Guatemala ~ Land of the Maya by Bonna L. Nelson
Over a 2,500 year period ... the Maya grew into a vast and powerful civilization of astonishing sophistication. ~ Linda Schele and Peter Matthews, The Code of Kings Our trip began with quite a rocky start. We weren’t sure if we would ever get to Guatemala. Due to an accident at the Guatemala airport, our f light was redirected to land in El Salvador. After a few-hour layover there, we were returned to Atlanta, Georgia. When we told our fellow travelers that we had the same thing happen to us last year on our trip to Honduras, they jok ing ly pretended to shun us. For tunately, Delta A irlines and Caravan, our tour company, took good care of us. The next day, we f lew back to Guatemala and, still in our travel clothes from the previous day, we hopped on a bus to tour Guatemala Cit y. Travel sometimes requires patience and stamina. T he G u ate m a l a n e x p e r ie nc e was ably arranged for us by Barbie Smith of Smith Travel Services in Easton. Barbie recommended Caravan, a company with 65 years of experience planning tours primarily in North and Central America. Top notch! Caravan Tours hosted our explo-
ration to discover more about Maya history and culture and Guatemala. The country is home to the largest population of Maya in the world, w it h b e aut i f u l a nd welc om i ng people, amazing Maya pyramids and temples, Spanish colonial cities, glorious blue-green lakes, smoldering volcanoes, lush rainforests filled with monkeys and birds, and fourand five-star hotels and restaurants. Jane Henwood de Garcia, a British lady married to a Guatemalan gentleman, brilliantly and humorously led our group of well-traveled A mer ic an and Canadian globe trotters. She made the trip a joy with her passion for her adopted country, her sensitivity to travelers’ needs, and her ability to overcome any obstacle with grace. Jane met us when the flight arrived late and held up the tour for our group. Museo Popol Vuh Museum, our first stop, contained Maya antiquities from archeological sites in Guatemala. Considered one of the most important collections of Maya art in the world, it houses impressive vases, bowls, masks, incense burners,
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