Mayan Ruins

Xunantunich

Mayan cities were set up in a triangle formation with the three cities representing ceremonial worship, trade and agriculture.  Xunantunich, meaning “stone woman” in Mayan, was the ceremonial center located in the upper Belize River valley.  Standing atop El Castillo, the largest pyramid, one can see Guatemala a few miles away.

Xunantunich was the first site we visited on our adventure.  After climbing what seemed like thousands of steep, slippery steps we reached the top of El Castillo and were amazed by the view. Our tour guide, Herman, pointed out many interesting facts about the ancient Mayan city.  On the ground he had us sample leaves that were a natural Novocain.  Pictured here is the side view of El Castillo.

Cahal Pech

Cahal Pech makes up the trading center in our triangle.  Cahal Pech, “the place of ticks,” is located just outside of San Ignacio and across the street from the cabins where we stayed on the mainland.

Although not as large as Xunantunich, Cahal Pech had many more interesting features.  We were able to enter rooms and walk through passageways of this ancient trading center.   If you look closely, you will see someone standing in the doorway of our picture.

Mainland Side Trips

Medicine Trail

Herman guided us down the Medicine Trail located in the Rain Forest area and gave us remedies for many illnesses. He pointed out that each poisonous tree or plant has an antidote growing nearby.  He also stated that there are many natural remedies including those for anemia, any female problems, and even AIDS!

Butterfly Farm

Down the road from the Medicine Trail, we stopped at a butterfly farm where Blue Morphos were being raised.  We listened to a one hour lecture about the growth and development of the Blue Morphos.  Pictured here is Jennifer with one resting on her shoulder.

River Tubing at Jaguar Paw

Before we could tube on the river through the cave we had to travel the worst road known to man (we will NEVER complain about potholes again)!  Twenty-five minutes later we found ourselves walking through the rain forest with inner tubes to our starting point.  We started our trip in the small area between two caves and remained inside of one for the entire trip.  It was cold, dark and full of bats.  We even got to wear stylish head lights!  Check out Susan wearing the head light with the cave in the background.

Belize Zoo

The Belize Zoo does not remove animals from the wild.  Instead it rescues animals that have been injured in various ways.  Many of the animals are endangered and are indigenous to Belize.  The Keel-billed Toucan is pictured here.

On to the Island. . . Snorkeling

Mexico Rocks

Our first trip out the first day!  We spent our time clearing the water out of our masks and learning how not to suck in the water through our snorkel.  Susan also noticed that her swim fins were rubbing her ankles so she put on Band-Aids.

Mexico Cave

Not much is going on here, just a big cave in the ocean.  Despite the Band-Aids Susan currently has 2 wounds on the back of her ankles from the swim fins.

Pontoon Wreck

Besides the fish we saw many other sea creatures such as the Cushion Sea Star and Donkey Dung Sea Cucumber.  Susan received 3 more wounds on the ankles.

Mangroves

Is there really anything here?  The sediment was so stirred up from our group snorkeling that we were unable to see anything.  This was not our favorite place to snorkel.

Coral Gardens

The Elkhorn Coral was so near the surface that we thought we were going to scrap our stomachs.  We saw a lot of interesting fish in this location.  In addition to the Band-Aids, that obviously weren’t working, Susan is now wearing a pair of socks to prevent further rubbing of her raw wounds.

Shark-Stingray Alley

This spot was one of our favorite spots.  Swimming with the sharks and stingrays was a little scary at first, but it was really cool.  We even got brave enough to pet them!  Susan is now up to two pairs of socks today-maybe that will work!

Hol Chan

This snorkeling spot is a marine reserve located near a break in the reef.  Since this is a marine reserve, people are not allowed to bother the fish at all, which allows the fish to get much larger in size.  The break in the reef provides a passageway for bigger fish to come in from the open ocean.  This was one of the neatest spots because we saw large schools of fish and the fish were so much bigger than in other places.

Night Snorkel

Octopus, squid, and puffer fish-Oh My!  Even though it was pitch black, we got to see all kinds of neat things during our night snorkel.  For this snorkel, we were each given a flashlight to light the way.  Along with Hol Chan and Shark-Stingray Alley, the night snorkel was one of our favorites.

Island Life

Clubs

Throughout the week we went to the various clubs on the beach.  On Monday night we went to Fido’s, where Barefoot Skinny and a group of local boys called the Punta Boys were playing.  Cheryl, Susan, and Jennifer enjoyed free drinks, compliments of the bar manager, which the men of the group found very unfair.  Sorry, Boys!  At the Barefoot Iguana on Thursday night, we met up with some very scary guys who thought Susan would make a good dance partner.  Dr. Pohley even cut a rug that night!

Trampoline Fun

Wednesday morning we had some free time so eight of us decided to try out the water trampoline.  It was a wild time.  Trying to stay upright proved to be very difficult and Jennifer got her only injury of the week by scraping her shin on the side when she got off balance.

Tuesday night we did a beach seine, which is done by pulling a net through the water to capture anything in the water and then bringing the net ashore.  Once the net was on the beach, we picked out the living organisms and put them into a bucket so we could look at them more closely.  We saw a moon jelly, barracuda, crabs, puffer fish, peacock flounder, and lots of other things.

Beach Barbecue and Chicken Drop

On Wednesday we all went to a beach barbecue and had our choice of fish, chicken, or pork-all very tasty.  After dinner we walked down the beach to the Chicken Drop.  Here people bought tickets with numbers on them.  If the chicken pooped on your number, you won the money.  While waiting for the chicken to be dropped, Jennifer made friends with some local children.  They tried to sell her jewelry and one even offered to buy her a drink (a soda, that is).
 
 
 

The End

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end and we had to head home on Friday.  Pictured here from left to right is Susan, Tara, and Jennifer on the plane ride back to the mainland.

Meet Us

Jennifer

My name is Jennifer Ribley and I am a senior at Franklin College majoring in elementary education with a kindergarten endorsement. During the four years I have been at Franklin, I have been on the cross country and track teams and have been a captain of both teams for two of those years.  I will graduate in May 2001 and hope to find a teaching job in the area around Franklin and my hometown of Martinsville.  I am engaged to Scott Perry and will be getting married July 28, 2001.  I chose to use my “free” winter term to do something non-education related and because I have always wanted to travel to a foreign country.  I had an awesome time and am very glad I had the opportunity to go to Belize!

Susan

I am Susan Buerger and I am a senior Elementary Education major with a Kindergarten endorsement.  I will be graduating in May 2001.  During my time at Franklin, I was a cheerleader, Resident Assistant, member of Pi Beta Phi sorority, member of the Education Club, and 2000 Homecoming Queen.  I will be getting married on July 28, 2001, to Paul Buening, a 2000 Franklin College graduate.  The trip to Belize was a much needed break from the demands of the education department.  I recommend the trip to all-even those who are not strong swimmers, like me!