Belize

Diving, Fishing, Beaching, and Mayan Ruins

December 2017

But First... A Little Ramble

If you have read some of my other posts, you may know by now that John and I always name our rental cars when we travel. But in addition to that, we also name the various pieces of our luggage. And most of them happen to be the color blue, so that usually makes it into the name. On this particular trip, we were pleased the Big Blue (Samsonite Checked Bag) ended up making it to the correct destination (unlike our trip to Costa Rica). This would be your standard giant suitcase that you check at the airport and pray it’s under 50 pounds. Also making a comeback was Lil’ Blue, a narrow fanny pack that John usually wears under this shirt that carries our valuables and important documents for travel. New to the international crew was Scuba Blue (a big mesh Stahlsac Dive Bag for carrying scuba gear) and Cool Blue (a 35ish quart blue and white cooler that we brought for shlepping groceries to our various locations).

We brought all this even before having children, which has done nothing to help us minimize the amount of gear we carry in and out of airports!

A Night in Belmopan

We landed in Belmopan after a delightfully uneventful airport experience and flight. We didn’t yet have a rental car to name because the next day we were hopping on a ferry to San Pedro and wouldn’t need one till we got back to the mainland. We checked in to the Bella Sombra hotel and got a restaurant recommendation from a gentleman there, called Celebrity. It was definitely catered towards tourists and we were hoping to get more of an authentic, local atmosphere, but it’s okay. We would have time for that later. We just walked from the hotel, happy to stretch our legs after the travel day and then paid a decent price for great lobster and steak. Our walk back was in the dark and in a city which is not my favorite ecosystem to explore at night. Sure enough, we caught sight of our first Belize wildlife… a ginormous rat. Bleh!

Ferry to San Pedro

In the morning, we got some more walking in as we dragged all of our belongings about a half mile to the ferry check in. There were public restrooms there with apparently no toilet paper inside and folks were outside peddling the creature comfort to the dismayed tourists. I bet the people standing outside the men’s restroom have a lot less luck. I myself am a drip dry kinda gal in the woods anyway, so I skipped right past the line and did my business. (Although now that I am writing this 6 years later, I have discovered the miracle that is the Kula cloth and highly recommend it for adventurous women on the go, who need to go.)

We were one of the few people to brave the blasting winds on the upper deck for the views, but it was worth it to see the little islands rolling by.

We got in touch with our Airbnb host, Edmund, who picked us up in his got cart and gave us a little ride around town to point out the grocery store and some good places to eat. We got settled in and took a much needed nap.

Diving Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley

Part two of that day was diving!

We rented BCDs and regs, but this was our 3rd time traveling with some of own gear. We both use Atomic Split Fins, which we pair with Deep See dive boots. I love my Henderson 5 mm Wetsuit because I get cold so easily, even in the tropics. John had a triathlon wetsuit he used for a while, but he recently upgraded to this O’Neill Wetsuit with a chest zip to make it easier for him to get on and off without help. John’s mask is the Tusa Freedom Ceos, but I like my Scubapro Sub Vu Mini better. It doesn’t have a blind spot over the nose and it also has side view panels. We both dive with snorkels on, although we have been told by guides before that we shouldn’t. I prefer to have it in case of an emergency where I am out of air and still need to swim far at the surface to reach safety. Mine is a Mares Ergo Dry and John’s is a Tusa Hyper Dry. (I did not yet have my GoPro, so there is no underwater footage from the dives on this trip. But I highly recommend the GoPro Hero with this Dive Case and Handle that I use now. I have been down to 104 feet with this set up and never had an issue. Also, at the time, I did not have a Dive Flashlight, but I do now. It’s great for illuminating creatures underneath coral overhangs for filming.)

It was just us and our guide, Manual, at the Hol Chan Marine Reserve. It was a great dive! The highlight was a free swimming moray eel who was snapping his jaws and was just a little intimidating. Then, we had a chance to snorkel with nurse sharks and a turtle at Shark Ray Alley. The nurse sharks had somewhat creepy milky eyes that stood out to me.

When we got back “home”, we showered and then walked the town trying to remember all of Edmund’s recommendations. We found a few and settled on La Fonda’s street tacos and ice cream. Street tacos would end up being my favorite food on this trip. But I was a bit alarmed to see that they redipped our sample spoons into the ice cream! We continued to walk around as John contemplated eating everything in sight. Somehow we still had enough energy when we got back to stay up and watch Frozen on the little TV at our place. It was the first time I had ever seen it, but it is one of my fave “new age” Disney movies.

Beach Time

The next day, we attempted to borrow bikes from Edmund, but couldn’t get ahold of him. So we walked to Ruby’s Cafe for stuffed Fry Jacks for breakfast. They are basically fried pancakes stuffed with a variety of sweet or savory ingredients. We ordered different kinds, but then ended up swapping because we liked each other’s better. Afterwards, we managed to borrow the bikes and rode to Ramon’s Village where we had heard there was a great white sand beach. We snuck through the resort and I almost blew it wrecking in the deep sand on my bike. We managed to snag a couple of chairs that explicitly said “for guests of Ramon’s Village Resort only”. However, the beach is still public. Mostly I just wanted to lay out and get a tan since I was winter white and really only went in the water to cool off to come back and lay out some more.

We got away with using the chairs for about an hour before our very obviously not resort towels gave us away and we were asked to vacate the chairs for resort guests.

We rode down about a block and got some drinks and laid in the sun some more, which is where I definitely over did it. I went from winter white to tourist red. We rode down another couple of blocks for a shrimp cocktail appetizer and then headed home for a rinse and a change to go fishing.

I felt like Costa Rica and Belize were both places where it would be acceptable, and perhaps even expected, to rock some Cheeky Swimsuit Bottoms. (Order a size larger. I am ALWAYS a medium, and even the large was a big snug on me.)

Reef Fishing

We met Captain Hilly Boo (best name ever!) with Freedom Tours who turned us over to Carlos and Greg, our guides for the trip. We rode in the boat through some pretty mangrove forests with tons of chameleons in the branches and even a skate down below in the sand. Once we hit the open water, we stopped to watch the guys elegantly and effortlessly toss a net for sardine bait. At another place, they dove for conch shells to also use the meat for bait. I got in the water too, just to cool down and take a pee.

Our next stop was actually to fish, and the bite was ON for a while.

We caught 5 fish right away. After that, we had to work a little harder and ended up switching spots twice. I eventually tried casting on my own and got quite a few fish overall. We had a really great time.

I tried but couldn’t look away as the fish were filleted, many of them still flopping around. I now am always the one yelling at John and his buddies to bat the fish right away if they are going to keep them! Thankfully I was able to be distracted by a bird who swooped by the eat the remains that were being tossed in the water.

We had a gorgeous ride back in the sunset light, changed at the house, and then took our catch out to Caramba where we had it blackened, grilled, and fried for us to eat. Blackened was my favorite. We only had about half of our catch prepared, so we still had plenty of fish to eat another time.

Deep Sea Fishing

After our half day reef fishing charter, we did a full day deep sea fishing on Christmas Day. Andy (Captain Hilly Bo’s cousin) picked us up in the golf cart with Ramirez (our captain). It was a pretty slow day, we ended up only catching 1 barracuda each.

There was a little rain and rougher waters than the previous day. I got a little sea sick and laid down for a couple hours. At least we did get to see some dolphins in between our catches.

John has convinced me that it is a better use of our time and money to book fishing trips rather than wildlife viewing tours. You end up seeing the same wildlife anyway, plus get a bit more action and a free dinner added to the experience.

We donated the meat to the crew, since we had so much already, and walked down to the dock for some street food. We got puposas, a burrito, and a hot dog wrapped in bacon. Since it was Christmas, I felt compelled to stop by a beautiful church on our walk back to the house. I just wanted to say a quick “happy birthday” to Jesus before we chowed down on our food and watched some Forensic Files.

Back to the Mainland and On the Road

In the morning, Edmund’s mom gave us a ride to the ferry which for some reason was super uncomfortable when I didn’t notice feeling that way on our way in. Maybe it was just a rougher day on the water. Maybe I was already prone to feeling a bit nauseous since I had been sea sick the day before. We got a taxi ride from Dominguez who played twerking videos on a big screen the entire ride back to the airport. My nausea continued for a whole new reason.

We picked up our red rental car, who would be come to known as Dusty later on in the trip. We set off for Hopkins. This was my second experience driving in a foreign country, and I must say it was at least a LOT easier than in Costa Rica. However, there were a ton of speed bumps everywhere that would sneak up on you and speed limit signs that were sometimes in kilometers and sometimes in miles per hour, so that could be confusing.

We were getting pretty hungry along the drive and started scoping out little roadside restaurants. We stopped at Yam Witts for baked chicken, rice, and beans. It was absolutely delicious and just the right amount of food. He also had really good lime juice to drink and the cleanest bathroom in the whole country.

Hopkins

Then we were off again, enjoying the rolling hills and thick forests on the way. We stayed at another Airbnb called the All Seasons Guest House ran by a very friendly fellow named Odie. He got us settled in and gave us some restaurant recommendations. We took a little walk along the beach that was very close to our place. We found what was clearly the “rich” side of down and then walked back, scoping out places to eat along the way.

We took a little nap and then set out for Driftwood, a pizzeria on the beach that had jam sessions every Tuesday night. And it just so happened to be a Tuesday night! So we were entertained by a group of guys beating drums and shaking maracas and blowing conch shells while John absolutely crushed me at a game of Scrabble. Then our food came and I consoled myself with its deliciousness.

Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Preserve

The following morning, John had to work, so I walked to the beach by myself with my Kindle and enjoyed a couple of hours of tanning and relaxing. When he got off, we set off for Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Preserve. Along the way, we picked up a couple who was hitchhiking. They were Louisa and Zak who were basically traveling the world as baristas, getting seasonal work when they needed to and exploring a new area before they moved on again. We went our separate ways in the trail system, but made arrangements to meet up with them in the parking lot at a certain time to give them a ride to their hostel that was near us.

John and I did the big 15.2 km Wari Loop to see a lot of the rain forest.

We heard a lot of birds and saw a few awesome colorful ones. We also saw leafcutter ants, fire ants (I wrote in my journal that you could tell the difference between them based on their bite lol), iguanas, tapir tracks, and my favorite… blue morpho butterflies! The weather was great, even though rain had been in the forecast all day.

When we were done, we debated going up to this waterfall we had heard about (Tiger Fern), but weren’t sure we would have time before the sun set. We ended up going for it, although neither of us were suuuuper into the idea of more walking and the trail was of course straight uphill to start. I will say it was very cool to watch the forest change around us as we climbed, becoming predominated by these thin, white barked trees that I would compare to scrub oak back int the states. Then the trees disappeared entirely and there was just tall grass. It was an amazing transition from the thick, lush rain forest below us. At the top, we were rewarded for our efforts with an amazing view.

We felt like we were the only people in the middle of nowhere, a precious feeling to me that you don't get in very many places.

The trail began to descend just as steeply, back into the typical rain forest biome. We could hear the water for a looong time before we could see the falls, such a teaser! The lower pool was very nice and clear, but we had heard the upper pool was even better so we climbed up and guess who we saw! There were Louisa and Zak, on their way back towards the parking lot.

We again had this special place all to ourselves and I felt like I deserved a little skinny dip after that sweaty climb out of the jungle.

After thoroughly enjoying ourselves at the falls, we decided it was time to race the sunset back to the car. On the way across the first pool, I slipped on a mossy rock and fell into the water. I tried to catch the camera that was slung over my shoulder, but didn’t make it in time. It got a dunking and would not function the rest of our trip. We eventually replaced it with a Sony A7 III that worked with the same distance lens I already had. We really loved the upgrade, although we weren’t necessarily expecting that cost as a part of the fun tax for this trip.

My slip also meant I was now in soaking wet clothes for the hike back up and down.

Skinny dipping and then putting on dry clothes afterwards is fun, entering the water without planning to and then sloshing back to the car... less so.

We did get a great sunset view from the top. Then, it got dark reeeallly fast under the thick canopy. We found it back just fine and our new friends were waiting for that ride we promised.

After we dropped them off and safely parted ways (when you watch as many Forensic Files as we were watching on this trip, you notice when you survive a potentially sketchy interaction like that), we went out to dinner at Jambel Jerk. There was some live music and a buffet with the most amazing delicious fruit I have ever tasted in my life.

Seriously, the bananas and pineapples we buy at the grocery store are pale shadows of flavor compared to the ones fresh in the tropics.

They also had conch fritters (just fried conch) which had been on my list to try on this trip. Also very good. John made some friends buying bitter shots for everyone, which is probably what led to us having a very lazy morning the next day.

Relax Day

I very rarely drink anything alcoholic and bitter shots are certainly not what is going to tempt me to change that. So I wasn’t hung over, but boy can I enjoy a good sleep in when I get the chance. We rolled out of bed around noon to go to Innie’s Restaurant and then spent the rest of the day in bed watching more Forensic Files and relaxing. John got several hours of work in and I blazed through the Mary Renault Historical Fiction that was on my Kindle.

I love authors who write good series so that I can spend more time lost in that world.

We managed to leave the house again to go to Lucky Lobster for dinner and ran into some of John’s drinking buddies from the night before. It was raining, so we planned to give them a ride back to their resort and they were buying drinks for us in exchange. Then the rain stopped and they ended up walking back anyway. Oh well, I’m sure they got some good karma out if it and we got a cheaper tab.

Xunantunich in San Ignacio

After our day of rest, we were ready for a drive from Hopkins to San Ignacio and checked into the Belize Toucan Nest Hotel in the heart of town. Then we drove to Xunantunich, one of the Mayan ruins nearby. We rode on a hand cranked ferry across the river and then drove up the hill to the site.

They had a great visitor center that you pass through BEFORE you walk to the ruins themselves. It made me understand and appreciate the sights much more with all that background information.

We saw the skeleton of a young man scientists had exhumed along with all of his his burial artifacts. We learned more about the famous Mayan ball game, including that scoring a goal was actually a super rare ocurrance. When it did happen, the spectators had to give their clothing and jewelry to the players.

And losers weren't always decapitated as some believe. Instead, there were certain games that were intended to re-enact battles against a "team" of captives from the losing side. When the game ended, they were in fact beheaded.

We saw a partial hoop later on our walk through the site and heard a guide saying it’s the only hoop that has ever been found still attached in the court.

We climbed up the big pyramid that had been excavated back out of the jungle and got good views of other structures, still mostly buried with trees growing out of the tops. There were beautiful and detailed friezes on both sides of the pyramid. I was sort of happily amazed that visitors are able to actually step in the figurative footprints of those who have come before and get so close and even touch the carvings. I can think of a lot of places where interaction with historical artifacts is more restricted, in the name of preservation. While I agree that is valuable so that future generations can experience the same places, perhaps it’s important to have a balance of both. That way people today can develop a personal connection to history, therefore wanting to study or save places like that more. At the same time, we do need to set limits and create boundaries so that something is left for those will someday walk in OUR footprints.

Okay, stepping off the soap box...

There were cute little bats hanging inside the top, never ending forest views all around, and even the sound of howler monkeys calling in the trees that added a surreal element to where we were. That is definitely where the makers of Jurassic Park got the idea for a lot of the dinosaur noises in that movie. We could even see a couple swinging in the distance.

After that, we walked around the ball court and some other buildings before climbing the other pyramid on the opposite end of the complex. That one actually gave the best views of the site.

I thoroughly enjoyed this day and felt that this was what made Belize perhaps an even better trip than our similar trip in Costa Rica the year before. Both had diving and beach and jungle hikes and wildlife, but Belize added this historical element that really spoke to me.

Caracol

The next day was an early morning rush to meet up with a military escort at 9 am to Caracol. As I was researching for this trip, it was highly recommended to travel as a caravan to the site to avoid an encounter with roadside pirates in the area. When we got to the military checkpoint at Mountain Pine Ridge Park, we were informed there was not really an escort, but people who drove in willy nilly ended up grouping together anyway because of the slow nature of the rough road.

Rough road? Sounded like a fun challenge.

Rather than buddying up for safety, I was passing vans full of tourists left and right through the ditches and rocks. When the guides driving those vans saw a little white chick step out of the driver seat when they all arrived, they hooted and catcalled their compliments on my driving skills. I did learn to drive on the backroads of Colorado after all.

It drizzled for most of our visit, but we didn’t mind. Unlike in Colorado, it was a warm rain. We hurried to unload and try to climb the biggest pyramid before the vans disgorged all those tourists… and we ended up running right past it. Face palm. Oh well. Instead, we found ourselves in a collection of stelas and alters that had some amazing carvings on them. I really liked the ones with human depictions.

Next, we climbed an acropolis that was surprisingly slippery in the light rain.

Then we found a stela that was still upright…

… the ball court…

… and another acropolis with empty tombs and an old reservoir.

Finally, we made our way back to the main attraction. We started to climb up the pyramid that is even bigger than the one at Xunatunich. The steps on all the buildings were already super steep and super tall. I felt like I needed to use my hands, they were so high.

The rain made them so slippery, we assumed we would surely die on the way down... a fitting human sacrifice to the Maya gods.

Later we learned that the steps probably were actually meant to be climbed using hands and feet because the typical Mayan person was shorter than the typical American today. It was really cool to peek in all the rooms at the top. There were 3 structures at the top, including the king’s residence and his personal temple. A queen was buried in the courtyard in between. There were some carvings at the top here too.

Lastly, we visited the Barrio section of the complex. While we were walking around, a tree limb came crashing down just a few feet away from us. We weren’t sure what message we were supposed to get out of that.

As we were walking out, we saw the Twin Ceiba trees, which we later learned were sacred to the Maya because it was believed that the tree stood at the center of the universe. It is now the national tree of Guatemala.

Back in the car, John took over as captain and FLEW down the road, passing other cars and a shady hitchhiker who may have been one of those roadside pirates we were warned about.

It was on this day that the car earned its name, Dusty.

Caves Branch Jungle Lodge

We were on our way to our next stop at Caves Branch when we decided to stop at this chicken place that we were seeing all over the place, Chicken Express. We proceeded to accidentally order an entire chicken that came with about 20 corn tortillas and all the fixings for tacos. Plus, John had ordered lemon chicken on the side. We had a meal for about 10 people in front of us, so we stuffed our faces and chugged our Grape Fantas and then ordered some more sodas to take with us with the leftovers. We would end up addicted to grape Fanta by the end of this trip. And unfortunately we had to throw out most of the leftovers when it became infested with bugs at our next location.

Caves Branch was a sort of resorty-style place with private cabanas, group meals, and daily excursions that they hosted. We got our introductory tour from Dori and saw the botanical gardens and the cheese house in addition to the pool/hot tub area. We sipped our welcome rum punch and settled in. I wanted to head straight to the hot tub where we chatted with some other guests and got some tips for which excursions to do, although I already had ours picked out. In a perfect example of “small world” moments, one of the people we met, Suzanne, lives in Westminster, about 25 minutes from our home in Colorado.

While at Caves Branch, meals were included and absolutely delightful. Breakfast and lunch were pretty informal, buffet style affairs. Not dinner. There were assigned seats to intentionally mix up the guests so that you could meet new people each night. And the WiFi was turned off, so you were actually sort of forced to interact. It was smart and certainly made for more memorable meals.

Depending on who were sitting next to, though, the 2.5 hour, 3 course production could certainly seem long.

On one night, we were with a newly wed couple who seemed to argue the entire time. We didn’t think they were going to make it very long.

Besides arranging new table conversation each day, the staff also created a new towel arrangement on our bed. It was always fun to come back to the room and see the cute kissing swans and frog on a lily pad and puppies complete with flowers from the botanic garden.

Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) Cave

After dinner that first night, we crashed knowing that we had a big day ahead of us going into the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) Cave to see the Crystal Maiden. Breakfast was a Fry Jack buffet (yay!) and then we met our driver Eduardo and our guide Patrick. Patrick was a tall, buff, militant looking dude who gave a very stiff and formal introduction. But once we got in the van, he became this hilarious metro-sexual piece of “Large Chocolate” (as he called himself).

Patrick was a tall, buff, militant-looking dude who gave a very stiff and formal introduction. But once we got in the van, he became this hilarious metro-sexual piece of "Large Chocolate" (as he called himself).

We were decked out in life vests, helmets, and headlamps. We were told to keep our hands free for scrambling and tuck our water bottles into our “bosoms”. Mine’s not quite big enough to hold a water bottle, but thankfully my shirt had a little shelf bra built in and the snug fit of the life vest did the rest of the job. There was a total of 7 tourists in our group, along with Patrick the guide. I felt the group size was wonderful, and I would not have wanted a group any bigger for some of the technical work we were about to do in the cave.

We were wet immediately, swimming across a river before starting to walk into the jungle.

Patrick majored in botany in college, primarily focused on the plant life of Belize. So he really added to our tour by identifying various plants and their uses as we trekked towards the cave.

For example, he cut into a tree with his machete to show us the sap that would be harvested to make rubber. He is also part Mayan and was raised in a very traditional family, so he also knew a lot of indigenous plant knowledge, pointing out a plant that could provide a natural insect repellant.

He taught us to walk through the mud rather than trying to avoid it. He chanted that “you can either walk THROUGH it, or end up IN it”. Sure enough, a lady trying to walk up and around a patch slipped down and soaked her whole body in a lake of mud. I’d much rather just have muddy feet than a head to toe coating. (See the Up North Road Trip to learn more about when this actually did happen to me in Yellowstone National Park.) Luckily, there were enough water crossings that she was able to get cleaned off and our shoes got a good rinse on the way out with that final big river crossing.

At the entrance to the cave, we were invited to use the “facili-TREES” for a final bathroom break. (Another great spot for a Kula cloth!) We also left our water bottles behind. We swam through some more water and then we were spelunking!

I would have enjoyed this day with just the walk through the jungle. Then I would have enjoyed this day with just the caving part! The fact that we were going to add Mayan artifacts to this experience was just over the top awesome!

The cave was beautiful with stalagmites and -tites, calcite crystal build ups, cave bacon, and holes in the ceiling carved by bats.

Patrick was actually one of the first to explore this cave with a team that was collecting drill samples like they do in ice to study the deposits over time. He said everything we would see that day was exactly the way it was when it was discovered, except for 2 skulls that had been damaged by tourists’ cameras dropping on them.

That's the reason why there are no pictures from this adventure. Cameras are now forbidden unless you are a professional photographer with permits.

As we entered the chambers used by the Maya, we started to see remains of one type of sacrifice, pottery and the goods contained within. We learned about the ways the vessels were made before the invention of the wheel. There were pinch pots and pots made from long ribbons of clay wrapped around and around. We also saw the 3 ways that pottery was broken to release the spirit of the pot: a chip in the rim, a keyhole made with a knife, or a good old fashion smashing. There was a container with a monkey symbol on it, which Patrick translated to mean clumsy or top-heavy.

It indicated that the pot had contained the Mayan alcohol which was fermented until a handful thrown into the air would evaporate before hitting the ground.

Sounds way worse than bitter shots.

We saw the first skeleton of a human sacrifice, and then 2 more. At least one of them was very young, with the cracks in the skull not quite solidified yet. These remains were in a jumble because they had been washed away from their place of death by water after the event.

The skulls showed the elongated head formation seen in Mayan art.

Finally, we climbed a scary ladder to enter the presence of royalty: The Crystal Maiden. She is called that because of calcium deposits that have completely covered the skeleton and cemented it to the cave floor. The facets cause a glittering effect in changing lighting. Researchers have established that she was 16 years old based on tooth records, female based on her hips, and royal because of the dwarf who was sacrificed next to her. In Mayan tradition, dwarfs carried the spirits of royalty into the afterlife. Water hadn’t disturbed their resting place up on their shelf, so scientists are able to understand a lot about the way she died. She had a broken jaw and had been disemboweled. A blow to her neck and shoulder severed her spinal cord and would have killed her. Patrick told us there were 3 ways to become a sacrifice: by volunteering, election from a council of elders, or by being a war captive. No one knows what circumstance led this young woman to be sacrificed here.

Patrick also said the more painful the sacrifice, the more powerful the request. You could be beheaded, dismembered, disemboweled, drowned... there were a few others that I forgot.

But we also learned that human sacrifice wasn’t always a norm for the Maya, but came later in their history, during a great drought around A.D. 900. Perhaps they were hoping that a greater sacrifice would save them.

We bid a solemn farewell to the 2 skeletons and began our exit out of the cave. On the way out, we passed through the Guillotine, a tight squeeze that looked like it might actually cut off your head.

Thankfully we didn't join the 1,000 year old sacrifices, the water just kinda zipped you through like the world's scariest water slide.

John was really helpful here and in other tricky places in the cave, always lending a hand. (Ah, young love. Nowadays, he would perhaps not be as chivalrous.) It was a quick walk/swim/wade back to the cars to change into dry clothes and eat a chicken lunch with rice and beans. (“Or beans and rice, it all ends up in the same place either way, honey, thank you for noticing” ~ Patrick)

We were eating with some people from a different tour group and one of them looked really familiar. I complimented the design on his shirt and learned it was from Movement, the same climbing gym I went to in Colorado! He was Fidi, who worked there, that’s where I recognized him! Who would imagine that we’d be in the same place at the same time 2,400 miles away.

New Year's Eve

Then it was back to Caves Branch for a nap and our New Year’s Eve dinner. We got hats and beads and noise makers and champagne and did our toast at 8pm because the staff didn’t want us partying until midnight. Oh well, it was midnight somewhere. Dessert was the best chocolate cake of my life, leading me to always order a flourless chocolate cake if I ever see it on a dessert menu at a restaurant. John and I took the Scrabble game home (we’re obsessed) and played until almost midnight. I won by slightly cheating with the word “vizage” instead of “visage”. Shortly after, we heard fireworks going off, so it must have been midnight.

Diving (back in Hopkins)

We like to start off the new year diving, if we can. We figure it sets the right tone for what we hope the coming months will be like: beautiful, adventurous, together. It was a bit of a mistake to choose this adventure outing through Caves Branch, because it just meant we had a loooong and eeeaarrly drive back to Hopkins. We should have just dove on our own when we were there. But our driver Enrique let us snooze on the way.

There was a group of 6 divers, but we had our own guide. I had a lot of trouble equalizing on both of the dives, taking about 10 minutes to reach the bottom instead of 1 like everyone else.

I had never experienced that before or since. A couple of times I even yelped into my regulator when the pain got too intense.

I was stressed out that I was missing out on my bottom time and so far away from everyone and in pain, but I concentrated on the bubbles floating up from the group and tried to swallow after every inhale to adjust my ears. When I finally did get to the bottom, it was all worth it.

I had been studying a Fish Chart lately and enjoyed being able to name (in my head) a lot of the fish we were seeing: snapper, yellowtail, lionfish, grouper, angelfish, parrotfish, triggerfish, wrasse.

My favorite part of the first dive was getting a close up view of black durgeons. I had first fallen in love with these fish while snorkeling in Hawaii. They just move so differently with their almost ripple like fin movements. But getting closer to them while diving revealed they’re not actually black! They are a whole rainbow of colors and patterns that all seem to blend together into black from a distance.

That felt like an amazing discovery to me.

Plus! There was a hawksbill sea turtle resting amongst the coral but another diver got waaaay to close with his GoPro and scared him off. It ended up becoming a magical experience for me because he swam right towards me! We made eye contact and I waved him off. I swear he winked at me.

I also really enjoyed the huge barrel coral which was a new experience for me. Then and since, I love to exhale and sink to the ground level as I approach and then inhale to rise up just in time to peek over the edge. I can usually see some cool fish or shrimp that are living inside before they dart away when I suddenly appear.

In between dives, we rested on a little island that is a wildlife study area, but has a little bar and restaurant. I caught up in my travel journal, ate way more cookies than I should have, and watched the waves, the boats, and the birds. John played pool with some of the guides and seemed to be crushing them.

On the second dive, I had the same painful and slow experience going down, but otherwise thoroughly enjoyed myself. Great landscape of coral and a plethora of colorful fish, including a dazzling neon colored angelfish. The best part of this dive were 2 eagle rays that swam by a couple of times.

It seemed like a really unique experience, because they swam with their "wings" UP like a space ship from Star Wars after it lands, instead of spreading their "wings" OUT like you might imagine.

Afterwards, we got our last look at the ocean from the resort while we ate lunch before sleeping in the van again while Enrique drove us back to Caves Branch.

Back at Caves Branch

During our forced socialization over dinner, John met a genius kid who apparently was a good challenge for him at pool. I took my Kindle to the hot tub and we both enjoyed our separate evenings.

I was enjoying the lingering taste of dessert on my tongue, a chocolate cake with caramel icing that tasted exactly like the Werther's Originals Candies that grandma would give me in church when I was young so I would be quiet.

John and I reunited over more Scrabble before bed.

Belize Zoo

We finally had a relaxing and slow morning enjoying breakfast (yay more fry jacks!) before we had to check out at Caves Branch. We had some awkward time we needed to fill before arriving at the airport for our departure, so we checked out the Belize Zoo.

It turned out to be one of my favorite things we had done the entire trip!

We finally got to see a real tapir after seeing their tracks everywhere. They were surprisingly bigger than I had expected and just so fun because they are so unique. One came over to the fence and when I approached, he was still looking off a different direction, but turned his little trunk my way to smell me.

We also saw some monkeys chilling in the trees and speculated that if they wanted to jump out of their little enclosure, they totally could.

Then on to John’s favorite animal, the jaguars! The first one we saw, named Silvia, was in training for her new life in captivity. She had made a nuisance of herself in the wild and was therefore relocated here instead of being euthanized. She was cool to see because she was still pretty feral. She would growl and snap and attack the cage as people walked by and then run away into her little tunnel.

We were admiring her power and ferocity, while also feeling sorry for her because you could tell she would spend a lot of time stressed and mad as visitors passed.

On our way out, we saw her again and her trainer was with her, feeding her bits of food when she responded to requests to roll over while visitors watched. We could see they were making progress with her and I’m sure in time she would become accustomed to seeing so many people.

There were 4 other jaguars besides Silvia at the zoo who had obviously been there a while and knew the drill. Three were sleeping and 1 was grooming herself. We enjoyed watching her and noticing her claws and teeth and flexibility. A group with children walked by and she paused, stared at the children intensely until they passed, and then continued grooming herself. A little creepy.

Other highlights were toucans, howler monkeys (who were shockingly quiet as they maneuvered and grazed in the trees), harpy eagles, and alligators. It was a wonderful way to close out the trip.

You can read below about similar international trips that John and I did together before having kids, so foot loose and fancy free. Belize holds a special place in my heart as my absolute favorite trip we have ever done. I would have loved the country just for the beaching. I would have loved it just for the jungle walks and amazing wildlife. I would have loved this place just for the dives.

But what really puts Belize over the top were the historical sites and the connection to the past I felt here.

Many thanks to all those who work hard to find and reclaim places like these from the jungle and preserve them for future generations. Thank you to those who assembled such wonderful and informative displays at the visitor centers. I feel especially grateful to have met Patrick who imparted so much wisdom about his own cultural heritage.

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Additional Reading

Costa Rica
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Rae Around the World

Ramblings from a rambler.