Christmas morning, December 25, 2009, began at 4:00 a.m. as we gathered with 6 others and a local guide to make the 50 minute hike into Tikal National Park, Guatemala. In the pitch black and eerily quiet of the early morning, we used flashlights to make our way along the path - our goal was to reach, and climb, the top of "Temple IV" to watch the sunrise above the jungle canopy. The name Tikal translates to 'place of the voices' in Itza Maya. However, it is not the ancient name for the site but rather the name adopted shortly after its discovery in the 1840s. Archaeologists say that Tikal was the largest of Maya Cities and had a population of nearly 100,000 during its peak between 600 AD and 870 AD, although the ruins are
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