It has only been a week and I feel like we have done so much already! Starting our trip off in San Ignacio was great. Every day was packed with activities and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. We visited Belize Zoo, a traditional Mayan family, a Mennonite farm, Guatemala, the ATM Cave, Caracol, and Big Rock Falls.
Belize Zoo
After getting off the airplane in Belize City, we went straight
to the Belize Zoo. We saw many animals common to Belize including the Tapir,
Howler Monkey, Jaguar, and a variety of birds. My students and I in Wilmington
studied a lot of these animals. It was cool to actually see them in real life
after learning so much about them. My students in Wilmington were most fascinated
with the Jaguar. I can’t wait to tell them all about how you can get in a small
cage within the Jaguar’s cage to feed them. The Belize Zoo was different than
our Zoo’s in the US. Walking around the zoo was like walking in the jungle. It
seemed like a more natural environment for the animals.
Traditional Mayan Culture
We were able to visit a Mayan family in San Antonio the next
day. Some people in this town practice their Mayan culture like their ancestors
would. The want to keep their unique traditions alive. We learned that Mayan
rely on corn as their main food source. They showed us how a typical corn
tortilla shell would be made. It was a lot of work! They have to mash the corn
into a very fine mixture. Mashing the corn took great energy and time. We also
learned how they made pottery out of clay custom to their area.
Mennonite Farm
We were given the opportunity to travel to a
Mennonite Community. We were invited into a family’s home. This family was open
to answering any questions we had about their lives. I did not know much about
Mennonites so I was very interested in what they were sharing. They did not use
any electricity and they grew their own food. They were very family and community
oriented. Sitting and talking with this family was so cool. I could have sat
and talked with them for hours. I think the experience of sitting in their home
and talking to them is more educational than simply reading about the Mennonite
culture in any book.
Guatemala
I decided to take our free day to go to
Guatemala. I was surprised going into Guatemala how little security they had
but as we were riding down the road there were many military check point. Our
first stop in Guatemala was ziplining. It was so much fun! The staff allowed us
to go down the cable lines all different ways. My favorite was superwoman
style. After ziplining, we went to the island of Flores. The streets were
cobblestone and the building were white. It was a cute town. We ate looking
over the lake. I would definitely recommend Flores to other travelers. It was
gorgeous.
ATM Cave
The ATM cave was one of my favorite experiences
we’ve had so far. I had no idea what I was getting myself into going into the
cave. It was a crazy experience being in tight spaces and in water sometimes
over your head in an ancient cave. We also had to climb big rocks to get to
where the ancient Mayans performed their ritual ceremonies. It was hard to wrap
your head around thinking you were standing in the same place Mayan people walked
in 600 ad. Their unique culture has been persevered in this cave for thousands
of years. Seeing all the old Mayan artifacts down in the ATM cave made me what
to learn more.
Caracol & Big Rock Falls
Caracol was phenomenal. I think the Mayans are
very interesting to learn about. I tried to picture what it would be like
thousands of years ago living on these massive structures. The Mayan people
were well educated for their time. They had their own writing and mathematical
system. They were also great farmers and they had a government system that
lasted for a long time. Sitting on top of their tallest building and looking
over the Pine Forest Reserve was incredible. After playing on the Mayan ruins,
we went to the Big Rock falls. It was around 100 F so we all needed a nice
refreshing swim. The falls were beautiful. We got to swim, climb, and enjoy the
wonders of the world around us.
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