Another day, another alarm to get us up and packing our bags. Ordinarily we don't mind the constant moving beause it brings on an exciting new day but when you're feeling unwell and just want to stay in bed then getting up at 7am for breakfast is not fair.

The trooper, that is Julie, soldiered on.

Breakfast was served next door at Hotel Peten. This should have been our original hotel. Our first impressons were "ooh this looks nicer".  They even had a small swimming pool between the lobby and the breakfast room! Although I couldn't imagine anyone actually using it.

They had a decent enough buffet and a choice of freshly cooked breakfasts. We both predictably went for our usual French Toast and Chapin.

Always open to new experiences I tried the tamales from the buffet. I usually find them a little bland, but these were green, made with chaya, a local spinach like leaf. There must have been some seasoning in their to elevate the flavours because these were tasty.

At 8am we left the hotel, walking a short distance to where the minibus was parked. Today was the day we had been waiting for, the main reason why we came here four years ago, and because we missed out it's the main reason why we came back, ...  to visit the Mayan temples of Tikal.

I have to admit I thought the 8am start was a little relaxed. I would have like to have been at the entrance gate when it opened at 6am! Julie was of course glad of any chance of slowing the pace.

We followed the road out of Flores, the way we came yesterday, past the airport and the modern out-of-town development with a McDonalds and a Pizza Hut.

After some twenty minutes we turned North, and then in another twenty we returned to the shore of Lake Petén Itzá at the village of El Remate, a simple collection of shacks in an idyllic location.

Another twenty minutes, which made it an hour after leaving Flores we reached the entrance to the Tikal National Park. We stopped at a check point to report to the park rangers. From there we still had a further 17km to reach the Visitors Centre. 

We made slow progess along the road. It was in perfect condition, smooth tarmac road all the way, but a strict speed limit of 40kmph was enforced. This was to protect the wildlife which constantly crossed the road, unaware of the dangers of traffic.

"ooh, did you see that?" an excited Jonthan asked. Apparently a toucan flew across our path. I didn't see it. Apparently, only last week a jaguar was spotted.

Eventually we reached the Visitors Centre. Jonathon went on ahead to collect our tickets and arrange to meet a guide to take us around the archaelogical site. Guatemala have introduced controls on tour guides and you have to be registered to be allowed to take visitors around Tikal.

I don't know if being Belizean prohibted him from being an official guide?  But he was not permitted to impart any tour guide knowledge as we walk around the site.

As we waited for him to return we all gathered around a massive scale model of the entire Tikal archaelogical site. It made us realise the enormity of the city. 

The main central square, plaza mayor, or the grand plaza, the image we all recognise as Tikal was only a small part of the whole site. 

Moments before we got impatient, Jonathon returned with our guide Jose and handed out the tickets to us all. We then joined the queue for foreigners. I thought it was uneccessary to have us queue seperately. I mean, we had already paid foreigner prices for our tickets. Unless the idea was to fast track the locals, which would be fair enough, I suppose.

We were then given the option to walk for 30 minutes or for a small undisclosed fee, choose a short ride. We unanimously opted for the transport.

It turned out to be a truck, with benches down both sides, which quickly filled up with locals, probably because they got fast tracked through. Undettered we all continued to squeeze onto the truck. It soon became clear that most of us had to stand.

The truck set off and we were fine. It would have continued to be fine if we travelled at a sedate speed but we suddenly  shifted into race mode, hurtling down the road, being shaken about in the back as we slalomed to avoid potholes, unsuccesfully I may add.

Julie and I were ok, she was able to grab hold of a sidebar to steady herself and I grabbed hold of her. Poor Poppy and Caitlin however were stood in the middle, in between the people sat on the benches. Strangers to the front of them, strangers behind. Trying desperately not to fall into their laps.

Poppy, standing on tip toes managed to touch the roof to steady herself a little, but it wasn't easy for her. There wasn't anything to hold on to, like on the metro. Caitlin adopted a bended knee low centre of gravity stance, like she was on a surf board and rolled with it. 

Thankfully the ordeal was short lived and we pulled up behind one of the great pyramids. We handed the driver some small change then gathered together as a group in front of the temple to listen to our guide impart some facts and figures.

Whilst some buildings here date back to the 4th BC most are from the classic period of the Maya, between 200AD and 900AD. Then the city would have been known as Yax Mutal. Some time during the 10th century the city was abandoned.

I just welled up with joy at finally making it here. Four years later. 

Our guide José kept on talking, "Tikal was inaugurated into the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979." but by now Julie and I were too busy trying to get a selfie to listen to his numerous insights.

Noticing my long extended arm set in selfie position Jonathon offered to take our photo. So we posed in front of (the back of) Temple I.  

We followed José up a slight incline to reach the Great Plaza or the Plaza Mayor where Temples I and II faced each other, East and West. With an acropolis and palace complex to the North and the South. 

Contrary to its number Temple I is not Tikal's first built, nor the tallest, or the best preserved, or the most by any other measure except perhaps it's most striking.

It  was built in 732AD. It stood at 47 metres tall. It's sometimes also refered to as the Temple of the Great Jaguar or even the Temple of Ah Cacao after the ruler who was buried inside. He was also known Jasaw Chan K'awiil I  and was the ajaw or King of Tikal for 50 years spanning the late 7th and early 8th centuries.

Temple II stood at the oppostie end of the plaza and was 38 metres tall. The precise year it was built is uknown but it was a mortuary monument in honour of Kalajuun Une' Mo', the queen and wife of Jasaw Chan K'awiil, and she's known to have died in 704AD.

I never knew that the Great Plaza of Tikal was a love story, a celebration of husband and wife. Knowing that brought another level of emotion standing in the centre of the plaza.

Once our José finished his spiel Jonathon gave us 20 mnutes to go and explore the area. Jens asked if we could climb the temples, the answer was "Temple II yes, I no." 

Julie decided against climbing any temples today and opted for a more sedate stroll across to the North acropolis. 

Frank, Jens and I practically sprinted to behind Temple II. We only had twenty minutes! That was nowhere long enough!

Gone are the days when you were allowed to actually climb up the front steps of the temples. Now, at the back, there was a sturdy wooden staircase to safely take you all the way to the top.

With the clock ticking I was in a hurry to reach the top. When I made it I was very out of breath but it was worth it for the wonderful views.

I didn't spend too long up on the top tier of Temple II. Just enough time to take a few snap shots and take in a few observations.

Temple II also has an alternative name and is sometimes refered to as the Temple of the Masks. Somewhere there are two faces carved into the stone, however I didn't spot them.

It was a three stepped pyramid with the shrine on top, crowned with what is described as a "roof comb". It looked as if it should have had a fourth level but they got bored and decided to put the shrine on level three.

Temple I in comparisson had nine levels, narrowing perfectly towards the shrine at the top.

Just before I left I spotted Julie standing in the shade of a thatched roof strutcure in front of the North acropolis. I waved to her and she waved back. 

Near to where she stood were many stealei (?) lined up like tombstones. Orginally these stone tablets would have been at the entrance to the temples but they had been relocated from the acropolis.

Back down the staircase I scampered and then joined Julie by the North Acropolis. It was a cluster of many temples and the burial site of the earlier rulers of Tikal. The ones within easy reach, the front row facing the plaza were numbered temples 29 - 35 and ranged from the 5th to the 7th century.

Whilst I was up Temple II Julie had already been here and she brought me to one of the structures covered by a thatched roof. Inside, lower down was a face in the stone, a giant mask on the wall. This was the base of temple 33, the burial place of Sihyaj Chan Kʼawiil II, ruler of Tikal during the 5th century. The face is not thought to be his.

Temple 33 would have been coincidentally 33 metres tall but when the site was restored much of it had deteorated beyond repair. Then followed some over zealous excavations when they realised it was built on top of an older temple, which itself was built on top of the original 5th century temple. All that remains now is the original base. 

At this point Julie waited for me as I ran up more steps to the back of temple 33 or was it 34? Partly to explore as much as possible but also to have a different vantage point to appreciate the grand plaza.

After a while I realised I was on my own up here so I took a moment to just gaze at Temple of Ah Cacao, and I couldn't stop smiling.

A minute passed and I thought "just one more". 

I could have stayed there all day looking at the view but I checked my watch and time was running out. Back down the tiers I came rejoining Julie and we continued back down to the plaza mayor.

With little time to spare I made a mad dash to the opposite side of the plaza to see the Central Acropolis. The ancient stone was covered in green moss as the jungle was trying to reclaim it. Steps called to me, tempting me to explore but my time was up. I had less than a minute to return to our meeting point.   

We took one last look at the incredible temples before following José, Jonathan and the rest of the group out of the Grand Plaza. "Do you want to visit the lost world?" he asked.

The Mundo Perdido sounded incredibly adventurous, of course we all wanted to go!

It was given its dramatic name by the archaeologist from the University of Pennsylvania who were instrumental in excavating and investigating the ruins between 1956 - 1970.

On the way we walked past the base of Temple III, although we almost didn't spot it. The trees had not been cleared away, so a full view was not possible, but also the lower tier was covered in thick vegetation, like the trendy living walls you get in cities these days.

It's was built in 810AD, incredibly 55 metres tall and was the final resting place of Mayan ruler of Tikal called Chitam II (aka the Dark Sun). Given the trend for alternative nicknames it is also known as the Temple of the Jaguar Priest.

Although it should have been called the Temple of the Ocellated Turkey because at least half a dozen of these wild birds strutted around the base.

They were absolutley stunning with their blue green iridescent plumage shimmering in the sunlight. The head was pale blue, its beak a pale pink, then it had bright red eye lids that looked like it was wearing eye shadow. There were a few red nodules  along the neck and a cluster of yellow nodules on its crown.

After a few minutes following a path through the jungle we came to the Temple of the Lost World. Unlike the others we had seen so far, it didn't have a short number, only it's original catalogue reference of 5C-54.

It looked more like a man made hill as much of it was covered in vegetation. We could see people on top. It was one of only a few temples up which you could still climb, but we had no time today.

 "It served as an observation platform," explained José "for astronomy."

The Mayan developed sophisticated astronomical charts and of course a calendar.

The complex of Mundial Perdido was the first district built in Tikal. It's believed that the original principal temple was built around 600BC. Then after several phases of rebuild the 10 stepped Grand Pyramid we see today was completed around 250AD.

It had a square base with stairs on all four sides, rising up 30 metres.

José was interupted in mid-flow by a cheering crowd of well wishers. We all turned to look and saw this guy on bended knee proposing. She said yes.

"They're a bit old for all that" said Julie. She was right. They were our age, mid-fifties, if not older.

As we left the lost world Jose made no reference to another impressive pyramid. He simply casually walked past without a second glance. 

I later retraced our steps (on-line and it was a temple reference 5C-49 often refered to the talud-tablero temple, because of the slope and panel architectural method of contructing the stepped levels. It had a similar style to those we saw in Teotihuacan last  Wednesday.  Some even suggest it may have been built by them as a foreign embassy or a focal point for an expat community in Tikal.

Anyway, what ever its story, Jose wasn't interested. 

We were making a b-line for the largest and tallest pyramid here in Tikal, Temple IV. Julie took one look at the wooden steps and decided against it, choosing to sit in the shade of a small cafe.

This was a reasonably new installation. I had seen photos of the previous stairs. They would have been more like climbing a ladder!  This gentle zig-zag was a easy in comparisson.

Just before reaching the top we came to a group of Howler Monkeys. Fortunately they weren't howling but quietly grazing on the leaves of the trees.

I got a little frustrated with my camera as it was refusing to focus properly and despite them only being just out of arms reach. I didn't get any photos I was happy with.  My iPhone was doing a better job.

We continued up the stairs, above the canopy. When we reached the top we stepped onto a large wooden balcony. Before this addition you would have been left to scramble over the temple steps, and at 65 metres in height that would have been a daunting propsect.

There are so many conflicting data on the internet about its height but the 64.6 metres seems to be the most common. That would place it slightly behind the Temple of the Sun in Teotihuacan, with the "newly" discovered "next big thing" of El Mirador ahead on 72 metres. Although I suspect there's some exaggeration going on to "top trump" each other! 

Anyway, either way, it was a long way to fall down!

From the balcony I could see an oddly familiar view of the roof comb of Temple III rising high above the jungle, and then to the left of it Temple I and II. For any sci-fi fan this would instantly be recognised from a scene in Star Wars, filmed in 1977.

I briefly sat on the stone steps of the shrine to take it all in. It's believed that entombed inside was Yik'in Chan K'awiil, the 8th century king of Tikal and the son of the king and queen honoured by Temples I and II.

The 8th century was Tikal's glory years. The city-state expanded rapidly and was at the height of its powers. It would have been impossible to imagine that by 950AD Tikal would have been abandoned.

A phenomenan called the Mayan collapse. A sudden decline into the dark ages.  However the Maya are still here, still unique and relevant, especially here in Guatemala more than any other country.

I made may way back down the steps, a little hesitant at first because I could see fresh dollops of monkey pooh all over the steps and the hand rails. The howlers were still in the trees above my head. So with one eye looking up the other looking where I was stepping I took a deep breath and quick marched like a cross-eyed winger in a walking football match.

I soon rejoined Julie and shared a Coke Zero whilst we waited for the rest of the group to come down. All present and correct we then followed Jose and Jonathon.

"There are many paths in Tikal" explained Jose "and you should never wander off on your own." Only last year an American tourist disappeared into the woods and was never seen again. 

The path we followed was near a causeway, an ancient paved Mayan road. There are several that criss-cross the city. They have been given names like Maler, Maudslay, Mendoza and Tozzer. These were 19th century explorers, early visitors to the newly rediscovered Tikal. Some even took fascinating photographs.

As we walked along the Maler causeway we walked past several mounds of earth. "These are temples" said Jose. I imagined they looked like it did in 1848 when it  was "re-discovered" by Modesto Mendez, the governor of the Peten region.

He led the first expedition to investigate the area and found Tikal, which is a Mayan word for a  'watering hole', which was ironic as there was no natural spring in the area. Tikal instead had several large resevoirs to capture water.

Apparently as much as 85% of Tikal still remains hidden beneath the jungle and there are no plans to uncover them.

It wasn't long before we reached a collection of temples known as Group Q, described as a twin pyramid complex. Apparently there are at least seven such groups of temples here in Tikal. Each being built 20 years apart to coincide with a new cycle in the Mayan calendar, known as a katun. 

Group Q was built in 771AD during the reign of Yax Nuun Ahinn II, aka Chittam, the  grandson of the king and queen of Temple I & II.

It had all been fully restored and the East Pyramid was the perfect spot for a group photo, so we all climed up a couple of steps and said "cheese".

Only rulers and High Priests were permitted to climb to the top but that didn't stop Jens asking if we could cimb up this one? I can't remember if Jose said yes or not but he didn't say no when we all began to walk up the long stone staircase.

It wasn't expecially high but Julie didn't fancy the climb so she waited at the bottom whilst the rest of us climbed to the top of the East Pyramind.

There wasn't much to see when we got there. We were basically surrounded by the jungle. The only visible landmark was the top of Temple III.

From experience, I know the worst part about being at the top of the Mayan temple is the descent back down the staircase. I remember coming down the steps of the great pyramid of Coba, Mexico mostly on my bum !

Thankfully these were wide and set at a sensible incline. They would even have passed current UK building regulations!

We all continued along the path, passing some incredibly tall Ceiba trees.

"This is the sacred tree of the Mayans" said Jose "connecting to the previous lives and the underworld through its roots and reaching up to the heavens and the future"

We arrived back at the visitors centre only two and a half hours after we left. We had seen a lot, all the highlights, although it would have been nice to have spent a little longer exploring. Julie and I agreed that if we were ever returned to Guatemala we would come back to Tikal under our own steam and spend a whole day here.

With us all back in the minibus we drove to the village of El Remate, through which we had come through earlier.

We stopped at restaurant Las Gardenias. It was time or lunch and I certainly had a raging appetite. But first, before lunch, was a demonstration of how to make a tortilla the traditional way. 

A charcoal fire was alight, with a hot plate set above and a member of staff showed us how simple it was to take a piece of dough, slap it between the palm of your hands into a circle of about 10-12cm diameter, before dropping it onto the hot iron surface to cook.

She asked for volunteers to step up but no one stepped forward. "C'mon guys" encouraged Jonathon and Francesca responded first. 

She did well, making it look easy. By the time she dropped her torilla on the hot plate we had all decided to join in, forming an orderly queue.

I have to admit I joined the queue because I was hungry and noticed that we got to eat our hand-made tortilla with some refried beans and grated cheese. "That would do nicely as a starter" I thought.

I was doing really well, forming a tortilla of perfectly even shape and thickness, however, as I had to wait my turn the dough was getting sticky in my warm hands. It was almost a disaster but I salvaged it. For health and safety reasons the flipping of the tortilla with the hands was done by the professional.

After we had all finished we all went upstairs the the restaurant where lunch was served. I ordered spaghetti served with a pesto made with chaya, the green spinach-like leaf. I had low expectation but it was really tasty. Best pasta dish so far on the trip. 

Julie went for the Tilapia Frita fish option, freshly caught from the Itza Peten lake, which we could actually see from the balcony. She really enjoyed it.

Both our dishes were surprisingly excellent.

The only thing that let the restaurant down were the saloon doors on the toilets which opened directly onto the balcony. Whilst you waited patiently outside you could see the feet and shins of those who were sat on the pan. Not very dignified.

Anyway, with us all fed and watered, we all piled back into the minbus and continued on our way towards the Belizean border.

Less then an hour an half away we reached the border town of Melchor de Mencos and the bridge over the Mopan river. I thought perhaps the river was a convenient natural border between between Belize and Guatemala but it wasn't the case. Instead it was the classic straight line drawn on a map.

Our minibus stopped halfway across the bridge and we all got out. We said goodbye to Roger who had driven us safely all the way from Antigua. He wasn't continuing with us into Belize.

Then, on foot, we crossed over the bridge. We were still in Guatemala at this point. The immigration office was to the right, disguised as a shopping centre.

Within minutes we got our exit stamp and stood in no-mans land waiting for the rest of the group to be processed before continuing across the tarmac towards the Belizean border control. As border crossings go it was one of the most relaxed and straightforward.

Waiting for us on the other side were two smaller 8 seater vans with a trailer for all our luggage.

With a head count complete and all of us present and correct we set off through the town of Benque Viejo del Carmen, briefly following the Mopan river.

We made slow progress. The road was one long construction site. Yellow signs warned us of an impending "BUMP" but the driver didn't seem to be paying much attention to them.

Despite the rough road we reached San Ignacio inside 45 minutes. Our home for the next two nights was the Maya Bella Downtown hotel. It looked nice enough, especially the wedding cake tier stands on the front.

We all huddled together in the lobby for the room allocation lottery.

We ended up with a very spacious room with two large queen beds. Julie took one look at the pillows and decided to rest her head for a little while.

With over an hour before Jonathon had arranged for us all to meet up I headed out in search of an ATM. With my trusted Google maps in my hand I walked down the pedestrianised street of Burns Avenue.

But I must have held my phone upside down with the screen lock on or something because I headed in the complete wrong direction.  (I later worked out the location for the hotel wasn't  a 100% accurate!)

It soon felt like I was reaching the edge of town, so I decided to head back. I was a little annoyed with myself but consoled myself with an "at least I got to see these fabulous murals".

Back to where I started I continued past the hotel, in no time found the Belize Bank. My next challenge was to find the ATM machine.  There wasn't one amywhere.

Luckily I saw someone come out of a side door counting their money and so it didn't take a genius to work out the cash point was inside. The door to the secure room was unlocked by using a bank card.

I took out $200 Belizean dollars, about £80. It was strange to see the face of a young Queen Elizabeth II on their bank notes. They looked like British pound notes from the late seventies (around the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977). Belize was a former British colony and known as British Honduras back then, only gaining independance in 1981.

I returned to our room where Julie was feeling a little fragile but ready to head out. Jonathon had arranged to meet up with everyone to visit a local tour company to book some activities for tomorrow. But first, we had half an hour to kill.

We didnt get far, literally two doors down, before bumping into Kate, Nicole and Andrew sat outside a bar called The Burnz. It was only a small shack style place. We pulled up a few chairs and joined them.

Once we ordered our beers, a local below average brew called Belikin , the barman came over and ask us to move to a table for six. This he did rather bluntly and without any charm.

I think he had been subliminally influenced by all the Rude Boy posters and beermats. The drinks company from the Dominican Republic should perhaps add #DontBeRude to their #DrinkRude campaign.

I thought about ordering a bottle of the Rude Boy. It sounded interesting. It was a vodka based drink but with ginseng, caffeine and a Chinese medicinal herb known as "Horny Goat Weed" I'd be up all night!

Anyway, time ran out before we could get another round in, and we met up with everyone else, walking down the pedestrianised street to the Maya Walk Tours office.

All sixteen of us crammed ourselves inside their office where the boss explained two tours they had available. They had much more in their catalogue but he only offered these two.

The first one was to visit the Actun Tunichil Muknal (or the ATM) Caves. It's a cave system but also a Mayan archaelogical site as it was used as a ceremonial burial site with many skeletons found inside. It's one of the country's most popular attractions.

It was listed in the Lonely Planet's Top 500 places to see in the World which we've been busy ticking off.  As such it was somewhere I really wanted to see.

However, the boss guy talked at length about the physical demands of visiting the caves. Between Julie and I we ticked all the "fail" boxes. The ATM involved crossing water 3 metres deep in places and being a non-swimmer that ruled me out (although I'm sure floatation vests were provided) Also it had many scrambles up wet slippery stone so required good balance. Julie counted herself out immediately.

The second tour they offered was described as "cave tubing". All it involved was sitting on a rubber ring and float down a river through an extensive cave system. It sounded like fun so we put our names down.

He did a good job of putting people off the ATM caves with only six deciding to join, with the other ten opting for the cave tubing. 

Once we paid for the trip we went in search of some wet shoes and stopped at a shop called Reshma Store. It looked like a place that would have some, it was filled with sports and leisure wear.  

"Do you have wet shoes?" I asked. They all looked at me confused. I then remembered the guy at the tour office calling them water shoes.

"Yes, we have water shoes" one replied. They had plenty, including my size 12. Evie and Shalia arrived, followed by almost everyone else, looking for water shoes. The storekeeper couldn't believe his luck!

Whilst we were there we also bought a towel in the style of the Belizean flag. Another thing we forgot to pack. 

Jonathon had a table booked at Guava Limb Cafe for us all at 7pm, so we had go straight there. (Although I did run up to our room to drop off the shoes). 

It was certainly a very popular restaurant. So busy in fact they didn't have a table for us all to sit together. Those who arrived first had been seated inside around a table for eight. Nicole, Andrew and David were sat together in the corner of the room by a window.

By the time we arrived we were shown to a table for two, outside on the balcony, on our own! 

The irony was this was the first time on the trip we had properly gone to supper at the same time with the whole group and we were actually looking forward to get to know our fellow travellers a bit better.

We were sat next to a window, through which, on the other side we heard familiar voices. We were practically sharing a table with Nicole, Andrew and David, only there was a wall between us!

A few moments of conversation were exchanged but it wasn't that easy.  

The menu arrived. There was plenty of choices for me, and interesting ones. To start we opted for liquid  appetisers with a rum punch for me and a wine for Julie.

My main course was a Gado Gado and, despite it being more "inspired" by the traditional Indonesian dish, it was very tasty. I really enjoyed it.

Julie went for the pork chops, which she also really enjoyed. In fact we rated it as our favourite restaurant since leaving Mexico.

I still had room for pudding. I overheard someone rave about a Snickers cheesecake and thought "wow, I've got to try 0ne!"

Unfortunately when it came to order they had sold out.

"It's not on the menu but we do have a Reese's cheesecake. Would you like one?" asked the waitress. Of course, without hesitation, I said yes.

It arrived looking sumptuos on the plate and it tasted amazing.  Absolutely heavenly, exactly what a dessert should be.

We paid our bill and left. We were the first to do so. There were no group plans for any after dinner activity, or at least none that we had been invited, so we decided to start our own little party.

That was easier said than done. San Ignacio nightlife certainly wasn't happening here, down the pedestrianised Burns Street. The place was empty, devoid of revelry.

We tried one bar, it was actually a Tandoori restaurant with a bar. We would have stayed but they didn't serve any wine so we moved on.

Next we tried another restaurant-cum-bar called The Eva's Seafood and Steakhouse. It looked shut, the restaurant was closed but in the back they had this lovely beer garden ... that did wine!

The only beer they had was Belikin, in fact it was the only beer I had seen since crossing into Belize. It proudly had the Mayan temple Altun Ha on its label adding to a sense of a "national beer".

I sent a photo of our drinks to the chatgroup, letting everyone know where we were and that we had found somewhere nice for a drink. I had an inclination that Hans and Jens would be definitely be joining us.

It wasn't long before they turned up, with Francesca, Poppy and Jonathon. We all sat at a long table with swings for chairs. Julie and I cheated and pulled up some chair and sat at the end of the table. 

After one round of expensive drinks Jonathon suggested we should move on to one of his favourite bars, a local hangout. We all agreed. This was after all his hometown. 

Trin's Bar wasn't far, a minutes walk away at the end of Hudson Street. It was a simple place, a small terrace, open on two sides. It was busy which gave it a great atmosphere. Jonathon ordered a bucket of beer for us all. Obviously not literally a bucket filled with beer but seven bottles in an ice bucket. 

This time we tried a new beer called +501 . It was a refreshing lager and much better than the Belikin. We were all impressed. The price for the 7 bottles was also refreshing at $12, about £4.80 for them all!  

We played "guess your age" which is always a bad idea. We were way off with Jonathon and Francesca guessing at least six or seven years younger than they actually were. Even Poppy looked younger than she was. At least our under-estimating was complmentary.

It also came as surprise that Poppy and Francesca were solo travellers. They didn't know each other before this trip. They just got on so well, we assumed they best friends since childhood!

Showing our age we decided to leave after the second bucket leaving the youngsters to party on. It wasn't late, only about 10pm, but we were getting tired.