Flores and Quirigua

Solomon, our smiley guy


Neftali snacking on a delicious mango


One of the peaceful places around the border of Lake Peten Itza. These are shaded washing stones that the women use to wash clothes.


The backside of our hotel in Flores, and the beach where we cooled of. This is also Lake Peten Itza.


Lake Peten Itza


Quirigua temple ruins


The ceiba tree, the national tree of Guatemala


Approaching the temple


The ancient carved stones sprinkled throughout the park



On our way home from Tikal, we stopped for the night in the town of Flores. It is a small island surrounded by Lake Peten Itza. I love this town! It is definitely one of my favorites so far, and the lake is the most beautiful, CLEAN lake. We found an adorable little hotel right on the border of the lake. The streets, like all of the streets throughout Guate (except maybe in the capital) are extremely narrow. Once we deposited our things in the room, we set out to find food. Flores was a comfortable, friendly town. I felt right at home. The food was good - I had fried fish, of course. Just before dinner we had taken a swim in the lake right outside our room. Perfect! I wasn't quite ready to leave when morning came around.

There are many ruins sprinkled throughout this fascinating country. Another site is known as "Quirigua." I'm not sure of the history of this site, except that there are likely many ruins that were stolen by during the time of the 36-year war that ravaged Guatemala. We were still able to walk through the park - MUCH smaller than Tikal - and enjoy the history presented by the towering carved stones and the temple site.