Belize - Jungle River Tour to Lamanai

The Crocodile Mask at Lamanai
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Enticed by the abundance of positive travel reviews written about Belize and the prospect of seeing more ancient Mayan cities, tasting locally produced ethnic foods, hearing the sounds of the jungle and inhaling the salty air from any number of stunning cayes and immersing ourselves in its multifarious cultures we rapidly left Mexico (5 days) and hopped over the border. To be fair to the positive propoganda spun out by the Belize protaganists we were looking for a 2nd South Pacific experience and it seemed that it could offer all this and a whole lot more.

Our favourite Taqueria
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The beauty of Belize is that at 174 miles long 68 miles wide you can cover the main highlights in less than a month albeit at a cracking pace. Most places of interest are no more than 4 hours apart and served by a comprehensive network of old school buses kindly donated from the US. The bus journeys themselves are relatively pleasant compared to some of the horrors experienced in its pan-american cousins as reggae beats infuse the air and are puntured by the chatter of locals. The dialects heard range from Spanish in the North to Garifuna in the East and South, not to mention English all over. Garifuna is a fusion of French, English, African and Arawak (a dialect of Brazilian language) and is spoken by the Black Caribs of Belize.

The Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage

Get that salbute down Becs!
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It takes a highly trained ear to capture what is being said and perhaps that is why UNESCO have announced their intention for the Garifuna language and culture at large to be protected under The Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (I think Borat came up with this one). However, I can safely say there was nothing intangible about the number of expletives primarily rhyming with duck that populated the air. After reading more about UNESCO´s latest moniker I have decided to apply for Intangible Cultural Heritage myself and if successful you will need to apply in writing, preferably by fax before speaking to me. It is hoped if successful that my intangible status will be preserved particularly after a few beers.

The Main Temple at Lamanai
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Orange Walk is a dusty, workmanlike town of 20,000 although it feels much smaller and it is the main agricultural centre for Northern Belize. Its historical importance is firstly alluded to by the presence of a large Mayan settlement at nearby Lamanai and in the 18th century its prime location on the banks of the New River by the British logging camps brought it short-term prosperity or more accurately exploitation. In more recent times Orange Walk has been the heartland of sugar production although after the sugar crash in the 1980s it has never recovered to its former heights.

Surrounding jungle and New River from the top of the Main Temple.
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Having said all this Orange Walk does a good job of looking busy and there is a real sense of community spirit with Chinese, Indians (Asian) and Indigenous Belizeans all selling anything ranging from clothes and kitchenware to electrical and mechanical goods. The square near the bus station is a good place to grab a taco, burrito or salbutes from the abundance of holes in the wall serving as taquerias. Orange Walk is also home to a large Mennonite Community (similar to the Amish of Pennsylvania) who produce 65% of the food for the whole of Belize and also export abroad.

The purpose of our visit to Orange Walk was to take a jungle tour down the New River to Lamanai. Lamanai was occupied for over 3,000 years and had one of the longest occupation spans of the Mayan World. It is set in tropical rainforest and promised spectacular views of the surrounding jungle from its temples. We set off down the river for 37 miles and thanks to the excellent eyes of our guide Hilardo we saw Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets, Jabirus, Northern Jacanas, a Basilisk Lizard, a large male Iguana and of course plenty of Crocodiles. After nearly 90mins and a brief but heavy downpour we reached Lamanai.

Lamanai is Mayan for ´submerged crocodile´ or more accurately "Lama´an´ain" is but the shortened version is perferred. The ruins are set in lush rainforest and archaeologists have mapped over 700 structures of which only 5 are partly excavated. As each ruler died and they built another temple to another ruler they would build over the top. This is clearly evident at Lamanai as one side of the temple N-56 has been excavated to reveal the ornately carved face or Crocodile Mask underneath and thanks to a mixture of lack of funding and Belizean protection laws the opposite side has been left untouched. One side merely acting as a clue as to what lies beneath.

If you are prepared to tolerate the 33m climb up the main temple with only the maniacal cry of the howler monkeys for company you are greeted by a magnificent view of the surrounding jungle and the New River meandering towards the horizon. Apart from the rather dour faces and attitudes of our fellow tourists this was an interesting, insightful and thoroughly engaging tour.