USA Today Logo New York Times Logo Outside Magazine Logo Conde Nast Traveler Logo National Geographic Traveler
Create your Trip Journal [click here]

Craig and Steph's Adventures in Belize

By : Craig and Steph
Trip Begins April 12, 2004
Trip Ends April 19, 2004

We explore Mayan culture past and present in the Maya Mountains, enjoy the laid-back charm of Placencia, and kayak down the Monkey River. Text and photos originally posted on our web site www.craigandstephsvacations.com
See my photos : Adventures in Belize

Want to go? Belize Explorer

I went to: Belize
[enlarge map]
[reduce map]
April 12, 2004
Top

Pook's Hill

Pooks Hill Lodge, Belize

The drive to the Belizean border from Tikal took about an hour and a half. We clicked with guide Ben and driver Roberto right away, and we had a very nice, talkative ride. We knew immediately that we would enjoy Ben's company very much. When we got to the border there were a lot of money changers, etc. We needed to go through one building to check out of Guatemala and then a second building to check into Belize. There was a huge line that snaked out of the second building, forcing us to stand in this "no mans' land" in the very hot, direct sun. After a while, Ben used his influence to get us and some other Americans through the line. Ben tells us the majority of the delays are caused by the numerous Belizean people that were going shopping in Guatemala where the prices are much cheaper. It was taking time for the guards to go through all the things purchased to make sure people were keeping honest with the import rules. Since we were tourists with very little merchandise, Ben was able to get us into a different line where we were shuttled through quickly. At this time Roberto headed back to Guatemala and we hopped into the Pook's Hill Lodge Toyota Hilux.

Ben drove us to San Ignacio, where we stopped for lunch. Of course, it was Easter Monday, and very few places were open. It seems that lots of Belizeans really had crossed the border into Guatemala to go shopping, because San Ignacio was deserted. After driving up and down a few streets looking at quaint houses, and a stopping at a few places doing nothing but getting our appetites going, we discovered that our only options for lunch were a Chinese restaurant and the Wildside Cafe and Teahouse. We chose the latter, a sort of a hippie backpacker hangout near the bus stop that would offer more local food options. Because almost every other place was closed, they were very busy, and had run out of tortillas and bread. Although we were handed a menu listing quite a few appetizing dishes, we soon discovered that until one of the girls had a chance to go to the store, there was actually only one option: rice and beans with a vegetable curry. Feeling like we were a part in the Monty Python "cheese shop" skit we each ordered that, and got a very refreshing banana papaya smoothie to go with it. Although the food was very good we were looking forward to some nice fresh tortillas as well. Not 10 minutes after we finished eating did an adjacent table get a big batch of hot tortillas with their meal. I guess we should have waited for that store run after all.

After we finished eating, Ben drove us to Pook's Hill Lodge. It was less than an hour ride down the main east-west highway before we finally turned off the main road. Suddenly we were on a small dirt road that wound through small houses with many children playing outide and along the street. Apparently this section was named "Phoenix" by the locals as the residents were moved away from areas along the river and forced to settle where there was no running water. Since the farmland along the rivers was owned by others, they had no choice but to move where available land was provided to them.

After another 10 minutes of somewhat bumpy roads we arrived at the lodge. The lodge consists of eight thatched-roof cabanas and a separate building which houses an open-air bar, sitting area, and a screened-in dining room downstairs. It was a beautiful setting and a nice place to settle in after our rather jolting ride. We met Wim and Chantal Decoster, a Belgian couple who work at the lodge. We also met Vicki and Ray Snaddon, the owners. The layout of the grounds was very interesting as the cabanas were neatly placed around the onsite Mayan ruins. Although we could not make out exactly what the ruins once were, they were still familiar after leaving Tikal. We proceeded to our room. It was so hot and humid that we were dripping with sweat and praying the weather would change for the better.

Ben had offered to take us swimming, so we changed into our bathing suits in a hurry. There was a cute little gecko in our bathroom and a not so cute black scorpion in the shower, which Wim promptly removed for us. This made us well aware that any warning we had about checking our clothes and shoes before putting them on was not an idle threat. Ben took us on a short hike through the woods (and over a small Indiana Jones style bridge) to Roaring Creek. It was a nice downhill walk amongst some very interesting trees and plants. We wondered how hot we would be coming back to the lodge after our soothing swim. The late afternoon sun was very beautiful on the sandstone banks. It looked like walls of clay but actually it was all stone. The water was clear, cool, and quite refreshing. Occasional nibbles from the small fish always reminded us that we were in a river in Belize and not floating in a pool back home. Another group of guests (from California and North Carolina) were swimming there as well. One of them let me use one of the inner tubes they had brought down. We had a good time lounging around in the river, letting the current sweep us away.

All of a sudden we heard thunder and saw a bright flash of lightning in the distance. We all got out of the water immediately, but this was a reassuring sign that we had likely met the end of this heat and humidity. Ben led us through the meadow back up the the lodge. This seemed strangely level considering the downhill climb we used to reach the rivers edge. It was a pleasant surprise and a lovely walk. On the way back we ate a kumquat off a tree and saw leaf-cutter ant tracks in the meadow. It's amazing how big a swath they cut in the vegetation. Although only a few inches wide it was also a few inches deep and totally bare. It was really a sight to see in person.

Upon arrival back at the lodge we went to the bar and got ourselves a drink (it is on the honor system; each guest has a little clipboard on which they keep track of their drink consumption). I chuckled and couldn't imagine such a thing working at home. There were hummingbird feeders all around the perimeter of the building, and we saw a lot of hummingbirds darting in and out of the feeders. It was clear they had become very used to the humans staring at them while they ate. We had some chips and salsa and then headed back to the room to take showers before dinner.

We headed back down to the dining room at 7:30 for dinner. The dining room was a screened in room below the bar area and "living room". It was quite comfortable now that some light rain came through. Craig had a Belikin beer (the only beer in Belize) and I had some Chilean white wine. Dinner was buffet style and consisted of rice and beans, chicken, stuffing, vegetables, and fried potatoes. We sat at a long table with a Welsh family who is currently living in Belize for the military. Their 19 year old daughter was currently visiting from Wales. They also have a very mature 10 year old daughter that participated in the great conversation. Dessert was a coconut spice cake. Despite really enjoying the dinner and conversation, it had been a long day. At around 9:30 we headed to bed.

April 13, 2004
Top

San Ignacio: Rio Macal and the Garcia Sisters

Pooks Hill Lodge, Belize

We woke up at 5 am and met Ben in front of the bar at 6 for birdwatching. He had a nice telescope and binoculars. We saw two species of toucan. One had a black body and a yellow bill and belly and there was another one that had more of a green belly. We saw a bunch of other birds as well, including a robin and a woodpecker. We have never really been avid birdwatchers, but we were amazed at how well we could see the birds. We taked to Lena and Vernon from North Carolina, who were at Pook's Hill with friends as part of a Smithsonian tour. At 7:30, breakfast was served family-style in the dining room. We ate with Ben and had granola, fruit, eggs, kielbasa, and toast. Once again the food was delicious and plentiful. The overnight rain had stopped and the weather was much cooler and drier than yesterday.

At 8:30 we left for San Ignacio. We parked on the banks of the Rio Macal and went to hire a canoe. When we arrived there was a group of people cooking and sitting around a little camping area. Not far away from them was an overturned canoe and we wondered if this was for us. At first we felt a bit out of place crashing their party but Ben questioned them and learned that this canoe was in fact left there for us. Craig sat in the front and Ben sat in the back, with me in between. We saw some toucans, orioles, a great blue heron (sitting on a rock and then taking off right in front of us) as well as little star-shaped bats that clung like starfish to rock ledges on the banks of the river. We also saw iguanas and a few dogs protecting the nearby farmland. It was such a peaceful ride and despite a bit of roadwork being done in the distance this was exactly what we needed this morning. It was so nice getting to know more about Ben and having a nice relaxing ride. We heard many different birdcalls, and Ben really displayed his ability to pick out birds hidden amongst the trees. At one point we needed to get out and drag the canoe through an especially shallow area, but most of the time the water level was easily managed. After about two hours of going upstream, we turned around and repeated the journey downstream, arriving back to the car at around 12:15 or 12:30.

Then we drove to the Garcia Sisters' for lunch. We were a little late so they immediately seated us at a small table and served us rice and beans, chicken soup, fresh tortillas, and pineapple juice. It was very good. There was a jar of hot sauce on the table. This looked like nothing I had ever seen before. It was almost all clear with a few pieces of pepper floating around in it. Ben warned us that it is really hot so Craig only tried a few drops in his soup. He said it was by far the hottest thing he had ever tried and he couldn't believe what a great hot flavor only a few drops added to the soup. While we ate there were two boys working around the grounds taking an interest in our lunch gathering. They watched us and played around trying to get our attention as often as possible.

After lunch we met Maria, one of the Garcia sisters. She took us to her outdoor workshop where she was in the process of carving a slate. She told us how she and her four sisters first got interested in slate carving 22 years ago, and how they realized that the artistry was in their blood. Their parents and community thought that they should be working in the fields and selling watermelon. But the girls were headstrong and wanted to make a go of their art. The Garcias pay $1000 for a license to legally mine slate, whereas most people just do it illegally. The land where they used to mine was taken from them, and they are currently fighting for the right to mine there again. They have a clear conscience because they mine legally.

Over the years, the sisters have refined their carving technique. At first, they used to use cement blocks to smooth the surface of the slate. Now they use very coarse sandpaper. They use various blades to carve out the slate. The piece she was working on was rather small, but the larger pieces (some about three feet tall) take about three months to complete. It was interesting to hear that she doesn't look at a design when making the images. They are all from memory and she says she can see what designs belong on each slate. Maria then took us into their little museum, where some of their larger works were on display, as well as some Mayan cultural artifacts (folk medicines and musical instruments such as marimbas and harps). We then proceeded into the gift shop where we were very interested in one of the larger pieces. It was simply stunning and we thought it was a brilliant work of art, but it isn't the sort of thing we could put in our backpacks and bring home with us. Instead we bought a small slate of a Mayan king riding a jaguar and a slate hummingbird necklace. The Garcia sisters have become very involved in the local government and always try to fight the good fight to preserve their Mayan heritage. They are becoming very well known and highly regarded.

It was time to head back home, but first we stopped at a store for headlamp batteries for the big adventure tomorrow. About an hour later we were back at Pook's Hill. Ben had to go to a guide meeting tonight, and he left just prior to a deluge. When it started we were in our room getting things together, so we stayed in the room for only a few more minutes until the rain let up. We took the walk to the bar and talked with Chantal, Wim, Vicki, and Ray. At around 6:30, the Welsh family showed up and we all headed downstairs to the dining room. At 7 we had a buffet-style dinner (turkey, beans, rice, veggies, and potatoes). Craig had a Belikin beer and I had Chilean white wine. Once again dinner and conversation were very enjoyable but we still ended up going to bed at 9. Just as we settled into bed we could hear a scorpion scuttling around in the thatched roof. It seems that they like to climb into the inside of the roof throughout the evening and then go back outside when the sun rises again. We were quite glad that there was a net over the top of the bed, just in case.

April 14, 2004
Top

Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave

Pooks Hill Lodge, Belize

We woke up at around 5 am and got ready for the day. We headed down to breakfast for 6. We had juice, scrambled eggs, black beans, and toast. At around 6:40, we left for our hike to Actun Tunichil Muknal, the Cave of the Stone Sepulchre. The hike started in the woods near Pook's Hill, continued through an orange grove, through Mennonite bean and corn fields, and then through the jungle to the mouth of the cave. Throughout the course of the hike we had to cross Roaring Creek several times. On the way there we saw birds, a small brown toad, and a 6-inch marine toad, whose secretions are hallucinogenic. We also saw a wide variety of plants and trees including seeing our first rubber tree. The hike was basically flat and the weather was very pleasant. You could tell that the hike would be much more difficult in rainy weather as the dirt began caking on to our shoes. It seems that the mud gets very deep when wet but fortunately there were just occasional puddles that were easily avoided.

After about two hours we reached the mouth of the cave. There was a camp area with picnic tables, a fire pit, a thatched roof shelter, and an outhouse. Here we got our gear together for the cave. We were wearing travel shirts and shorts. Ben carried a dry bag within a backpack to keep our important things dry and safe. Our anticipation mounted as Ben was trying to give us more background information about the cave but we found it difficult to concentrate at this point. Standing at the mouth of this cave, with all of its history, was simply too much so we pressed onwards hoping to beat the inevitable hikers that would follow us.

The mouth of the limestone cave was gorgeous. There was a pool of clear blue water at the entrance, with many tiny fish swimming in it. We plunged into the water. It was deep enough that we couldn't touch the bottom. We swam inside the cave. It felt chilly at first, but we soon got used to the temperature. We had to wear sneakers to protect our feet. We then hiked through the cave, scrambling up and down some rocks, sometimes chest-deep in water, other times ankle-deep in water, other times on dry land. There were some beautiful limestone formations (stalactites, stalagmites, and calcified flows that glittered in the light from our headlamps).

We made our way to "the cavern", the sacred site where ancient Mayans used to perform rituals. The first thing we did was to remove our shoes. The cavern is sacred ground and we needed to proceed in our stocking feet. There were ritually broken pots (and even some intact pots) scattered all over the cave. It is thought that the Mayan people would come into this cave to pray for water and rain so the pots were very significant. The valuable polychrome pots had been removed to museums for safekeeping. Nonetheless, it was impressive how many monochrome pots were still there. Some were perched on "altars" and others were just littered on the floor. Unfortunately, visitors to the cave have recently trampled some. Every step needed to be carefully chosen to avoid causing any damage to pottery shards. It was nice being such a small group. It seems that larger groups tend to do more damage as there just isn't enough room in some places to ensure everyone is in a proper location. Some of the pots were calcified, making them appear to be thicker. We saw a couple of skulls and a few scattered bones. Everywhere we looked in the cavern there was some artifact to behold. The crowning glory required a climb up an aluminum ladder and onto a rock ledge. Once up there, we found ourselves in a "stone sepulchre" (the cave's namesake) and there was an entire skeleton of a young woman known as the crystal maiden. Sacrificial victims in the cave were either decapitated or their hearts were extracted. We managed to see everything before other tour groups caught up with us, which was nice. There were also various formations that when lighted from one side appeared to cast shadows looking remarkably similar to the various images of Mayan gods. We wondered whether or not this was significant to the Mayan people that entered the caves with their torches and fires.

We put our shoes back on, rested for a few minutes while eating a Snickers bar, and finally exited the cavern area. The camera had been safe in the dry bag on the way into the cave, but we wanted some pictures of our hike back out. So Craig carefully held on to the camera until the final swim, at which point he put it back into the dry bag. When we exited the cave, we ate the lunch that Pook's Hill had packed for us: turkey sandwiches, hard boiled eggs, and fruit cake. As always happens when hiking or exploring, it all seemed like the best food in the world! We had spent about 4 hours in the cave, but it hadn't seemed like that long. We would have happily stayed for a few more hours exploring every nook we could find. Not only was it simply stunning inside this cave, but it was also a significant location for the local Maya people.

We hiked straight back to the lodge. Noone said much; we were all just contemplating the day's activities. While still in the jungle portion of the hike Craig got stung by a wasp of some kind on the back of his ankle. Although causing a sharp pain at the time there were no visible signs of a stinger or any swelling afterwards and it was soon forgotten. We arrived back at Pook's Hill at around 3. We stopped at the bar and had a drink while discussing the incredible day we had. Wim seemed to really enjoy seeing the looks on our faces and hearing our stories about the hike.

Ben got out a bird book and showed us all of the birds we had seen in the past two days. Feel free to skip this paragraph entirely if you are not interested in birds. The birds we had seen so far in Belize were the bare throated tiger heron, black vulture, turkey vulture, plain chachalaca, grey neck wood-rail, ruddy ground-dove, red-lored parrot, little hermit hummingbird, rufous-tailed hummingbird, keel-billed toucan, colared aracari, blue crowned motmot, ringed kingfisher, green kingfisher, Amazon kingfisher, ivory billed woodcreeper, sulphur bellied flycatcher, northern rough winged swallow, brown jay, clay colored robin, red throated ant tanager, white collared seedeater, montezuma oropendula, grey tailed grackle, yellow tailed oriole, orchard oriole, social flycatcher, cattle egret, indigo bunting, and fork tailed flycatcher. Although we saw many others, these were all the ones we could properly identify in the guidebook.

We took showers and swung in the hammocks in the common room for a while. We were allowed to check our email on the office computer, and we finished with that at around 6:15. Then we sat near the bar, chatting with Ray, Vicki, Chantal, and Wim. We were the only guests tonight and they really treated us like family. At 7:30 we all ate together. The main course was fish tonight; Craig had grouper and I had snapper. We also had rice and beans, potatoes, and sauteed vegetables. After dinner we went up to the bar area and sat chatting for a while. We went to bed at around 10.

April 15, 2004
Top

Arrival in Placencia

Placencia, Belize

We woke up at around 6 am, hoping to get to see Ben before he left to head home to Orange Walk. Breakfast was at 8 but we planned to be down there by 7 to say goodbye to Ben. We were in our room getting things together since we were going to be leaving this morning when suddenly we heard an engine start. We ran out of our room but we ended up missing him by a few minutes. Since we didn't get to say goodbye in person, we left a note for him. It was a rather sad way to end the time with Ben because we really did enjoy his company. We really wanted to say goodbye properly but in many cases on this trip the whirlwind got the better of such plans. We went to the dining room and ate a breakfast of eggs, black beans, toast, juice, and coffee with Chantal and Wim. As with all of the meals here, the kitchen staff prepared a delicious meal. The employees in the kitchen are all locals from the nearby village of Phoenix. They come and stay on the lodge grounds to earn money while doing work here. It seems they are paid quite well relative to other opportunities so they enjoy having these jobs. They always seemed very happy when they knew we enjoyed their meals and always seemed to be having fun and giggling in the backroom when we stopped to thank them for the lovely meal. It would have been nice if they joined us as we would have loved a chance to talk with them.

We looked at some of our digital photos of Antigua with Wim and Chantal after breakfast. They were very interested in the carpets and wanted to see what they actually looked like. Vicki and Ray were going to bring us to the airport, and we planned to leave at around 9 for our 11 o'clock flight. The drive takes almost 90 minutes so the timing should be perfect. We were just getting our stuff together when Wim ran up, saying that the flight was now at 10:30. We threw our stuff in the van, said goodbye to Wim and Chantal, and headed off to the airport with Ray at the wheel. Ray flew to get us to the airport on time. Vicki was on the cell phone with Chantal, having her call the airport to tell them that we were on our way. There was a roadblock where Ray had to show his identification to proceed. The policeman said "What's your last name?" "Snaddon" replied Ray. The policeman smiled and said with a think Caribbean accent, "I thought it said Saddam!" We arrived at the municipal airport at 10:25. It was not hard to figure out why the FAA doesn't endorse internal Belizean flights. Vicki ran into the little building and talked directly to the pilot. He agreed to wait for us. The girl behind the counter took our e-ticket printout and then handed us laminated generic boarding passes made out of red construction paper. There was no search or luggage check whatsoever. We walked out the back of the building onto the tarmac and got into the 15-seater plane. We sat right behind the pilot and had a bird's eye view of all the controls. We flew 8 minutes to Dangriga. After picking up some more passengers, the pilot looked both ways, waited for another plane to land, and then took off again.

After a 13 minute flight from Dangriga, we landed in Placencia at 11:11 am. What a tiny airport! When we first arrived we were waiting to be picked up by Adventure Life's local contact (Toadal Adventures) for transfer to the Rum Point Inn. As we arrived a few minutes early, nobody seemed to be there to collect us yet. We sat in the small waiting room and used the rest rooms. Meanwhile, the phone rang and the person behind the desk said that it was the Rum Point Inn telling us to simply take a cab over there. We didn't think much of it. We assumed that whoever was supposed to meet us was delayed or whatever. The cab loaded up our luggage and, much to our surprise, drove us a very short drive to the hotel and dropped us off. It probably would have been easier to walk, and we felt a bit silly about taking a cab at all. We checked in and were assigned cabana 1. A smiling porter took our backpacks in a wheelbarrow and started across the sand walkways winding between lovely trees and flowers. We noticed that the grounds seemed particularly quiet and the beach was unoccupied. Arriving at our cabana, we discovered it was a nice little building that looked like a Flintstones house. The walls had decorative cut outs that let in the light, but had screens over them. There was a king sized bed, a fan, a futon, etc. It was a fantastic room and we were quite pleased with everything. We relaxed in the room for a while and then headed down to get a bite to eat at the hotel restaurant. We were told that we were one of only two couples on the entire premises (the place had really emptied out after the Easter rush), so they had sent the kitchen staff home early. They apologized and told us the Rum Point Inn driver would be happy to drive us into town and drop us at a restaurant at no charge.

We asked where the driver recommended for lunch and he said "Wendy's." We laughed, thinking we must look like typical Americans if he was trying to get us to go to fast food in this quaint, sleepy Caribbean town. But Wendy's turned out to be a little local restaurant, and we happily ate there. We got nachos as an appetizer. Craig had a beef burrito and I had a beef quesadilla. I had rum punch to drink and Craig had a Belikin beer. While sitting in the restaurant, we noticed it was remarkably still outside. We saw an occasional tourist and a few locals walking the streets but it felt as though the whole town was closing, yet it was only early afternoon. We were planning on getting ice cream across the street, but we were much too full after the very tasty and rather large portions of lunch. When we went outside most of the little shops that lined the small main road appeared closed and we felt sort of out of place: as if the town really was closing down around us.

There wasn't much to see in town, so we decided to enjoy the nice walk back to the hotel, which took about an hour. On the way, we saw the police station (a small hut with a moped parked outside and a sign which said "police station"). While walking we noticed a lot of new and old houses under construction. It seemed as if a hurricane had come through not so long ago, and there was a real construction boom building newer and better homes all around. Although most of the buildings we had seen since crossing the border into Belize were built on stilts, many of these new homes were not. We thought this probably wasn't such a good idea as this whole penninsula is just above sea level and probably quite prone to flooding. A little further up the road we saw a large puddle off to the side. As we approached, it came to life and we suddenly noticed hundreds of crabs scurrying away from our walking feet. It was really wild to see so many of them in such a small area. Each crab was probably only about an inch across, but there were so many of them! Soon we approached the airport. The dirt road we were follwing intersects with the end of the runway, and there is a small sign which says "STOP Give way to landing and departing aircraft". We stood there for a moment finding this to be quite a sight and laughed at the differences between this sleepy little airport and the ones we are used to back home. It appeared the road used to cut right across the middle of the runway, but it seemed they more recently diverted it toward the end of the runway (right along the coast). We noticed that our hotel room was actually a very short walk from the end of the runway. Rather than following the road which took a longer route, we simply walked along the coast to get back to our little cabana.

We got back to the hotel and hung out in our room for a little while. We decided to visit the office to see whether anyone had left a message for us regarding when we would be picked up tomorrow. Upon arrival, we found out from Altea at the desk that there had been a big mixup. Deb from Toadal Adventures had waited at the airport for us for an hour earlier in the day. Noone at the airport could tell her that we had already arrived, or that we had taken a cab to the Rum Point Inn. Apparently noone had called the airport to tell us to take the cab, either. And noone knew who, if anyone, had paid for the cab. It was a comedy of errors and we had been completely unaware of any of it. We felt terrible that we left Deb waiting at the airport and we left all this confusion in our wake, but we had been totally oblivious. Looking back, we realized Deb was probably still waiting for us at the airport while we were driving by to go into town for our lunch. We had a nice laugh about all of this with Altea, and she made us drinks at the bar. First we had a special rum punch that was very good, but we had to be careful to avoid the headache from drinking it too quickly. After that I couldn't resist trying the pineapple Fanta. While sitting in the deserted bar we leafed through some Maya books that are part of the Rum Point Library. They have quite a few books in their library (apparently the largest private library in Placencia, which isn't really saying too much, I suspect). It was really nice looking through the books as we had learned so much about the Maya people and could understand things much better after the first hand experiences we had had. Altea told us that David from Toadal Adventures had called while we were out, and she said he would be there at 5:15 to brief us on our plans for tomorrow.

At 5:15, David showed up with two other travelers that would join us: Marlene and her son Greg. We sat on the back porch overlooking the sea. The sand flies that were completely non-existent earlier were suddenly brutal. We had a nice conversation and discussed the plans for the upcoming days. They all seemed very nice and we knew this was going to be a great few days. Previously we didn't even know others would be joining us, but we seemed to get along exceptionally well and were excited to have the company. After they left, we talked with Altea some more, had another drink at the bar, and eventually went back to the room. When we each decided to take a shower, we noticed a tiny frog had affixed itself to the shower walls. We didn't want to disturb the little guy so we actually pointed the shower head away from his chosen location. The shower stall itself was quite interesting because down near our feet was another one of those holes in the wall with a screen preventing bugs (although not the tiny frog apparently) from entering. But it did allow the water to splash out. I imagine this design works quite well when the sea floods the grounds. The water simply rolls in and back out of the buildings, leaving a small mess but little actual damage. We got things prepared for the morning and went to bed at around 9:30.

April 16, 2004
Top

Nim Li Punit, Homestay in Blue Creek Village

Blue Creek, Belize

We woke up at 5 am. We ate a nice continental breakfast of muffins, fruit, raisin bran, orange juice, and coffee in the hotel restaurant. It was a nice little dining room with open walls overlooking the sea. After dropping off our large backpacks at the front office, we took our day packs filled with supplies for the next few days and waited out in the sandy parking lot, and we were picked up at 8:15. David was driving the van, and he was joined by Arthur (one of the guides who works for him), Marlene, and Greg.

We drove for about two hours to Nim Li Punit Archaeological Reserve. When we arrived we noticed many locals, young and old, making their way towards the site with various bags and sacks on their backs. We entered a small museum which housed various small artifacts as well as some large stelae (carved stone tablets) which had been found at the site. One of these stelae is the second largest in the Mayan world. David gave us a lot of interesting information about the Maya. After finishing in the museum, we walked around the restored site. While looking at the ball court, David recounted the story of the hero twins and how the played ball against the gods of Xibalba. It turns out that hacky sack is a derivative of this ancient Maya ball game. The Mayans used a three pound rubber ball, and they had a hard material around their hips on which they would bounce the ball, trying to get it through a vertical hoop. The entire site was situated on the top of a hill and therefore offered stunning views in all directions. There were also various ceiba trees located around the site and on nearby hilltops, but unfortunately a few of these very old trees had been knocked down in recent hurricanes.

As we began to descend the site and return to our van, we noticed that the locals who had previously been heading up to the site had now situated themselves along the exit trail with all their various wares. Although they had many decent items which were very cheaply priced, we really didn't have room to start buying these sorts of things and weren't overly interested in the items being shown. We felt bad as we realized they had come all the way up here just in hopes that we would buy something. As we walked by, they were in fact were now packing up again. Fortunately, we had brought a box of pens with us when we left the van, and we were able to ask if anyone wanted a free pen. At first it seemed they were afraid to take our offering, but eventually one excited boy took a pen and then suddenly many others were interested. One older woman asked if it was ok if she take a pen as well. After only a minute or two, the frenzy ended as we had no more pens to give away. Suddenly the moment seemed much more joyous, with everyone talking with each other and waving and saying thanks to us. At least they didn't waste their time coming to see us while we stopped to visit this rather interesting Mayan site.

After a short drive we stopped to eat lunch at Coleman's restaurant. It was a small outdoor restaurant adorned with many hand-lettered signs, including "Look Men's Urinal" above the bathroom. We had fruit punch flavored Fanta that tasted a lot like the Inka Kola we had while in Peru. We also enjoyed a nice plate of rice and beans and beef. On the table we noticed bottles of the hot sauce just like the ones the Garcia Sisters had on their table. Considering we would be spending the night with a Mayan family we thought it might not be a good idea to have any on our food at this time, just in case. After lunch, we drove a little further to Blue Creek, the Maya village where we would be spending the night.

The ecotourism model in Belize is very interesting. The Toledo Ecotourism Association oversees operations. If villages choose to participate in the program, they construct a guest house in which tourists can spend the night. On a rotating basis, families within the community host the tourists for dinner. As we arrived in the village there were many small homes on either side of the main dirt road. We saw lots of farmers working their land, women washing clothes by the creek, and children working as well as playing. As we approached our guest house we discovered it was still being cleaned out for our arrival so we changed into our bathing suits and met up with Sylvano Sho.

Sylvano is a very knowledgable Blue Creek resident who took us for a short hike through the jungle to Hokeb Ha Cave. David has been inside many times so he waited outside the cave with our belongings, but Arthur went with us (it was his first time in the cave). This was much more intense swimming than Actun Tunichil Muknal had been, and we were required to wear life jackets. We had to swim against the current. At times we had to scurry up rocks, and sometimes it was difficult to stand up against the current. At times the water was very deep. You could see where the water level had been in the past, and it was obvious that this was definitely a flash flood risk in bad weather. This cave did not have elaborate limestone formations, as the changing water levels made the walls quite smooth. It was pitch black except for the lights coming from our headlamps (and Craig's headlamp died partway through). Sylvano was a great guide, a very strong swimmer, and was able to give us a hand scrambling over rocks when we needed it. We eventually got to our destination: an underground waterfall. We could barely speak over its roar. We hung out here for a few minutes appreciating the sheer power of the water flow and admiring the incredible location we were suddenly thrust into. Sylvano told us that he offers a hike through the entire cave where you can exit on the other side of the mountains but he says you cannot climb up the waterfall and instead must choose a different route back when entering the cave. We all felt it was probably best to just do the short visit instead. We then swam back out of the cave and took the short hike back to Blue Creek Village. On the way back, Sylvano showed us a few walkways constructed high in the trees. They looked very unsafe and we were told that they were no longer used since they had been damaged in the hurricanes a few years back. We felt fortunate, as I don't think any of our group would have wanted to climb the trees and walk along the highly questionable catwalks anyway.

Craig and I were looking forward to spending some time with our Mayan family when arriving back at the village. But, unbeknownst to us, there was another activity planned, so we changed into some dry clothes and hopped into the van again. David told us dinner wouldn't be ready for a while so we were going to take a half hour ride to a nearby village. Soon after leaving the Blue Creek Village we stopped along the road and gave a rather disheveled man a ride for a few miles to his destination. He was very thankful for the ride and waved bye as we pulled away.

After what seemed a long ride down winding dirt roads, passing through various villages, we arrived at Santa Cruz and the Rio Blanco National Park. We took another short hike to a waterfall. There were a few other tourists having a picnic here so we lost a bit of that feeling that we had the place to ourselves. David told us we came here because apparently this is a popular swimming hole, but more importantly it is where the river sort of disappears into the ground as it flows through the mountains to emerge inside the Hokeb Ha Cave where we had just been swimming. Although it was a nice swimming hole none of us jumped in since we had just changed into our dry clothes and left our swimming gear behind. After a short visit, David taught us a few things about the neighboring plants and trees. We looked at a few plants that have a rather symbiotic relationship with ants. The ants live within little holes in the plant, and when the plant is bothered by something the ants come out to sting and bite the intruder. As David was showing us how this worked one of the ants in fact came out of a little node and bit him.

We then went back to Blue Creek and got set up in our thatched-roof guest house. The guest house has two bedrooms which each have four bunks complete with sheets and pillow (two bunks on the top and two on the bottom) and little individual mosquito nets. There is a common room in between the two bedrooms. There is no electricity, and there is a separate outhouse and shower building. Marlene had a preference for the bottom bunk, so Craig and I immediately took the top bunks. Although the sun was preparing to set, we had yet to meet our Mayan family, so we decided to attempt making a connection.

We had brought a Frisbee to share with the family, and while the rest of our group was chatting waiting for dinner, we threw the Frisbee around in front of the guest house. A boy rode past on his bike and we asked if he wanted to play with us. He seemed very shy and said no. Then a man came over so Craig asked if he wanted to play. He hesitated for a moment and then said "May I try?" We demonstrated how to throw the Frisbee and then I threw it to him. He caught it and then threw it back to us. He did very a good job for his first time, though he apologized because his aim was a little off. He seemed very excited, but then jumped out of the way when the Frisbee was thrown back to him. "I was a little scared," he said, laughing. He tried throwing it one more time, and then we were called for dinner.

It turned out that our Frisbee friend was also our host, Pedro Ack. We entered a rather large wooden building where there were two tables pulled side by side in the center of the room. The cement floored building contained a refrigerator, a stereo, and a diesel powered corn grinder. We also noticed there were a few plastic baggies of water hanging from the ceiling. It was an interesting collection of items gathered in this room and we chuckled at the size of the stereo over against one wall. It really seemed out of place here. As we all took seats around the table, Pedro's daughter Serafina passed out plastic cups, plastic bowls filled with a warm tomato egg mixture, and fresh piping hot tortillas. They gave us Quench Aid to drink (a Kool Aid type of drink). We also had a sugared chocho gourd, which tasted like candied yams.

Unfortunately, the women and children were all eating in the kitchen (which was a separate building), but Pedro ate with us at the table. We chatted with Pedro while we ate the delicious meal. We couldn't get over the amazing tortillas and marvelled at their freshness. Pedro told us that the corn grinder is used by others in the village and he charges them 10 cents per pound on corn being ground. He says another villager charges 15 cents, so many prefer coming to him instead. As we finished off our batch of tortillas, Serafina and one of the other daughters came in briefly to use the corn grinder in preparation for making more. Not 5 minutes later, these torillas found their way onto our table. No wonder they tasted so fresh! While eating, we had lots of laughs talking with Pedro. He had a great sense of humor and we were enjoying his company very much. We finally had to ask about the plastic bags hanging from the ceiling, as we noticed them when eating lunch at Coleman's too. He told us their purpose was to scare away the flies. Puzzling us for a moment, he continued to tell us that the flies see their magnified reflections and get scared away. After finishing the very enjoyable meal, we gave Pedro the Frisbee and he promised to teach the children how to play. Craig also gave one of the girls a pen before leaving.

After dinner it was fully dark outside, and we met up with Sylvano for a nighttime jungle walk. Our headlamps came in handy. Sylvano had hoped to show us kinkajous, armadillos, etc., but that was not to be. We saw a marine toad, a butterfly, termites, a grasshopper, a few spiders and some leaf cutter ants. David picked up the marine toad and it shot a sticky liquid into his hand. He told us this was the hallucinogen and this was our chance if we wanted to try some. We all laughed and thought about how this was likely not the optimal time to try such a stunt. He said that was a wise idea and was glad none of us were interested. It was a nice walk, and the sounds of the jungle were fascinating. It isn't every day that we find ourselves walking around in a jungle in the dark hoping to come across some form of wildlife. Despite not seeing too much our adrenaline was coursing through our bodies anyway.

On the way back to the guest house, we stopped at Sylvano's house to get his business card (for his email address). He told Craig that he is working on building his own guest house, and that he would like to host guests and sell cold beer, etc. Craig said that was a great idea, and he'd be willing to buy a cold beer. Sylvano quickly went to the fridge and cracked two beers. He gave one to Craig and one to me. I hadn't realized one was for me (I thought they were for Craig and Sylvano himself), and I had to apologize that I am allergic to beer. When he tried forcing the bottle cap back onto the second beer Craig (the martyr) offered to buy both beers from Sylvano to avoid this unfortunate situation. Sylvano said he would be happy to send us email updates from Blue Creek, and that he likes having friends around the world. We walked back to the guest house and Pedro set up three candles for us. I sat on the floor in the common room and journaled by candlelight. Craig sat with me for a while and we went to bed at around 10.

April 17, 2004
Top

Kayaking and Camping on the Monkey River

Monkey River, Belize

The roosters crowed all night (which we were told was because of the presence of several street lights in Blue Creek). At one point during the night I had to use the outhouse, and I realized that the design of the bunk bed ladder left a little to be desired. The top of the ladder was flush with the top bunk, so there was nothing to hold on to as you climbed up or down. In my sleepy daze I sort of dropped down the ladder, and had a hard time hoisting myself back up afterwards.

We heard the corn grinder fire up at 5:30 am, so we got up and took a walk around the town in the beautiful morning light. It had rained a bit overnight, but the skies were clear and bright and the village was very serene. We saw the school (with a water pump out front) and a small library. Children would hide as we walked past, but we could see them peering at us, and they would come out again once we had passed. A little girl was hanging laundry on a clothesline. She propped up a long stick (taller than she was) to hold the clothesline down at a level where she could reach it.

We wandered back to Pedro's house where the women prepared eggs, beans, and fry jack bread for breakfast. This was another fantastic meal, and we were very appreciative for the way we were treated while staying here. We got a chance to meet three more of Pedro's daughters, who were so adorable. One was around age 1, one was around 3, and the other was around 12. We also met his 17 year old son. The 12 year old daughter was taking care of her younger siblings, carrying the baby like a pro. We were very happy to get a chance to talk briefly with the family, and suddenly everyone seemed a bit more comfortable.

We gave Serafina some pens, notebooks, and Matchbox cars to distribute to the children in the village. She clung to them happily and thanked us for them. We asked if we could take her picture. She asked us if we could send her a picture of the whole family. We said, "Of course." They gathered the family together quickly before Pedro headed off to work. Pedro obliged, even though he was needing to go to work. I think he was really enjoying all the interaction and wanted to be a part of it even if it meant starting his day a little later than normal today. We took a few quick photos and then said goodbye to the family. The 12 year old helped the baby to wave goodbye to us. Although the family visit was a bit shorter than we would have liked, by the time we left we were feeling very happy with our interactions. We left the village a little after 8:00 and drove north to our put-in point on the Bladen River, just off the main highway that we had traversed only a day earlier. It felt like so much had happened since that time.

David helped us to inflate our Stearns IK 140 kayaks and load all the gear. Marlene and Greg were in one kayak, Craig and I were in another, and Arthur was in a third, laden with gear. David headed back to Placencia in the van as we strapped our gear to the front of our kayak and hopped in the lazy river. At first I had some trouble getting into the rhythm, but after a while I got the hang of it. The sun was very hot and strong. Throughout the course of the day I got burns on my legs and arms, despite keeping a healthy dose of sunscreen on at all times.

After a few hours paddling downstream, we stopped at a sand bar for lunch at around 12:30. We had ham and cheese sandwiches with homemade bread, tomatoes, fresh pineapple, juice, and lemon cookies. While paddling, we saw an occasional iguana clinging to the trees, sunbathing. At one point we pulled up on a sand bar for a better view of a lone howler monkey who was up in a treetop. We also saw a tiger heron, and a bunch of egrets that consistently kept a good distance ahead of us. We saw a pygmy kingfisher which was very colorful. There was a river otter who looked at us, blinked, and then went under water. Craig and I stared at it for a few moments as we realized, "Wow, a river otter". It was very cute and seemed to be quite curious about these big yellow inflatable things floating downstream. It was a very peaceful ride, and we were very much enjoying being surrounded by such incredible natural beauty.

At around 3:00 we made it to the beach where we were going to camp for the night. We were a little earlier than Arthur's prediction at lunch, which worked to our advantage. It was a beautiful spot to set up camp: a nice, clean sandbar with various vegetation nearby yet plenty of room for us to make a home for the night. There were jaguar and crocodile tracks in the sand. We set up our tents and then had a swim in the river, washing our hair with biodegradeable shampoo. There wasn't too much current here but just enough so we could float downstream easily and still had to be careful to not float too far away from home. The swim was very refreshing after doing so much paddling today.

We had worked up quite an appetite so we ate chips and salsa while Arthur caught a small fish using a makeshift fishing rod he constructed just for fun. We sat on the beach relaxing and writing in the journal while Arthur prepared dinner for all of us. We helped where necessary but Arthur really had things pretty well under control. He made us curried chicken with coconut milk and rice, including a red spice called ricardo. It was delicious. We also had fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, and carrots. We gathered firewood and then sat around talking. We saw a marine toad and Arthur tried to sneak up on a bird and catch it with his bare hands (it flew away at the last second and we were very impressed at how close he was able to get).

When it started to get dark, we walked along the beach and Arthur shone his spotlight in the undergrowth on the riverbanks. We saw a pair of crocodile eyes glinting in the beam of light. We got into our kayaks and paddled upstream a little ways. It was pitch black except for our flashlights. It was very creepy. The stars were shining brightly and there were various fireflies darting about, making it a very interesting place to be at this point in time. Once again we found ourselves in a surreal moment, simply trying to come to grasp with our dream-like surroundings. It was a challenge to avoid the obstacles in the river when we couldn't see very well, but we all managed to stay dry and not have any issues arise. Arthur saw some small crocodiles and chased one up an embankment while trying to catch it (he's done it before), but they eluded him this time so we paddled back downstream to camp.

We lit the campfire and sat around listening to Arthur tell us Creole trickster tales. All of the stories ended with "He stepped on a pin. The pin bend and the story end." Many of the stories were old tales his father had told him when he was young. Arthur was a great storyteller, and it was quite a magical night so we kept prodding him for more stories. Despite never wanting this day to end, eventually we were too tired to stay awake any longer so we went to bed at 9:30. We slept on thick foam pads (provided by Toadal Adventures) with our travel sheets making us feel covered.

April 18, 2004
Top

Kayaking to Monkey River Town

Placencia, Belize

At around 12:30 am, we awoke to the sound of pouring rain. We were glad that Craig had secured the tent fly before we went to bed, but we soon realized that water was leaking right through the tent material itself. Water droplets were dripping into the center of the tent and since the material was failing there isn't too much we could do about it. We put a pack towel between us and situated the two beds around the worst of it. We were very close to the shore and Craig was a bit concerned about the water level rising. Not knowing the river, it was hard to judge whether or not we were vulnerable. Fortunately we had secured the kayaks before going to bed, so at least that wouldn't be a problem. Craig laid awake for an hour or two while the heaviest rain fell.

I woke up at around 5:00 to the sound of gurgling water. All I could think about were crocodiles laying in wait. Craig's sleeping pad was pretty wet, but at least he managed to stay warm overnight as the temperatures were fine. I had remained mostly dry. When we heard Arthur up and about, we also got up. He made us fry jacks for breakfast. They are made of dough which is patted flat and cut into semi-circles and fried in oil. They become very light and have a pocket of air inside. These can then be eaten as is, or with a variety of condiments. We chose to use peanut butter and jam on most of them. We also had cheese, coffee, hot chocolate, and fruit punch. It was a beautiful morning and the mists rising off the river looked spectacular. It started to lightly rain again as we were packing up camp, so that everything became sandy and wet as it was being put away. Of course this seemed natural, as somehow it seems to always rain a little when packing up camp.

By 8:00 we were on the river. Today I wore long pants and long sleeves to protect my sunburn from additional exposure. Craig also had a little bit of sun but seemed a little more under control. After about an hour of paddling, we stopped for a snack of cookies, fresh pineapple, and nachos. There were little tiny toads hopping along the beach, and I caught one. They were only less than an inch in size and so cute. On the river we saw another lone male howler monkey atop a tree. If you didn't catch him moving, you might mistake him for a termite nest. We realized that almost all of the howler monkeys we saw on the kayak journey were alone and wondered why that was. Usually they are in groups unless it is a shunned male, and we wondered if there was some sort of revolt going on in monkey world. About an hour and a half into the paddle, the Bladen River became the Monkey River. Soon afterwards we stopped for a quick rest and had a few snacks on a sand bar. Arthur informed us that we had about an hour more paddling to go. However, when we rounded the next bend we were greeted by David and his daughter Ciara, who were there in Arthur's boat to pick us up.

We packed up all of the gear and got onboard. David captained the boat, maneuvering very slowly and carefully through the river as there were lots of fallen tree obstacles and shallow spots. Soon we were in a much deeper part of the river and there were many more tourist boats cruising the waterway. Eventually we were able to cruise right along making quick time of the remaining ride to the sea. The sun was shining, the wind was blowing, things couldn't have been better. When we reached the Monkey River Village, we docked the boat at a little pier.

We ate lunch at a little restaurant that looked like someone's house from the outside. We had grouper in ricardo spice with rice and beans and potato salad. Craig had a Belikin and I had a Fanta. The lunch was absolutely delicious and it was especially nice to sit in the shade with rotating fans hanging from the ceiling keeping us cool. After that we climbed back into the boat and headed into the Caribbean travelling north towards Placencia. Once we hit the ocean we were able to go considerably faster, and we wove in and out of a maze of mangroves. It was really amazing to see how shallow the water really is in this area, yet we were skimming right across the surface avoiding trouble. At one point we passed by a very small island with a little wooden structure built on it. It looked like it was some sort of shipwreck remains or something like that. Arthur and David were joking about the Rasta man that lives there. Apparently there is a sign telling people to keep out and they were questioning if he even owned the small island to begin with.

We arrived in Placencia at around 3:00 pm and pulled up near Deb and Dave's house. We collected the belongings we had left in their van the day before. Arthur was planning to take us back to Rum Point Inn on his boat, but he had an unexpected village council meeting so he had to run. His brother Ian offered to take us back to the hotel. It took about 40 minutes to get there and we started wondering where we were headed. The tide was out and there was a strong cross breeze so the boat kept getting stuck in the mud. Once Ian had to actually hop out and help the boat along, but most of the time it just required slow maneuvering. He eventually decided to go backwards so that he could steer more efficiently. There was yet another maze of mangroves, and every so often we would see a sign pointing the way to Rum Point Inn. It was rather comical as we felt like we were in the middle of nowhere since the mangroves blocked any long distance view.

When we finally arrived at Rum Point, we collected the luggage we had stored there and headed to our room, #18. It didn't have the same character as our previous "Bedrock"-style room, but it was air conditioned with cathedral ceilings and skylights so we were quite happy. We didn't have air conditioning on the entire trip, something that was really fine with us but if there was one day when it was appreciated, it was today. The last few hours on the boat made us very hot, tired and looking forward to a nice cool clean shower and a comfortable room. We unpacked all of our stuff and laid it out to dry. We took our much deserved showers and then went to the hotel bar for a rum punch. We had previously planned to meet Marlene and Greg at the West Wind Hotel between 6:30 and 7 for dinner.

We took a cab into town. It dropped us off on the main road and we needed to walk back through a small cemetery to get to the hotel. Adding to the ambiance, the power suddenly went out in Placencia. All of the streetlights were out, and most buildings were dark. We found our way to the West Wind, where the proprietor and his cat were sitting in the lobby with emergency lighting. We told him that we were meeting Marlene and Greg, and he told us they had just left for dinner. We were confused because it was only 6:40. He swore that they had left but that they hadn't said where they were going to eat. He was very helpful and even made a few phone calls to local restaurants to try to track them down. The power came back on and we thanked him for his efforts.

We decided that now that it wasn't so dark, we would head out alone and try to find a place to eat. Just as we were leaving, we heard our names being called. Greg and Marlene were returning to their hotel after visiting Deb and Dave and picking up their clothes at a nearby laundromat. They were asking why we were leaving without them. "It's just getting to be 7:00 now," they said. It turned out that the proprietor hadn't even spoken to them since they checked in, so he must have been thinking of the wrong people. Oh well, we were just happy to meet up with them.

We walked over to a restaurant called the Pickled Parrot (their logo is a drunken parrot). We initially sat at a table outside, but it was much too windy and our menus were blowing away, so we moved to a more sheltered spot. It was still an open-air restaurant, but we were more protected from the wind. There were cats wandering around everywhere begging for food and trying to climb onto the table. A few times the bartender came over, grabbed the cats, and tossed them into a back storage room so they would stop bothering us. Adding to the character, there was also a very loud and super drunk woman sitting at the bar and making a fool out of herself. She didn't bother us at all, but we found it all quite amusing as the group she was with kept looking over at us and trying to get her to settle down. Craig got a Belikin stout and I had a pina colada. Craig had a large plate of shrimp curry and I had sweet and sour pineapple chicken with rice and veggies. It was very good but Craig was disappointed that his meal wasn't a bit hotter so he added some hot sauce. That did the trick. Marlene tried to buy one of the Belikin jelly jar style glasses in which the beer was served, but they told her that if she wanted one she'd have to buy it at the supermarket. We had lots of fun talking with Marlene and Greg but the restaurant was closing so we needed to move along.

When we were done with our food we asked if the restaurant could call us a cab, but it turned out that they had no phone. So we stopped in at the Purple Space Monkey with Greg and Marlene for another round. Craig got a Belikin and I got a rum punch. Soon afterwards they turned off the music and announced last call at 9:45, so we asked them to call us a cab. About 5 minutes later, two Creole women in a cab drove up to pick us up. They were a riot, very irreverant. We got "all the way to Rum Point" in about 15 minutes (it would have been sooner if we hadn't made another pickup and dropoff on the way). Actually, the bar we stopped at, Jungle Juice, was very crowded and clearly this was the place to be tonight but Craig and I decided we should stick to the plan and just head back to the room and crash. Although this was our last night and we didn't want our trip to end, it had been a very long day. Once back at the room we went straight to bed.

April 19, 2004
Top

Departure

Belize City, Belize

We woke up at around 5:30 am and started packing up all of our stuff. We were careful to separate all of the things we had bought for inclusion in the carry on luggage and to place all of the dirty laundry together in the "do not open" luggage. We went to the dining room for breakfast and had fry jacks stuffed with egg, cheese, and sausage. We went back to our room and finished the last of the packing. Deb picked us up at 10:25, and we got to the airstrip at around 10:30. We took a Tropic Air flight north to the international airport. At the international airport, we checked in, paid our departure tax, and went into some gift shops. There were lots of things to buy in these shops but we really didn't want to carry anything else, and at this point we were really looking forward to getting home.

We boarded the plane at 12:30 for our 1:00 flight. It was a short, uneventful flight to Miami. We had a rather long walk from the gate to customs and we managed to arrive before the large wave of people. We cleared customs and rechecked our luggage very quickly and were on our way. We made record time and therefore ended up with plenty of time to spare waiting for the final leg of the journey home. We had some various food in the airport (pizza, empanadas, hot dog). We had fun people watching as it seemed everywhere we looked was a rather interesting situation unfolding. Everything from the man hanging on two different women that each seemed to get the extra attention when the other wasn't around, to an ice cream vending machine that seemed to confuse everybody that tried to use it. We finally arrived in Boston at 11:15 pm, and Steve picked us up at the airport and drove us home. "We stepped on a pin. The pin bend and the story end."

1-5 of 92 imagesMy Travel Photo Album


Share