Tikal

Listen. Can you hear the loud calls of the howler monkeys echoing through the trees? Can you see a toucan with its colorful beak flying between giant green leaves? High above the leafy canopy, the tops of great stone buildings touch the clouds. For a long, long time, I was a secret, hidden deep inside a thick jungle. But I have a story to tell, a story of a great kingdom. I am the city of Tikal, a home built by the amazing Maya people thousands of years ago in a country we now call Guatemala. My stone temples have stood for centuries, watching the sun rise and set over the forest, and I remember everything.

My story began a very long time ago, around 900 BCE, when I was just a small village. But the Maya people who lived here were very clever. They were amazing builders, wonderful artists, and they loved to study the stars in the night sky. As the years passed, more and more people came to live with me, and I grew from a little village into a huge, busy city. My most important time, my golden age, was during what historians call the Classic Period, from around the year 200 CE to 900 CE. During those centuries, my Great Plaza was the heart of everything. Children played on the steps, merchants sold colorful fabrics and delicious foods, and families gathered for big celebrations. The Maya kings who ruled here were very powerful. They built tall pyramids that were like stairways to the stars. These were not just buildings; they were special places for important ceremonies. One of the greatest kings was named Jasaw Chan K'awiil I. He was a brave leader who wanted to show everyone how strong and wonderful our city was. Around the year 734 CE, he ordered his builders to create my most famous pyramid, Temple I. It was a masterpiece, reaching high into the sky so the priests could feel closer to the heavens.

But even the busiest cities change. After hundreds of years of life and laughter, my plazas and temples grew quiet. Around the year 900 CE, the Maya people began to move away to other places. Slowly and gently, the jungle that surrounded me grew over my stone paths and walls. Green vines wrapped around my pyramids, and tall trees sprouted in my courtyards. The jungle became my blanket, and I slept for a very, very long time, hidden from the world. For centuries, only the monkeys and jaguars knew I was here. Then one day, in the year 1848, a group of explorers made their way through the thick forest. They could not believe their eyes when they found me. They saw the tops of my temples peeking over the trees and knew they had found something magical. In the year 1979, I was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which means I am a special treasure for the whole world to protect. Today, people from all over the globe walk my stone paths. They look up at my tall temples and imagine my busy past. I am so happy to share my story, because it means the amazing work of the Maya people will never, ever be forgotten.