Caracol

Took a tour to Caracol today. The bus ride was a daunting 2 hours on mainly unpaved roads through the Mountain Pine Ridge park. The van was rocking so hard, I thought the slide door would fall off or the AC hanging in the back would come down. The site itself was amazing. It was much larger than I expected. It made a big difference that we could climb the steps. It helped me to gauge and appreciate it's size more. The largest temple called Caana is 140 feet tall. When you climb to the top, you get a 360 view over the trees in the jungle. It is the tallest in Belize. They say it reached its peak in 700 A.D. I haven't been exercising much so my legs were shaky after climbing three temple. The main reason I climbed so many was that I didn't know the first one one wasn't the main temple. Haha. Aside from the temples, there were several ball courts and a reservoir. The walls and altars were covered with hieroglyphics which gave insight into the Mayan people and culture. As we walked around the site, the guide pointed out the areas where the ground was raised. These were where the middle class built their homes and lived. By having their homes raised, they could literally look down at the lower class. We already know they're extremely smart and created an accurate calendar system.

There was a tree in the forest which looked like a really thick vine. It would support itself by attaching to a tree. It would eventually wrap around host and kill it. We were guessing what the name of the tree was and the guide told us it's called marriage. Haha.

On the way back, we stopped at Rio On Pools where there were small waterfalls with pools below them. They were followed by more falls and pools as far as I could see. Some people were swimming in the water and sliding down the smooth rocks. I dipped my feet but the water was brown so I didn't go in much further. I walked around and took photos. My photos may have come out nicer than the actual area.

I will make a note of this on Tripadvisor but I did not like the tour company -- Mayawalk Tours. In my opinion, it was too expensive for what they were offering. The van was air conditioned but it sounded like it was falling apart. It was braced into the ceiling above the last row of seats. I checked the nuts to make sure they weren't loose. The padded lining on the door was falling off. The entire car made a really loud shaking noise. Of course I had to take a video clip of it with my camera. I swear that AC was going to fall down. Lunch consisted of two bologne sandwiches with a leaf of lettuce and 2 thin slices of cucumber. We also had some fruit, a dessert and a small juice (red or purple). They didn't provide us with any water and it also wasn't available for purchase at the ruins. It's a national park so you have to carry your garbage out. At the least, I feel they should provide a garbage bag for the group. To top it all off, the tour guide spoke super fast. Last time I checked, English was my first language and I could not keep up with this man. Aside from all of the negatives I just mentioned with the tour company, this was my favorite Mayan ruin.

I retained one piece of information from today's tours. It's pretty funny. The guide told us how the Mayans acquired their name. When the Spanish came to the Yucatan, they asked the natives what their people were called. They responded with "Maya" which means I don't understand.

Blue Hole

So there was some drama with the Blue Hole. I was supposed to dive it 2 days ago with Big Fish (BF) on Caye Caulker. I was originally supposed to dive with Amigos del Mar but BF was much cheaper. However, when I woke up to meet the boat at 5:30AM! they told me that 4 people backed out the night before and they need 10 people to move the boat and we only had 8. Of course I had to give them a dose of the NY spirit and told them that they need to pay for an extra night of lodging for inconveniencing me. Why did they give the money back to these people if they're cancelling so last minute?... blah blah blah. In the end, I got mixed answers about whether they had the money or not. Because if they did have it, they should have kept it and moved the damn boat! So anyway, I ended up having to go to San Pedro, Ambergis Caye because we already paid for a night of lodging there. So I went there after taking a 45 boat ride there for $10BZ. Note: It's much cheaper to go from one island to another by taking Triple J instead of the water taxi ($20 BZ). I was shocked at how long AC was. It's a zillion times bigger than Caulker. They ride golf carts at 100 mph and don't slow down. They also have paved streets and sidewalks for major streets.

I'm digressing. So when I got off the ferry, Amigos was right there on the next pier so I walked in, signed up and they told me they would pick me up at the pier by the Belize Yacht Club at 5:30AM. For the rest of the day, I just hung out with Shaniquoa. Swimming, talking to locals, and just chillin'.

The next day, I waited on the pier for a few min and I was picked up. We were taken back to the Amigos pier and had some fresh fruit for breakfast and loaded the boats. The ride is not for the faint of heart. It was about 2 hours (maybe more). During the first 45 min, there was some rain so it hurt to slam into tiny water droplets at 70(?) mph. The next 45 min, we traveled over open water crosses which were really choppy waters. The boat would get launched into the air at times and slam back down. I was surprised the boat didn't break in half. Even though I took Dramamine, I was feeling nauseated from the smell of the petrol.

So after that, we finally made it. There were about 15 people on the boat and about half were snorkelers. I was surprised there were so many, but I was secretly glad. That means there will be less divers in the group. They helped us get into our gear and we hit the water. I was a little nervous knowing I would be going down to 130 feet and my left ear was a bit clogged because I was still getting over a cold. I was fine though. I just kept equalizing my ears and everything went smoothly. I was surprised at how easily I slipped down to such depths. I hardly felt a change. I only noticed that it was a tiny bit more difficult to breathe. Not much marine life. Some stalagtites but nothing compared to the cenotes in Cancun. Towards the end of the dive, the reef sharks were getting curious so they started coming out. I took some photos of them but I won't be able to post them until I get back home. It got a little scary when one was close enough that I could distinguish the face. It's face wasn't as friendly as the nurse shark I petted in Grand Cayman. Needless to say, I won't be keeping any sharks as pets. So that was the Blue Hole. People say it's nothing special but I had a great time. I was glad I went. I probably won't be doing it again since it's so expensive. I can tick it off my list of things to see/do and it's also in the book of 1000 Places to See Before You Die.

The next two dives were at Half Moon Caye, and the Aquarium. Both were wall dives. Nothing too exciting. Aside from the small marine life, I saw a huge turtle and my fav, a baby sting ray. At Half Moon, we got off, had lunch and checked out the bird sanctuary. You climb up to the top of the observation deck and see the birds sitting in the tree tops or flying around. There were also some hermit crabs crawling around the forest floor.

Next I'm off back to Belize City and we're going to drive over to Chetumal, MX. Not sure what we are going to do there but it's a popular Belizean thing to do. There is a casino, shopping and chain restaurants. By the way, this is the place where I stayed in a posada where the room was a converted garage.

Belize

I am in Caye Caulker, Belize right now. I have been in Belize for about a week now. I've been meeting and hanging out with Niquoa's 1001 cousins. Everyone has been friendly and cool. On our first day, we had some fresh coconut water on the rocks and ate the meat. I've tried the Belizean rum called one barrel which is really good. The local beer, Belikin, is pretty good as well -- except for Light House. You know how I like my beers dark with full calories. I had the best tamale at a stand near the park/ocean/club district which had chicken and peppers in it. We hear one of the aunts in Cayo makes the best ones so we're going to have to go down there to compare and learn the recipe. We also checked out Old Belize and Mayan ruins about an hour away called Altun Ha. They were not as impressive and large as Chichen but they were still nice to see. The drive there was nice as well.

I am in Caye Caulker right now so I can dive the Blue Hole tomorrow. It's a famous spot for diving. I am not sure how deep the hole is but I would dive down to around 130 feet. I should be able to see stalagmites and stalagtites and some reef sharks. I was told I might see a bull shark. I don't have much luck with spotting large pelagics so I won't count on that. The island is nice. Not much to do but it's nice and relaxing. My hostel, Tina's, is right by the beach and I have a nice view of it from my window. They provide a kitchen, fridge and a place to lock vaulables.

It appears Belize has it's own clock that it runs by. I am always surprised if people arrive at the time they say or things take the amount of time originally stated. When we were coming down here from Tulum (another site for Mayan ruins) they would tell us the bus ride is 3 hours and it would take an hour longer than anticipated. If someone says they'll be at the house to pick up us at Noon, add 2 hours. We're not in a rush to go anywhere so it's fine with me but it's a huge change from the 'get up and go' attitude in NY.

And I don't know why I'm always surprised by this, but everyone outside of the US is always so aware of things going on outside of their own country. Her cousin Lyndon knows much more than I do about the elections and his theory on what tactics will harm or aid each US candidate. I'm so ashamed. I'm going to catch up on my news now.

Mexicanos and Comidas

I have been here for a couple of days now and it´s been fun staying in Cancun. It is touristy but it still has some traditional flavor left. We had lunch one day at a concrete park which appeared really bleak but at night, it comes alive with families playing in the park at night. There are children everywhere. Food stands are open selling tacos, tortas, empanadas, tlayudas, and flavored waters. Everyone is pretty friendly. Most men usually want to come up to Shaniquoa and say something and touch her (on her shoulder or some place similar). Partly due to culture but mainly probably due to the fact that they have not seen many Black people. One girl came up and introduced herself in the park saying she was her first encounter. Cute girl.

I´ve driven past the hotel strip a couple of times and I am really glad I am staying downtown. The hotel area is aweful. It reminds me of a watered down version of Vegas. Chain restaurants -- Planet Hollywood, Bubba Gumps, Houlihans, etc. Multiple huge hotels which are not fully occupied. These hotels were built so close to the edge of the water that nature is slowly taking the sand away. Supposidly they tried to move the sand from one side of the beach to the other side, but it only lasted 6 months. Instead, they use sand bags to keep the water back. Really attractive when you´re sitting on the beach chair in a nice resort. Haha.

We did the Anthony Bourdain thing and tried tacos from a cart. There is a little section where there is hardly any traffic and there are 2 to 3 stalls setup. They all sell the same things--tacos and tortas. I tried tripa (tripe) and lengua (tounge). They all taste similar but I liked the texture on the lengua. You also put salsa and picante and onions on top.

When we went to Isla Mujeres, a woman was selling tamales by the ferry. It is one of my only favorite Mexican foods. It was really good. Smooth and almost creamy. She put a little bit of the picante and OH MAN, my mouth was on fire. I don´t know how they eat such spicy foods. I still liked it though. I probably noticed the kick more because of the citrus in the sauce.

Chichen Itza

I finally made it to one of the Seven Wonders of the World! I had a tough time understanding my guides so I won´t attempt to reiterate any of the history. The temple itself was a little different from what I expected. Maybe it was shorter or narrower? I can´t really tell what I was expecting. I was also hoping to climb it which I am sure would wake me up and make me realize how tall it is. 90 steps! I definitely don´t think I am in any shape right now to be doing cardio. There were many interesting facts we learned but the one incredible one I took away was when you clap in front of the temple, you hear an eagle´s cry in the echo. They could also predict when there would be an eclipse. The 21st of March is supposed to be the day of solstice where an effect is said to take place twice a year. The sun shines down on the staircase in a why that it looks like a snake. It started raining around 4pm so we were unable to witness the phenonmena. Ended up with a postcard instead.

Cancun

Did my cave diving yesterday. I could not sleep past 6 am because (1) it was noisy (2) I did not want to miss my pickup at 7.30am. I had breakfast and updated my journal instead. The pick up came on time. Gwen was the driver and dive master for the day. We had a nice small group with a total of 4 divers including Gwen. We made a couple of spots to pick up passengers and gear but we were on our way to the site around 8.30am. All of the cenotes are apparently owned by families. Land was distributed to families at one point. We paid an entrance fee and once we got in, we drive down a short bumpy road to find a ton of other cars. Since it was windy, it was especially crowded because the wind does not affect diving in the caves. We got out gear together and dove in. The water was a bit colder than I had thought. It was about 72 degrees. The first dive was okay but I was freezing by the 2nd dive. We did not see much in terms of life. Some small fish and a white koi which was introduced by someone. We swam right next to stalagtites and some stalagmites. In some areas they were pretty long. It really looks incredible when you are swimming towards the entrance. The water is a beautiful blue color set against the opening of the cave. In the second dive, we swam into a dome area where we could take our regulators out of our mouths and look at the fossils and the spiders in the cave.}

There is a difference between cavern diving and cave diving. With the former, you can always see the light from the opening. And with cave diving... you do not. The tunnels can also be a little more narrower so definitely not something you want to try if you are closterphobic.

The water in the cave is mainly fresh water. The water gets filtered as it passes through the lime stone (which was once coral). As you dive down, there is a point when salt water and fresh water meet called the halocline. When you swim through it, you cannot see anything. Everything becomes fuzzy. It is very cool but can be a little scary because you cannot navigate by sight. I just followed my dive master.

Texas to Cancun

I am in Cancun now. My flight was delayed by 2 hours but I still made it. I am staying in Hostel Haina. I cannot tell much since its dark but it looks fairly nice. Tomorrow I am off at 7.30 am to go cenote (cave) diving. Cant wait. Should be pretty cool. Even though the caves are in the ocean, the caves or something (these are technical terms) filter the water and it becomes fresh water. Pretty cool stuff.

In my last few days in Texas, I got to try some great BBQ in Austin at County Line. I had some ribs and brisket. The ribs were soooo good. South Austin is really chill. Lots of live music and vintage shops open late. Reminds me of NY a bit.

When I got back to Houston, I went to check out a rodeo. I did not get to see the actual rodeo with cowboys on horses roping cattle but I got to watch 6 year old kids ride sheep. It was adorable. The kids were hanging on for dear life to these animals. Loved it. Took some photos and one video of it.

Texas

I've been in Texas for the last 2 days attending a Indian wedding. After this, the normal Christian church wedding can't compare. This has been so beautiful and elaborate. Everyone is wearing different vibrant color saris and the venue is decorated with flowers, cloth and gold statues of deities. On the first night, they had the tumeric ceremony. It starts with a prayer, then the soon to be married couple get dotted with tumeric paste on their feet, hands and head. Tumeric is supposed to be good for your skin but it also makes it yellow. Then the next night was the Sangeet (sp?) which was basically a party. There were dances and speeches in honor of the bride and groom to be. This morning we attended the wedding ceremony. The groom comes in on a horse while everyone dances in front of him. This is to symbolize the journey the groom makes to meet his bride. Traditionally, this would be the first time they meet. The bride wore a gorgeous red sari with gold trimming. The venue was adorned with flowers and scarves and gold statues. The ceremony was about an hour long. The parents sat under an awning with the Hindu priest and bride and groom. They performed various tasks such as offering rose petals to
Ganesh (with the elephant head) . Clarified butter and rice were fed into a small fire. The couple also walked around the stage area 7 times and kicked 7 small piles of rice. I don`t remember what this stands for. I will have to look this up. They weren't allowed to kiss dues to religious customs so the priest had the couple feed each other by bringing their arm around the shoulders. Tonight I think the reception will be similar to what we normally witness in America.

In a few hours...

I'm am off to Houston for a wedding. It should be fun so I'm looking forward to that. I also hope it will be warmer than New York.

Next I'm off to Cancun to start the Central America leg of the trip. For now, this is the itinerary:

3/13 Houston
3/16 Austin
3/17 Cancun
3/26 Belize
3/31 Guatemala/Tikal
4/5 Belize
4/8 Cancun
4/9 NYC

4/13 Thailand
4/18 Japan
4/28 NYC

4/29 Budapest
5/1 Vienna
5/3 Cesky Krumlov
5/4 Prague
5/6 Berlin
5/10 Holland
5/14 Belgium
5/15 France
5/17 Dover (cruise to Copenhagen, Berlin, St Petersburg, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm)
6/3 Cairo
6/19 Jordan
6/22 NYC