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After the Copan ruins in Honduras we took a couple of local buses to cross the border into Guatemala and onto Flores, in the Peten province. It was a long day of travelling and we wondered whether we should continue taking chicken buses on our journey as they literally stop everywhere possible.
Flores is perched on a tiny island in Lake Petzen Itza. Its red roofs and twin-towered cathedral, combined with palm trees and colourful buildings give it a very realxed feel. Here we stayed three nights to recover from our journey and visited the ruins of Tikal.
At its height, the total urban area of Tikal was more than 100 sq km, with the population somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000. Its main strutures, which cover 2,5 sq km, were constructed from AD 550 to AD 900 during the late Classic period. With its Maya skyscrapers pushing up through the jungle canopy and the many steep-sided temples, it is the greatest Maya city in a tropical pocket in Guatemala.
The Tikal ruins declined in the latter part of the 8th century and was finally abondoned in the 10th century (as a result of drought and warfare with neighbouring states).
The many pyramids are impressive. Especially Temple IV (Temple of the Double-Headed Serpent, with 70m the highest temple) and El Mundo Perdido (The Lost World, 30m high and the largest pyramid at Tikal) are amazing.
Tikal is also a great place to see wildlife. We saw an ant eater up in the tree (a very exceptional sight according to our guide), a red-headed woodpecker, spider monkeys as well as whole families of coatimundis (family of the raccoon) and a crocodile. Unfortunately, we did not see any toucans (although there are 3 species of them at Tikal).
After walking and climbing up and down the pyramids for about 4 hrs, we headed back to Flores.
previous travel blog entry
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