Belize
Trip Start
May 12, 2007
1
5
22
Trip End
Jul 14, 2007
Corazal,
Belize
Thursday, June 7, 2007
The following morning we all taruled to the bus stop. The initial plan was that we all head out to Caye Caulker, but Dave and I were keen to see the Lamanai ruin, so we got a bus to another small town called Orange Walk. Again, just very cute and quaint with a very similar day to the previous
A real life wild croc!!!!
. We arranged a trip to the ruins for the next day and then found a hostel which had a pool. It was incredibly refreshing as it is sooooo humid over here. This humidity leads to frequent downpours which we got caught in later in the day.The trip to Lamani was amazing. Its hidden deep in jungle so we had to go down the river in a boat. We saw all kinds of beautiful birds and even some crocodiles, which was a tad unnerving. We had a great traditional Belizean lunch of rice and beans, with stewed chicken, salad, potato salad and coleslaw. Our guide Antonio was fantastic, really passionate, and has visited every Maya ruin in Central America. What is interesting about this site is the duration of its inhabitance. IT was populated as early as 16th century BC, however was at its peak between 4BC and 1AD and continued to be inhabited until the 1600s AD! This is due to its extremely good location on the river with ample supplies of water and food [fish] as well as being in a great position to traade with passing ships. The ruins themselves werent as spectacualr as others but it was the whole experience, and there was a brilliant view from the top of the main tower from which you can see the Mexican border. We also saw howler monkeys which have enlarged throats allowing them to howl over 3km when the wind is right. They do this morning and evening to warn others of their position and territory as well as being a mating call
Dave being Tarzan
. Antonio also showed us lots of trees, i liked the 'give and take tree'. Its covered in spines which give you sever sickness and fever if they stab you, but if you cut open the tree and run the sap on the wound it acts as a remedy. Another great day. I do love all these ruins.We got a bus to Belize city that night and spent the following morning wandering around the city to get a feel for it. Despite warnings of danger everyone seems to be very friendly and helpful I really do like Belize. We then got on a bud headed for Dangriga, but it broke down and we ende up on one going further south, which is where we actually wanted to go. We got a bus to Independence, then a Hokey Pokey River Taxi over to Placencia. Its a spit not an island but the road onto the spit is apparently very bad. Dave and i got trapped in Placencia for 3 dyas. We just fell in love with it. It was the nearest I have ever been to a tropical island and it was just so wonderful and romantic. We stayed in a beautiful little hut right on the beach [this one had ensuite and electricity and was cheaper than the one in tulum] and it also had a balcony to sit on in the evenings. We spent the days on the beach, tkaing constant dips in the warm turquoise water, lying under the shade of palm trees, or basking in the full glory of the sun. It was just beautiful. The evenings were spent in local bars and restaurants listening to local bands playing a reggae mixture sort of music. It was great. We were able to get a real tatse for the culture and the people here as we met a lot of locals, who seem to love the english! I wont give any more day by day detail as this was pretty much the pattern, but it was a wonderfully relaxed few days and i feel brand new again and ready to embark the last leg of my travels.
It was hard to tear oursleves away but we had to move on and left for San Ignacio with the intention of visiting the Cracol ruins, however the trips were too expensive so we just spent one night then hopped on a bus across to Guatemala the next day.
Comments
mi fondo es maloliente!
just did my first blogathon, all the way from LA to Guatelama. Only took about twenty minutes but I hope to improve on the next one. It was good to catch up - you certainly have had lots of great experiences although that lava was clearly fake just a load of painted cotton wool with orange lights underneath. that marshmallow was the same one in both photos. in fact are you really travelling around the world or just sitting in your bedroom making it all up!! need to go the whisky is begining to take effect.