Author's tour "Discovering Guatemala"

Today we will go to the largest Mayan highland market, Chichicastenango (Thursday or Sunday only). Chichicastenango was formerly called Chaviar and was an important trading city of the Kaqchikels long before the Spanish conquest. Surrounded by valleys and mountains that obscure the horizon, Chichicastenango can seem isolated in time and space from the rest of Guatemala. When its narrow, cobbled streets and red-tiled roofs are covered in fog, as they often are, it can feel like you're in some kind of fairy tale. Throngs of vendors and tourist groups flock to the country's largest highland market on Thursday and Sunday. If you can choose when to come, it is best to visit the market on a Sunday, as the market is much larger and the cofradias (religious brotherhoods) hold processions in and around St. Thomas Church. The Catholic patron of the city is St. Thomas, in his honor the Church of Santo Tomas was built in the city in 1540. Towards the local cemetery you will see another Catholic Church called Golgotha or Calvario. And what is a market without shopping, so take enough money with you to buy souvenirs. At the market you can pay with American dollars, and more recently with credit cards. The Chichicastenango market is famous mainly for its textiles and masks. We will then head to Panajachel, located on the shores of Lake Atitlan. On the final descent from Solola to Panajachel, enjoy breathtaking views of Lake Atitlan. Overnight at the Villa Santa Catarina hotel. (Meals: 3)

Today we will look at the most interesting cities where the Tzutuhili Mayans still live on Lake Atitlan. And we'll start with San Juan. San Juan is the cleanest and tidiest town on the lake. There are many art galleries here, whose artists paint in the Naive or Primitivist style. There are many women's cooperatives in San Juan. You can visit a women's textile factory, see the hand weaving and natural dyeing processes, and meet a group of comadrons, or midwives, who grow different types of medicinal herbs for natural medicine. Traditional agriculture, fishing, weaving reed mats and the production of high-quality textiles are an integral part of the life of the local population. You definitely won’t find souvenirs from China here. And of course we will try very tasty coffee in one of the coffee shops. Afterwards, we will take a boat to the other side of the lake to the city of Santiago Atitlan. Santiago, founded in 1547 at the foot of the Toliman volcano, is the largest city with a population of 32 thousand people, 95% of whom are Maya Tzutujil. The local population lives by fishing, farming and making cayucos (local canoes). We will also look into the local Catholic church, where two religions merged - Catholicism and Mayan beliefs, and walk past the local city hall, where the city elders sit dressed in white striped shorts and birds embroidered on the bottom. The most real color. Let's return to Panajachel. Overnight at the Villa Santa Catarina hotel. (Meals: 3)

Let's return to Guatemala. In the afternoon, transfer to Guatemala Airport for your domestic flight to Flores. Overnight at the Villa Maya Hotel. (Meals: 3)

Tikal is 64 km from Flores, the beautiful capital of Petén, located on an island in Lake Petén Itza. Tikal, meaning “place where the voices of spirits are heard,” appears huge compared to other cities of the classical period—it is the largest settlement of pre-Columbian America. Scientists came to this conclusion after a series of excavations carried out in the late 50s. It has been inhabited since 800 BC. until 900 AD, only to be reconquered by tropical jungles from the early eleventh century until the early twentieth century, when Tikal was discovered and restoration work began. The urban complex of Tikal (not counting the outskirts) occupied an area of about 16 square meters. kilometers. There were 3 thousand buildings on it, and the pyramids were distinguished by a specific style not found anywhere else in Mesoamerica. Particularly impressive are the six pyramidal temples, which, compared to other buildings of this type, look like real skyscrapers. It is not for nothing that archaeologists called Tikal-New York the Mayan civilization. Today, Tikal National Park covers 575 square kilometers and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 as a cultural and natural heritage of humanity. In the afternoon, transfer to Flores airport for domestic flight to Guatemala. Overnight at the Barcelo Guatemala City Hotel. (Meal: 3

Transfer to the international airport. (Meals: 3)