TIKAL - Stunning remains of a Mayan city state.
After an interesting border crossing and three hour drive into Guatemala, we met our guide, Louis, an energetic and knowledgeable retired accountant, who now made a good living showing travellers around Tikal. We soon discovered that he was a very well respected Tikal guide and we were lucky to have him all to ourselves for the day. The point was brought home when we came across guides around the park with twenty or so attention seeking tourists to look after!
Lucky too that Louis happened to be a keen naturalist and eager to show us some of the wildlife of Tikal's pristine rain forest when he found out I was a photographer. He worked out an itinerary for us, maximising our chances of spotting wildlife and minimising the number of fellow tourists we would see - all good stuff. First off, after the essential look at the visitors centre and a visit to a local cantina to book a late chicken lunch, we headed for some small lakes with interesting signage:
With his ancient binoculars, Louis spotted a female croc amongst the reeds nursing seven strangely cute, grinning babies on her back. I managed to fire off some reasonable shots but all against the light and obscured to some extent by the reed stems. I would have liked to have got closer, preferably from the other side of the lake but that didn't seem possible and besides, she had a very large mouth and very sharp teeth and, like most mothers, female crocs get very protective!
Louis reckoned the mother would have chased the male out of the pond when the eggs were laid, because although a female croc makes a caring parent, males have no parental instinct and look upon their offspring as nothing more than a tasty snack. So for sake of the kids, dad has to go!
'Don't mess with mamma'
In the next pond, the surface covered by water hyacinth, a turtle the size of a dinner plate, basked motionless in the sun.
Whilst on the banks, a small party of colourful Grey-necked Wood Rails wandered right by us, as if oblivious to our presence.
So in the first half hour or so, Louis had delighted us by finding some very interesting animals. If things carried on this way, we might not have time to see much in the way of ruins but luckily (?) things calmed down as we walked from the lakes!
The first temple we came across was Temple V. As you can see from the steps on the left, it's a steep climb to the observation platform at the top but the view from up there over the forest canopy made it worth the effort.
Temple V. The steps are much steeper than they look in this wideangle view. Below is Jos carefully picking her way down, always trickier than going up. Apparently lots of people have been injured doing this, at least one fatally, but Jos didn't know that at the time!
This view of the corner of a Temple shows the pyramid's massive limestone construction.
The next major series of temples was in the 'Lost World' complex, a series of recently excavated plazas and temples, some still partly shrouded in tree roots.
Pyramid in the 'Lost World' complex.
Temple IV, the tallest in Tikal at 64 metres, was the next to climb, with spectacular views over the forest canopy from the top chamber. As well as their symbolic functions of power and religion, these temples were built to observe the motion of the stars and the planets, to reinforce the sophisticated and remarkably accurate Mayan calendar.
T4 was built around 741 AD and it is a tribute to its builders and architects that the structure remains in such a good state and amazing to think that such a colossal building could be 'lost' for centuries, swallowed up by the jungle. But the fact is, all the structures visible today were completely covered by vegetation up to the middle of last century and have been painstakingly restored over decades to something resembling their original state.
Looking out from the top chamber of Temple IV, you have a commanding view over Tikal National Park and the landscape beyond.
Temple III from the same viewpoint on Temple IV as above.
The highlight of any visit to Tikal has to be the Great Plaza, the ancient centre of ceremonial activity in the city for a thousand years. And whereas most visitors see the GP first, our wily guide took us to it last, in the mid-afternoon, when most of the day's tourists were on their way back to Tikal's landing strip for the flight home. So there were only maybe half a dozen people in the entire space, allowing us to soak up the wonderful positive atmosphere of the place. It is one of the great spaces of the world, yet with an 'otherworldness' about it. Easy to see why it was chosen for the film Star Wars to represent another planet.
Jos and Louis approaching the steps to the Great Plaza.
The eastern end of the Plaza is formed by the well proportioned Temple I, overlooking a level grassed area about the size of a football field. The space is dotted with stelae and circular altars carved with images of Tikal's ruling elite.
Temple I from the observation room of Temple II, our third climb of the day.
The North Acropolis
The North Acropolis dominates one side of the Great Plaza. It is a hugely complex structure consisting of layer upon layer of successive structures, each one built to cover the last. There are about a hundred structures beneath the present twelve temples.
Temple I, dominating the Great Plaza, is emblematic of Tikal.
Temple I and skyscape from Temple II.
After five hours and something like four miles of walking around just a few of Tikal's treasures and a glimpse of its wildlife, we headed back to the cantina where, as Louis said, we 'had a date with a piece of chicken' (delicious it was too!).
Later outside the cantina, I was photographing a wonderful bird, the Oropendula (not a wonderful photograph though) when Louis spotted a troup of Coatimundi foraging in the undergrowth near the road. Their proper name is 'Southern ring-tailed Coati' but none of this group had ringed tails. They were lovely to photograph though, in the dim light of the forest and made a satisfying end to our Tikal trip.
No jaguars, but a troop of coatimundi round the day off nicely.
Tikal is a huge site covering around thirty square kilometers of city ruins, only a fraction of which have been teased from the clutches of the jungle. Jos and I only had a small taste of Tikal and less than that of Guatemala but we both thought it would be good to come back when we had more time to explore. Ah! so much to see, so little time!
Have a look at the Tikal website if you want more information at:
http://www.tikalpark.com/acropolis.htm
and if you're interested in staying at Ek Tun, see Phyllis Lane's website at:
and thanks to Louis.
'El guido'
Best regards, Steve.
