Guatemala getaway

My sojourn to Guatemala a few summers ago was rehashed recently when I met up with Hyatt’s Abel Nolasco, who was born in the vicinity of this magnificent country.

Over sparkling champagne and rockefeller oysters at the Al Fresco, we traveled down memory lane.

Guatemala is the northernmost country in Central America bordered in the north and west by Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, the Carribean in the east, and Pacific Ocean in the south. With impeccable weather all year round with an average temperature of 20 degrees, it is a natural paradise with a wide variety of landscapes – from the tropical rainforests to volcanoes and highlands, to the tropical beaches of the Pacific Ocean and the Carribean Sea.

Abel asked what my favorite spots in Guatemala were. Without hesitation, I said, "Atitlan, which is perhaps the most beautiful lake of the world."

This breathtaking lake is surrounded by volcanoes, Indian villages, markets, fairs, festivals and dances that reflect Guatemala today. Antigua Guatemala, a historical relic with its colonial architecture and cobblestoned streets laid out in a checkerboard urban design, is a monument city that has survived two earthquakes. Today, it is a living city, visited by thousands of tourists every day and features all the services of a modern city.

A major attraction is the Chichicastenango, which in addition to its famous market, is one of the most fascinating spectacles that takes place inside the Santo Tomas Church.

Here, time comes to a halt and retreats some 300 years, when Catholicism and the world of pagan prayers and rites coexisted.

From Guatemala City, the capital of Guatemala, we took a 30-minute flight to the magnificent Tikal National Park in Peten. Chronicled in stone is one of the world’s longest-lived civilizations, a host of Maya ruins stretches from the scrubland of the Yucatan peninsula through the forests of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Spanning only a portion of the Mayas’ history, the 2,000 years they built with stone, the structures display a diverse architecture that remains a constant wonder.

Tikal National Park was instituted in May 1995. UNESCO declared Tikal as a cultural treasure of humanity in 1979 because of its unequaled value of gathering endless cultural and national resources.

The whole park has a total area of 576 square kilometers where almost 4,000 different structures are located. The first signs of occupation date back to 800 BC, during the Middle Pre-Classic period. The last buildings found are from the Late Classic period (900 AD). These 1,500 consecutive years of occupation led to a high cultural, artistic, architectural, urban, mathematical, astronomical, agricultural and commercial development. Because of this, the park caused international scientific admiration and interest.

Among the thousands of structures found inside the park, the plazas are a sight to behold. The Great Plaza forms the epicenter of all sites and is framed within the most spectacular aspects of the architectural ensemble in Tikal, as a final result of more than a millennium of construction activities. The Great Pyramid Plaza, also called the Lost World, is located 300 meters to the southwest of the Great Plaza. It contains the oldest building in Tikal called Great Pyramid which is approximately 35 meters high and forms a complex dedicated to astronomy.

The Plaza of the Seven Temples comes next. It is formed by a series of ceremonial buildings from the late Classic period. These include a triple set of ballgame courts, seven small temples, and a magnificent ceremonial building.

At the park can be found several temples, too. These temples were constructed during the Late Classic period.

The Gran Jaguar Temple measures 45 meters in height. It was built around 700 AD by its ruler Ah Cacao, whose tomb can still be found inside the Great Pyramid Plaza. Another temple built by Cacao was the Temple of the Masks (38 meters high).

The Temple of the Great Priest is almost 500 meters high and was built around 810 AD. It has a wooden carved threshold with a central character wearing jaguar skins.

The Temple of the Two-headed Serpent is the tallest structure in Tikal (65 meters). Visitors to the park can climb to the top of the pyramid and see a magnificent and beautiful view of Tikal. The longest hieroglyphic scripture of Tikal can be found at the Temple of the Inscriptions.

Our fond memories of Guatemala continue to flow in our minds as we pour more wine into our glasses. The champagne was crisp and cold but the memories of Guatemala were more than enough to keep us warm inside. To Guatemala, we vow to return.

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E-mail me at miladay@i manila.com.ph.