The ATM Cave in Belize is an awesome journey into the earth and back to the time of the Maya civilization.
Belize
Five of the Cayo District’s Best Spots – Belize
If I had just one place to go in Belize, I’d head straight for the Cayo District. I’d skip the beaches. I’d turn my nose up at the cayes. I’d blow off the cities.
I’d head inland to the limestone maze of the Cayo District … caves, rivers, ruins, pine forests and a laid-back vibe are what you’ll get. Here’s what you shouldn’t miss.
1. I already waxed poetic in an earlier post about the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave tour. This is seriously not to be missed. If you won’t take by word for it, go back and read the earlier post. Now, doesn’t that sound mind-blowing?
2. The town of San Ignacio is a perfect launch pad for the ATM cave trip. There are plenty of restaurants and services, and hotels from bare-bones budget to luxurious. San Ignacio is big enough that you can walk all over the place and get everything from Indonesian food to a pint of the ubiquitous Bilikin stout. It’s also more friendly and genuine – not everyone here is a huckster wanted you to buy souvenirs (I’m looking at you, Caye Ambergris!).
Tell me about it …
So I’m a bit curious about you, the readers! What is your favorite travel souvenir, aside from photos?
I go for jerseys/shirts from local sports teams. It started off as soccer, when I snagged a Deportivo Saprissa shirt down in Costa Rica. Then, I got skunked in Belize … couldn’t find any local soccer shirts there, though they have a league and a national team.
Down in Australia, I switched to rugby since that was their thing. In Canada, I wanted to find a Vancouver Whitecaps shirt, but no luck there … and I will never, ever where a Vancouver Canucks jersey unless it is the only clothing and I’m shivering naked on a glacier.
I’d say my uber-cool Wallabies shirts shown below is my all-time favorite. It says Qantas on it as a bonus, and it even looks cool when being worn while rockin’ out!
Descending into the Abode of the Gods – Belize
From my January 2007 trip
And a quick note from Wandering Justin – even after touring the mighty Australian Outback, this day still holds its own as one of my greatest ever days traveling. Do NOT miss this if you go to Belize!
This is one of the best vacation days I’ve ever had. I knew it would be cool, because I enjoy caves in general. It’s hard for me to pass a hole in the ground without strapping a light to my noggin and diving in.
But the Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave, known as the ATM Cave, would surpass all my other underground adventures. I’ve been in bigger, more scenic caves before. But I’ve never been in one that contained an underground river and the most incredibly graphic, gruesome vestiges of the Mayan culture. Nor one that made just getting there such an adventure.
The day started at the Maya Walk Tours headquarters in San Ignacio. The place was jammed with people milling around, getting their gear, meeting their guides, etc. It was a scene of total chaos. Finally, they tossed us all in an Isuzu Trooper and some weird Toyota I’d never seen in the states before (though the model is ubiquitous in Belize). We bounced along for close to an hour, first on decent paved roads and then into jungle roads that got more rutted, slimy and muddy as we drove. Meanwhile, there was a steady drizzle falling.
Our driver/guide, another guy named Emile, was telling scatological stories about people freaking [...]
The dirt on Hopkins, Belize
Wanna get away from Starbucks? Traffic? Commercialism? Even ATMs?
Well, then, I’ve got a place for you. It’s called Hopkins, and it’s a town of about 1,000 people. And I’m serious about the ATM thing. Be sure you get some cash before you show up to Hopkins.
For reasonably priced accommodations, I’ll have to recommend Jungle Jeanie’s by the Sea. Jungle Jeanie is the wife half of the husband-and-wife ownership team. They are friendly and helpful, and have a big, wonderful pair of dogs that roam on patrol. Xena, the German shepherd, is especially active and entertaining, especially when Jeanie tries to get her to surf. They serve up meals there, and you can also hoof it into town to try some local places. There’s also a pricier place or two as you walk south along the road. Many of the resorts even have semi-private bits of beach that they meticulously comb of former flotsam.
I’ve gotta be honest: There’s not much to do in Hopkins. It can be hot as hell, even in January. There’s no nightlife. The beach isn’t even all that nice. But if you want to get away from the noise, the pollution and the nonsense, this is the place to do it. Local residents are friendly, and you’ll hear them speaking the really cool-sounding Garifuna language. It’s super-quiet.
So how do you get here? Chances are, you’re flying into Belize City. The best way to get there is to grab a Maya Air or Tropic Air flight
from Belize City [...]
The Final Australia 2007 Post
Friday, Aug. 31
Seriously, you haven’t lived until you’ve seen an F-111 fly a few hundred feet over your head with its afterburners lit. This was part of a crazy celebration called Riverfire. If you ever visit Australia, do yourself a favor: Be in Brisbane for Riverfire. The video is lengthy, but it gives you a great idea of the fireworks display, and the jets that open and close it. Awesome!
We woke up early and took a stroll around the downtown area. This is a very outdoorsy city, lots of people running and cycling. After some breakfast, we picked a direction and walked. We also noticed that everybody was getting all aflutter about Riverfire. People were already lining the riverbanks to grab primo spots for the evening’s festivities. Sarah and I aren’t much for parades and shindigs, so we largely ignored it. We were pretty happy to be proven wrong later, but more on that toward the end.
Our first stop was the excellent Queensland Museum, which is really strong on science and nature. There was just too much cool stuff to see. We spent a few hours easily cruising around in there before heading out for general walking about. There’s a very neighborly feel to Brisbane, with a lot of non-chain store types of places. This particular section of Brizzy is like a big college town, even though Queensland University is down the river. Speaking of QU, we thought it would be fun to check out the campus.
We hopped on the [...]
