Day 7 - Xunantunich

We are wrapping up our final evening here at beautiful Jaguar Creek. We had a fun and informative day at Xunantunich, ancient Mayan ruins. We have started packing for our 7:15 am departure to head to the airport. As it is Good Friday, Mr. Smithson read from scripture focusing on the 2 men on the cross next to Jesus, encouraging us to be like the robber who respond to Jesus with faith. We continue to covet your prayers for the team as we come back with change hearts for God.

More from students...

By Selva Smithson

Today we explored the Xunantunich Mayan ruins with the help of friendly tour guides. We learned about the history of the ruins while also getting to climb to the very top. From up there, we were able to see the border between Belize and Guatemala. We learned about human sacrifice, about their ancient games,  and that there was a female leader who was buried with a jaguar and a deer. 

After visiting the ruins, we had the opportunity to do some souvenir shopping at the markets just outside Xunantunich. We got to meet some friendly vendors and buy some handmade trinkets.

By Timmy Vu and Andrew Chan

This morning we were able to wake up to fresh mist in the air because it finally rained! The cool air gave us a break from the harsh sun allowing us to leave for the ruins with a good mood. 

Traveling across Belize, all the way to the Guatemalan border, we arrived in Xunantunich, a Mayan city that was populated from 700-900 A.D. Ascending a hill we encountered the limestone quarry and the “E” like design of the city’s center. Approaching the city’s main ruin “El Castillo” we witnessed the acoustic engineering as our voices could be heard to the top. 

The view was great. We also saw monkeys in the trees and their chirps reminded us of God’s creation. 

After the tour given by the guides, we were able to spend time shopping from the local vendors. Things purchased included necklaces, magnets, bracelets, knives, hats, and many other things. After that, we went to a restaurant and ate. We also shopped at the shop they had, which had delicious ice cream and soda. 

Following that, we took the vans back to Jaguar Creek, where we enjoyed free time followed by dinner. At the end of the day, we had a team reflection, where many shared about how their week went. This reflection helped us all realize how lucky we are and how God worked through us. 

By Alex Liang

On Friday, March 29, we visited the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins and ate at The Cooling Rack at the Cahal Pech Village Resort. We also explored interesting (but also inconvenient) ways to get across rivers, and unintentionally went on a driving tour of the capital Belmopan’s greatest attractions.

Last night, it rained. This morning, we woke up to wet boardwalks and water accumulating on leaves. This is the only time it has rained on our trip.

Today is Good Friday, a Christian holiday observing the crucifixion of Jesus. Because most places in Belize close shop on Good Friday, people go to tourist attractions like Xunantunich. To beat the crowds by leaving earlier, breakfast today was at 7 AM, earlier than the usual 7:30 AM. However, we actually left 15 minutes late.

The trip to Xunantunich in our three vans took one and a half hours. At Santa Elena, we detoured onto the Loma Luz Blvd until San Ignacio. (I’ll explain why this is significant on our trip back to Jaguar Creek.) After San Ignacio, a six mile part of the George Price Highway was a gravel road in a construction zone. 

Once we arrived at San Jose Succotz, we deviated off the George Price Highway onto a hand-cranked ferry. This single-raft ferry kept in its path by cables crosses a short distance across the Mopan River, is manually powered, and carries pedestrians and vehicles (without passengers inside, so we had to get off our vans and get back in after the ferry). Despite the short distance (the river is only twice as wide as the ferry is long), the run time of the ferry is two minutes. After the ferry, we continued our journey on our vans for a short distance to the Xunantunich parking lot.

At some picnic tables nearby, three tour guides introduced us to the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins. The first building we visited was a building where guests that the Mayan ruler invited were welcomed. However, this building was no match in scale to the plazas of Xunantunich and El Castillo, the second tallest structure in Belize, not to be confused with El Castillo in Chichen Itza. 

We split up into girls and boys to climb 130 feet up to the top of El Castillo and enjoy the views. From the top, we were able to see the three towns of the local area: San Jose Succotz, Benque Viejo del Carmen, and Melchor de Mencos, which is located across the border in Guatemala. (Xunantunich is situated on a hill 1km away from Guatemala.) We also saw bats and an iguana on the way down.

We were able to see the Ball Court. During Mayan times, captures from outside Xunantunich would play with a heavy rubber ball for five days, and whoever wins will be sacrificed to the gods and live in heaven. Whoever loses will presumably be imprisoned and tortured for life, a much worse fate.

Before leaving the ruins, we saw a family of spider monkeys chilling in the treetops. We explored the visitor center before saying goodbye to our tour guides.

On our return, some of us went ahead on one ferry, while the rest of us waited for the ferry to come back. The crew that waited saw an iguana chilling on a slanted tree by the river.

After crossing the river, we visited souvenir shops by the roadside. We continued our way back to Jaguar Creek, but we stopped at San Ignacio to eat at the Cahel Pech Village Resort. 

The restaurant of the resort, The Cooling Rack, had the best outdoor view of the valley below. We had a buffet-style reservation for 12 PM for four 10-person tables, even though it was already 1 PM. Unfortunately for (9) of us, there wasn’t enough food in our buffet to feed all of us, so they handed us extra plates of food for those who didn’t get what they had liked from the empty buffet trays.

We explored other parts of the resort, especially the vista point and the gift shop which offered ice cream for $3 BZD ($1.50 USD).

On our way back to Jaguar Creek, we crossed the Macal River on the Hawkesworth Bridge, a one-way suspension bridge built in 1949 as the first road link between the twin towns of San Ignacio and Santa Elena, separated by the Macal River. When the bridge opened, the communities of both towns rejoiced. In addition to the Hawkesworth Bridge, there is also a one-lane wooden bridge a bit to the north that handles westbound traffic along the George Price highway through town, however this bridge is prone to flooding as it lies just a few feet above the water. That’s where the Loma Del Luz Blvd project comes in. Less than five years ago, the Loma Del Luz Blvd opened to traffic, allowing vehicles in both directions to bypass the Hawkesworth and low-lying wooden bridges with a new road to the north. This was the road we traveled on earlier this morning.

Once we reached Belmopan, the van drivers took an unexpected turn and circled around the city, giving us a driving tour of Belmopan’s greatest attractions; the Governor’s Mansion, the University of Belize, and the PathLight Facility until we stopped at a gas station. I was wondering why would they circle all around the city just to get gas? (They filled up the vans on diesel.) Eventually, Mr. Smithson explained that we were trying to catch a Good Friday church procession, but we were too late.

Back at Jaguar Creek, ice cream was available for $2 USD, which was actually cold this time. (Two days ago, some of us purchased half-melted ice cream.) Most of the students chilled at the benches next to the volleyball field until it was time for our last dinner at Jaguar Creek.

Once all the students lined up for dinner at 6 PM, the kitchen staff gave a special announcement: They had prepared an Easter Egg hunt, 44 eggs in the dining room; some of us got up to six eggs; I got four. The kitchen staff also enthusiastically threw candy into the room as if it was a Spirit Week rally.

We were told to pack right after dinner and not waste any time, because at 7:30 PM, we brought our Belize Service Trip notebooks and a pen to write down what God spoke to us during this trip. The students also applied their fake mustaches before entering our final Belize evening meeting, supplied by the Giles family. 

We began with worship led by Natalie, finishing off with Uno Dos Tres, a worship song in Spanish taught to the kids in Armenia. We gave snaps for people who were helpful today or during this week, such as Ms. Sandquist who supplied everyone with LiquidIV packets for hydration with electrolytes, and closing off with an inspiring speech by a Jaguar Creek employee who advanced their opportunities through the PathLight program. 

Tomorrow on Saturday, March 30, we will be fully packed and eat Breakfast at 6:30 AM and depart for the airport at approx. 7:15 AM. Our flight will arrive at SJC San Jose International Airport at 9:00 PM.