About 30 miles west of Belize City is the Belize Zoo. They only have animals there that are native to the country. They are all animals that have been obtained from poachers, had been injured or some other similar situation. All animals are in natural habitat settings, making it a challenge to find some. It was very interesting.
Due to repeated hurricane damage in Belize City, the capital was moved about 50 miles inland a few years ago. It is a tiny city (pop.4,000) with three main government buildings, quite small and unimpressive. We enjoyed lunch there at the Bull Frog Inn. The open-air restaurant had a courtyard with many beautiful flowers, including the national flower, Black Orchid.
About 10 miles from Belmopan is a Mopan Mayan Indian Village. It is a picturesque village of thatch roofed huts in a little valley. Of course, at all the "Kodak" spots there is also a roadside stand with eager little children trying to sell their mothers handiwork. We did give in and buy a needlepoint of a Toucan.
On out the road a few more miles we had our first "jungle" hike to St. Hermanšs Cave. In addition to interesting birds, we saw a troop of "cutter ants" in action. We watched as they sawed off a section of leaf, then carried their small (or should I say large!) harvest to their nest, where it will decompose and they will then eat the resulting bacteria.
A couple more miles up the road we stopped at the Blue Hole, a small, beautiful, circular swimming hole surrounded by dripping forest. We all took our shoes off and enjoyed the cool water.
About 35 miles north of the City is Altun Ha, an old Mayan Indian Ruins Village. The massive stone structures are quite impressive. From there we took a short hike into a beautiful, but buggy, rainforest. The tall palms were spectacular.
One day we took a 45-minute boat ride from downtown Belize City to an island about 20 miles off the coast. Belize is known for having the second largest barrier reef in the world. We were not able to actually go to the reef, but Caye Caulker is within sight of it. The island had only a small beach area, but the waters were very clear and calm. Snorkeling made fish and huge star fish visible. The beautiful, aqua water is generally only five to six feet deep all the way from the mainland to the reef.
Due to a bad cold, Carl had to go to Gracie Rock without Judy. Gracie Rock is a small village where Ken and Sandy have built several friendships in order to better be able to study the Creole language. Being away from the city where English is more common, the language here is a more pure form of Creole. Carl had the opportunity to visit with local villagers and talk to children as they swam and bathed in the river. His most memorable experience was the Iguana egg he got to eat! Judy didn't mind missing that part!!!