The Mayan Ruins at Tikal, Guatemala

After I walked on lava in Antigua, climbed the highest mountain in Central America in Xela, painted a Mayan masterpiece on Lake Atitlan, and visited the market at Chichicastenango, I had only one more stop to make before leaving Guatemala.  That was all the way on the other side of the country in the northeast corner.  I took another olympian bus ride across Guatemala from Antigua to Flores and from there took a day trip to Tikal.  The ruins are kind of remote, an hour+ drive from Flores, so I had to get up at 4am to catch a shuttle that would get me there in plenty of time for good pictures before the sun got too bright and too hot. 

The ruins are tucked back in the jungle, the jungle that didn't exist when the Mayans lived in Tikal.  After the Mayans mysteriously abandoned their big cities, the jungle grew up and over Tikal.  Archaeologists have uncovered a lot at the site, so you can see six big temples, and hundreds of smaller structures.  It's a huge site and you easily spend a day wandering through the jungle paths from structure to structure.  It takes 20 minutes to walk from the front gate to the Grand Plaza where two of the six temples are.  Tikal was a much different experience than the ruins that I visited in Copan, Honduras a few weeks back.  Copan is known for its sculpture, while Tikal is known for its towering temples.  If you look back at the pictures in my posting about Copan, you can easily see the difference.  Below, are a few pictures of Tikal to give you a sense of the place:

Tempe 1 and 2 in the Grand Plaza Rising Above the Jungle Canopy (The picture was taken from the top of Temple 4)

The Bottom of Temple 1 (Taken from the top of Temple 2)

Temple 2

Temple 5

So, you've ascertained by now that you can climb several of the temples at Tikal.  You can see in the picture of Temple 5 that the stairs are crumbling in some places, so separate wooden staircases/ladders have been built on the sides.  These staircases have seen better days and it's a goose bumpy experience to climb up and especially back down them.  But the views from the top are phenomenal.  Temple 4 was the tallest, at about 180 feet, but because it is still covered in jungle (except for the top) it's hard to fully appreciate its size and height. Temple 5 was my favorite because you can better appreciate just how high you are. 

Staircase to the Top of Temple 5 (When I got to the top of the first set of stairs, the railing came loose in my hands!  It was not a good way to start the climb.)

Tikal for me was like the denouement of the trip (where the story peaks and then afterward, you're resolving the loose ends and closing up).  Everything before it felt like I was working towards it, and everything after feels like I'm squeezing it in before it's too late and the story is over.  My expectations for Tikal were completely met, particularly when I stood at the top of Temple 5 looking over miles and miles of jungle, with ant-sized people at the temple's base, and vertigo setting in.