We left Jungle Lodge and Tikal sharing the lodge’s shuttle with another couple. The girl had a difficult time getting into the van as she wasn’t feeling well and proceeded to get sick several times. Cindy had just been in the same situation a few days earlier so she had our sympathy. We had 4 days in Flores before heading back home to San Pedro.
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Exploring Flores
The thing about Flores it is on a small island and after we settled into our hotel (Hotel Villa del Lago). The hotel we booked we would recommend, simple but comfortable with friendly, helpful staff. We explored around town, only to find out this didn’t take long. This is when we realized we didn’t do our homework about this location. It is very small with not much to do as people use it for a jumping off point heading or returning from Tikal and usually spend one night here. The lake around Flores fluctuates over several years and this year it was higher then normal. They had to barricade a couple of the streets as the water had over flowed onto some streets and pooled. We regret we had booked ourselves in for 4 nights. Live and learn as the old saying goes. .
ARCAS Wildlife Rescue Center
So we made the best of it. We took the boat taxi across to San Miguel from Flores and walked the distance to ARCAS Wildlife Rescue Center (we heard about this place from another couple in Tikal). Once there we were not in the correct location but were guided by the friendly staff to the center itself. Animals here were either injured, part of the illegal pet trade or confiscated from persons that had them as pets. The concept here is to release the animals back into the wild but that doesn’t always work for miscellaneous reasons. At the time of our visit there way an array of birds, monkeys, jaguar and other jungle wildlife. All interesting to see but there circumstances are not ideal.
High Point Of Flores
El Mirador del Rey Canek observation deck was near San Miguel, so we were off to find it. We found it but it was not easy, great views of the lake from this vantage point. Let me add that it was a good hike with many steps walked and stairs climbed. After some pictures, we were off to catch a boat taxi back to Flores.
Should’ve But Didn’t make it to Semuc Champey
The one thing we didn’t get to see in Guatemala that we wished we had was to visit Semuc Champey near Lanquin. There is a series of turquoise pools that cascade down the Chabon River. All people that we talked to highly recommended visiting Semuc Champey, the downside is it’s a 10-hour shuttle ride from any near location.
Refugees At The Airport
Some interesting and provocative pictures on display at the Flores airport make you think about the refugees. Take the time to open your eyes to the view of others. The world is not perfect.
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Recommended Travel Essential
Cindy and I call ourselves nomadic so with this lifestyle, we use certain essentials to make this way of life easier and more comfortable. With this in mind, we have composed a list of what we feel are essentials and some tips you might use to plan or take your next travel adventure.
- Travel Packing Essentials to help organize and make this task less stressful
- Travel Safety Essentials to make your life on the road a little safer, giving you peace of mind
- Living Essentials to make life a little more comfortable, be this resting, working, or playing.
Accommodation Options While Traveling The World
- Booking.com is one of our go to’s when we are looking for a place to stay for a couple of days or longer
- Agoda.com we find is best to use when in Southeast Asia, but hey you never know what you might find
- Airbnb.com used to be our go-to but some of their cancelation policies are reasonable, give them a try as well
Travel Insurance
We always travel with some sort of travel Insurance be it just medical or complete trip coverage. We use Heymondo as we find their costs reasonable. Remember don’t travel and without coverage, the savings are not worth the possible costs.
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