Mayan Ruins and Sweet Rivers

Not too long after the last skit ended on Saturday, May 12, did Connor, Casey, and I mount a bus for a long, twisty, turn bus ride to Guatemala City, and straight onwards to Flores, in the northern province of Peten. Justin had already left on Thursday to pick up his old friend Sam Harvey from the Guatemala City Airport. Sam, who was then between jobs, wanted to spend a few days adventuring with us before he jumped back into the real world. After a night in the monastery in Cobán, Sam and Justin headed up to Flores on Sunday, too, and we met them there at a nice, relatively inexpensive hostel. The journey was long and quite miserable, but it felt like quite the sense of accomplishment to have made it to Flores at  around 4:00pm when we had left Huehuetenango at 11:10pm the night before. By the time Justin and Sam arrived in Flores, we had booked rooms and a bus out to Tikal, the most famous of all Guatemala's Mayan Ruin sites. A few tasty nightcaps put us right to bed before an early 5:00am bus pick-up.

Connor, Sam, Justin

Just hangin' around

Our bus rolled into Tikal's National Park at around 6:30a.m. and we did not depart until 3:00p.m. later that day. The site was massive, including several dozen temples that all adorned "Do Not Climb" signs… which were set out in vain, so it seems. We saw plenty of strange wildlife, massive temples, and even a few hieroglyphs. While Justin, Connor, and Sam climbed almost every temple in site, Casey and I got a bit tired and uninterested in climbing (it was kind of repetitive!), so we took pictures of them racing up the temples. Regardless, I'm very glad I went to see them. I was talking to one of the park employees, and he was explaining that during the new year they expect several thousand people to visit, camp-out, and party. Whoosh! What a way to spend the end of the world. Check out the pictures from the park above and below….

View from the top of Temple IV (also used in Star War's "A New Hope")

Strange Turkey

We arrived back in Flores at 4:00p.m. After a quick dinner by the lake, we all huddled in a taxi to catch a bus to Rio Dulce, a gorgeous warm, tropical climate near the Caribbean side of Guatemala. The bus ride took about 3 hours, and just as we were pulling into Rio Dulce, the tropical rain took a turn for the worst. Thankfully, we met a really nice, young Canadian sailor on the bus who was parked up in Rio Dulce with his Dad; he gave us the name of a place (Bruno's) that was right off the road when we came into town. We occupied a majority of their dormitory for a measly $5 a night… free internet. It was a great find!

The next day we covered another great set items from a Guatemalan tourist's checklist. In the morning, we toured a small Spanish castle, several times raided by pirates and once used as a prison for evildoers in the days of old. After enduring more tropical rain and enjoying our mid-morning snack of a 70 cent Brahva cerveza, we headed towards "Finca del Paraiso," a natural thermal pool featuring a beautiful waterfall off the beaten trail. When we visited, there were only locals enjoying the varying degrees of the pool's temperatures. After sticking around for awhile, the locals began to rub a certain kind of mud all over their bodies. They would let the mud dry, then jump in and wash it off.

I claimed to our group that they were exfoliating their skin (I, of course, had no clue what I was talking about). Regardless, we all eventually tried this "therapeutic" mud-caking procedure. While I will admit that my skin did feel more smooth after the process, I'll never know for sure if this group of locals was just making fools of the American tourists…

We ended our fantastic day with a meal at Bruno's, or lodging which also coincidentally had the best food in town. Quite a few beers helped us sleep soundly that night. Justin and Sam rose early for the airport the next morning, while Connor, Casey, and I took a boat down the Rio Dulce to Livingston. The boat ride included a stop at a very nice hot spring, as well as beautiful views of the Rio Dulce (means "sweet river"). We almost forgot that it was rainy season… until a tropical storm hit us right before we arrived in Livingston. After watching the rain come down beneath a thatched roof restaurant, Casey and I bid farewell to Connor before heading across the bay to Puerto Barrios. 

The boat ride to Puerto Barrios may as well had been an open-window submarine trip. We were soaked by the storm still brewing over Guatemalan's coast; fortunately, we had the proper rain gear, including on our bags. Casey and I caught the same bus, and I jumped off at El Rancho while she went onwards to Guatemala City and, eventually, home. Casey's departure was sad but right, and it reminded me that my time to depart is nearing. Casey was an awesome travel partner, and I've promised to make it out to the Oregon State Fair (or something of the sort). I know that someday in my travels I'll find myself there. Farewell, Casey, and thank you for all the great times!