• 60% of Belize is pristine and untouched.
• English is the official language in Belize.
• The US dollar is officially accepted at a flat 2 Belizian Dollars equals 1 US dollar.
• Belizians consider themselves a Caribbean Nation in Central America.
• Our hosts (Belize Lodge & Excursions Ltd.) are directly responsible for setting aside 60,000 acres as a natural preserve.
• The  country is the size of New Hampshire or Massachusetts and currently has a population of just over 300,000 people.
• 750,000 Mayans lived in Belize in approximately 700 AD. A prolonged drought created famine and political disunion and so the Mayan people headed back into the mountainous jungles of the Yucatan.
• In 1866 Steamship service ran every other week between New Orleans and Belize.
• In the US in 1865, Lee surrendered to Grant and some 7000 Confederate soldiers headed south to recreate. 1500 tried their plan in Belize and in 1872 the soldiers went to battle with the Mayan Icaiche Indians near the Belizean town of Orange Walk Town. The Confederates, with their modern weapons, held off the Mayans.

Dinner last night was as good as it gets. All done with local produce and meats. Fresh baked bread, coconut/cauliflower soup and fresh shrimp cooked as the Mayans did 800 years ago. Fresh Cocoa ice cream topped it off.

Kent, the owner/manager of the lodge shared the history of Belize, including wild tails of the pirate Captain Morgan who hid out in the protected Cays nearby.

This AM we awoke to the guttural growls of the two resident Jaguars, just outside our windows (a secure but natural habitat adjoins the lodge). One goal for the lodge is to participate and support wildlife re-introduction and rehabilitation. Sheba, a resident howler monkey, has really taken a shine to Sandy.

After a great breakfast, we loaded up for a short drive through small and pleasant villages to the ancient Mayan ruins of Lubaantun (Place of Falling Stones) We hiked around the ruins, as Nathaniel shared what the various arenas were for, ball field and court here, market over there…fascinating.

After our visit back in time, we headed to Blue Creek. We had a delicious lunch of chicken or shrimp wrapped in fresh tortillas (steamed in banana leaves) before we made our way up the creek to the falls.

When we arrived at the falls, we grabbed life-jackets and flashlights and made our way up-river in and along a massive cave structure aptly named Blue Creek Cave. Carol needed some convincing, but once we were deep in the cave, she loved it. At one point we turned off the flashlights and it was so dark sd couldn’t see our fingers in front of our faces!

After swimming deep into the cave, the falls provided a great hydro therapy massage.

We headed back to the van early this afternoon to relax and enjoy the spectacular serene setting of the lodge and to sit down to yet another 5 course Mayan meal.

A great day filled with good friends, fun and engaging activities and great food. This trip is shaping up to be a dandy.

The trip has been exciting and action packed and it’s sad to see it come to an end. I’ve formed some great relationships with our guides and guests and hopefully we’ll be able to keep in touch. Matty K. was an outstanding guide and excellent “facilitator of fun”. His knowledge of the area was remarkable and his interaction with the guests was uncanny. I was able to learn a lot about Montana and Yellowstone Park, but I think my greatest lesson learned was that on an ALA trip, you’ll never have to worry about being bored or going hungry.