IT’S 5am and day one of my trip to Belize, the only English-speaking country in Central America. There are rumours of a Jaguar sighting – audible just beyond our thatched roof cabanas at Chan Chich Rainforest Lodge. How close? Close. Or maybe it’s a puma.
Or El Cadejo, our chef suggests over breakfast, the Demon Goat Dog of centuries-old Belizean fireplace ghost stories, said to lead weary late-night travellers astray, a notorious alibi for so many Belizean husbands sneaking into bed at 2am.
Naia Resort Peninsula
This blending of Belize’s modern animal kingdom with ancient regional myth is a constant, potent theme. On day two at Chan Chich, I would ride an albino horse named Moonbeam – enough to make the most sceptical among us not just drink the magic Kool-Aid but guzzle it and ask for seconds. The cumulative effect, I find, is that to be in Belize is to always have one foot in the present, and one in the distant, at times fantastical past.
Naia Resort Cabana
Ruben, my Chan Chich jungle guide and expert on all creatures rooted in the physical plane, sets the record straight, pointing to a nearby howler monkey that apes as the morning rooster, “our jungle alarm clock.” He’s Chan Chich’s man for everything from early morning birding to afternoon tacos beside a lake full of crocodiles. “Only after dark”, Ruben assures, at which point we’re long gone, deep in the jungle, beaming megawatt torches out the back of a jeep in search of the mythical jaguar. For the demurer among us the lodge also offers farm to table dining and an indoor/outdoor jungle pool.
Naia Resort Twilight Pool
Naia Resort
On day three of my trip, I depart for the island of Lamanai, a once thriving Mayan city that has remained, remarkably, occupied by its indigenous population since its settlement in 1500 BC. Several Mayan temples remain too, incredibly maintained, and, for the adventurous, scalable by foot, with the peaks offering panoramic views from above the jungle canopy.
Down on the ground, scattered across the forest floor are thousands upon thousands of fragments and shards of all colours and shapes, remnants of the anarchic Mayan ritual of vessel-smashing.
Temple in Lamanai
Snorkelling in Placencia
A quick and wonderfully scenic flight will take you to the peninsulan-paradise of Placencia. This is the Belize of white sand beaches and lavish seafood spreads. Of snorkelling, of micro-islands owned by NBA stars and Hollywood royalty, and of tall tales about the peninsula’s pirate past. No rumours of jaguar here. No early morning monkey wake up call, either. Just the sound of the ocean a few dozen metres beyond my door.
My home for three heavenly nights is Naia Resort & Spa, my room: a zenned out mega cabana that goes on and on. And on. There’s a yoga studio with classes for early risers, an array of over-the-water spa treatments for individuals and couples set beside a lily covered lagoon, and a saltwater pool for washing off. If the urge for exploration strikes, island hopping boat tours are available, too, departing daily from Naia’s private dock. Expect coral reefs, beachside lobster grills and floating Caribbean bars.
by Charlie Holder
Rooms at Chan Chich Lodge start at $253 per night. Activities can be added ad hoc. For more information please visit: www.chanchich.com
Guided tour of Lamanai Maya Ruins: $45.00 plus 12.5% Government Tax per person. Entry Fee of $12.50 plus 12.5% Government Tax per person. Boat transfer separate.
Rooms Naia Resort & Spa start at $425 exclusive of 9% Hotel Tax and 10% Service Charge. For more information please visit: www.naiaresortandspa.com
For Akeem’s Island Hopping experience, please visit: www.cabelize.com