Day Two: The Jungle

Jose, from ViaVentures, picks me up at Belize City International Airport.
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I try to sleep as late as I can, but I’m excited for the trip and am up early. I grab breakfast and a latte at the coffee shop downstairs. At the last minute I decide to steal shampoo and conditioner, which turns out to be a good call. It’s only a short walk from the hotel to terminal. The flight from Dallas to Belize City is mostly uneventful except we are delayed about half an hour due to a broken arm rest.

I arrive at the tiny Belize City International airport around 4PM. Even though I’m at the back of the plane and behind nearly everyone, I am able to get through customs fairly easily. Baggage arrives quickly. I am met by Jose, a rep from Viaventures, subcontracted by elevate destinations. ‘Miss Tracy Boyd’ was the sign he held outside the airport. We got into an SUV and began our approximately two hour drive to Pook’s Hill Lodge in the Cayo District. The area round Belize City looks very third world. I notice lots of dogs. We pass a prison and a dump. The highway is no wider than the country road I grew up on. At this point I’m thinking – what was I thinking?? We pass a ‘Drive Safely’ billboard with a smashed up truck on top. Not more than 2 minutes later we pass a major wreck. There is a newer looking SUV overturned on the side of the road. The tow truck is there and no one looks like they are hurt. For the remainder of the trip I wonder how that happened…

Belize is believed to have been at the heart of the Maya civilization that dominated Central America from about 250 to 900 AD. Over 1,400 Maya sites have been recorded leaving behind evidence of an advanced civilization with advances in astronomy, medicine, agriculture and architecture.

During the drive Jose gives me a very good overview of the country. Just over 300,000 people live in this small Central American country, formerly known as British Honduras. The people of Belize are extremely diverse – Maya (the first known inhabitants), Creole (descendants of African slaves and European settlers of the Colonial era), Mestizo (mix of Maya and Spanish settlers), Garifuna (a mixture of escaped African slaves and Carib Indians who arrived from Honduras in the early 1800s to escape prosecution), East Indian (originally came to work on the sugar plantations), Mennonite (farmers of German ancestry), North Americans (prominent in hospitality) and Chinese (prominent in the restaurant and grocery businesses).

Belize is believed to have been at the heart of the Maya civilization that dominated Central America from about 250 to 900 AD. Over 1,400 Maya sites have been recorded leaving behind evidence of an advanced civilization with advances in astronomy, medicine, agriculture and architecture.

First the Spanish came in the 1500s, then the British. The early 1600s was a time of trade and piracy in the Caribbean. The British ruled from 1862 - 1981 and explains why English is the official language today. Just like in the states, a recent election put new leadership in place after 10 years (elections are held every 5 years) and Dean Barrow became the country’s first black prime minister. Tourism plays an important role in the Belizean economy. Tour guides must be licensed and it’s a good income for many.

The road into Pook’s Hill is unpaved. We pass the Teakettle and Arizona settlements. At least these communities look nicer than the areas outside Belize City. The houses are still pretty rickety and cows, horses, chickens and lots and lots of dogs wander around. Workers are coming home from work on bikes carrying machetes.

As we pass the small town I now can’t see much as the sun has gone down. But I can tell it’s the jungle. Finally, I arrive at Pook’s Hill.

Pook’s Hill is pretty amazing. It’s an isolated little jungle resort on the site of small Mayan ruins in the midst of a lush forest on a 300-acre private reserve. Meals are served in a screened-in common dining area. Above the dining area is an open air lounge and bar, which is lit by kerosene lanterns at night and buzzing with hummingbirds during the day. The Lodge is literally ‘off the grid’. Hot water, which is warmed by fire, is only available after 4PM. Electricity is generated from a generator and battery system. At night we walk to and from the Lounge with flashlights (I’m really glad the sales person at REI told me to bring one!).

My cabana is closest to the office and lounge, of which I’m thankful. It has a thatched roof, wooden floors and screened windows all around. There is no glass, just levers on the big window facing the jungle. The bathroom has an open shower, sink and toilet. The thatch is low all around, low enough to provide privacy, except for in front of the big window facing the jungle. The only lights are in the bathroom and above the bed. They don’t provide much light at all. There is no tv. No alarm clock. Within minutes of getting settled in my room I killed a flying cricket-like bug. (Did I mention I hate bugs?) There is netting above the bed to prevent stuff (like bugs) from falling out of the thatch on you.

Dinner is with 5 other guests from a different tour company and Ray, the owner, Kat and Dave, a young married couple that manage the place, and Dave’s dad, Jerry. I have a glass of wine and get to know the other guests which include a couple from DC, a brother and sister from Las Vegas, and a single woman from Seattle. We gather in the large open lounge lit by kerosene lamps. Dinner downstairs is family style. Tonight’s meat is roast beef. There is also rice, beans, and a yummy zucchini vegetable dish. Rice and beans will be a part of nearly every meal. We have a delicious frozen lemon cake for dessert. The food is really good.

I go to sleep at around 9:30 to a symphony of bugs and geckos. I wake up at 3am and see carpenter ants devouring the body of the bug I had killed earlier. (Did I mention that I hate bugs?)