A side trip to Iximche Ruins
From Valentine's Day in Guatemala/ Under Construction in Tecpan, Guatemala on Feb 17 '08
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We made arrangements to rent a Mini Van (and hired a driver) in Antigua to take us to Lake Atitlan and asked the driver if we could stop off at the ruins along the way. We thought it would be a nice little break to stretch our legs. Mike was thrilled that Terry and Roland would get the chance to see some ruins. While not immense like Tikal, nice to see and right on our way.
Some information found on the internet about the ruins:
The Iximche Ruines are easy to get to if traveling from Antigua and to Lake Atitlan. Aproximately 3 miles off of the hiway at the city of Tecpan.
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Tecpán is known as the "first capital of Guatemala". This claim is based on the fact that the first permanent Spanish military center of the nation was based here. While not really a government center, the base was set here due to the difficulty that the Spanish had in defeating the Cakquikel Mayan. The remains of the Cakquikel capital city, Iximche, lies only a few kilometers away from the city on a high hill."
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The Iximche Ruins are quite different from those in the Peten, like Tikal. The ruins are not in a jungle but rather in a pine forest. So when we were there the weather was a really nice 70 F and dry. So very different from Tikal's very humid 90F. The Iximche Ruines are very easy to get to if one is traveling from Antigua and going to Lake Atitlan. The ruins are aprxomately 3 miles off of the hiway at the city of Tecpan. The road is paved and while I don't remember it being marked. Was very easy for us to find.
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We recommend going to these ruins.
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