One of my favorite experiences during last year was a 5 days tour in the heart of the jungle on the Biosphere Maya Reserve, Guatemala.
I was traveling with a Portuguese friend, Madalena, after a long day trip from Semuc Champey we arrived to El Remate, a little town overlooking the lake of Peten Itzá. Both of us were interested in visiting a Mayan archaeological site, it was going to be the first time for both of us!!! We had listened a lot of people talking about their experiences in Tikal, one of the most famous archaeologic area of Mayan civilization located in north Guatemala. Going to Tikal means to take a bus in the morning from Flores (main city in Petén) arrive to the main entrance of Tikal Park, pay the entrance, admire and enjoy the ruins and in less then two hours go back to Flores. For us this sounded not so interesting. We were looking for something longer and authentic. We were disappointed about how touristic Tikal is and decided to undertake a tour out from the common touristic area.
The tour to El Mirador fit our case.
It consisted on a 5 days trek trough the tropical jungle visiting three of the Mayan cities: El Tintal, La Muerta, and El Mirador.
Excited for this adventure we couldn't sleep so much the night before the trip started, anyway we woke up full of energy to begin this journey.
The group of people was composed by Madalena, two Canadians, mother and daughter, and I. The tour started from Carmelita, a little community living in harmony with the forest all around, responsible of the conservation, protection, and management of the park.
Of course we didn't walked alone trough the jungle, a young local lady was the guide of this small group, together with a local man who was taking care of the mules caring the food and part of the camping gear.
I don't want to make a post describing the tour hour after hour like a travel "broucher" or like someone who wants to sell you this trip. This was just an introduction to explain how I arrived to this amazing place :-) .
I'm not use to look at pictures from places before I go there, because it takes a big percentage of the joy and wonder you get when you see something you've never seen before. But I could have never imagine a place like that. Most part of the ruins and temples located in the area were covered by trees and any kind of vegetation.
Sometimes it was hard to tell that there were ruins under the vegetation. But parts of some temples were recuperated and it was possible to climb them and reach the top.
I can remember the felling, after walking all day, contemplating the view from the top of the first big pyramid.
That view left me without words. All you can see is a huge flat jungle area and some little hills, under which other pyramids are. No sign of humans around! The pictures don't make justice to the beauty of this place.
If you think that long time ago a civilization was growing there, and the deforestation was one of the reasons why it disappeared, is impressive to see how natures takes back its place, covering all kinds of ruins.
Those days were literally a deep immersion in nature. I had the opportunity to see the most strange animal that I've ever seen in my life. The colors of this wild turkey blew my mind.
How to forget the interaction between us and the spider monkeys. Well, interaction...Basically they try to scare us away shaking the branches and yelling!!!
After 2 days walking we arrived at the biggest archaeologic area of the park, “El Mirador” that included 6 square miles. It was a unique experience. No other tourists walking around, no foreign noises, just us, the nature, and the mystic Mayan world.
It's hard to explain, even more in another language, how magic these days were. ( My first language is Italian)
Admiring the stars from the top of El Tigre, one of the two biggest pyramids, was unforgettable. The silence of the night was overwhelming, until the first light of the morning started lightening up the horizon. Silence ended with the animals waking sounds. The howler monkeys made themselves audible from different parts of the jungle. It was another wonderful moment. it was possible to feel the vibration of nature waking up.
Traveling in Guatemala gave me the possibility, not only to enjoy the beauty of nature, but also to realize how powerful and perfect it is. I understood the importance of complaining less, be grateful for all what we have and appreciate it.
I was sitting in the top of "La Danta" looking to the sunset, thinking about how touching was that moment and the need to write down a few words to capture this moment.
I've brought myself here, literally.
If I keep going ahead like I've done until now I could just collect more magic moments.
This place is incredible.
No photo or video can show the essence of all this.
You can hear sounds: first the wind, chorus of different animals voices in the background , all the birds singing,
the rustle of leaves caused by the monkeys among the trees, we have seen so many today...Even the sounds of the mosquitoes is now beautiful.
Here I can appreciate everything.
Here everything make sense and at the same time it lose it.
You raise up above your thoughts.
You see the trees from above, like a bird.
You look at the horizon.
Many huge horizons, they can fit everything inside.
The swallows never stop flying around us. Peace is tangible.
The sweat doesn't matters, the smell, the gopro without battery, the incompetence to take good photos, the only worry or sadness you can have here is about the time.
The clock is ticking and this sunset is gonna end soon.
I feel like crying. Everything is so mesmerizing. Alive. I can feeling it. It gives me emotions. I take this last ray of sunshine
and save it inside me. Right there, present. Like the red point that you keep seeing after watching the sun...
I want to enclose this moment in this words to be able to re-live it more times...
And then I'm gonna realize that I spent to much time writing.
All texts and photos are Original