacks in the shade of the large azalea bushes. There is a post office, stationery shop and pharmacy around the square. On 2a calle there is a small tienda, a meat restaurant called Churrascos Sarita and the Comedor Familiar, the best place in town for a bite to eat and a game of pool. Incongruously, this small town of no real significance has its own museum of paleontology, which may be the only reason to spend any time here. El Museo de Paleontología Bryan Patterson, also known as El Museo de Estanzuela, exhibits some interesting fossils, like the whole skeleton of a 50 thousand-year old mastodon, and Mayan tombs. Back on the main road there is a hotel, the Turicentro La Estancia, and plenty more restaurants.

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Other places nearby Estanzuela: Quiriguá, Fronteras/El Relleno (Rio Dulce), Livingston, Jalapa, Anguiatu, Rio Dulce, Jutiapa, Zacapa, Lake Izabal and Chiquimula.