Tazmul & Ruta de las Floras
In the northwest of El Salvador is the country’s most famous Mayan ruins. The year that Tazumal was constructed varies by centuries, but it’s at least 1,000 years old. Tazumal was found in 1940’s, and at the time was overrun by vegetation. It appeared more of a giant mound of dirt at first sight and several years were needed to excavate it. The photo below shows what it looked like in the 1940’s when it was discovered.
The first photo on the page shows the main pyramid of Tazumal from its front side. You’re not allowed to enter the main pyramid or stand on it, but there is a trail that goes around all sides of it. This photo shows the backside of the main pyramid. You can see these pyramids are made up of smaller stones covered with cement, instead of the giant solid blocks like the Egyptian pyramids.
You’re allowed to climb one of the smaller pyramids of Tazumal that gives you a great view of the main pyramid. The smaller pyramid is creatively called B1-2 and is the second most significant pyramid on site. The remains of an ancient ballcourt are also on site. The famous Mesoamerican ballcourts were used to play an ancient game, where the losing team was sacrificed to death to their gods!
There is a small museum on site that has an amazing collection of Mayan art work, artifacts, and describes some of their history. This giant Mayan statue was my favorite object from Tazumal.
I’m not usually a fan of pots and pans in museums, but the Mayans definitely created some interesting ones that I wouldn’t mind adding to my kitchen collection. The claw-hand pan above was probably my favorite, and maybe second was the spiky pot below.
Of course you can’t take anything from the museum, but if you were interested in a replica of Mayan art there are plenty right outside Tazumal. There’s a long line of vendors on the main street selling everything from Horchatas to Mayan face masks. They were so cheap, I mean a few dollars a piece, that I had to take some home with me!
One of the most famous things to do in El Salvador is the Rota de Las Flores, or route of the flowers. I decided to add it to this page because it’s pretty much unavoidable on your way to Tazumal. You’ll pass through some very beautiful scenery like this photo above as well as many small towns along the way.
The name Ruta de las Flores gets its name from the streets and homes that are decorated with flowers. Many buildings are also painted with colorful murals like this these photos above and below.
The small colorful towns draw in a significant number of travelers. Even the dog in the Ruta de Las Flores had colorful eyes! I thought the dog may have been blind but clearly wasn’t. A friend of mine back in Virginia has a Husky, and as she pointed out the dog could be part Husky as well.
This region of El Salvador definitely receives the most amount of travelers. Since El Salvador isn’t a very touristy country, you’ll likely not see many other tourists here. You will however see tons of souvenir shops!
Probably the best thing about visiting the Rota de las Flores is their cafes and restaurants. I stopped by one just for a drink and some appetizers with a friend. There are so many places to choose from and they all seem to be high quality.
As far as sightseeing goes, the churches are another big part of Rota de Los Flores. I didn’t catch any of the names, but this large church above was one of several that I saw. The photo below is a different church in the first town I visited. Of those that I visited, this one had the most beautiful interior.
There are at least half a dozen towns that are frequently visited as part of the Rota de las Flores circuit. Almost all of them have town square, some are pretty small and quiet while others had festivals going on. This one had my favorite fountain from those that I visited. The guy below was walking around one of the squares with this large ball python. I’m not sure if it was just a pet or if he was walking around allowing people to pose with it for photos.
Probably the best experience in the FLowers Route was this singer and comedian. My Spanish isn’t good enough to understand what he was saying, but the guy’s voice was so high pitched and the laughter he got from the crowd made it obvious he was telling funny stories. When I first heard his voice I imagined a really old lady singing and was surprised to see this guy on stage. I don’t know why but I got the vibe that this guy would eventually pull someone out of the crowd and do some embarrassing stunt!
