Day 177 - And just like that we were back in the room

Flores (Guatemala) to San Ignacio (Belize)

We were told to be ready at 7 for a 7.30 pick up for our bus trip to Belize but of course it was after 8am by the time we got going, something we are so used to it barely registers with us but the German people who were also waiting were getting quite stressed, we told them that in nearly six months of travelling we have never been left behind.

Today's journey didn't take too long, we possibly spent more time on the border formalities crossing between Guatemala and Belize than sitting in the bus. We were in for a pleasant surprise when we reached Belize, if we'd done our homework we would have known this, but in Belize the official language is English (really? we are now speaking English?). Queen Elizabeth is the head of state and she has very similar powers as she does in Australia. There was even a sign painted on a building at the border with "Welcome Prince Harry".

Not many people got off in San Ignacio with us, most were travelling on to Belize City and beyond. It was an easy walk from where the bus dropped us off to our guest house in town. Once we settled in we walked down the street and found the agency recommended to us so we could book our visit to Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) the next day,

Looks much nicer on the inside

ATM is a large underground cave system that was used as a Mayan burial and ceremonial site, getting in to see the artefacts and skeletons can only be done with a guide, and requires hiking in to the site, crossing rivers along the way, then navigating the dark, water filled caverns and passages. Apparently there has been talk of closing it permanently to protect the artefacts (some have already been damaged by tourists), so even though it is known as being difficult we thought we'd better take this opportunity.