Coban and a seriously classy restaurant

Back in Guatemala and halfway through a long day of sitting in cramped minibuses, it was clear that reaching our favoured destination, Lanquin, was going to be a very tall order. Although Guatemala is nothing like as big as Mexico, getting around takes longer than you think. The roads have to zig-zag up and down mountains and even if they have tarmac on them, it takes a while. Plus you have to factor in stops and the sometimes agonisingly slow speed of Guatemalan life! Though this is all made up for by the stunning scenery.

So, a change of plan it was. Having lunch in the town of Sayaxche, with one eye on a fight between two locals, it was time to give in and head for Coban. It was, we were told, the better bet as the road to Lanquin is unpaved, would take another ten hours and is unsafe after dark.

Five hours later, we rolled into very wet Coban and picked a place called Casa D' Acuna to stay. As ever, you rely on a couple of sentences from a guide book to make your decisions on accommodation and as a result, never know what to expect. Well, it turned out we couldn't have wished for a better place! Clean, friendly and with all the services you need, Casa Acuna was a little haven. And very reasonably priced too. It came with free wireless Internet and a speedy laundry service and our room cost us only 100 Quetzales (about £8).

However, the best thing about the place was the restaurant. Adjoining the hostel, El Bistro served generous portions of delicious food biased towards an Italian cuisine. The service was impeccable, the staff genuinely friendly - and waited patiently while you tried some Spanish with them. And if thats not enough, they have a large selection of homemade cakes to further expand the waistline. Central America really does have a sweet tooth!

One last Belizean adventure

Unsure of whether or not to push on back into Guatemala, we convinced ourselves that there was probably one more thing not to miss in Belize - and that's the second largest coral reef in the world! And perhaps we shouldn't miss Belize City either. After all, it is not possible to know Belize without seeing it's largest city, according to our book. Besides, to get to the reef you must take a boat from Belize City to one of the cayes, so two birds with one stone, we went to Ambergris Caye.

The boat ride is speedy and didn't feel like the one and a half hours it took. By the time we arrived it was dark and we set about finding a place to stay, missing the ease of Stuart's car with every step! Unfortunately, like most of Belize, Ambergris Caye offers little in the way of budget stays. For some reason a dive will still cost you at least £20 ($32 US). In Mexico that would buy you a luxurious honeymoon sweet with free foot massages! So we took the best 'dive' we could, but at least it came with a fan. Plus it was better than the one down the road that was host to a load of British squaddies! Regardless of where you are, you can do without that.

Perhaps I'm not being fair to Ambergris Caye. Its got plenty going for it if you want to dive or snorkel. There are many restaurants and bars and it has a bank too, which you'll need. As our budget just won't stretch to diving lessons, we opted for snorkeling. We'll learn to dive and come back when we're rich. The coral reef was amazing though. We went to Shark Ray Alley and got in amongst the sting rays and sharks, just hoping they weren't too hungry. The sting rays are huge here, and the sharks are big enough to do you some serious damage if they felt like it. Well worth the trip, but it was over far too quickly.

The snorkeling was the highlight. Belize City was the low-light. On our return to the mainland, we intended to stay in the city for a night and relax before heading back to Guatemala. Belize City has a population of about 70,000 and is the largest in Belize which gives an idea of how small the country is. It was almost completely destroyed by a hurricane in the 60's and has been struck continuously since, and also by fires as recent as 2004. So, its not the prettiest of places (Aside from the harbour - top picture) and maybe it's had some rotten luck.

But, even in this horrible sweaty dump of a place (I'm not going to bother to try to be nice here) we couldn't find cheap accommodation. The supposedly cheapest place in town was run by some aging hippy types (yeah, clean sheets) and they wanted $50 USD for a room. FIFTY?! Clearly the years of smoking too much has taken its toll! This is Belize City, and this is a shabby run down guesthouse. I don't care how many 'good vibes man' there were, we were out of there. I just wish I had been brave enough to get my camera out and get some shots of this town. Maybe I can say I 'really know' Belize now. Whatever, I prefer my first impressions of the country.

We retreated to San Ignacio for a night, and thoroughly enjoyable it was too. Seriously, I'm not precious and I really don't mind slumming it for a bit, bit not at stupidly high prices. That's not how it works. Still, eight days in Belize and I reckon we crammed in a fair old lot!

Punta Gorda and around

Stuart was heading for Punta Gorda, about as far south as you can go, so we thought we'd join him. Jasmin had taken an early bus to Dangriga to meet with a friend and generally get back to her travels (and probably drink less as a result!), so it was just the three of us.

Again, having a car meant we could do as we pleased, so we set off to find a little bit of Mayan culture in the form of a ruin and several tiny villages outside Punta Gorda. Visiting these villages, we were about as remote as you can get in Belize, but not so remote Coca Cola haven't got in on the act and put up a few signs! Come to think of it, is there anywhere they haven't been?

As we drove through, one thing there were plenty of were school children. They were busy walking, running for cover in the rain or just sitting watching us drive by. Shouldn't they be in school? Or was it lunch break? Seemed like a long lunch break to me. Anyway, they all had uniforms which is something all the countries we've been to are quite big on, no matter what the quality of the education.

Feeling the need for more adventure, we left the car and headed into the jungle to find a cave which apparently has Mayan paintings in. We found the river and the cave, but there was a small problem. If there are any paintings to see in a cave, you need some light to see them. Caves are very dark and we didn't have headlamps.
Oh well, we still swam into the cave mouth, just for the fun of it!

Punta Gorda (above), a port town and route to Guatemala and Honduras, has a nice feel to it. Many of the clap-board houses on stilts look like they would fall down with a minor gust of wind! The only thing that would make it better is a few more people. Like most places in Belize, there aren't a right lot of people around. Still, it did us just fine for the night and in the morning we found a place that served tea and scrambled eggs. (not the place below!)

Belize all to ourselves!

If climbing through caves isn't your idea of a good time, then there's an alternative called Cave Tubing. Just like at all good theme parks, you can sit yourself on an inflatable rubber ring and let the current whisk you off. Only here the river is real and so are the caves you float into! The flow of the river was pretty gentle on the day we went, and at times, pretty shallow. "Raise your butts, unless you want a butt massage" we were told. It turns out, a butt massage was unavoidable at some stages along the way!

This was part of our days journey from San Ignacio to Placencia - Belize's only beach resort on a peninsular jutting out on the east coast. Keeping alive the spirit of the ATM tour (only minus one Italian), Stuart drove us around in search of fun things to do on the way, and Cave Tubing was certainly one of them! We found ourselves a freelance guide at a fraction of the cost and he took us on a short walk through the jungle until it was time to plop ourselves onto a rubber ring and float away. Very relaxing!

We also stopped by a place called Blue Hole - which was just that. A gorgeous pool of blue water above a hole which is presumably a cave entrance. (we ignored the sign!)

The great thing about all this is, there is hardly anyone around. Perhaps a combination of the recession and it being low season out here, but it is fantastic to have all these natural treasures to ourselves! Yes, it is more likely to rain, but I don't understand why more people don't come out at this time of year. Its hasn't rained all that much, and when it does, its not cold! Our guide on the Cave Tubing told us at high season they have about 400 people floating along. Now that definitely wouldn't be the same!

Oh, and the other great thing is traveling around by car. A big thank you to Stuart! Although an expensive way to travel around Belize (the petrol is extremely costly here), its certainly the best way to see what you what you want, when you want it.

We found Placencia after a few miles of terrible road and settled on staying at Deb and Dave's Last Resort. As last resorts go, it was pretty prefect. Lots of hot water, and our rooms opened onto an enclosed lounge area which was great for sitting and having a few beers. Plus the ONLY Halloween party in town was just across the boardwalk!

Can you Belize it? (that becomes addictive!)

I forgot to mention that when we arrived in Flores, literally two minutes later our friend Jasmin turned up at the same place. She planned to hop over to Belize straight from the Tikal trip, so we thought we’d join her.

We arrived in Belize somewhat stressed after an annoying border crossing – the Guatemala stamp thing caught up with us and we got fined. Add to that you cannot change money at the Guatemala/Belize border other than getting poor rates from dodgy guys who look like toads! But then the stress dissolved once the Caribbean vibe took over. Friendly people and reggae music. Its all you need!

Our first stop was San Ignacio, a small village about 30 mins drive from the border. There we stayed at a family run guesthouse, got showered and cracked open the rum. The world was a much better place!

The book mentioned Caving. What’s Caving? Another annoying word, like Birding? The three of us booked ourselves on a tour to Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) which is a tour which takes you 45 min hiking through the jungle, and then 3 ½ hours of swimming and climbing into a cave, where at the end you get to see original Mayan artefacts and skeletons. If that sounds cool, actually doing it was unbelievable!

Easily the best adventure I’ve ever been on. Swimming into the mouth of a cave and exploring up into the darkness was an exhilarating experience I’ll never forget. Also, playing notes on stalactites was something I didn’t know you could do. Our guide kept it very entertaining, but kept a check on reality – unlike at Tikal! At one point, waist deep in water, we all turned off our lights and put one hand on the shoulder of the person in front. Then we walked in total darkness, only hearing the odd bat squeak nearby. But it wasn’t claustrophobic or scary at any point. Just brilliant! 

The guide book didn’t sound all that enthusiastic about ATM, but if you’re anywhere near Belize, you’ve got to do it! How there aren’t any disclaimers to sign beforehand, I don’t know. If this place was anywhere else, it would be roped off and there would be no touching of anything, and most definitely no camera flashes. The health and safety brigade just haven’t reached Belize yet!

On the tour we met a fun Italian girl, who insects seemed to love, and an Australian guy (who lived in London for a long time and now lives in New York) called Stuart. After all using clay rocks to give ourselves war paint, we were officially bonded!

The next day, Staurt kindly lent us his 4x4 and while he took a tour over to Tikal for the day, Sophie, Jasmin and I caught a military convoy off to Caracol to see some more Mayan ruins. The military convoy has been in place for a couple of years and has put an end to Guatemalans nipping over to mug tourists. So, we became part of the rich and famous for a while and had an armed escort through the jungle. The terrain was rough and the speed kept high. You wouldn’t want to do it in anything other than a 4x4.

Mayan ruins are always impressive, but perhaps we’ve done enough of them for a little while. Mind you, this ruin was home to a Howler monkey called Jack, who was abandoned by his family and lives with the people who look after Caracol. Very cute and it was fun to watch him play fighting with the local dog! A monkey and a dog play fighting? Something you don’t see everyday!

On the way back we stopped off at Rio on Pools for a dip in the refreshing water. Thus far, Belize has been full of amazing adventures, great food and warm people. It comes at a financial cost though. Prices are often on a par with the UK, so our budget has taken a bit of a pounding!

Bye bye Mexico...Hello Guatemala (and Tikal)

I didn’t know you could stroll into a country without anyone checking to see who you are, until we walked into Guatemala. We literally walked it too. No questions or look at the passport. So much so that I assumed that immigration must be further on up the road. This is the new border at El Ceibo. You used to have to cross into Guatemala by boat up at this end of Mexico, and then do the immigration thing at El Naranjo.  However, they’ve built a shiny new road, which we found ourselves on, and before we knew it, hey presto, we’re in a minivan heading for El Naranjo, in a different country! Slight problem though. As we all know, you’re supposed to hand over some cash and get a stamp in your passport. Not a massive deal as we could head back in the morning. But no. The President of Mexico was due to visit and officially open the new border, and therefore the border was closed, if that makes sense! Oh well, it will catch up with us, I’m sure.

The destination was Flores, so that we could go see the Mayan ruins at Tikal. El Naranjo was our stop over town, and we didn’t want to stay long. Wild dogs barking all night, a plethora of dodgy characters hanging around, and cockroaches occupying the shower. Enough said. Its not the worst place you could find yourself in, I’m sure. No pictures of this place I’m afraid. I didn’t think brandishing a shiny SLR was the best course of action.

We got a minivan / Colectivo to Santa Elena, which included a continuous turnover of passengers. Just when you thought there was no more room, the van would stop and a woman with two chickens would squeeze in, followed by a mother and two kids, followed by a man on crutches. Babies were passed around like shopping bags until every nook and cranny of the van was filled. It was hot and uncomfortable, but a lot of fun.

A 4.30am start the next day and we were on our way to Tikal – a large Mayan ruin. We had a tour guide who had the ability to constantly drop impressive words into his talk. It made it very entertaining, but at times I had no idea what he was talking about, and I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one! – he informed us the world will end December 21^st 2012. Still, he’d pick up the odd tarantula and he had an amazing eye for birds. And the Tikal ruins were impressive, especially the views from the top of them.

Junglist Massive

It was hard to leave San Cristobal, but we´re on a serious mission here and we can´t afford to hang about. What do you think this is? A holiday? OK, I guess we´re a little concerned with running out of time with so much to see, so we jumped on a bus to Palenque in order to visit some Mayan delights. Oh and a couple of waterfalls too. You can´t beat waterfalls, in my opinion.

Like the book said, you should stay in El Panchin, just outside Palenque, if you want to have a nice time. Full marks to the book on this occasion! 10/10. El Panchin is a little community set up by some hippy a long time ago and its based in the jungle. My first thought was that I´d most likely be eaten alive and it wasn´t going to be a lot of fun, aside from being close to nature and all that. Well, I didn't see one mosquito. Yes I was wearing a layer of DEET, but even so, I thought there´d at least be the odd bite.

El Panchin has a number of places to stay and we got ourselves a nice cabaña next to a stream. Basic but absolutely fine. Instead of windows it had bug nets, so not only could you hear the jungle as you slept, you could also see the odd gecko and firefly peering in!

There was a choice of restaurants. Yes, a choice. In the jungle. It´s not sounding very hardcore, I´ll admit! We chose Don Muchos and with our new found English friend Iain, happily ate and drank while listening to live music. They had girls performing with Fire Poi too! Easily the best night so far.

With sore heads (I´m out of practise) we took a tour to the ruins, met Jasmin, a lovely girl from Germany and the four of us walked around taking in the sights, while eavesdropping on some of the guided tours!

The tour ended with a trip to two waterfalls, Misol Ha and Agua Azul. Because of the rain, Agua Azul was not very azul (blue) but nonetheless really impressive. I had to have a swim!

Pictures soon...and here!