August 5, 2006
This trip update was conveyed over the phone, as internet access has been non-existent for the group since the last blog was posted. While it won't be nearly as exciting as reading your children's actual remarks or seeing pictures, hopefully it will at least keep you in the loop as to where they are, what they are seeing/doing and a few of their adventures thus far!
On August 3rd, the students headed towards the Maya mountains for a rainforest hike. This hike led them to the Rio on Rio pools - freshwater pools, where they swam, slid down a natural waterslide and swam underneath waterfalls. They followed a river through the Rio Frio cave, a massive limestone cave carved through the mountain by the Rio Frio river. Throughout the hike, they saw lots of cool plants, a few bats and many other things that I am sure they will tell you about in their next blog, or when they get home!
That evening, they stayed at the Midas Resort in San Ignacio. San Ignacio is part of Belize's second largest urban area and the students were able to go out and explore the town upon arrival, doing a little shopping and sightseeing.
Yesterday was jam-packed with a visit to the Chaa Creek Natural History Center, where the students hiked a medicinal plants trail, aka the Rainforest Pharmacy. They also took a tour of a butterfly breeding center and learned a good deal about Mayan culture. That was followed up by a trip to the village of Armenia, a Mayan village, where the students were placed with host families for overnight homestays. When they arrived in Armenia, they were taken on a tour of the village and were shown how Masa (cornmeal) is ground. Dinner was with the individual families and several students reported eating tortillas they had helped make.
The homestays received great reviews - this morning, no one wanted to leave, although the concept of snorkeling the barrier reef changed a few minds. At last report, they were all in Dangriga, awaiting the ferries for the 45 minute ride to Tobacco Caye, which is a tiny island located directly on top of the second largest barrier reef in the world. The students will spend the next 4 days here, exploring the reefs, snorkeling, swimming, exploring mangroves, tropical fish communities, sea grass beds and learning about marine ecology. They will be staying at the Gaviota Reef Resort, an eco-friendly resort right on the beaches of the island.
As soon as they have Internet access, new blogs will be posted, hopefully with pictures of all the fun they have been experiencing. In the meantime, rest assured that your children are having an amazing experience on this fun and educational adventure.
On August 3rd, the students headed towards the Maya mountains for a rainforest hike. This hike led them to the Rio on Rio pools - freshwater pools, where they swam, slid down a natural waterslide and swam underneath waterfalls. They followed a river through the Rio Frio cave, a massive limestone cave carved through the mountain by the Rio Frio river. Throughout the hike, they saw lots of cool plants, a few bats and many other things that I am sure they will tell you about in their next blog, or when they get home!
That evening, they stayed at the Midas Resort in San Ignacio. San Ignacio is part of Belize's second largest urban area and the students were able to go out and explore the town upon arrival, doing a little shopping and sightseeing.
Yesterday was jam-packed with a visit to the Chaa Creek Natural History Center, where the students hiked a medicinal plants trail, aka the Rainforest Pharmacy. They also took a tour of a butterfly breeding center and learned a good deal about Mayan culture. That was followed up by a trip to the village of Armenia, a Mayan village, where the students were placed with host families for overnight homestays. When they arrived in Armenia, they were taken on a tour of the village and were shown how Masa (cornmeal) is ground. Dinner was with the individual families and several students reported eating tortillas they had helped make.
The homestays received great reviews - this morning, no one wanted to leave, although the concept of snorkeling the barrier reef changed a few minds. At last report, they were all in Dangriga, awaiting the ferries for the 45 minute ride to Tobacco Caye, which is a tiny island located directly on top of the second largest barrier reef in the world. The students will spend the next 4 days here, exploring the reefs, snorkeling, swimming, exploring mangroves, tropical fish communities, sea grass beds and learning about marine ecology. They will be staying at the Gaviota Reef Resort, an eco-friendly resort right on the beaches of the island.
As soon as they have Internet access, new blogs will be posted, hopefully with pictures of all the fun they have been experiencing. In the meantime, rest assured that your children are having an amazing experience on this fun and educational adventure.
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