Road-trip


We first met Jeannie & Bob (Island Dreamin') in the San Blas islands in 2011.  In addition to sharing relaxing yoga sessions on the beach at the "Pool" & West Cocos, even more memorable was Jeannie's burrito pie recipe from a certain potluck.  This has, in fact, become a staple dish on Reach and Kaya ever since!


Unexpectedly running into Jeannie & Bob two years later in the Rio, we jumped at the chance to join them and Lenny & Sue (Windancer) on a trip to Tikal with a few stops along the way.  One of the main reasons we came to Guatemala was to travel inland and Tikal is one of the most impressive Mayan ruins in the Yucatan peninsula.  







Our first stop was in El Remate, a small village where pigs and dogs can be found crossing the streets.  



We settled into our first happy hour of vacation with drinks delivered via zip-line from the bar to a scenic overlook.


Try to relax, guys!




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The next day we entered the park in Tikal and stayed at the Tikal Inn for two nights.  It was worth staying at a bungalow in the park to be able to walk the grounds at our leisure and not just with a tour.  Besides extensive trails with ruins, there is abundant wildlife here in the form of coatimundi, spider monkeys, ocellated turkeys, and a purported elusive jaguar.  




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To top off our stay in Tikal, it was here that we celebrated Jeannie's birthday with Lenny mixing the drinks! 






Our next stop was Flores, a touristic island with plenty of hotels, restaurants and shops within a short walking distance.  


It takes all of 15 minutes to circumnavigate the island, unless you stop in all of the artisan stores!


We came to discover that Guatemala is renowned for its jade.  The stones are very heavy and also have an broad array of colors.  


Not only do you find the dark jade greens expected, but there are lighter, marbled greens and lavender jade stones unique to here.









After an Argentinan steakhouse dinner (what is a vacation without lots of filling meals?!), we tucked into bed to rest up for our next stop at Finca Ixobel.  










Located in the hills of Poptún, the air was cool and fresh and walking trails called to us to stretch our legs.  This visit happened to fall on Lenny & Sue's anniversary!







Mark & I are low-maintenance travelers (or so we like to think), but on this trip we had a few issues.  



Apparently, we are still fresh meat for those virulent bugs that don't reach us out at anchor.  



So now, back in the masses, Michele caught a terrible 12 hr flu that made her miss the sunrise tour in Tikal in favor of gods of the porcelain-type.    








Now it was Mark's turn to be sick and he was laid-up with a terrible fever for two days, missing the Naj Tunich cave tour.  




One of the most relaxing parts of our trip was that we traveled in-style.  While embarking on each leg, we pre-arranged private buses or collectivos to pick us up and take us to the next stop for door-to-door service.  


Prices were reasonable and ranged between $7-25pp, the latter for the longest leg of a 4 hr trip.  It was worth it; we were on vacation!




© M&M 2019