Guatemala

(Continued from the previous post on our trip to Central America this summer)

On our day off, we climbed the active Volcano Pacaya, one of three volcanoes within about an hour's drive from Antigua. We arranged the tour with a company, and we rode on a van with about eight other people from all over the world.  On the ascent, we could either hike or local boys had horses for those who wanted a ride. 

It was so HOT (people roasted marshmallows in the lava), and very dangerous (I almost fell through some unsettled, dried lava rocks), that we were surprised tourists are allowed to make the trip.  

But, looking back, it was one of the best parts of our vacation. It was just awesome and so beautiful!

After we finished our week in Antigua with Prestoncrest, we were scheduled to fly up to Flores to visit the Tikal National Park. We had such a long wait for our flight that we decided to check out Guatemala City. We walked around the art museum grounds, but ended up spending most of the day at the Guatemalan Zoo.

It was an unplanned experience (and I insisted on having our itinerary prepared down to the T), but it was very fun and relaxing. Enjoy the pics of the beautiful animals…

 

Above: my favorite pic of the bunch!

Ha, these meerkats definitely entertained us...so cute!

We flew from Guatemala City to Flores and stayed in a small town named Santa Elena. We arranged to be a part of the sunrise tour for Tikal in the morning. We left the hotel at 4:00 a.m. so that we could make it into the park before sunrise, and we were able to climb one of the temples to see the sun rise over the temples throughout the park. Although it was a little foggy, the view was breathtaking. 

The ruins are world-renowned (Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher were there right before us). Historians and archaeologists fly in from all over to visit and excavate/restore. This was a truly wonderful and awesome experience!

Below is my shot for National Geographic submission :) 

Temple I

 

Above: Temple V; we climbed stairs to the top of that temple, and all that held us was a rickety staircase...no ropes or ledges. Needless to say, I was a little scared!

Below: Cool, huh?

Tikal is the largest ancient Mayan ruins in the world. It is located in the middle of a jungle, with only about 20% of the ruins uncovered so far. It has been estimated that Tikal was home to the Mayan civilization from 400B.C. to 800 A.D.

That's me at the bottom-right of the stairs :)