From Sayaxché I’ve headed further north, close to Tikal – the Guatemalan landmark Mayan ruins.
There are a couple of nice places to stay by the lake Petén Itza. Flores, for instance, is a little village in an island in the lake. It has some charm, but it’s also the most popular base for tourists visiting Tikal and suffers a bit from that, so I decided to stay in El Remate instead. The place is just a few houses splattered along the road by the lake, and it’s a great spot to just relax and swim.
It’s Semana Santa, so plenty of Guatemalans are staying here for their holidays. It’s nice to see some local tourism for a change…
Tikal is rightly a must-see in Guatemala. Even if the ruins are not so richly carved (this is no way Angkor Wat…), the complex is huge and many of the buildings are in ok-ish state, so you can really get a feel for how this ceremonial site must have been like in the 1000s.
The area is so huge that absorbs well the crowds and you don’t see that many people – at least if you start early, as at lunch time the park gets crowded by Guatemalans on their Semana Santa break, who come here to pic-nic…
When you climb the highest pyramids the only thing you see is tropical forest, all around. Plenty of animal life too, especially monkeys. One of the species sounds like a lion when they’re calling each other. Incredible sound coming out of something so small…
The lake in Flores
Football-playing horses in El Remate, and then sun-set _
Tikal's central plaza
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Tikal's central plaza_ 
Forest canopy, all around
Damn it - a great moment, but a poor photo...
Forest canopy, all around_
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Damn it - a great moment, but a poor photo... _
The video doesn't capture the sound too well, but believe me: they sound really strong, just like a lion
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