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Day 13 Uaxactún: Town and Ruins
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Day 14 Last Day in Tikal

Into Guatemala 1989 [Part 7 of 11 Parts]

Jo
2004-03-05 22:59:29

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but thanks to my net, their incessant buzzing actually lullabied me to a good sleep each night.

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[Photo 9]

In the morning, the photographer is photographed

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Early mornings at Tikal were surprisingly cool, even during summer (when we visited). Blankets were not part of our preparations, but I wrapped myself with a towel for a similar effect. In crazy contrast, the late mornings and afternoons were episodes in a steam bath. Tikal's location in the interior of the country probably accounts for this "continental" effect.

After around 9 AM, the temperature would quickly rise. To cool off, we took showers at a nearby communal bathroom that also doubled as a laundry. Lacking the latest in washing machine technology, we simply soaked our clothes in a water and body soap solution, then left them on the grass to dry.

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[Photo 10]

A view of the main plaza and its two pyramids from atop Temple 4.

We spent the last day exploring the more remote ruins of this sprawling ancient city. Between groups of ruins, it was usually a fifteen- or twenty-minute walk through ample but hair-raising jungle trails. Along one path, we witnessed a rare and fearsome sight: a terrible bivouac of ants that completely covered the forest floor.

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[Photo 11]

No stone steps, but only a ladder, lead to the apex of Temple 4. (At 229 feet, this pyramid is the tallest in the Maya world.) The mound of earth still covering much of the unrestored temple helps preserve it from the ravages of its rainforest environment.

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[Photo 12]

My charming companion Madjid gets a free tour of the ruins from a female guide he had befriended. He poses beside a building which appears to have been destroyed by fire-- not the fire of romance, to be sure, but of the less dangerous kind.