Our ship anchored about five miles from Belize City this morning. We rode the tender into town, then met our tour guide, Javier by 8:45. Two other couples from the cruise joined our tour. Javier drove us an hour north into Belize and then we stopped and changed transport, to a small motor boat. Javier steered us through the New River about an hour. We saw crocodiles, unusual birds, and many different bromeliad species growing on the trees. We arrived at Lamanai Ruins before noon.
The visible and excavated ruins at Lamanai include three large temples, built around 100 AD. There are close to 1000 unexcavated ruins on the same site. Papa and I climbed to the top of one temple, and looked out over the river and rain forest all around. There was intermittent rain throughout the day and we got soaked, but the temperature was so warm, that we were never uncomfortable. Javier drove us back the way we came, up the river and via minivan, to the ship. An amazing day!
