30 Dec 2010 Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Honduras

Mahogany Bay offers a brand new, wet paint, cruise port (Coxen Hole) combined with a brand new, wet paint, shopping centre. Surprise, surprise: Diamond International, Tanzanite, Emerald, Del Sol all represented. A few souvenir shops and lots of bars to suppluy Margarita, Beer, and every other tropical concoction anyone would want. A zip-line at the end of the paved plaza satisfies the adventurous, and the less daring can take a flying beach chair (yes, that's the name) across a small lagoon to a whita sand beach.

I booked a tour, which called itself Far Away, and promised to pass fishing villages, magnificient vistas of the turquoise waters around the world's second largest barrier reef, and less travelled parts of the island.

After a 'slow down' of the bus, beside the local 'White House', a pretty good smaller version of the Washington one, mansion of the Mayor, we headed to the hills. First impression is one of dense, impenetrable greenery...palm trees, flamboyant trees, mango trees etc etc, mostly almost suffocated with linanas and other climbing plants. The ususal 'selfperpetuating fences' (sticks, when planted develop leaves and grow into hedges) did not contain pastures or orchards, but more overgrown greenery. Many of the 'ranches', especially the ones on hill tops, are no longer owned by locals, but by foreigners, who want to have 'a view'.

The island, is 30 miles long and 3 miles wide, made up of rather mountainous terrain, is mostly populated by English speaking people, given that it used to be a haven for British Buccaneers and Runaway Slaves. Immigration from Hispanic Honduras mainland added latin people. Intermarriage did the rest. Spanish being the official language, one hears more English and a lot of Pidgin English - absolutely untranslatable. Although evangelical religions arrived with the original settlers, the catholic religion is making inroads to the Methodists, Baptists, Latter Day Saints and a handful more.

During the drive through  jungle like forests, we caught glimpses of fishing villages way below the road, as well as condo developments and villas for retired expats - taking advantage of the low cost of living here. We stopped at a lookout over the symphony of aqua coloured waters below, with a few souvenir stands scattered about. The wooden look out platforms, were strewn with garbage, old kitchen utensils, rags, and the underlying planks appeared as they may give way under the weight of a flea...totally rotten. There was a little hut with toilets, always an important issue, on these tours, but - porobably for valid reasons - they were tightly locked.

Now we headed to the real 'far away' from the paved road onto a pothole marked dirt obstacle course. The guide mentioned, that in her youth going to school, public buses drove for a mile and were pushed for a mile when it rained. Today it was dry, and the potholes mimiced mini grand canyons.

Paya Bay, a little 'resort' balancing on a rocky outcrop between two crescent shaped beaches, small but 'far away'. One of them - pristine and white - the other - the ususal flotsam and jetsam humanity chucks into the water. The owners built it in 1993, and they lived and operated it ever since, except when one of the major hurricanes blew their personal residence to smithereens, and the rest of the place did not fare much better. Before the deterioration over time, and the unrepaired bits and pieces it must have been a delightful place to enjoy the best the island has to offer. It still has a loverly light infused restaurant, expansive terraces (without rails, and some with the de rigeur rotten planks) and 30 guest dwellings. The owners wife, a stout lady who looked like everyman's aunt, mingled and chatted and told us, that her clientele consist of repeat customers, who like her little slightly dishevelled paradise. A group of locals black dancers entertained with ballads, drumming and dances, reminiscent of Togo looking at their bizarre outfits.

I just looked for a shady spot, armed myself with a bottle of cold water, and vegetated. Unusual for me, one may think.

The Mayan's took their vengeance out on me. In Guatemala, when I stepped on a regular round pebble in a banana plantation, I lost my footing and crashed onto the macadam and gravel of the road bank. Split second and not even on a Mayan carving!

With my internal eyes playing the obligatory celestial display, I checked my limbs (nothing broken), my wrists (some bloody scrapes), my camera (in once piece, except for the viewfinder being a little askew) and my brand new 10 dollar watch (exploded). I staggered upright, still seeing stars, with the help of several fellow travellers, A bandaid later, I was in business.....BUT, next day here in Honduras, I felt as if an earthmoving machine had rolled over me. Arms, thighs, neck, ribs all felt crushed - but not a single bruise in sight. Hence my languid idleness in the 'Far Away' Paya Bay Resort.

The fact, that I had WARM lasagna the night before which was the first and only meal that had dire consequences, only made things worse. Weak and drained, I spent a D-Day....doze day....wrapped in a thick towel, under a sun hat, snoozing on an upholstered chaise longe at the PayaBay Resort, without taking a single superfluous step anywhere, beach or no beach.

The ship's store replaced my exploded watch with a new one, of the same caliber...no questions asked. Now I am back on local time...heading for New Years Eve in Cozumel.

29 Dec 2010 - Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala

Guatemala borders on both, the Pacific and the Caribbean. Volcanoes dominate the landscape in the West, where coffee and sugar plantations provide raw materials to McDonalds and Coca Cola. Here in the East the climate favours the growth of bananas and pine apples, providing raw materials for Del Monte, Dole and Chicita. Only the best produce is exported, second choice stays in the country.

Driving from the industrial port of Santo Tomas through the lush country side to Quirigua, a Mayan archeological site about 100km inland, one passes one cattle ranch (finca) after another. Horses, often used instead of motorcycles or cars, graze among the Brahmins, as well as sheep and goats. Every village has live stock markets (A vende - toros).

People are poor, dwellings are humble. 

Everyone, however, is proud of their ancestral Mayan heritage, albeit Spanish and Amerindian cultures have blended with the original Mayans. Hence the impetus to preserve Mayan temples, altars, cities in various parks and archeological sites. Quiringua, only partly excavated, is famous for the many stone stalae and zoomorphs, which are exquisitely carved. Many represent Mayan kings, in full powerful regalia and regal stance, with their individual feats and achievements eternalized in mysterious glyphs, which have been only partially deciphered so far. 

Quirigua, as so many other Mayan cities, was abandoned suddenly about 160 AD because of overpopulation and the resulting problems. From here the Mayans moved to Copan, allegedly one of the richest cities of their empire and in existence since at least 1000 BC. Wealth was not, as many assume, measured in gold but in imperial jade. Some of the most significant ancient jade treasures were unearthed here in Guatemala.

It is still being unearthed in jade mines, and appears in forms of carvings and trinkets in tourist stores.

Colourful textiles, embroidery, pottery and carvings show Mayan influence. Eager artisans sell them in specially constructed markets near cruise ship terminals, archeological destinations, and - of course - world heritage sites like Antigua, one of the most picturesque towns in Guatemala. Some artisans travel from one coast to the other (an eight hour drive) to be present when a cruise ship arrives in either Puerto Queztal or Santo Tomas de Castilla.

Despite political 'unrest', high unemployment, low average income, and rising crime rate in the capital city of Guatemala City, people are friendly and warm, smile easily and love to enter into conversation, especially if one tries to converse in Spanish.

Guatemalans produce the 'best cerveza del mundo' according to the local connoisseurs. Gallo, the rooster, is the name of the brew. Roosters were the sacrificial animal of choice for the Mayans, now the macho chickens have lent their sacred name to the potent cerveza of choice.

 

28 Dec 2010 - Belize Arrchitecture and Art

 

Belize would fit almost twice into Vancouver Island. It is 100km wide and 300 km long, and has seven traffic lights in the entire country - six of them don't work.

Expensive utility items are gasoline, electricity, water, telephone - but at least the cheapest one keeps the residents entertained: cable TV with over 100 channels. One gets one's priorities right.

A melting pot of people and races: Maya, Mestize, Spanish, Chinese, East Indian, Dutch, Amish and Mennonites. The latter are called Moneynnites here, as they garnered most of the wealth arising from agriculture, forestry and car dealerships.

Local tenders with names like 'Big Mama' took us from the ship through reef strewn shallows to the shore and Belize City at least eight miles away. Belize is proud of having the second largest Barrier Reef in the world just off-shore, and thus offers superb diving and snorkling to coral fish afficionados.

The city's buildings appear worn and somewhat decrepit, with a faint trace of once upon a time attractive wooden edifices. Driving out into the country (Savanna, Pine Plateaus, Coastal Swamps, Jungle and Rainforest cover segments of the country) dwellings become somewhat imaginative. Many are quite impressive, many of their yards clean and without garbage, some with trimmed lawns, even when the living quarters had seen better times. Most houses are built on stilts, as flooding during heavy rainfalls and hurricanes presents a constant risk. Stilts provide a comforting distance from snakes, tarantulas and scorpions - who LOVE these airy spaces underneath. A side benefit of stilted homes. They also lend themselves to laundry rooms, garages, and in a pinch - an extra bedroom. Laundry flutters in almost all the yards.

Almost every house has, depending on the number of mutts, one or more doghouses, which range in design from rough corrugated tin shacks to constructions made from coloufully painted picket fence poles (spaced apart for a fresh breeze) and neat little boxes with pitched roofs. There are even doggie-condos where three dog houses are joined together to make row houses. All have water tight roofs, and some are on stilts as well. Some homes had paddocks for horses with shade providing shacks, and some has open air lean-tos, which looked newer and better than the residence of the owners.

Belize is trying to attract tourist and cruise ship business. The tender piers  in town are lined with the usual Diamond International stores amongst a whole selection of souvenir shops, interspersed with bars and restaurants (Belkin is the local brew - untried by your's truly). Tourist police keeps people safe from local 'annoyances', at least on the main drags of Belize City, and outlying island have luxury diving resorts.

Local craftsmen and women produce colouful paintings, mostly of local flora and fauna. Mahogany is carved into bowls, vases, furniture and almost anything else imaginable. Pottery, produced the Mayan way, some very attractive, is another tempting take-home souvenir.

More about the Mayans later.....

Hasta la Vista Belize

Flora, Fauna, People...of Belize

Wind and waves had increased since the already rough, rainy and blustery morning. The return to Eurodam was handled by local tenders who were ferrying passengers to and fro during the day with somewhat less formality than the regular Holland American tenders.

The boarding platforms at the ship were almost awash, and one had to await the perfect moment to hop off the small tender to avoid getting soaked as far up as one's ankles.

Off to Guatemala tomorrow - and more Mayan artifacts....