Saturday, January 2, 2016

Vacation to Central America (continued)

 This was our room at the Villa Maya Hotel near Tikal.
 This is the view of the lake from our veranda.
 After breakfast we fed this little crocodile who was waiting patiently for us to throw our breakfast rolls into the water.
 He wasn't very big, but those teeth looked like they could do some damage!

 My brother and I went for a walk along the lake.
 We snapped a few pictures of these scarlet macaws.

 A termite nest
 A charming little kiosk on the lake where we sat and watched a belted kingfisher, another life bird for me :-)
 My brother Chris and I watched this little guy RUN at high speed across the surface of the water!
 Neotropic cormorant
 Beautiful Lake Peten near Flores, Guatemala
 Our guide picked up this nasty looking beetle in the parking lot at Tikal! At least it was not alive!
 The ruins at Tikal were spectacular!
 The bark of some of the trees was beautiful.
 A spider monkey

 Bev (It was VERY hot and humid!


There were several ocellated turkeys that ran around the grounds

They were pretty strange looking!

 There were interesting earthen works built up around the ruins

 Bev
 Chris and Bill
 Bill
 Looking out over the ruins

 Just as we were leaving the skies were threatening rain.

Our flight to Guatemala City



 There are many volcanoes in the area, some of them still active.

After settling into our hotel in Guatemala City, we made a trip to the beautiful Guatemala Temple.








 Temple president






 We visited Kaminaljuyu, ruins excavated by the University of Pennsylvania. These ruins date back to Book of Mormon times and are believed to be the first City of Nephi.


 Native Mayas come to this site to make ceremonial offerings.
 We visited the city of Antigua, the old capital of Guatemala.

 A beautiful native woman selling her wares


 One can buy very high quality jade jewelry
 Young women selling on the street
 San Francisco Church in Antigua



 Horse and cart
 Chris and Bill
 People of Antigua

 
 We ate at a delightful little restaurant there.
 We climbed the stairs and took pictures looking down on the restaurant below.


 Spices and desserts

 Bill
 Amazing food
 Some things sold on the street

 Many natives sold on the streets
 This is called a "chicken bus"


 We enjoyed breakfast in Guatemala City at our hotel.


 Lovely selections

 Tortillas made from maize

 The hotel room was very comfortable


 We made a trip to Lake Atitlan and enjoyed the countryside and towns along the way.


 This is how they enjoy their pineapple :-).
 We were fortunate to come on market day. It was a visual feast.

 The people were delightful!




 We saw Spanish influence in a lot of the architecture.
 A colorful cemetery
 Our first glimpse of beautiful Lake Atitlan with its surrounding volcanoes

 We had a very relaxing boat trip on the lake.
 Bill

 Becky and Bill

 Pristine waters of the lake
 We had our own shopping experience on the boat :-). Two native women brought their woven items for us to look at.
 Chris and Bev

 We shopped at the lakeside village before leaving the area.


As we were leaving we could see a bank of fog rolling over the lake. It was a beautiful site, and we knew we would never forget this beautiful country and its humble people. How I would love to go back again!

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