Day 19: Tikal, the village of Uaxactun village & Uaxactun - Friday November 26, 2010

5:30: It was so early that we asked our guide Luis Olivera to drive our car to the site. What a great idea! He was quite amused off road driving the Porsche Cayenne Turbo. The car was pleased to finally put its extreme traction mechanisms into play going up a partly washed out dirt road.

There were three parts to the day:

Tikal was magic. After an 800 foot, steep, climb up the highest temple, we watched the top of the ancient city appear out of heavy fog above the jungle canopy. We climbed another 3 high temples at the ancient central plaza. I bet that like today, the central plaza was mostly the city’s central market. I imagine that the system had portable stalls that were removed during public occasions. Luis was an excellent guide. He knew his archeology and Maya history. Having lived in the area his entire life, he also was good on Maya healing medicines, the fauna & flora, and contemporary Maya beliefs and practices. Luis led us into listening to the jungle. We particularly enjoyed the Howler Monkey territorial howls and the flock of beautiful wild turkeys roaming around.

By 11:45, we off-roaded 23 KM to Uaxactun (“Wash-acton”) – a living Maya village right next to the ruins. We had a delicious lunch: Paka (a giant relative of the Guinea pig -- tastes like mild pork), a different re-fried bean paste, hand tossed tortillas, ceviched Habanero chilies & onions, and salad & rice. The ladies were pleased that, in a village as remote as this, the toilets were clean, had running water and the toilets flushed.

The ancient Uaxactun next door is in the early stages of being uncovered and development. We were the only visitors today for a 2-hour visit. The climbs were thankfully short, we were happy tired and fully recreated.

We are scheduled for 7:30 departure tomorrow to another living Maya village next door to a major site.