The
center of the archeological site is La Gran Plaza. Outside the
park, there are three hotels that are within walking distance of the
entrance. There is a museum, souvenir shop, bookstores and a few
restaurants. As you enter the jungles within the park, the air is
very warm and humid, dense, still and almost silent. The only sounds you
hear are the crickets, all kinds of birds, monkeys, and unseen
animals moving in the brush.
At the entrance of the park, you may encounter
some people that are selling cold purified water bottles. If you are
not carrying any water or liquids, you should buy some because once
inside, food and water are very sparse. The path into the park leads
you to a tree called La Ceiba.
There
are different routes to take inside from the main path. We opted to
go straight and reached the Acropolis Sur, the southern
complex to the main plaza.
From the southern plaza, you can view the main
plaza. Across is Acropolis Norte, the northern complex. To the
left of the plaza as seen from this view is the temple of the masks,
Templo de las Mascaras.
This is a close-up of the temple of the masks.
From far away, the pyramids look very high.
Indeed, from a close up the pyramid climb up and down is
pretty steep. The steps are very short in width and you can easily
lose your step if you are not careful.
Facing El Templo de las Mascaras, is El
Templo del Gran Jaguar, the temple of the great jaguar god, which at
the time of our visit was under remodeling.
This is
a view of Acropolis Norte, northern complex, from the top of
the temple of the masks. Notice some kind of sacrificial altars at
the bottom of the northern complex
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Antigua, Guatemala