Parrots and Ruins in Honduras

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The pretty town of Copan Ruinas is just over the border from Guatemala in the North of Honduras. Cobbled streets lead to a tranquil town square where locals gather. Houses with red roofs and tuk-tuk drivers meander up the steep hills and at the centre of town, a pretty white colonial church lies just off the square, filling the quiet place with the sound of voices on Sundays.

The people were noticeably different to Guatemala in appearance, and seemed taller with a more western-style dress. Some of the women even wore mini-skirts, something unimaginable even in the cities of Guatemala.

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We spent our short time in town at a Belgian backpacker hostel (Cafe ViaVia) which served cheap international dishes such as Thai Green curry – yum. Sadly, the party in the bar went on till around two, and was a bit too noisy for us... (OK boring but sleep is necessary for Indiana Jones-types set on exploring ruins!) so we moved to a family-run guest house (La Posada de Belssy) which was clean and quiet.

We spent a full day at the Copan Archaeological site, which is a walkable 1km from the town. The Mayan City boomed during the Classic period (AD250-900) and was ruled by exotic-sounding kings such as 'Smoke Jaguar' and 'Uaxaclahun Ubak K'awil' or '18 Rabbit' who apparently came to a grisly end when he waged war with a neighbour and got himself beheaded. These two kings were responsible for some of the amazing ruins however as Smoke Jaguar built temples and monuments, while 18 Rabbit had a penchant for intricate carving as well as war, and commissioned craftsmen and sculptors.

Mayan King
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I loved the totem-pole like carvings of kings and birds heads sneaking out of the side of buildings, while Duncan enjoyed the 63 step Hieroglyphic stairway, commissioned by Smoke Shell, son of Smoke Monkey. (I love these names – hereafter I should like to be known as Blog Monkey).

Neither of us could work out how the game played in the giant ball court worked (apparently neither could the archaeologists – its thought to involve keepy-ups with a rubber ball).

For those interested (Hey Harry Pops!), it was deforestation and erosion thought to be responsible for the demise of the city, which suffered failed agriculture and floods. By the year AD 1200, few remained and the jungle reclaimed the city.