El Remate & Tikal / Guatemala

Mon, 17.2 - Wed, 19.2

After crossing the border river, a nearly 5-hour bus ride, and another half-hour bus ride, I arrived in the village of El Remate on Lake Petén Itzá. Right after arriving, I took a dip in the lake, as it is already very hot here.

The next day, I walked to the Cerro Cahuí nature reserve at the other end of the village and took the 6 km long hike to 3 viewpoints. Luckily, there was also lake access here, because after the hike, I was drenched in sweat from head to toe.

The main attraction in this area is Tikal, which was one of the most powerful Mayan sites until the 9th century. I was already there at 7:15 a.m. to avoid the crowds, but the area with its 16 km of hiking trails is so extensive that everything gets lost, and I was mostly alone at the more remote ruins. Many temples have not yet been excavated and restored, so mounds of earth and an information board often indicate a temple. There are 6 large temples, but you can only climb 3 of them. In return, I climbed every building and every set of stairs I could find. After about 7 hours of walking and climbing stairs, I was already exhausted (compared to all other ruins, where I saw everything in about 2 hours), and after arriving at the hostel, I immediately went back to the lake for a swim. The next day, I continued to the island of Flores.