Ceiba, the National Tree of Guatemala, can reach heights of up to 70 meters (230 feet). The Mayan worshiped it as the Holy Tree of Life and the axle of the world that connects the planes of the underworld, terrestrial realm and the skies.
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Tikal Reborn
Tikal's Grand Plaza, Guatemala
Sitting on the vastness of Tikal’s Mayan ruins it is common for visitors to imagine the bustling city that once thrived here. How it must have looked in its prime, with the jungle pushed far back to make way for endless crops and marvelous limestone structures that towered over the landscape. How proud its residents must have been to live in this shining capital of a dominant power.
And yet my thoughts were drawn in a completely different direction; Read More…
Video of the Day: Leafcutter Ants
This column of leafcutter ants stretched through the jungle as far as the eye could see. What are they doing? Cutting leaves, of course. The better question is for what purpose? If you guessed feathering their nest, you’re thinking too simplistic. Incredibly these ants harvest leaves and shred them into a kind of mulch that they use to grow an edible fungus. They’re farmers and sophisticated ones too.
In addition to growing fungus, the ants also produce bacteria to fight a virulent disease that would otherwise devastate their crops. So it can be said that leafcutter ants developed organic agriculture 50 million years before people realized it was cool.
Monkey See
Mayan ruins are the main draw at Tikal in northeastern Guatemala, but we were equally interested in the other chief attraction: monkeys. Before we had even left the grounds of our hotel we crossed paths with a group of spider monkeys, including this little guy, who energetically entertained us by swinging from his tail and other antics—our first-ever sighting of primates in the wild.
The Colors of Flores
Set on a small island in Guatemala’s Lake Petén Itzá, the city of Flores is more than just a place to overnight en route to the Mayan ruins of Tikal. We spent a couple of days strolling its narrow cobblestone streets, exploring its historic church, and marveling at its amazingly colorful Spanish colonial architecture. It’s hard to be in a bad mood when in a place where everything is painted in such happy hues.
Meet Brian and Shannon
Fulltime wanderers since 2010, Brian & Shannon are traveling the world on a quest to see everything there is to see . . . at least once.
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