Death Star Attack Launch Site

....or Tikal as it really is.

Not that I am a Star Wars nerd or anything, but being at Tikal surpassed all geekery today.

It was used by George Lucas as the setting for Yarvin IV at the end of Star Wars Episode IV:A New Hope, but much more important than that, it is one of the most amazing archaeological sites in the world.

We woke up at 03:30 for a night hike into the jungle (wow!) to watch the sun rise from one of the ancient pyramids.  This was only slightly hampered by the cloudy weather, but this didn't detract from one of the most memorable days of my life

I am quite proud of this shot, I did a 30 sec exposure as dawn was breaking and it produced a silhouette, not exactly what I as after.  So I asked Diane (the group leader) to borrow her head torch (a new, damn bright one she was chuffed with) and shone it over the pyramid for the following 30-sec exposure and it came out like this!!!!!

So here is Tikal Temple I of the Main Plaza shot in the dark (with the help of a powerful head torch) from the giddy heights of Temple II.

If you've not seen them, please skip back a few shots to see my adventures, or take a peep at my travel blog