Three countries in three days

Tikal

We are now in Guatemala, camping in the world famous Maya site of Tikal, in the middle of the rain forest. Tikal is the most beautiful Maya site we have visited. It is huge and covered by forest. We walk under the canopy in the shade and here and then we come across a pyramid or a palace in ruins. Simply gorgeous, and surprisingly deserted, which is absolutely fine with us. I am wondering why there are so few tourists. True, Tikal is a bit remote, lost in the forest and relatively far from big cities. But summer vacation has started and Guatemala is safe, welcoming and friendly. We left Mexico for Belize last Thursday, stayed two days in Belize and crossed the border to Guatemala on Saturday. Crossing borders is pretty straightforward, it takes roughly one hour, the delay mainly due to the fact that we have to fill paperwork for importing our vehicle each time… A bit cumbersome but far easier than, say, crossing a border in West Africa… Mexico, Belize, Guatemala: three neighbouring countries, but a world apart from each other. Belize is very Caribbean, particularly on the coast; in the highlands it is very British kind of, with tidy colourful houses and trimmed lawns, really cute. I got a haircut in Belize City, I really needed it. Béatrice had a pedicure while Xénia was watching a world cup game. And then Guatemala. We have not seen much of it yet, but we like it already. Our travel guide says that if we liked Chiapas in Mexico, we will love Guatemala, and actually Chiapas was our favorite in Mexico, so let’s see!