Welcome to the jungle !

After the utter blue skies in San Cristobal, I thought that the Mexican weather was finally turning into the right direction, but nothing was less true! My hopes got washed away in relentless downpours all the way to Guatemala, which made the 3 day journey a very sweaty, wet and muggy affair. Luckily, the abondant mosquitos apparently didn't like too much my blood, so I didn't get eaten up like some of my fellow travellers were. Next to that, my emergency stash of 100$ that I had 'hidden safely' in my backpack got stolen, probably in one of the hotel rooms in Chiapas. If I have to believe other people's stories, I have been very lucky uptil now, lots got their camera stolen or even worse passports and all their money. So knock on wood!! Maybe it's all part of it, some even say you just have to expect to get robbed, makes it easier to cope with. Oh well, one Mexican got a very fat Reyes Magos (Spanish-Latino Saint-Nicolas, on Jan 6th) treat from this guy! But hey, no time to be grumpy, because the trip I had sweating through jungle, awing at some more Maya sites - with Tikal in Guatemala to top it all - and crossing rivers was more than worth it. The jungle road into Guatemala was a real adventure just up to a couple of years ago, but with the paving of the road on the Mexican side, things have gotten a lot easier. And for some reason, a jungle environment makes me get out of bed at 6 am and gives me energy to do tons of things and cover lots of terrain. For the lovers of Maya culture, I'd sure recommend Palenque : it would fit right in in the jungle version of Lord of the Rings. I could easily spend a day just sitting there looking at it. But top of the bill for me surely was Tikal, after arriving here in Guatemala. Whereas most people try to do it all in one day, I took my hammock and camped overnight at the site (under a full moon), spent two days walking around and made it with my flashlight to the top of Temple IV for the sunrise at 6 am. Amazing! At the first ray of sunlight, the howler monkeys down in the canopy started a morning wake up call that would fit right for a soundcheck of the newest THX cinema surround system. I made the top with two barefooted Spanish guys who had brought candles and started meditating. I didn't feel their energy flow, but mine was certainly a positive one! Arriving in Guatemala certainly was an experience as well : we're done with Mexican aircon busses and paved roads (the 4 hour drive in an old US school bus from the border to Flores was very comfortable!), but also with expensive hotels (check El Mirador del Lago in Flores, 5$ for a room with a lake view and roof terrace!) and pricey food. Getting around here for less than 25$ a day is no problemo! And Flores hosted a 5 day beer festival when we got here, in a happy chaos (which sometimes seems to be the trademark of Guatemala), so no complaints there! Guatemala also apparently attracts the more extrovert and cool backpackers (and lots of Australians, with the weirdest stories and always walking around like they're on the beach), so the last few days have been a good laugh. After visiting 7 Maya sites in less than a month, and covering more than 2000 km in Mexico, I think I am going to take it very easy the next couple of weeks and take up some of my 'time credit' here, hehe. Since my back is still not 100% from the horseback riding and many bus rides, I am paying myself the luxery of flying in 35 min to Guatemala City, instead of taking the 12h bumpy chicken nightbus. After that, it's direction Antigua and Lago de Atitlan, where I'll be dipping my feet in some more Spanish salsa and language lessons. And just chill and relax until I feel it's time to move on again.So up to the next report, take care in the New Year and many happy trails (in the shopping malls hehe)! ¡Hasta luego!