3:30AM I woke by
the alarms of two others in my room going to Tikal today. They picked me up around
3:50AM.
6:30AM We each paid the guide 150 GTQs for the entrance fee. I paid 5 GTQs in the first restaurant that I saw on the right to store my luggage. We toured Tikal, which means echo and refers to the sound heard by the reflection from the stones in the pyramids. We finished around 10:28AM. I ran by temple VI and a few others and it was 10:50AM. There was only one bus at 11 before the next one at 12:30PM. So I ran back in what was suppose to take 20 to 30 minutes and got there just in the neck of time at 11:02AM.
11:40AM I was dropped off at Ixlu to wait for a bus to the border between Guatemala and Belize. Nothing came for 30 minutes and some even said there is nothing on the 25th. I tried to call all passing cars over but it didn't work. One came by eventually with just a driver and a woman. He wanted 50 GTQs but I knew the price should be 30 GTQs. I showed them I had nothing besides 30 GTQs and dollars.
The man accepted and we were on our way at 12:10AM.
1AM I got to the border and then took the wrong line for entering Guatemala. They charged 5 BZDs or 3 USDs. I shrewdly asked for 5 BZDs back and gave them 5 USDs. However, I didn't realize that I was I was in the wrong line. While they said 5 BZDs even if you are going out and charged a couple of others, there is no way of knowing the truth. There was no bus at the border likely due to Christmas. I was tricked by a driver, who tricked me to pay 4.5 USDs to get to the bus station. He just left me there waiting. Fortunately someone was driving a truck slowly and I yelled. He was kind enough to bring me to San Ignacio.
3PM It was a ghost town. A Belizean man named Star showed me to Bella's hostel and I went to several after to bargain it down to 15 BZDs. I then searched for the best deal for the ATM cave tour. Star wanted me to go to the Barton tour, which I later found from Bella's does not contain Mayan artifacts.
6PM There were no restaurant open on Christmas.
The only things open were San Ignacio (25 USDs buffet) and Midas's
resort (50 USDs with turkey and wine) and Mayawalk (barbecue). I ended up paying 5.75 BZDs for rice, beans
and chicken. it was good and spicy with their onion except I had diarrhea a hour later.
9PM PACZ, Kayak tours were not doing the tour tomorrow. BZM tour and Destiny Tour were not answering their phone. Therefore, Mayawalk and the man across from them (90 USDs cash only) were the only options. Star told me to get it from Mayawalk. I finally just went with Mayawalk after basically begging for 90.
6:30AM We each paid the guide 150 GTQs for the entrance fee. I paid 5 GTQs in the first restaurant that I saw on the right to store my luggage. We toured Tikal, which means echo and refers to the sound heard by the reflection from the stones in the pyramids. We finished around 10:28AM. I ran by temple VI and a few others and it was 10:50AM. There was only one bus at 11 before the next one at 12:30PM. So I ran back in what was suppose to take 20 to 30 minutes and got there just in the neck of time at 11:02AM.
11:40AM I was dropped off at Ixlu to wait for a bus to the border between Guatemala and Belize. Nothing came for 30 minutes and some even said there is nothing on the 25th. I tried to call all passing cars over but it didn't work. One came by eventually with just a driver and a woman. He wanted 50 GTQs but I knew the price should be 30 GTQs. I showed them I had nothing besides 30 GTQs and dollars.
The man accepted and we were on our way at 12:10AM.
1AM I got to the border and then took the wrong line for entering Guatemala. They charged 5 BZDs or 3 USDs. I shrewdly asked for 5 BZDs back and gave them 5 USDs. However, I didn't realize that I was I was in the wrong line. While they said 5 BZDs even if you are going out and charged a couple of others, there is no way of knowing the truth. There was no bus at the border likely due to Christmas. I was tricked by a driver, who tricked me to pay 4.5 USDs to get to the bus station. He just left me there waiting. Fortunately someone was driving a truck slowly and I yelled. He was kind enough to bring me to San Ignacio.
3PM It was a ghost town. A Belizean man named Star showed me to Bella's hostel and I went to several after to bargain it down to 15 BZDs. I then searched for the best deal for the ATM cave tour. Star wanted me to go to the Barton tour, which I later found from Bella's does not contain Mayan artifacts.
9PM PACZ, Kayak tours were not doing the tour tomorrow. BZM tour and Destiny Tour were not answering their phone. Therefore, Mayawalk and the man across from them (90 USDs cash only) were the only options. Star told me to get it from Mayawalk. I finally just went with Mayawalk after basically begging for 90.
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