Travel reports --> Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize
Map of Maya route The Maya's have left numerous cultural treasures in the mountains and jungles of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and Belize.
During our organised tour with Shoestring we will see some of the most beautiful monuments of this ancient culture. Beautiful will also be the contrasts between the inhabitants: the Latinos in their elegant colonial cities, the colourful Indians with their busy markets and by the coast the Creoles relax.
Especially the numerous volcano's make the mountain area of Guatemala spectacular, but also the low land jungle, mangrove forests and beautiful beaches of Belize and Mexico are amazing.
This trip will be a mix between culture, nature and people.

Mexico

A new part of our journey has begun!
The fifth of April we flew via Dallas to Cancun in a little over 4 1/2 hrs. End of the afternoon we arrived in our really nice hostel "the Nest", which we already booked on the internet in SF-USA. We would stay here for the coming two nights.
At night we had our first Mexican dinner with a few (really cheap) margaritaīs! These are really recommendable!
Thursday we took the bus to one of the beaches of Cancun. The city looked like it was a construction site. We later heard that most of the hotels had been damaged or completely destroyed by the hurricanes Stan & Wilma (Oct.2005). After this, tourists stopped visiting Cancun and thousands of people got unemployed. All they then did was drink a lot of beer and margaritaīs! Now the re-building has begun of most of the hotels.
The beach however was still very nice. Just like in the brochures! Bright white sand and clear water in different shades of blue.
By the way, the bus drivers are nuts, they drive like complete lunatics! But fortunately we got back to our hostel in one piece.
Since we had decided to send a few clothes back home we went to FedEx on Friday the 7th of April.
Although our thick cotton pants and our sweaters had been quite useful in the USA, we couldnīt carry them around through Central & South America.
It didnīt fit in our backpack and it would be too heavy to walk around with. But unfortunately FedEx refused to take our package (after filling in all the shipping docs by hand!) since īpersonalī items would be rejected by Dutch customs! Never heard such a thing, but OK.
Still walking around with 5 kgs of clothes, we then went to the Mexican post office. They did accept the shipment but they didnīt have any boxes. So left the post office to find a supermarket...
Back with a nice box, we didnīt have enough cash (ever hear of credit cards!) to pay for it. So again left the post office to find a bank. When we got the receipt of the shipment, they had switched the consignee and the shipper.... Two and a half hours after we first started walking with our backpack full of clothes, we had finally succeeded in shipping it back home! No idea if it will actually arrive though..
This complete exercise has thought us however a lot about Mexico; They only accept cash, so forget about your credit cards; although they have plenty of staff in stores and shops - this will not mean that they will actually help you; Donīt accept any 'free' tortilla chips, since it will not be free; Learn to count to a hundred or better two hundred, since they are never in a hurry, only when they are driving in their cars or buses!; So the most important lesson, be patient, be very very patient.
But besides all that they have been really friendly and helpful.
That afternoon we took the bus to Vallodalid where our organised tour would begin the next day. Since our group arrived late in the evening, we only met them the next day with breakfast.

Saturday we drove by public transport to Chichen Itza to visit the Maya ruins there.
We had a really nice guide explaining us the different sites and telling us about the history of the Maya people and their culture.
Fortunately we had arrived at the ruins before the masses did, giving us plenty of opportunity to make beautiful pictures of the ruins.
After our visit we drove for another 2 hours to Mérida - capital of the province of Yucatan.
That evening we had dinner in a nice restaurant with our group.
Every weekend they have little bands playing salsa music and people dancing on the streets. This gives of course a great atmosphere.
Sunday we had the day to ourselves, so we walked around the city visiting the museum of anthropology and some 'Mercado's' (markets). Again it was really busy in the streets and in the afternoon the bands started to play their Salsa music again. They really know how to have a good time!
Monday the 10th of April we went from Mérida to Palenque by bus, which took us the whole day.
During this drive the landscape changed from low tropical forest to high tropical forest in the mountains.
We arrived in a really nice hotel where we would stay for 2 nights. At night we had dinner with the group also celebrating Itskes birthday 'Mexican style'. First she got blindfolded and then she had to hit the piņata with a stick. When it finally came down it was full of candy.
Tuesday we visited the ruins of Palenque which were located in the middle of the tropical rain forest. Only 2% of the complete site has been excavated, the other 98% is still buried in the rain forest.
Because of environmentalists and the lack of money it is not sure that someday the rest of the ruins will also be restored. The longer they wait however, the more the forest will destroy the buildings.
The restored ruins were really mysterious and also the link between the Maya architecture with their extensive knowledge of astrology is amazing.
The Maya's were a really advanced civilisation.
F.i. they aligned their temples with the stars and also their gods (sun, moon).
In 1994 archaeologists 'restored' a tower by putting on a roof, which also made the tower more stable since it was not standing up straight.
Recently they discovered that the tower was built with a deviation of 3%, since in that way with a certain position of the stars, the sun would shine straight through the tower. (Palenque is 3% apart from the equator!)
12 Years ago they even found a tomb of the wife of Pakal (one of the most important rulers of Palenque for 68 years). At that time (around 8-900 yrs AD) the average life expectancy was 45 yrs, so he was considered a God and their leader.
It is believed that due to a major drought in the 9th century, the Maya's left Palenque.
After visiting the ruins and making a walk through the jungle where all the ruins are still buried under, we visited two waterfalls, Misol Ha and Agua Azul respectively. Especially the latter was really extraordinary.
Wednesday the 12th of April, we went by bus from Palenque to San Cristobal de las Casas.
It was a long and winding road through the mountains, which made a lot of us in the bus not feeling quite 100%! But we all survived the drive.
Again we noticed during the drive that a lot of people live in very poor conditions. Their houses are often not more than a wooden or stone shed which they also sometimes share with their animals.
Also the rubbish besides the roads is not a pleasant site.
San Cristobal is a really nice and busy town. The different colours of the houses and the many Indian people walking around in their black woollen skirts and bright coloured blouses, make it a colourful place.
Because of the Easter Fiestas, there is also a lot to see at night. At the square nearby our hotel, we saw a dancing performance of Mexicans in Spanish traditional clothing.
Thursday, 13th of April, we visited the villages of two indigenous Indian tribes living nearby San Cristobal, San Juan Chamula and Zinazantan. They still live (and try to live) according to their ancient traditions.
We also visited their churches where they were having special ceremonies to honour Johannes de Doper and grieve about the death of Jesus Christ.
The churches were full of smoke due to the burning of assent and there were flowers everywhere.
With so many Indians in their traditional clothes sitting on the floor and saying their prayers it was really an impressive sight.
We were were also invited in the house of Maria. It was a really small house where she lived with 9 people (she had 7 children).
While we were there she was making tortilla's by hand on a fire together with her sister (look at the pic). We could also taste these tortilla's which were filled with pumpkin seed.
To feed her family, Maria prepared 4 kgs of tortilla's each day! There was little furniture in the house, only a few tiny chairs and sort of a bed.
But our guide told us that she preferred sleeping on the floor. Besides cooking, collecting wood and washing, she also made the most beautiful scarfs and sort of carpets all from cotton.
It was really amazing that people who are the poorest in the country, still give away their own food to strangers!
This was a remarkable day.
But the nice part was, that is wasnīt over yet. We still had a Salsa lesson that evening to learn us the basics of the Salsa and the Merengue. We all had a great time, trying to look as professional as our teacher! (which we didnīt of course)..
After the lesson we could exercise our newly learn steps in a salsa bar, and after a few Cuba Libre,a it didnīt even look that bad!.
Friday the 14th, we had an excursion to the Caņon Sumidero. With two little boats we drove through the impressive caņon with walls as high as 1 km. Sometimes we stopped to look at the different animals living in the Caņon, as there were vultures, little monkeys and exactly 1 crocodile!.
Since the guide told us that the crocodile was always lying in the same spot, we secretly suspect that it was a rubber crocodile, put there for the tourists!.

Guatemala

On Saturday we drove from San Cristobal - Mexico to Panajachel - Guatemala. The situation at the border was a completely disorganised madhouse. Trucks, buses, and normal cars but all stacked with too many people, waiting for the right papers to cross the border. There wasnīt even a gate of some sort, it looked just like a īnormalī 2 lane road..
On the side of Guatemala there was even a market on both sides of that same road. Especially the food places are really an amazing site, since they are preparing it outside in the heat without any cooled storage. No wonder it is not recommended to eat any food there (especially not chicken!).
At the border we got onto our own (shoestring) bus, which then brought us to Panajachel..
Panajachel lies by the lake of Atitlan and is surrounded by three volcano's. We already saw the difference in landscape with Mexico during the bus-drive. Guatemala has much more mountains and difference in vegetation..
Unfortunately also here the poverty is quite obvious looking at the places where they live..
Sunday the 16th of April we went to visit Chichicastenango where the biggest Indian market from Guatemala is held. This was really an impressive sight to see with all the Indians in their traditional clothing selling their handmade carpets, purses, belts and so on.
We also went inside the Santo Tomás Church. Again it was filled with holy figures, candles burning, and a lot of flowers. What we saw was a mix of traditional Indian (Maya) beliefs and Christianity.
In front of the church a modern Guatemalan band was playing to add even more contrast but also atmosphere to the picture.
Monday we didnīt do so much, only walked a bit through Panajachel and enjoyed the view on Lake Atitlan and the volcano's.
End of the afternoon we drove from Panajachel to Antiqua. This used to be the capital of Meso America. The city is still full of original colonial buildings and ruins.
Tuesday the 18th we walked around the city to look at some of these buildings. Unfortunately we didnīt have more time to walk around since that afternoon we were going to climb the Volcano the Pacaya.
We were picked up by a small van which looked as though it could fall apart at any time. With 13 people inside it also was a bit crowded! The plan was to walk all the way up to the crater, but due to recent eruptions we couldnīt get that far up.
We could however climb to the point where we could see these recent eruptions of lava. Rolf even stood on it (with a few others of our group). Someone put a wooden stick just centimetres in the lava and the stick was almost immediately lit on fire!
After the walk we were all completely covered with black lava dust, so the recently washed clothes could be washed again. But it had been worth it!
The ride back was even more scary then our trip on the volcano, since the window-blades were not working and it was raining! But we all arrived in one piece back in the hotel.

Honduras

Wednesday the 19th, we drove from Antiqua - Guatemala to Copan - Honduras. Underway we also made a brief stop in the capital of Guatemala, Guatemala city. Also there you can clearly see that it is a poor country. You can see slumps everywhere. Although the nature is quite beautiful sometimes, it doesnīt always look that nice because of all the rubbish lying besides the roads.
In Guatemala city we visited the Cathedral and took a look at where the Government is residing. The latter was heavily guarded (which also shows that this is not really a safe country). In the course of our stay in Guatemala we have been seeing heavily armed guards everywhere; near stores, public buildings and sometimes even Coca Cola trucks!
After the quick stop we drove to the border of Honduras. Again this was a strange border, without any obvious signs, gates or guards.
The first impression of Copan, was a positive one. It was a small town, with steep streets and houses in bright colours. The city lives completely of the tourism industry which is generated by the Maya ruins situated next to the village.
Thursday we visited the Copan Ruins with a guide. Since the Mayaīs didnīt have lime stone to make all their buildings, the ruins are not as well preserved as the other ruins we already saw during our trip. Instead they used mud to hold the stones together, which of course washed away when it rained.
But here you can still see the most beautiful stellaīs (engraved statues) of the Maya empire. Also here is the highest hieroglyphic stairway, which tells us of events in the former Copan Rulersī lives. Also the statues were made for these rules, presenting them as gods and giver of life.
Again these ruins gave us some new insights in their lives and beliefs.

Guatemala (2)

Friday the 21st of April, we left Honduras to go to Rio Dulce and Livingstone in Guatemala. The beginning of the afternoon we arrived in Rio Dulce where we went on a small boat, which would take us to Livingstone. It was a trip of more than 2 hrs taking us past mangrove forests and original Indian villages. We also saw a lot of beautiful birds.
Livingstone is a small town which can only be reached by boat. 40% of the population consists of Indians which are a blend of 2 Indian tribes and Nigerian refugees. 60% is Spanish (Latino). The atmosphere reminded us a bit of Jamaica.
In a restaurant we then tried the local speciality, their Tapado soup, which is full of fresh fish.
Walking through the village afterwards, we met a teacher who took us to the original 'black' (=Indian) neighbourhoods. It showed us that the living-conditions weren't as good for the blacks as for the Latinos.
End of the afternoon we returned to Rio Dulce where we stayed in a jungle resort. We got a really nice bungalow to share with 3 other couples from our group.
Saturday morning we went up really early, since we had a tour scheduled through the jungle.
Beginning of the afternoon we left Rio Dulce to go to Flores Island.
Sunday the 23rd of April we left at 5 o'clock in the morning to go to Tikal, where we would visit the last ruins of our trip.
We started however with a jungle tour.
Besides the different kinds of plants and trees, we also saw a lot of wildlife, like monkeys, crocodiles, turtles, really big turkeys and a tarantula spider!
After the jungle tour we visited the Maya ruins of Tikal.
Because of the location and the size of the excavations, we thought it to be the most beautiful ruins we had seen so far.
Again we were amazed by the huge temples and living areas which they had been able to build from 200 before Christ till 800 after Christ.
On our way back to Flores we also did a canopy tour. High in the trees of the tropical rain forest, we were hooked onto a cable and we then glided from platform to platform. This was really great fun!
Monday morning at 5 o'clock (again!), we left Flores Guatemala to go to Belize.

Belize

In Belize city we said goodbye to our chauffeur, who had been with us for 10 days. He returned to Guatemala. Belize City didn't give us a good first impression of Belize since we saw a lot of strange people walking around asking us for money. We heard that a large part of the population is either a drug addict or a drunk (or both!). We then went by boat to Caye Caulker, where we arrived 45 minutes later.
Tuesday we had our last excursion with the group, a sailing - snorkeling tour.
We swam with really huge stingrays (we even touched them!), and with cute little sharks. It was a really relaxed trip, which got even more relaxed after we had some rum-punch on our way back!
That night Nienke had organised to have a barbecue with a live band which played the local Punta music.
It sometimes sounded a lot like John Denver when they were singing "country road, take me home to the place I belong", but they certainly gave their own beat to it! Again the rum-punch was really popular, so everyone was in an excellent mood. For us it meant a really great farewell dinner.
Wednesday the 26th of April we said goodbye to our group.
They were going back to Mexico - Playa del Carmen, and then back home.
We really enjoyed the Maya Tour, also because we had such a great group.
We will definitely miss them all.
We left our hotel that morning and moved to a nice little apartment which we had found the day before. The coming week we hope to do a lot of nice dives and relax a bit. Since it extremely hot most of the day, relaxing is the only thing you can do!
2006 Rolf & Linda