22/01/10 Camp 2 Tikal Park

I knew we had to walk today and after spending loads of time at Camp 1 I figured it obviously wouldn't be a long walk. 3 hours, a mere stroll in terms of yesterday, helped by the fact it was cooler today.

Camp 1 was a clearing in the jungle and had buildings, however, Camp 2 was much better. The only cover was a palm leaf shelter to sleep under. The tabel was sticks laid next to each other and tree's interupt our camp regularaly. Its brilliant!

Our guide found a tarantula, which in their Mayan language, Xinca, is called an "Am". It was put on Ben's leg and wouldn't let go of his jeans until our guide picked it up by a leg. He said it wouldn't bite us unless we bothered it, whilst flicking it!

22/01/10 El Zotz

Last night we slept in hammocks. It's much safer than it sounds, they could completely wrap around you. I slept really well until 4ish when I got cold. Yes, cold near the equator!

Yesterday another tour came in. An American called Ben and an Austrian called Alex. Fortunately they both fluent Spanish and are very kindly translating. However, I'm surprised by how much I understand due to words making sense or sounding similar.

We were also lead to a nearby cave and got to see the millions of bats fly out for the night. Despite their numbers it was over in about 30 seconds. Apparently they have a king bat that stays in the cave to protect it and when they get back they fly around it for half an hour before settling down.

This morning they cooked us pancakes for breakfast! Pancakes, in the Jungle! They even had maple syrup. I don't even get that at home!

Apparently the howler monkeys call out at 2-3am, and according to Mayan traditions they are calling to the gods for rain. Fortunately for me I slept through that. At the moment I can hear them calling in the distance. It's a ferocious sound. Imagine what it would be like for the first western settlers!

Also during the day the jungle is so quiet, but at night the noise is tremendous. I wish it was the other way around!

This morning we went to the lost temples in El Zotz. On the way our guide showed us all the medicine they got from the plants, sometimes Ben had to translate. He never seemed annoyed for which I'm very grateful.

We came across an ants nest which the guide hit to bring out the warrior ants, which were massive! He picked one up and let it crawl on him, then he passed it to Alex and it shortly bit him in between the fingers. It bled more than I expected. Ben let one bite his fingernail and wouldn't let go, eventually he pulled its body off!

Later on our guide explained a Mayan dance and asked if we wished to see it. Once we'd agreed he headed off and mentioned that the Mayans danced naked! Fortunately he cam back fully clothed and wearing a palm leave costume.

From the top of the second temple it is said you can see temple 4 of Tikal. So I expected it to be quite close. It wasn't! Off, far on the horizon you could just see the top of it!

21/01/10 Camp 1 El Zotz

We got up today and were driven to a community, who would be our guides for the trek to Tikal.

We walked for 6ish hours over 20km in 30C so unsurprisingly I'm exhausted! To rub it in one our 3 guides was about 10 and looked like he was walking to school! Plus two of our guides wore flip flops!

In hind sight I'm glad we have horses (or as Russell calls them "orses!") to take our packs as I would have totally destroyed!

The trek said we'd have a bilingual guide, if so he must not have been told. However, the language problem is nothing we haven't overcome with points and actions!

I'm too tired to know what to write, but its been a great day.

20/01/10 Flores

I started the day at 4am today. Only 4 nights I went to bed then!



We got into a tiny plane which only had 4 rows. It was a short journey, but I was fascinated by the terrain. Guatemala City was surrounded by mountainous hills. That is to say, hills that have a mountainous quality to them. It is built on flat ground, however, punctuating it in places are valleys without rivers, very random. Due to the hills, when you take off the city is blanketed by low lying cloud. As we progress north east, other area's, low lying enough, have their own cloud cover. Then it became flat with a barrier of hills between the rest and the plain, it almost looked man-made. When I say it was flat, it was compared to the hills before it, but really it looked level with bobbles on covering it, like an enlarged piece of sand-paper.



When we got to Flores it was beautiful, surrounding a lake.



Landing, the airport is tiny, very rural. I'm instantly in love. We leave the plane and walk across the airstrip, whilst another plane parks. The departure lounge is one room. There is no passport control as only national flights land here. So no grumpy men to meet us!



Baggage collection is a small ring conveyor belt leading outside. It could fit in a room in my house. They might as well have driven the suitcases in and let us get them ourselves.



To me this opitimises travel!



Our hotel is surrounded by more expensive ones, but we're only here for 2 nights so I really don't care.



The entire country reminds me of Turkey so far. They even have a similar viaduct over the road.



By 8am the heat is already proving itself. The sun is very strong and the air is very humid, any more so and I may as well be in the lake! I've just realised Emma would not enjoy this so far! =P

My only problem is I've already read 4/10 books and the journey home is 15 hours. Although its overnight so I may be able to sleep.

I'm looking forward to me shower and shave tonight.

19/01/10 Guatemala City

Our flight left at 12:05am, on time and 11 hours later landed at Guatemala an hour late. Therefore, our connection to Flores took off without us.

Currently we're in a hotel provided by Iberia and booked into the 6:30am flight tomorrow.

I'm shattered so over and out.

Here goes!

As the first few are boring and short I'm putting them up together.

18/01/10 Madrid

Due to my Fathers cautiousness at travel, due to his experience, and my willingness to let him be so he's happy, we left the house at 1pm today. In the taxi we made good time and got to Heathrow at 2:30pm. However, it is now I remember our flight doesn't board until 19:40! And of course you can't book in until 2 hours prior to then.

This was the first of my realisations of my Dad's travel insecurities; not my last that day either!

Our flight was delayed to 20:30 and when we got on it, it was practically empty.

At Madrid we had a shuttle service to the hotel but weren't told where to find it. I was happy to go with the first airport assistants advise but Dad had to ask 3 more people, who unsurprisingly all said the same thing! =O

Sleep for me, Guatemala awaits.

Start

I'm going to make this page a journal of all my travels.
I've just gone to Guatemala for a week followed by 6 weeks in Costa Rica on a surf trip.
This will be the first of many travels and I wish to eventually document them all on here!
I'm going to add an entry from my travel journal a day, I didn't write everyday so you won't have to wait for 7 weeks to get them all!

Hope you enjoy reading them half as much as I enjoyed doing them!