Sunday 6 January 2013
Highlights: Boat ride around Flores
During the night I woke many times to some very noisy late night / early morning fireworks. I later found out this was the last day of Christmas celebrations. The weather wasn’t ideal either today with it raining on an off during the day.
This didn’t stop me walking down to the riverside to enjoy a boat ride around the island in Flores. The weather turned bad during the boat ride back however I still got to learn the history of this place without getting wet.
This was the last Mayan stronghold and didn’t fall to the Spanish until 1597 and is located on Lake Petén Itzá. The last fight was won by superior weaponry, guns versus arrows but the Mayans destroyed most of the supplies of the island making it a hollow victory.
At 11.30 am we gathered for our private van transfer to Río Dulce. Just before we left there was a march to celebrate the last day of Christmas celebrations. Despite the drenching rain the band and performers seemed in great spirits.
Our van trip took over 4 hours and we arrived around 4.30 pm and from here transferred to a water taxi to get to our accommodation for the next two nights the Tijax Ecological Lodge, another stay in a place focused on nature. Something I found when I had an encounter with a huge spider in my cabin which I lost sight of, this made sleeping during night a little problematic!
Nathan's Insights 