Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tipú in 1641, Maya priests once more expressed their defiance by conducting a
mock Mass using tortillas as communion wafers. Thereafter Tipú remained an
outpost of Maya culture, and retained a good measure of independence until 1707,
when its population was forcibly removed to Flores.
San Ignacio probably started its present life as a logging camp. A 1787 map stated
that the Indians of this area were “in friendship with the Baymen”. Later it became a
centre for self-reliant
chicleros
, the collectors of chicle gum. When the black market
price of Maya artefacts skyrocketed, many
chicleros
turned to looting. Until the George
Price Highway was built in the 1930s (though the section beyond San Ignacio wasn't
paved until the 1980s), local transport was by mule or water. Originally it could take
ten days of paddling to reach San Ignacio from Belize City, though small steamers later
shortened the trip.
Cahal Pech
1 mile southwest of San Ignacio • Daily 6am-6pm • Bz$20
The compact Maya site of
Cahal Pech
, perched atop a hill twenty minutes' walk up
from town, may be smaller than the likes of Caracol and Tikal, but it's been beautifully
restored and preserved, and is especially pleasant and peaceful at sunset.
he
visitor centre and museum
at the site entrance holds a model and paintings that
show Cahal Pech in its heyday, as well as artefacts unearthed here and elsewhere such as
ocarinas, chocolate pots, arrows and carved flints, including one that looks remarkably
like a modern wrench.
Cahal Pech, whose modern Maya name means “place of ticks”, is among the oldest
Maya sites in Belize. Construction here dates as far back as the Early Preclassic, around
1200 BC, and the city grew to occupy much of the area now covered by San Ignacio
and to dominate the central Belize River valley. Studies of the buildings and ceramics
show that it remained continuously occupied until around 800 AD. Most of what's
visible today dates from the Classic period, when during the eighth century AD it was
the royal acropolis-palace of a Maya ruling family.
Following paved cement paths through the forest, you arrive at
Plaza B
,
surrounded by temple platforms and the remains of dwellings, where your gaze is
drawn to Structure 1, the
Audiencia
, the site's largest building. If you're used to
finely executed, exposed stonework at Maya sites, then the thick overcoat of
lime-mortar here may come as a shock. The Classic Maya viewed bare, stone facings
as ugly and unfinished, and covered all surfaces with a layer of plaster or stucco,
which was then brightly painted. You can climb the steps at the front of the
structure, but the best way to enjoy the site is to walk around the side and through
Plaza D
and its maze of ancient corridors and stairways, which gradually reveal an
enchanting view of
Plaza A
- a sacred space entirely enclosed by walls and tall
buildings. You're now across the plaza from Structure 1; make your way to the front,
and you can then descend to your starting point. A
gift shop
, beside the site itself
rather than the visitor centre, sells local crafts.
4
Iguana Conservation Project
San Ignacio Resort Hotel, 18 Buena Vista St • Daily 8am-4pm; hourly tours, on the hour • Bz$18 •
T
824 2034,
W
sanignaciobelize.com
An enclosure in the grounds of the
San Ignacio Resort Hotel
holds the
Iguana
Conservation Project
, which breeds and raises endangered green iguanas, and can be
visited on regular tours that start from the hotel lobby. Both iguana eggs and the
creatures themselves have traditionally been considered delicacies in Belize, and the
main aim of the project is to educate locals and thus discourage hunting. Large groups
of tourists and students are led through the exhibit, where they can handle the iguanas
and pose for photographs. As the dragon-like reptiles are only kept here for two years
