Lisa surprised me with tickets to Belize, and asked me if I wanted to go. Are you kidding?! Of course I wanted to go.

We started reading guide books and looking at maps, picking out places that we'd like to explore and visit.

We decided to rent a 4x4 truck since roads in Belize are bad and so we could be free to go where we wanted when we wanted. This turned out to be a good idea since we were able to get off the beaten track quite easily, and allowed us to play things by ear. We did have a cabaña reserved in Hopkins for the last three nights, just in case playing-it-by-ear didn't work out. A few days on the beach at the end of an adventure sounded like a plan.

We also decided to get some vaccinations. There are a lot of differing opinions on whether to vaccinate or not. We decided to play it safe. Typhoid, hepatitis A and malaria were the major potential risks, so that's what we did. It's pricey to vaccinate, even if you have great insurance. Final cost each was around $150. Better safe than sorry, right?

Belize is a diverse country, both culturally and ecologically, and it is beautiful in both respects. The scenery and nature are abundant, varied and gorgeous, and the people very open and friendly. It was an amazing trip and definitely opened my eyes to the gorgeousness of this part of Central America.

We arrived at the airport, picked up our truck (wasn't the one I reserved, but it was still 4-wheel drive), and headed to our first destination: Altun Ha. It's the closest Mayan ruin to Belize City, and not far out of our way, so we decided it would be a good first stop.

It was alright, but not as spectacular as Tikal, as we were to see in a few days.

Climbing the stairs to the top of a temple. The photo above is from the top.

On our way to San Ignacio, we were thirsty for beer (of course), so we stopped off at this little store to have a cold one. Belikin, the national beer of Belize, would be a constant throughout our trip.

Mmmm... Belikin.

We stopped at this little road-side restaurant for some rice and beans (and chicken for me). The ladies working there were very chatty and friendly. One was so open and friendly, she asked us to buy her a lawn mower. Apparently hers wasn't working for cutting grass, but her children were making good use of it (see below).

Here comes the bus.

These boys were having a blast with this broken lawn mower. They were just giggling and cracking up like crazy.

This is the one-lane bridge we crossed that leads into San Ignacio. Unbeknownst to me, you're only supposed to use this bridge to leave the city, and use the other, older bridge, to enter. I had read about the one way bridges, but didn't see signs on the other side saying which was which. We got some funny looks after we crossed. I rolled down the window and asked a young woman who was looking at us, "I wasn't supposed to do that, right?". She just laughed and said that lots of people make that mistake. I took "lots of people" to mean gringos like us. She was pleasant about it, though.

It's not an adventure unless you have to work on your vehicle.
We picked up a big chunk of metal that rendered this tire useless, post-haste. Luckily I had made sure when picking up the truck that it had a usable spare and tools. We had also shown up at the place we were staying that night just before it totally deflated... and they had beer, though a dog promptly peed on mine then knocked it over. No manners.

We were able to get the real tire patched the next day for $4 Belize ($2 US).

We stayed at a place called the Parrot Nest Lodge, just outside San Ignacio in a small town called Bullet Tree Falls, hoping to get one of their tree houses. We had read about them in the Lonely Planet guide book, and it sounded fun. Unfortunately they didn't have one available, and luckily had one cabaña left. We were going to stay two nights, but the vibe there was very stand-offish and weird between the woman running the place, and some of the guests. So we opted to spend the next night at a hotel in San Ignacio. Oddly, neither of us took any photos, other than the one of the bridge, in San Ignacio.

We were going to drive into Guatemala to go to Tikal, but were told that it would be almost impossible to bring our rental in, or get it back into Belize, since we weren't the owners. The woman at the hotel we stay at in San Ignacio said it was easy to hire a driver at the Guatemala border. So we drove to the border, left the truck, and walked across the border. After some haggling, we hired a driver with a van to take us to Tikal.

We stopped at a restaurant on this lake, the name of which escapes me, to have some lunch.

This is one of the smaller temples as you enter the grounds at Tikal. There were nine standing stones with altars at their feet. These were used for human sacrifice. Fun!

Tikal is one of the largest discovered Mayan cities. Approximately 12% of it has been uncovered, the rest still hidden by dirt and foliage.

Lisa climbing to the top of the largest temple at Tikal, Temple IV. It was hot and humid, and a long climb, but the views were worth it.

The view from the top of Temple IV, with other temples visible poking above the canopy.

Having a reflective moment on top of Temple IV. What's up with the hat, Gomer?

Temple V. This is the only temple at Tikal where you can still climb it using the original stairs. You can see Lisa coming down, about half way. It was pretty strenuous and challenging getting up and down.

Movie - From the top of Temple V.

Gomer looking at a large termite nest. I dare you to stick your hand in there.

The view of Temple I (temple of the Jaguar) from Temple II, in the Great Plaza.

It was hot there, and climbing all those stairs was starting to take its toll.

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