School completed and a day to ourselves and armed with our new command of the language we decide that we will do the tourist thing. We decide against doing ruins at Yax Ha and will go to the Archeological Museum. The lady who runs the hotel hears our discussion and promptly offers her services to get us a launcha to the island where the museum is located. We agree on a price and a time. Our guide is a young man named Jose, who is enthusiastic and is happy that we speak a little Spanish. So as we head to a different Island Carole and I are concerned that we are not going where we thought we were going. Some discussion ensues and yes he is taking us to the Museo de Arqueológico funny it’s not on the island that we thought it was…we get there and it is a ZOO! Jose insists that it is the right place and he will let us off and we will cross a bridge and he will meet us on the other side.As we approach the entrance we notice that the price for Nationals is Q10 and Internationals is Q20. We attempt to convince the gatekeeper that we are Nationals. Guess our Spanish isn’t that good. The first things that you see are wild boars sleeping under picnic tables in the open. Please don’t touch them as they are aggressive. We move along by some Amazon Parrots and a Macaw, more boars and then I see it…an old swinging bridge over the water.
The sign says maximum 15 people, no running or jumping. They don’t need to worry I am not sure that I will even get across it! I hate planks, but I think that I hate swinging bridges even more. Carole heads off first. The boards are old, dry, and have large spaces, but good news…the bridge has floats and right now it is touching the water. I take a step and making it across happy that Jose will pick us up on the other side. Yes, there is Jose and he is ready to take us on a tour of the Zoo and explain all the animals.
All is going well until I spy a sign that clearly states that we must cross another bridge. This swinging bridge is over the tops of the trees. I inform Carole and Jose that I will wait with the Puma and hope for a picture while they continue on. Jose tells me that I will miss the monkeys and the jaguar. I tell Jose that I have seen both and I will be waiting on this side for their return. I would rather do TEN FOOT SEAS in a 38 Foot boat than do a swing bridge. Carole did admit later that it was a little scary when crossing the last bridge.
As we are returning to the island of Flores we ask Jose about the other island and the “radio museo”. Oh yes he can take us there, but we had not negotiated that with the lady at the hotel. Okay there must be some deal here that we were not aware of…so take us back to the hotel and it is off to lunch.
As we are walking deciding on a restaurant we are approached by several launcha drivers asking if we want to go to the Radio Museo. Carole is not keen on looking at a bunch of old radios so we ask our waiter if that is all there is…just radios? No he assures us it has Maya artifacts. We must go!
We go and boy are we glad that we did. The gentleman, Luis, who runs the Peten radio stations, runs the museum and boy what a museum. The size of a bedroom it is chock-a-block full of artifacts and yes old radios. No touching, No photos. There is a group of Guatemalan men being toured and we just join in. How could you not we are only a foot away from them. But here is the amazing part. Luis takes a figurine that is a flute made 400 years before Christ and he plays it! He moves to the large trumpet shells and plays them. Now he opens a case and takes out a jade figurine and while he is placing it in my hands tells the group that it was carved 2,000 years before Christ was born! I am terrified that I will drop it. And so it was as we moved around, touch this, hold that. How amazing, how fantastic! Thank you, Luis.
Now it is time to get ready to go back home to the river. What a great week Carole and I had. And if you are wondering…NO I am not fluent! But at least I know what I need to work on.
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