Port Excursion 2: Belize City, Belize

On the morning of day three, we were coming into our second port, Belize City. Belize was part of Jake's mission back in the day, but was not an area that he was ever able to actually serve in. It was exciting for him to get to finally go. It was also full of nostalgia as this is the closest he's been in Guatemala in all these 24 years. 

The port is a protected space for the cruisers. Many people just stay right within its confines, where there are restaurants, bars and shopping. We really wanted to get out into the country and experience some of the Mayan ruins that can be seen in this part of the world. So, we arranged to join a group that got taken by charter bus about an hour inland to the ruins of Altun Ha. It is a lesser known archeological site, but is famous in Belize mainly because it was the place where their national treasure, the Jade Skull, was found. 

On the way out to the site, we got to see a bit of Belize City. We learned that Charles Lindbergh had flown though in the Spirit of St. Louis when the country was called British Honduras. It is a relatively young independent nation now, but its national language is still, surprisingly, English, with Spanish and Creole as its secondary languages.   

It was clear that they are a humble people. We passed by their big athletic stadium, donated by a famous international athlete. 

We saw an example of one of their many churches. 

This is one of their Christian schools for their children. Most of the schools are run by churches and children where uniforms. 

Homes were almost all made of cinder block or cement and many were on stilts due to flooding that can occur in the rainy season. 

We learned that they eat iguana in Belize. This one was just a wild one sunning itself.

Once we got to the ruins, we were amazed to see so many temples all in close configuration, and so well preserved. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable. She told us about how the country is just riddled with ruins, most of which haven't even begun to be unearthed. This site was found by a local farmer to happened upon piles of pottery, and found a priceless jade neckless. When he was wearing it at market, an archeologist spotted it and questioned him about where he'd found it. Eventually, a group was given permission to start excavating in the area and unearthed the site of Altun Ha. Later, our tour guide told us that her grandfather was among those working on the temple of the sun when the roof caved in and he found himself in a hidden burial chamber. There was a priest buried inside, and with him was the now infamous Jade Skull. It is now held in a vault within the Belize National Bank and occasionally goes on world tours. It is priceless. 

The temple ruins were all so impressive. We were allowed to climb them all, so we did just that! Good thing I work out! haha

Riley and me with our tour guide

There were some locals with pop up shops outside the ruins that we browsed before getting back onto the bus. We found some glass bottles of Coke (a bucket list item for Brendan). I found a hand carved Christmas ornament and Brendan found an obsidian and jade knife. One of a kind souvenirs. Not made in China. haha

The last stage of our excursion included a Belizian lunch of chicken, cole slaw, and black beans and rice. Jake also found himself some grape Fanta. It's sort of exclusive to Central America. He was so stoked. With that, the rice and beans and the ambiance of the outdoor backdrop for our lunch, he was transported back to his missionary days. What a memorable adventure!