Click on a photo to enlarge it.
The border crossing into Guatemala took 1 hour 20 minutes. On the Belize side we had to get our passports stamped out, our vehicle
permit cancelled and pay an exit fee of $19 US per person. On the Guatemalan side there was a drive through fumigation where the jets
automatically switched on as you entered. We had to pay 39 Quetzals ($5 at the current exchange rate). Tourist and vehicle permits
cost us 160 Q ($21).
The tourist visa is valid for 90 days and also valid for Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador. That's what we were told. But the reality
is that it is only valid for Guatemala and you still have to pay for entry into those countries. Maybe it's just because the
Guatemalans forgot to tell the others!!
Across the border the road was not very good at all. It was supposed to be tarmac but most of it was rough gravel and pot holes and
that for about 10 miles! It had also rained for three out of the last four days which didn't help.
We wanted to turn off to go to Yaxha to see some ruins but the road was very muddy and meant a 7 mile drive. We stopped a car coming
in the other direction and asked about the road. The driver said it was fine. So we continued along for another quarter of a mile
until we saw a steep uphill stretch ahead of us.
Going up wouldn't have been the problem, but coming down the other side or returning would mean that the back wheels of 3 ton Winnie
would slide into a ditch! So we did a 7 point turn. Yaxha was taken off the list.
We drove to Cerro Cahui National Park where there is supposed to be lots of birds and wildlife. They obviously went into hiding when
we did a 3 mile walk up to a viewpoint over the lake. The entrance fee was $5-50 per person but we didn't mind paying seeing as we
were allowed to park opposite the gates overnight for free.
Lago Petén Itza - 360° Panorama(move mouse over panorama and click on the arrows)
Kirsten wanted to go for a swim in the lake but there was a Mayan ceremony being performed for some (paying) tourists and she didn't
think she should walk past in her bikini! She doesn't normally bother being so shy!
Most people who visit this country go to Tikal to see the Mayan ruins which was our next stop. But there was a problem at the entrance
gate which is 10 miles before the ruins. It costs $21 (150 Quetzales) each to get in but the ticket is only valid for that day. We tried to explain
that we would be staying at the camp ground for at least two nights and wanted our ticket to see the ruins tomorrow. It was 1pm when
we got to the gate and they said if we waited until 4pm we could get our ticket for tomorrow. A ridiculous system which only takes
the day visitors into account but arguing our point didn't get us anywhere. So we parked up and waited until 4pm.
We drove up to the parking area, grabbed a rucksack with what we needed and set off at a very quick pace. The ruins are huge and it
is one mile just from the visitor centre to the Gran Plaza. Sunset is at 5-30 pm and the park closes at 6pm so we would have to push
to see anything.
The National Park covers an area of 576 square kilometres and the Mayans first came here in 700 BC. It is different from other major
sites because it is deep in the jungle and the buildings, some temples rising to over 61 metres, rise above the jungle canopy. By 250
AD it had become an important, heavily populated religious, cultural and commercial city. Tikal's greatness waned around 900 AD, part
of the mysterious general collapse of lowland Maya civilisation.
Scientific exploration didn't start until 1881 and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. The site had thousands of structures
and the central area is about 16 square km and has 4000 structures. However, it is possible to see everything in a day.
We had one hour to go until sunset and we did a route march to the Gran Plaza and were rewarded with a rainbow over Temple I. We
climbed up and met some local police there for a visit. We saw a coati, a couple of turkeys and a black bird that was singing very
loudly and made a loud rustling noise. We also heard from a guide that there had been a double lightening strike on Temple 1 in Oct
2010 and they still fighting for the money to repair it. Unfortunately the entrance fees go directly to the Government and not to
Tikal.
We spent two nights parked in front of the Jaguar Inn (25Q pp per night) and went into the park at 6am the following morning. We
climbed up onto Temple 4 but there wasn't a sunrise because the whole of the jungle was in the mist and clouds. We saw parrots, a
toucan, a falcon and several coatis.
We explored the various temples and buildings for almost 8 hours and took lots of photos of howler and spider monkeys and went back
for a rest. We returned at 3-50 pm and went to Temple 4 for the sunset except that there wasn't one.
Tikal Video
Helen managed to get a lot of bites on her feet which started off as swollen lumps and only later started looking more like bites.
No idea when that happened or where they came from and Helen didn't feel that she was being bitten. They were extremely itchy and
are still there 5 weeks later!
We stopped at Flores which is a small peninsular island in Lake Peten Itza and parked on the side of the street.
Flores - 360° Panorama(move mouse over panorama and click on the arrows)
We went for a walk around the small area and started looking into vehicle insurance for Guatemala which is not easy to get seeing as
most Guatemalans don't have any!
Flores - 360° Panorama(move mouse over panorama and click on the arrows)
