Copan Ruins, Honduras

Honduras continued to provide lasting images and experiences. We followed up the stint in paradise with a trip back to Mesoamerica.

I must admit that there were a few stops on our trip that I had eagerly anticipated - Copan was one of them.

As a quick prologue, I would like to write that as a traveller one should always take the advice of a fellow traveller with a grain of salt as they say. We had been advised that since both of us had visited the grand Guatemalan ruins of Tikal, that we would surely be dissapointed with Copan. We were recommended by many to skip them. That would have been a huge mistake.

The Copan ruins are just as breathtaking as those at Chichen Itza and Tikal but for an entirely different reasons. The ornate monuments of devotion to the kings who ruled in succession there evoke notions of similarity to our present day. Just as the ruleers of the time were exaclted to levels of popularity or respect, we do the same with those who govern us today. Hopefully, one day someone will dig up a limestone monument of Barack Obama (or me?) complete with earplugs and jaguar headwear (okay, maybe no plugs).

The leftovers of what was once a bustling city center, complete with a market and ballcourt, felt strangely homey. I felt at peace among the ruins. I love sitting on the steps of the structures, just as a 23 year old Mayan might have done thousands of years ago. I ran around the remains as if I was in my own home.

Beyond the rock structures, the Macaws that greeted us at the front entrance to the park deserve recognition as well. I hate birds, but I must concede that these beautys make all other birds seem like pigeons.

The last evening in the city of Copan Ruinas arrived at completion with a trip to some natural hot springs in the mountains 45 minutes outside of town. After negotiating the surprise entrance fee we encountered upon arrival, we entered the sulfuric smelling spa. Multiple thermal pools at varying degrees of temperature were set among the lush green jungle plants and imitation mayan structures. We sat in the hot water relaxing the evening away.

Under the starlit night we rode in the bed of the pick-up truck back to our hotel. We passed by local Hondurans living in the mountains and in a way we said goodby to them and the beautiful country of Honuras which they inhabit.

A quick stop in El Salvador was to be next.