Wild Week with the McKenzies!

Sargassum Seaweed

Candace and Stan McKenzie arrived on February 14th, and a wild, frantically paced week began so that we cuold see as much of the area as possible in a short period of time!  After a first-night dinner at our local Chinese restaurant with Laura and Bill Connelly, the following morning we set off for new adventures.

Dave was able to take some days off during the week so that he could share a few of the new adventures.  Our first trip was by air in the air ambulance to San Pedro to have an afternoon of snorkeling.

The four of us went directly to our hotel, Caye Casa, and walked nearby for lunch.  Not only did we get rained on in a sudden squall, but unknown to us the restaurant had kitchen issues.  After an hour plus of waiting for food, we went back to the hotel to get into swimsuits for our snorkeling adventure, a little on the hungry side!

Lil Alphonse, the snorkeling guide, was highly recommended by Nathan and Megan to us.  I had never had a really successful experience of snorkeling, i.e. the mask leaked, I would always come out of the water to breathe, etc.  Alphonse spent a good deal of time showing us (we had a young woman from Italy with us, too) how to clean the mask and how to put it on and use it.  To my astonishment, I jumped right in and snorkeled like a pro!  We went to Hol Chan Marine Reserve, and I've never seen so many beautiful fish--more even than the last time I was there!  Alphonse, of course, knew the names of everything!  A couple of highlights were the barracuda and the 6-foot long eel which he coaxed out and which slapped Dave in the leg!  The coral reefs were beautiful, too!  A magnificent experience!  Some in the group thought it was extremely cold, especially out of the water and in the wind, but I think that I was so excited by the whole experience that I felt totally comfortable!  (I hope Candace doesn't mind my posting this picture, which is one of my favorites--the spirit of it!)

After snorkeling in Hol Chan, during which I could get no pictures, since I was in the water, we went to Shark & Ray Alley.  I chose to stay on board and take photos of the other crazy people who went to swim with nurse sharks and rays!  The sharks were in a frenzy at times, but Alphonse was able to hold a couple of sharks and rays, and Candace, Dave and Stan were able to pet them.

The whole snorkeling experience was absolutely wonderful and one that I am so glad that I dove into, despite the fact that I still had the flu and a sinus infection!  No time to be a wimp!

After dinner in San Pedro with some dancing in the streets, since it was the day before Ash Wednesday, and after a little shopping in the town, we took off in search of the Great Blue Hole!  Here is a picture of San Pedro after take off and of Lighthouse Reef on the way to the Blue Hole.

Air traffic was busy out at the Blue Hole, but it remains an amazing thing to see!

The following morning, the four of us drove to Cayo District.  We stopped at the Orange Gallery for lunch and for shopping before heading for the San Ignacio Hotel and Resort.  We had to arrive in time for a tour of the Iguana Conservation Project.  My favorite guide, Bert, was there to give us the tour and to teach us about iguanas.  I noted that there were far fewer iguanas than I've seen in the past.  Sadly, Bert was leaving the Project that week, and many of the iguanas had been released to the wild, as no replacement for Bert had been found and as the veterinarians had apparently quit, too.  For the protection of the iggies, the iguanas were released to the wild, which is the purpose of the Project, anyway.  But the ones that were there delighted the guests!  I had to get a picture of the iguana on the girl's hat!  Candace and Stan and Dave had fun getting to know the iguanas, too, while I took pictures (OK...maybe I am a wimp).

The four of us went to Guava Limb Cafe for dinner, taking the latest reservation they had, which was likely not the best idea, since they were out of all the good specials!

On Wednesday morning, we were up early for our tour into Guatemala to Tikal.  (The roads in Guatemala are definitely better than in Belize.)  Berta was our guide, and she was very knowledgeable of natural and cultural history.  Here she is in front of the Ceiba tree, which is the national tree of Guatemala.  

Tikal was incredible in its size and expanse of Mayan ruins!  I thought that a four hour walk sounded a little extreme, but we could have spent more time there and still not seen all that there was to see.  All the eras of development of Mayan buildings are represented there.  Here are some pictures of the site!

Following a relaxing time by the pool and dinner at the resort, we set off the next morning for Spanish Lookout.

Ferry "motor" to Spanish Lookout!

Our purpose in going to Spanish Lookout was to see the refurbished airplane that was once BERT's. But it was not visible at the airport, though we saw the dirt strip.  (Interestingly, there is a fly-in there next weekend, so Dave will likely go there by air and then will be able to see the "new" airplane. This is the first fly-in event that I have heard of since being in Belize.)

On Friday, Dave was back on duty, more-or-less, and Candace, Stan and I toured Belize City, which meant my driving them around to the House of Culture, St. John's Cathedral, and the new "Belize" sign in the shoreline park!

Candace, Stan and I arranged for a tour of Lamanai on Saturday, which included pick-up at 7:00 AM at our house!  Can't beat that! Lamanai Tours leave from near Orange Walk in boats on the New River.  One of our first stops was to visit the spider monkey who has taken up residence, alone (unusual for a spider monkey, but none of the "women" brought in for him stayed), on the river.  One reason the monkey is happy is that tour boats stop to feed him! Here is Candace offering some watermelon to the fellow, who really would have preferred pineapple today.

Lamanai (or "submerged crocodile") lies on the banks of the New River Lagoon.  We arrived and ate a wonderful lunch!  Then we toured the site, including the highest Mayan temple in Belize.  Our guide had an "assistant," Eduardo, who was a delightful boy!  He is learning to be a tour guide, but still needs to go to high school (I hope!).

Stan & Candace at Mask Temple

On the return boat trip, we stopped to visit with a lazy crocodile, enjoying a view from his log!

Arriving home, we found Chef David had been preparing a feast, complete with menu!

Candace and Stan had one more morning before their afternoon flight back to Seattle.  Surely, there was time for one last site to visit!  About the only thing open on a Sunday in Belize is the Zoo, so we headed out there for a final adventure.  In fact, it was a great adventure for me, too, as Candace and I did the Jaguar Encounter!  Junior Buddy was taken out of the area for a few minutes while Candace and I entered a cage with a guide.  Junior Buddy came out, and for a treat from the handler, did somersaults!  Then Candace and I fed him!  We were able to pet him and feel those powerful muscles and the pads of his feet when he was on top of the cage above us!  We loved it!  (Stan, thankfully, took pictures!)

We found a Howler Monkey and its mother in a tree.  The baby Howler was learning his climbing skills, and mom had to catch him a few times!

Unfortunately, the week had to end.  I don't know that I have ever seen as much of Belize (and a bit of Guatemala) in that short of time!  We were on the move at break-neck speed--and had the best time doing it!  I hope they return for a follow-up visit!  Surely, there is something that we left out!

View of New River Lagoon from the highest Mayan Temple in Belize