We knew the trip north from Atilan to Tikal was going to be a trip.  And it didnt disappoint.

Again we went through the mountains to return to Antigua (just enough time to buy some sweet bread) and continue on to Guatemala City through the rain and the night.  The roads in Guatemala City were such that at one point we hit an unexpected pot hole and had to evacuate the bus in order to lighten the load and continue.  It was late and there were few people on the street, up to their own Friday night activities and looked at us with amusement.

Our destination in Guate City was a bus station, but not any bus station, the luxery bus station.  We forked up the extra $10pp for the 1st class ticket to Flores, an eight hour drive from the capital.  It was money well spent.  Its the difference between a Greyhound bus to something closer to an Amtrak train.  The seats reclined more fully and even had a leg rest that reached down to accomodate taller travellers.  And here in Central America, we are all tall.  The best part, for me, was that the bus was a double decker, my first experience.  It didn't come to much as I slept the whole of the trip with the help of my trusty eye mask, ear plugs, and fleece blanket.  Yes, the buses were air conditioned.

Arriving into anywhere at 5am isn't recommended but we had no choice and were at the steps of Doña Goya in Flores at the crack of dawn.  The attendant was initially hesitant to let us in, he had no room he said.  We asked about this coming night, oh yes maybe there will be room then.  With Coco's confident Spanish we were able to store our bags in the kitchen and head out to the Tikal Ruins, the sight of the Mayans largest city.  On our return to the hostel, we would be told that there were only two beds and then figure out that two beds meant two bunk beds and thus be all settled for the night.

Tikal took my breath away and made me jump like a little kid.  The latitude we were given as tourists to touch and to climb was unbelievable.  The towers and pyramids left standing were surreal, were humbling, were left over from something that you know is big and serious and powerful.  We toured, climbed and stood in awe of the ruins, eating up the stories our guide supplied us with.  It was everything I was looking forward to and more.