Belize- San Ignacio – Mayan Sites and Iguanas

Arriving in San Ignacio, our first stop in Belize, we were not initially impressed as it seemed a rather run down sort of place with not much going on.  The murky weather and rain did not help.  However San Ignacio grew on us and we gradually began to adapt to the slower pace and Caribbean vibe of Belize.  It clearly had a very different feel from Spanish Mexico and Guatemala.  English is the language in Belize and the Caribbean culture was all around, not least in the menus consisting of much rice, beans, chicken, fish and plantain.

San Ignacio

Most people stop a couple of nights in San Ignacio to visit the ATM caves.  The caves can be experienced on foot (varying degrees of difficulty) by canoe and on tubes.  However, if like us caving is not your thing there is plenty more to see and do.

Cahal Pech

The Mayan site of Cahal Pech was a short walk from our hotel and consisted of an interesting museum and beyond that one of the most tranquil Mayan sites we saw on the whole trip.  No high pyramid structures here, but a range of structures set amongst the trees and given that apart from a few local people who get free access on a Sunday, we were the only people here to enjoy the splendor and tranquility of this lesser known site.

Cahal Pech

A short walk away from Cahal Pech is the Iguana reserve which rather strangely is located in a luxury hotel.  We didn't know what to expect but didn't expect to have a number of baby Iguanas crawling all over us. We were not perturbed by our new cling on friends, perhaps it is because they don’t make any sudden moves and we were becoming more chilled by the minute is sleepy San Ignacio.