Operation Bug Bite
a vacation
Share- Friday, April 6, 2007
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We had a bit of time to spare in LAX waiting for our flight. As these photos prove, I am still a bit of a child. I'm glad Vivien is willing to go along with it. -
- Saturday, April 7, 2007
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After the relatively short flight from MIA, we landed in Belize City and hired a cab to take us to Caves Branch via Belmopan. We could probably have taken a bus, but that's no fun right after a series of flights. It was a one-hour cab ride down a well-paved highway. -
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We were greeted by Albert who served us rum punch before showing us to our jungle bungalow 13. It came with open screen windows giving us a panoramic view of the jungle, oil lamps for nighttime reading and mosquito coils. Rain poured down during the night and howler monkeys sounded like jaguars. We signed up for the Black Hole Drop excursion, where we hiked a mile plus through the jungle in what felt like 200% humidity and we rappelled 300 ft. down a large sinkhole! Later that afternoon, Byron took a swim in the river and I dropped my Canon camera into it. The next day, our guides took us through caves and waterfalls. We crawled, waded, climbed rock walls, culminating with a 15 feet jump into a pool. -
- Tuesday, April 10, 2007
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Picked up a local bus to Belmopan via the Hummingbird Highway. We then grabbed a cab to take us to the Guatemalan border via San Ignacio. -
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Advice for anyone doing this: Take a cab to the border, and then ask your Belizean cabbie to find you a Guatemalan cabbie on the other side. It seems like they all know each other, and it's good to get a referral so you can avoid the frenetic rush. -
We stayed in Tikal Inn, right in Tikal National Park, Jungle Bungalow 9. We took advantage of the refreshing pool throughout our stay.As power comes from a generator located in a research facility in the park, lights out at 10pm. Woke up at 4:30am for a sunrise hike to the top of Temple IV, the highest structure facing east, perfect for watching the sunrise over the jungle treetops. There were only sounds of the jungle to remind me I wasn't in heaven. After, we climbed Temple II, Temple V and the Great Temple of the Lost World, all before 9am, while the park was still empty and the heat was bearable. Later, we hiked to the top of the Grand Pyramid in the Lost World Complex and watched the sun set at 6pm. The next day, we took a guided tour of the park, Nixon was our awesome guide. -
- Friday, April 13, 2007
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On our last day in Tikal, we took a one and a half hour shuttle ride to this charming lakeside town. The next morning, from Flores Airport, we flew Tropic Air, boarded a cessna prop plane for a one-hour flight back to Belize City and then on to Ambergris Caye. -
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15 minute flight on Maya Island Air to San Pedro, we had to wait an hour or so for our boat to Salamander Hideaway. We hung out on the beach and indulged in some conch fritters. -
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A 25 minute boat ride on a water taxi, 11 miles north to Salamander Hideaway, a perfect deserted island getaway. We stayed in a thatched-roof, beachfront cabana on stilts, and what a welcome. Winfield made us banana smoothies, and Mike cut open a fresh coconut for me. Here, there were free kayaks, sea-cats and snorkeling gear to keep us entertained, and we even tried line-fishing with Owen on his boat. -
- Tuesday, April 17, 2007
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- total distance: 5,883 miles (9.468 km)
Main Location
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BelizeCountry | 1 follower
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