Travel Eat Drink Like a Local

1. Snorkeling Silk Caye National Park and Laughing Bird Caye We got our hotel Chabil Mar to arrange this day of snorkeling for our teenagers. We met Captain Ivan at the dock across the road from Chabil Mar. Passed through Stann Creek water-front residential area, picked up freshly made lunch for us by Captain Ivan's wife and headed out to the big blue clear waters of the Caribbean.  Silk Caye  Approaching Silk Caye. Get there early to make the best use of money before all the tourist groups arrive. Two teenagers off with Captain Ivan to snorkel around Silk Caye.  Amazing marine life to explore. Schools of colorful fish, turtles and mind boggling shapes and colors of ocean life. Memories made for a lifetime!   A little atoll visible from Silk Caye shore Approaching Laughing Bird Caye. This is the furthest we got to. About 11 miles from Placencia. These are not the Laughing Birds, they are the Brown Pelican that's abundant on the island...

We took one of the most beautiful routes, Hummingbird Highway, from San Ignacio to Placencia. From San Ignacio one would have to drive back to Belmopan to get on to Hummingbird Highway. On our way we stopped to explore the St. Hermans Cave in Blue Hole National Park. Nature at its best!  Very dark inside. You can rent flash lights at the office for a nominal fee. Be advised if you are claustrophobic. You can do this trek on your own only to a certain point in the cave. If you are doing the full trek you need tubes and a guide. After driving for few minutes, next stop, right by the road is access to the Blue Hole. Just before we turned to Southern Highway to head to Placencia, we stopped by Marie Sharp's Fine Foods to explore the chili fields and procure red hot chili goodness to take back home.

Xunantunich Mayan Ruins A short drive from San Ignacio town towards Belize Guatemala boarder we picked up a guide at the little village and crossed the Mopan River on a hand cranked ferry to drive to Xunantunich. Mopan River Our guide An easy but a slippery climb.  Intricate stone carvings and views expanding into jungles of Guatemala. Cahal Pech Archaeological Reserve On our way back from Xunantunich we stopped at Cahal Pech just to have a look. There is a small museum close to where you park the vehicle. Guides are available. However, this place is small and can be explored on your own at leisure. Very peaceful. Butterflies From Western highway one needs to get on to Chiquibul Road and drive on a not so great bumpy road to Green Hills Butterfly Ranch Iguanas San Ignacio Resort Hotel has an Iguana Conservation Project on site and operate daily tours. It's a great little activity to do to get up close ...