The Ancient Maya

We visited two major archaeological sites- Tikal in Guatemala and Caracol in Belize. It's interesting that these two former capitals were at war so long ago, and now exist across the border between two nations still at odds. Our instructor's favorite question when we spoke about the Maya was: "Which Maya are you talking about?" It's easy to lump them together, but they are in fact several different people groups with their own languages and cultures. The three groups that exist in Belize today are the Qui'che, Mopan, and Yucatecan Maya. Some or none of these groups may be related to the Manche Chol- the original Mayan inhabitants of the area.

Tikal: July 5

Temple 1 (Ah Cacao) was our first spectacle, built in 695 to begin the Plaza Mayor. It is shown here with Montezuma Oropendola weaverbird nests.

Staircase on the backside of a building complex

Maya rainfrog - the only as of yet unidentified amphibian from my trip. My scientific resources for Guatemala are limited.

Here is the rarest bird we would see all trip- a Blue-Crowned Motmot (Momotus momota). Walking around on top of temples puts you right at canopy level, and provides an opportunity to view species you normally wouldn't get to see up close- including spider monkeys. Our instructor Colin was super excited to see this bird- and made sure we all were as well! It has beautiful blues and greens as well as tailfeathers adorned with special tips.

Temple 5 was our last stop; the stairladder to the top was very high and steep. We were certainly careful, as falling off has proved to be lethal. The ceremonial room is very apparent on this temple; it was blocked off by a chain-link fence.

The view from atop Temple 4 was spectacular- Temples 1 & 2 can be seen opposing one another at the Plaza Mayor, and you may recognize this from a few scenes in Star Wars. This is the tallest structure at Tikal, at a towering 230 feet.

Caracol: July 12

It might not look like it- but Caana (Sky Place) is still the tallest man-made structure in Belize at 143 feet. The highest terrace can just be seen in this picture.

South Acropolis

Here I am with a view back down the main pyramid- it was quite a climb as the stairs are each about 2 feet tall. This beautiful lavender flower was also growing near the top.