Quirigua & Rio Dulce, Guatemala
This morning we awoke in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala and ate breakfast with background music by a marimba band that had been sent by the port authority to greet us. The contagious rhythms had many of us dancing on the pier as we awaited the buses that were to take us to Quirigua.
Quirigua, in Guatemala’s Province, is an important Maya archeological site. The site is peppered with huge stellae (monoliths carved on four sides), zoomorphs (animal forms) and other evidence of a once great civilization. Quirigua was the center of the Mayan world for much of the 8th-century.
It was impossible to fathom how human beings, with no more than ropes and logs, were able to move these 50 – 65 ton pieces of sandstone. Though the stonework and artistry inspired awe, we couldn’t help being lured into the forest by the low, resonant, mournful hooting of the Turquoise-browed Motmot. Patience was rewarded today as, after searching for 40 minutes, some of us caught a look of this neotropical beauty.
Our transportation back to the Sea Voyager in the afternoon was by boat on the Rio Dulce. Beginning at Lago Izabal, we plied the “sweet” water in maneuverable riverboats, weaving our way around mangrove islands and through backwater channels. Northern Jacanas with their extremely long toes distributing their weight evenly, stealthily walked across lily pads, stalking their aquatic insect prey. Ketchi Maya in their dugout canoes slowly but steadily made progress on the wind-blown river as we cruised by with help from our outboard.
At one point, where the river narrowed from two miles wide to ½ mile, there lie an island of mangroves covered with Neotropical Cormorants, Cattle Egrets and Great Egrets. The egrets being in breeding dress were adorned with their wispy plumes and bright colors on otherwise snow-white bodies. It became apparent to us all that these gaudy feathers looked better on the birds than they ever could have on a hat.
This morning we awoke in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala and ate breakfast with background music by a marimba band that had been sent by the port authority to greet us. The contagious rhythms had many of us dancing on the pier as we awaited the buses that were to take us to Quirigua.
Quirigua, in Guatemala’s Province, is an important Maya archeological site. The site is peppered with huge stellae (monoliths carved on four sides), zoomorphs (animal forms) and other evidence of a once great civilization. Quirigua was the center of the Mayan world for much of the 8th-century.
It was impossible to fathom how human beings, with no more than ropes and logs, were able to move these 50 – 65 ton pieces of sandstone. Though the stonework and artistry inspired awe, we couldn’t help being lured into the forest by the low, resonant, mournful hooting of the Turquoise-browed Motmot. Patience was rewarded today as, after searching for 40 minutes, some of us caught a look of this neotropical beauty.
Our transportation back to the Sea Voyager in the afternoon was by boat on the Rio Dulce. Beginning at Lago Izabal, we plied the “sweet” water in maneuverable riverboats, weaving our way around mangrove islands and through backwater channels. Northern Jacanas with their extremely long toes distributing their weight evenly, stealthily walked across lily pads, stalking their aquatic insect prey. Ketchi Maya in their dugout canoes slowly but steadily made progress on the wind-blown river as we cruised by with help from our outboard.
At one point, where the river narrowed from two miles wide to ½ mile, there lie an island of mangroves covered with Neotropical Cormorants, Cattle Egrets and Great Egrets. The egrets being in breeding dress were adorned with their wispy plumes and bright colors on otherwise snow-white bodies. It became apparent to us all that these gaudy feathers looked better on the birds than they ever could have on a hat.
