Palenque, Mexico

As James Taylor (Kelly's favorite artist) sang, "Mexico - I never really been but I'd sure like to go."  Aside from a quick hop over the border to Tijuana when I was in San Diego on business about 18 months ago, this is my first real visit to Mexico.  And in one day we managed to cross into four of Mexico's 31 states - Quintana Roo, Campeche, Tabasco, and Chiapas.  Sunday was a loooong drive - some 495 KM (or more than 300 miles) from Chetumal to Palenque, the town next to some famous Mexican Mayan ruins.

The drive was mostly uneventful and the roads were surprisingly good-excellent, except for one patch which is under construction.  The drive was quite picturesque as we passed through a number of different landscapes.   We did the drive in about 6 1/2 hours and might have been a tad quicker except for a wrong turn we made looking for a road that did not seem to exist.

Had dinner at Don Muchos, an interesting joint just outside the Palenque park.  It was a very busy restaurant outside in the jungle, and they had really good live music.   Most of the place is covered by thatch or awning, but we had a table in the open, which was fine until the heavens opened (there is a reason they call it the rain forest!).  Luckily we were able to move our table under cover and continue our meal.   I had chicken with a fantastic mole sauce.

The next day we had a slow start and headed over to the Palenque ruins mid morning.  First you pay a small entry fee to get into the ecological park and then drive up to the ruins and buy a ticket to see them.  There were so many cars and buses that we ended up parking at the side of the road and could have had our car washed while we toured the ruins, but since it's a rental, that seemed unnecessary.

The ruins of Palenque were perhaps the best and worst experience we've had at a Mayan site so far.  The best, in that the ruins themselves are spectacular.  Perhaps not as large a site as some of the others like Tikal, but the buildings were in a much better state of preservation and restoration.  There were lots of places with glyphs, stucco, and carvings still to be seen and it was perhaps a bit easier to understand how the buildings must have looked and functioned in their heyday.  But the place is incredibly popular - tons of visitors, mostly Mexican, but also foreign tourists.   A number of times we had to stop in order to go with the flow of people and it is impossible to get a photo of any of the key buildings without people in the way.  Visiting the more remote ruins of Belize and Guatemala was really a very different, quieter, and even occasionally, solitary experience.

We stopped by the museum on our way out, but it turned out to be closed on Mondays.  We decided to come back the next day and headed over to the town where we had a great late lunch (superb mole enchiladas) and walked around and bought a few gifts and souvenirs.

The next morning we checked out of the hotel and drove back to the museum.  Frankly I had half thought of giving it a skip so we could get on our way as we had another fairly lengthy day of driving.   I am so glad we did not.  The museum has been the highlight of our Mayan experiences so far.  Although we have seen a few original pieces, much of what has been on display in the other museums are replicas, photos, etc. 

The collection in the Palenque museum is all original pieces from the site and they are spectacular.  The explanations were all in Spanish and English and had first rate illustrations making the information very user friendly.   Firstly one sees the incense censers which are about 3' tall pottery pieces and are incredibly detailed and colorful.  Next there are funerary pieces such as jewelry and jade masks.  Several thrones and other stone pieces have carvings that are so detailed and fresh looking you might think they had just been created.

But the piece-de-resistance is the tomb of King Pakal which was discovered in 1952 buried in a perfectly intact crypt deep inside one of the pyramids.  The exhibit included several short movies that not only explained the tomb, its iconography, architecture, etc. but also gave a strong sense of the experience the archaeologist must have had when he made the discovery.

This was absolutely first rate and it is not possible to look at these Mayan ziggurats, hieroglyphs, jewelry, etc. and not make comparisons to the Egyptians.  The level of detail and artistry in the carvings makes contemporary European stonework seem crude by comparison.

The Belize Zoo and heading to Mexico.

For our last night in Belize, we chose to visit the Belize Zoo.  The zoo was started about 25 years ago when a documentarian found herself with a number of semi domesticated animals following the completion of her movie.  She decided to care for them and this ultimately became the Belize Zoo, a private institution which is considered a model for other zoos around the world. 

It has a relatively small collection, all Belizean animals which for one reason or another cannot be in the wild.  They may have been sick, or were illegal pets.  Some of the cats were trapped when they harassed wildlife and others were born in the zoo.  All the animals have large enclosures and the signposting around the zoo is quirky and fun.   The zoo puts a strong emphasis on education and has its own Tropical Education Center (TEC), across the road from the zoo where groups can stay and get involved in various projects.  We met a Dutch Masters student who is doing field research on the prey animals of the jaguar, a Sonoma State student who is doing a summer internship at the zoo, a mature student from Portsmouth UK who is working as a zoo administrator for a few months, a girl scout group from the US (high schoolers) and a group of university students from the UK.

We chose to stay at the TEC overnight so we could participate in a nighttime tour of the zoo.  I had done something kind of like this before in Singapore and knew that one of the great things about going to a zoo at night is that some 70% or more of the animals are nocturnal, which means when you see them in a typical zoo during the daytime, they are usually asleep.  By coming at night you get to see the animals alert and in action.   We actually had a private tour of the zoo, which was just the 3 of us and two of the zookeepers. 

Starting in the snake house, we saw Fer-de-lance (this time thankfully behind glass!), rattlesnake, and a python which Aaron and I got to have around our necks.  Then we spent about an hour wandering around the various enclosures and feeding the animals including tapir (the Belizean national animal), margay (pictured - the smallest of the spotted cats), ocelot, jaguar, howler monkeys, pacas, peccaries, coatamundis, puma, spectacled owls, and kinkajous.  Lots of fun and educational.   Aaron was thrilled that he got to touch the jaguar's paw, which now means he had the chance to pet a number of big cats as he had close encounters with lions, cheetah and leopards in Africa.

As we finished up, we ended up back with the snakes and this time the rattlesnake was alert and angry - shaking this rattle and curled into a tight S shape ready to strike.  Actually I thought this was kind of useful - if we ever run into a rattlesnake in the wilds of Texas we'll know exactly what they sound like.

The cabin we had at the TEC was large with several beds, lots of space, a small kitchen and a bathroom.  It kind of looked like the cabins you might find at a summer camp, which screened in windows and a porch set right above a swamp (which apparently has its own crocodiles, but we didn't see them).  Unfortunately a number of mosquitoes made it into the cabin and despite wearing DEET to bed, we each ended up with a few bites in the morning.  Also, early in the morning the power went out, meaning the fans stopped working, so it started to get pretty warm.  We decided to get up and going when the power stayed off,  but unfortunately there was no water in the shower.  Just as we finished getting changed, the power came on again.  We later found out that when they have a power outage, the water pumps need to get reset, but no one had told us this. 

After breakfast, we drove back to Belize City where we returned our car.  The vehicle (and Crystal Car Rental) were great.  Kelly says she is ready to do a commercial for Suzuki SUVs.  The car rental folks drove us into town so we could board a bus for Chetumal, Mexico which is just over the border to the north of Belize and takes about 3 hours in a reasonably comfortable coach.  When we got to the border, we paid the Belizean exit tax again and then went to Mexican immigration which took forever.  Apparently they had recently put in new procedures, which requires some people who could previously just walk through immigration to now need to fill out paperwork.  Futhermore when we arrived only one person was working, so we probably spent best part of 45 minutes getting through Mexican immigration.

Once we got to Chetumal we took a quick taxi ride to our hotel, the Holiday Inn.  We needed to choose a 2nd taxi as the first one wanted twice the going rate - always know how much a cab ride should cost!  We chose the Holiday Inn as we were only staying one night, it was centrally located and we got a good rate.

Across the street from the hotel was the excellent Museum of Mayan Culture.  It has very few original pieces - most were reproductions, but did a great job of explaining Mayan architecture, customs and culture through the use of models and interactive computer systems.

Five Sisters Lodge

Belize's Cayo district is in the west of the country, bordering Guatemala.   We wanted to spend some time there exploring the Pine Mountain Reserve area, which is a highland area of pine forest and jungle.  When we were considering where to stay, we had looked at a number of places in our guides and then the brother-in-law of a friend, who spends a lot of time in Belize, recommended the Five Sisters Lodge, so that's what we chose.

It is a beautiful place, set above a series of small waterfalls (The Five Sisters) in the middle of a large swath of pine forest.  The grounds are beautifully landscaped and the cabanas are rustic, yet comfortable.   We had a family cabana which gave Kelly and me a private room with king sized bed and our own bathroom downstairs, while Aaron slept upstairs in his own double bed.  He has his own bathroom and there was a small living area and lovely screened in balcony overlooking the forest.

Since this is up in the mountains, it was a little cooler than the heat of the lowland jungle.  Nights were pleasantly cool and we only needed fans in our rooms rather than a/c.  Daytime temperatures were warm, but not oppressive, although apparently it gets very hot here in April - up to 107.  The coolest is in December when it can drop to 40.

The staff was wonderful - extremely friendly and very helpful.  We ate all our meals there (realistically the only option unless we wanted to drive a long way over a very bumpy road) and although the food was relatively simple, it was very tasty and filling.

Around the lodge itself there are a ton of birds.  I got up early on our last morning to greet the dawn around 5:30am and before breakfast I had seen more than 20 different varieties of birds, some amazingly colorful.  Unfortunately without a field guide, I could not identify most of the birds, but Fermin, our waiter, was a good bird spotter and helped me identify some.   Luckily I had brought my Nikon compact binoculars so we got a good view of many of the birds.   Some of the birds I saw included red legged honeycreepers, parrots, acorn woodpecker, crimson collared tanagers, laughing falcons, montezuma oropendula, and many others.  We also found a very large toad outside our cabin as we went to bed one night.  I showed Fermin a picture in the morning and told him this was probably the biggest toad I had seen.  He said it actually wasn't very big - they see them twice as large as this!  A few days before we arrived one of the cleaning staff had seen a jaguar early in the morning near the property but we had no such luck.  We did see a creature dash into the bush on our drive out of the Pine Mountain area, which was probably a jaguarundi.

Below the lodge one can go swimming in the cool water underneath the waterfalls.  The lodge has its own hyrdoelectic generator upstream to supply their power needs.  Just down the road from the lodge is Big Rock, another, much taller waterfall and deep pools that Aaron and I visited on our last day (Kelly was still sore from her fall) using the lodge's mountain bikes.  It was a lovely place to swim and Aaron built a kind of castle from drift wood pieces and sand.  Before leaving, Aaron was able to take a big leap off one of the rocks into the deep pools.

If you ever find yourself in Belize, and want a great outdoor experience, I recommend a visit to the Five Sisters Lodge.

The best travel camera

I often get asked "what camera should I get?", which is sort of like asking "what car should I drive?", but I thought I'd take a few minutes to record my thoughts about cameras and travel.  When it comes to taking pictures while on the road, in the words of Crosby, Stills, and Nash "if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with".

I am very fortunate that I have access to a lot of my own equipment.  For most professional gigs, I shoot with a Digital SLR such as the Canon 5Dii with top quality L series lenses, external battery grip, high powered external flash, etc. etc.   While there is always more gear that I have my eye on, in reality I have most of what I want, which is great, but causes a real conundrum when I travel - haul a ton of gear and be ready to shoot almost anything, or travel light?

I also have a Canon Powershot G9 (the latest version in this series is the G11).  When I travel "heavy", the G9 is my last line of defense, the backup to my backup.  But when I travel light, this is my go to camera.

What I love about the Powershot G series, having owned a G1 (my very first digital camera), a G5, and a G9 is that although these are small and relatively light, they pack in a lot of features not found on most compact cameras.  Foremost amongst these is the ability to shoot in the RAW format, which renders the best quality, and provides the most flexibility to later edit the image.  The camera also includes a hot shoe which permits the use of most of my high end Canon flash and flash accessories.  A lesser known function is that it also has a built in ND filter, which means that you can effectively lower the amount of light getting into the camera - what may sound like the opposite of what most photographers need, but this is very useful when you want to use a slow shutter speed to show motion blur, but the environment isn't really dark enough.  The G9 did away with the rear swivel screen, but that's back in the G11 and very useful for taking low angle images or shooting with the camera held above your head (e.g. when shooting over a crowd).

The key thing about any travel camera is that is it no use if you don't have it with you, so the cardinal rule of travel photography for me is to always have your camera available.  This is much easier to do if you can put it in your pocket or on your waistbelt.   With DSLRs and even so called ZLR or bridge cameras (the all in-one-cameras with longer length built in zoom lenses), the problem is that you have to make a conscious decision whether or not to haul out the camera, and usually for at least some part of the trip, it stays in the bag or even the hotel room.

So what to do?  When traveling through Africa a couple of years ago, I hauled two DSLR bodies, a 100-400mm lens, 2x converter, 28-70mm lens, 17-55mm lens, flash gear and a number of accessories, including specialized mounts to steady the camera. And of course my G9 backup gear.  I used a large LowePro backpack camera bag, which also incorporates a laptop computer.  All this gear is HEAVY. I would guess at least 50lbs, and of course bulky and valuable.   I knew that for most of the trip we would be on the same vehicle and that I could store and have pretty ready access to it, so for me the problem was mostly getting it there.   When Air Namibia has a 7Kg (about 17lb) limit on hand  luggage, this in a bit of a problem.

Conversely for our travels through Central America this summer (and some of our previous trips elsewhere), I decided to go "lightweight".  This means the G9, spare battery, charger, 580EXii external flash and diffuser, AA rechargeable batteries and charger (which we use for other devices such as flashlights) and a Gorilliapod GP3 with a ball head attached.  Despite the photo with a large zoom lens, this isn't really up to holding a DSLR with such a large lens in the real world, but it is fantastic for a DSLR with smaller lenses, and ideal for the G9.  In addition to acting like any normal tabletop tripod, the flexible legs can be made to wrap around objects such as tree branches or railings, and can conform to odd shapes such as rock surfaces.

So, if you are considering purchasing a new compact travel camera, here are some things I suggest you consider:
a.  Size.  The camera is one you should be able to take with you everywhere you go.  If you have to decide whether to bring it with you when you go to dinner, etc., then you will inevitably leave it behind and miss some shots.
b. Usefulness in low light situations.  Every traveler will come across many situations where the quantity of light isn't ideal.  There are a number of things that affect how useful a camera is in low light situations, so keep these in mind:
- The lens' maximum aperture.  The smaller the F number, the more light the camera can let in and consequently the more useful it is in dimmer situations.  Note that most compact cameras do not have a constant maximum aperture, which means that at the widest angle setting of the lens, the maximum aperture is usually one or more stops brighter than at the maximum telephoto setting.   All things equal, a camera with a brighter maximum aperture is much more useful.
- The quality of the image processing chip and ISO settings.  You can boost the ISO setting on your camera to increase the effective sensitivity of the sensor thus allowing photography in dimmer light, but this comes at the cost of increased digital noise in your images.   Almost all cameras include (and market) ISO settings that are way beyond what is usable in reality.  For instance, my G9 can be set for ISO 1600 and even boosted beyond that, but in reality, images taken at over ISO 200 are too noisy.  Each successive generation of the image processing chip (for Canon, this is their DIGIC processor) makes a HUGE leap in quality of the higher ISO settings.  On my DSLRs, going from Digic III to Digic IV based models boosted the usable ISO by about 3 or more stops.  In English, this means that the newer models with better image processing chips are much better at low light photography.  Always investigate (online or ask a knowledgeable sales rep) what the highest ISO setting is that will yield a quality image and if your wondering why two seemingly similar 12MP cameras from the same manufacturer seem to be at significantly different costs, probably the more expensive one has a newer (and better) image processor.
- Flash power and flexibility.   Sooner or later you will need to add light to a low light scene and this means flash.  The build in flash in most compact cameras is very restrictive and is usually only helpful over very short distances.  Also, the flash may get blocked by the lens barrel at some focal lengths.  If the camera can take an external flash you have a lot of flexibility in using external flashguns and accessories providing many more options than a built-in flash only, but this feature is available only on the most expensive compact cameras and the external flash gear can be more expensive than the camera.   If you have to rely on built-in flash, look for models with more powerful flash and the ability to get the flash as far away from the lens as possible.  Some models have pop up flash, which do a better job of avoiding cutoff from the lens barrel and somewhat lessen the occurrence of red eye. Two downsides to pop up flash units are that they are susceptible to mechanical breakage and if you plan to use your camera in a waterproof housing, you may not be able to use the flash at all.
c. Lens capability and quality.  Better glass will always get you a better picture.  Look for models with better ratings on their optical characteristics.  Also, the optical  zoom length for most compact cameras is limited. Forget about "digital zoom" - this is just a gimmick that makes the camera specs seem better, but actually just discards pixels.  Optical zoom lengths are limited for most compact cameras, but some models have longer ranges than others.  Keep in mind if you shoot indoors or take landscape images that it is often possible to get closer to a subject, so even a moderate telephoto length can suffice, but it is perhaps more common to run into the problem that your camera is on its widest angle setting and you can't get further back to include everything you want in the frame.  In other words, it isn't just the zoom ratio (3x, 6x, 10x, etc.) that matters, but what the focal length of the lens is.  I would prefer a camera with a wider wide angle setting if I had a choice.  Some models can accept accessory wide angle and telephoto adapters to expand the native capability of the build in lens, but these are of limited value - they are expensive, bulky, inconvenient and sometimes of dubious optical quality.
d. Megapixel madness. Cameras are marketed with the idea that more megapixels means the camera must be better.   In fact once your camera has at least a minimum megapixel rating of about 8MP for most people anything beyond that is a waste.   A 4x6 print at maximum quality requires only 2MP.  An 8x10 at maximum quality only needs about 8MP. so unless you are creating a huge poster or cropping your image a lot (which has other issues anyway), a higher megapixel count isn't buying you anything.  What IS important is the quality of the built in image processor in the camera and the quality of the lens.  I would rather have a camera with a high quality, newer image processor and good glass with a small megapixel count, than something with tons of megapixels but mediocre image processing quality.   This is where I think Canon and Nikon have the edge as they are the leaders in image processing hardware.   Sony and Olympus and perhaps Samsung I would rate close behind, at least for compact cameras.
e. Useful features build into the camera.   New and sometimes unique features are surfacing all the time and it is often fun to see what the manufacturers come up with next.  But ask yourself if the features are really useful to YOU.  For example, Nikon make a camera with a build in projector, the idea being that you can share your images more easily with others.  But it is low resolution and not very bright, so effectively almost worthless.  However, many cameras allow you to connect a cable to a TV and see your pictures at high quality on a larger screen - great for sharing and the feature adds little or no cost to the camera.   BTW, be on the lookout over the next year or so for models that will have this type of capability wirelessly. Another specialized feature is having a 2nd small LCD on the front of the camera.  If you take a lot of images where you want to get in the shot, this allows you to make sure you have framed the image correctly.   Cameras with a rear swivel screen can do the same thing.

There is obviously lots more one could talk about, but I'll end it here.  

If you are in the market for a new camera, do your research first - the manufacturer's own websites will have a lot of good info, but the excellent dpreview website should be your destination for impartial third party reviews, testing, and feedback.  Then go to a good camera store and try the models that most interest you.  Very few places allow cameras to be returned without at least a restocking fee, so it is important to choose wisely.  Take your time, find something you like, and BRING IT WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU TRAVEL!

Happy trails.

The Belizean Mayan site of Caracol

Today we went to Caracol (Spanish for snail), perhaps the best Mayan site in Belize.  Set deep in the jungle, it took about an hour and half of driving over very rough roads from our lodge, which itself is more than an hour from the main road, or about 2.5 hours from Belize City.

You really have to want to go to Caracol to get there!  This is literally the end of the road, and as the site is close the Guatemalan border, you caravan in with other vehicles along with a Belizean army escort.  They had problems in the past with Guatemalans coming over the border and stealing flora and fauna, poaching, and even committing armed robbery on tourists, so they started the escorts and haven't had any problems for many years.  Since we had our own rented SUV we decided to drive there ourselves rather than take a tour and so only had to pay the park entry fee (about US$7.50 each).  Given how bumpy the road is and that I can get motion sickness when I'm a passenger, I was glad to drive.  Very challenging, but fun.

Each of the Mayan sites we have visited has its own character, but to me, Caracol really feels remote - I half expected to see Indiana Jones make an appearance!  Because it is so remote, there aren't a ton of visitors, so it is easy to explore the site and only occasionally run into other people.  The main temple here is still the tallest building in Belize and like all the ruins we've visited, it has similar architecture and great views.

What is particularly neat about Caracol is that there are some small segments of better preserved inscriptions and carvings so you get a little more sense of what an awesome place the Mayan ruins must have been in their heyday.  It is still being excavated and current estimates are that it supported many thousands of inhabitants.  From stellae inscriptions at Tikal it is known that at one point Caracol joined with the city of Calakmul (currently in So. Mexico) and defeated Tikal, but later Tikal regained its independence.

In between the various buildings is dense jungle and this is a fun part of the experience too as you walk along the trails.  Lots of leaf cutter ants and other insects.  We also heard howler monkeys again (very well named!)  Apparently the park staff spotted a tapir before we arrived, but we did not see it.  On the way in we saw a very striking bird of prey but unfortunately without a bird guide we could not identify it.

Caracol provided a few injuries - Kelly slipped on mossy steps and landed hard on her tush.  She was sore, but has since seemed to improve with rest.  Both Aaron and Kelly got ant bites, but I was mercifully spared.

When we were at Yaxha one of the locals showed Aaron how to "fish" for a tarantula.  You take a long thin stick and gently poke it down its burrow.  With luck the spider grabs on to it with its fangs and you can gently lift it out.   As we finished up our walk around Caracol Aaron spotted some spider leg movement from a hole under a big tree and put his training to use.  After some effort, the largest spider we have ever seen came out.  To get some idea of scale, we photographed it with my penknife, which is 6" long with the ruler.  The angle here is a little deceptive (the metal part is as long as the red handle, so both the spider and the knife are at a bit of an angle). End to end best estimate is that he was at least as long as the knife.  We left him (her?) in peace, had some snacks, and drove the journey back again in caravan with an escort, tired but very happy

Barton Creek Cave and the Fer-de-Lance

After a good night's sleep at the Five Sisters Lodge we headed out for a guided trip to the Barton Creek Cave. Funnily enough, Barton Creek is a familiar name in Austin as it is one of the swankier neighborhoods of our town, but I don't believe there is any connection to this remote spot in Belize.

The cave was a long and bouncy drive from the lodge requiring fording two rivers. Luckily the lodge has a four wheel drive Toyota and our Mayan guide Rene was driving. The site is very pretty - set in to the edge of a hillside. The cave was known to the local owner, but only became public knowledge when he sold the properties in the 1980s and was explored and researched in more depth. It is about 4.5 miles long, although we could not go all that way due to the low ceiling.

We have been to a number of amazing caves in our travels, so it takes a pretty neat cave to impress us. What was fun about this cave was that is was flooded and so we explored it by canoe (I paddled Kelly, Aaron and myself in one boat and Rene paddled another canoe with a newly wed couple in the other). The formations were interesting, especially the natural bridges, but what made this cave unique for us was that it had been a Mayan ritual sacrificial site. We got to see evidence of human bones and pottery. Apparently the victims were sacrificed somewhere else then their bones and blood brought here into the underworld. They used the stone bridge to cross from one side to the other and one can easily see how one could associate the place with a spirit world. Some jade jewelry with an inscription from the Mayan city of Caracol was also found, so there was obviously some trade or connection between the sites.

Rene's canoe exited the cave first after we had spent about an hour exploring. As we came out a little behind, I noticed a snake, about 5 or 6 feet long swimming in the pool ahead of us outside the cave. It was moving pretty fast and having watched my fair share of snake related programs on Discovery's Animal Planet channel, I made a few assumptions. First, noticing that it had a triangular shaped head that it was probably a member of the viper family and poisonous (which it was) and second that like most snakes, as long as we didn't antagonize it, it would be more afraid of us and swim away from us (which it didn't!)

The snake actually turned and swam very close to our canoe and even seemed to raise itself up a bit in the water. For a moment, we were afraid that it might strike Kelly who was in front of me, so I quickly took my paddle and put it between Kelly and the snake, it then continued to turn towards me, took a quick look and swam past the end of our canoe and quickly off into the bush on the opposing bank. All in all a pretty hair raising few moments. Aaron managed to grab a few shots of the snake in the water, but unfortunately my camera wasn't ideally setup for this kind of shot. After we returned the canoes I talked to Rene and the local caretaker and they identified the snake from the photo as a Fer de Lance. They had not seen it at all and had no other reports of a recent siting.

I realized this was a very poisonous snake and from my conversation with Rene and some later internet research found out that this is the snake most likely to cause bites in Central America and responsible most fatal snake bites, although most victims do not in fact die if bitten, as long as they get antivenin within about 4 hours.

They can also spit their venom up to 6 feet away, but I am told this isn't harmful to humans. Getting bitten is another matter.

Because the environment is so wet (there has been quite a bit of recent rain), apparently the snakes are more active. The Fer de Lance is a particularly aggressive snake and when it feels threatened, it tends not to back down and go away. Most people get bitten because its camouflage is so good that they inadvertently step on it before they knew it was there.

In retrospect, I suspect that the snake was just making its way across the river when we happened to come along. Either we got in its intended path, or it perceived us as a threat and did what its biological program told it to do. It never opened its mouth or actually entered the canoe, but it got too close for comfort.

I suppose that since we ultimately weren't harmed I feel that we were both lucky and unlucky at the same time. Lucky to see a creature in the wild that most other people will never see (yes I know there are many of you who have no wish to see such an animal without glass in between you!) and unlucky in that we seemed to be very close to the wrong place at the wrong time. Hopefully that will be our last close encounter with a snake, except for our upcoming visit to the Belize Zoo. However, Aaron came across the biggest spider we've ever seen, which you can read about in an upcoming post.

So, so far in Belize we've had Sharks, moray eels, ROUS (rodents of unusual size), snakes, huge insects, and enormous spiders. Fun in the jungle.

Yaxha and back to Belize

Today we left El Remate where we had been staying to visit Tikal and headed back towards the Belizean border.  I had read about a Mayan site called Yaxha which sounded interesting, and Norberto, our Tikal guide strongly recommended visiting it, so when we say the signpost, we decided it would be worth a quick visit.  Unfortunately, the 8 mile drive was over very rough terrain and when we got there it required a US$10 per person park entrance fee (nifty concert style bracelet included!), so we decided to stay a little longer and take our time visiting the ruins.  Glad we did as although Yaxha is much smaller than Tikal, far fewer people visit it and it made it easy to get around and sometimes more atmospheric.  Great view of the nearby lake too.  Wikipedia details on Yaxha can be found here.

Aaron seemed to have a lot of fun with the local arthropods and learned how to safely extract a tarantula from its hiding hole.  Saw some pretty interesting insects, including the VERY large grasshopper that Aaron found.

Returning to the main road, we drove back to the Belizean border and after turning in our car paperwork and getting our passports stamped out of Guatemala, we payed the BZD10 fee (US$5) for an inspection sticker and proceeded to Belizean immigration and customs just in time to be behind a large tour group.  Thankfully the line moved fast and we didn't have to spend all day to get back into Belize.

A few miles down the road is the major town of the Cayo district in Belize, San Ignacio.  We stopped to use the ATM and went to the market stalls to buy some fruit (turns out the day we had driven through here on the way into Guatemala was the major market day).  Anyway, bought some delicious, ridiculously cheap fruit - 5 lovely fresh bananas, a papaya, a huge mango and a dragon fruit for less than US$3.  The fruit here has been fantastic.  Had star fruit a few days later, which I normally think tastes like water, but here is it juicy, sweet, and flavorful.  The dragon fruit was also interesting - unlike the ones we had in SE Asia which are white on the inside, these are the color of beetroot.  Still yummy though!

We are staying at the Five Sisters Jungle Lodge in the Pine Mountain Reserve - only about 24 miles from San Ignacio, but over a challenging unpaved road, so it took us more than an hour to get here.  The place is very remote, but it is really lovely.  Our cabana is actually two stories - Aaron has his own double bed, bathroom and screen in terrace upstairs, while Kelly and I have our own King size bed and bathroom downstairs.  The place is beautifully landscaped, and the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful.  More to come!