Road to the River Camp

This is the road in to the River Camp where we stayed while at Chaa Creek. This is a big pasture, sometimes with many horse other times with just one or two. Last year there was a mare in the pasture that foaled on our last day at Chaa Creek, and now that foal is a yearling named Romeo.

Riding at Chaa Creek

Chaa Creek has 31 horses, and at least one very pregnant mare so the number should go up soon.  Riding is one of the popular on site activities at Chaa Creek, and there are miles of great trails.  

Chaa Creek has 70+ identified Maya archeological features, none fully excavated (most just a mound that clearly has a pyramid or other structure under it).  Trail rides are a great way to see the Maya sites on the Chaa Creek property.  

Roberto, who seems to be in charge of the riding program, was enthusiastic and helpful, especially for those riders seeking a more spirited riding experience.

Eva with Appaloosa

Eva fell in love with the horse she rode at Chaa Creek, Appaloosa.  She even went to visit him and say good bye on our last day at Chaa Creek.  

We never figured out for certain if his name was Appaloosa or Appalooso.  Since the 'o' ending is masculine in Spanish, we kind of think it should be Appalooso.  

However you spell his name, Appaloos? was a great horse for Eva, with just the right amount of spirit and energy, but without too many bad habits.

Cath on Survivor

Cath rode Survivor on her first outing. We found that each horse had a very distinct personality, and its own unique ways of misbehaving (stopping to eat during the ride, refusing to be near certain other horses, etc). I will let Cath provide a run down on Survivor, and her other more recalcitrant horse.

Cath - No, Survivor WAS the recalcitrant horse. He just wanted to do his own thing and do it slowly. That wasn't bad the first day when we really didn't go fast. But, I went with Eva another day (after Bill swore off horseback riding forever); Eva wanted to do a more adventurous ride and Survivor just wanted to QUIT.

Our guide, Teddy, saw I was miserable so he offered to switch horses with me. Then he had to switch saddles because he was taller and we couldn't get the stirrups high enough for me. I felt bad for being the gringa holding up the ride.

Teddy's horse, Lionheart, was a beautiful, young and spirited yet civilized horse. Poor Lionheart....I didn't ever learn to ride a horse so I was pretty much holding on for dear life the whole time and I am sure he couldn't wait to get rid of me.

Survivor was even more difficult for Teddy than he was for me. Since we were trail riding, we were supposed to be riding in a line. Survivor was not used to be a lead horse and refused to go first. Since Teddy wanted him to go first AND go fast, Survivor put his foot down. All four of them.

The horses are so funny, they are just like people with their personalities and idiosyncracies. I love animals and I love to be outdoors so I am sure could get the hang of this if I had the opportunity to ride regularly with one horse who I could get to know and love. But I am not there yet! Eva, however, appears to be a natural.

Will the Equestrian

Eva LOVED the horse riding at Chaa Creek.  Will and I not so much.  When I took Will and Eva out riding (after popping a Claritin for my horse allergy), our guide Roberto decided to take us on a very spirited ride.  I now know about trotting, cantering and galloping as well as walking.  After my nether region was beaten up trotting, I was told cantering was much smoother.  It was a lie.  

(You have to click on this photo to enlarge it and see the expression on Will's face.)

Swimming Across the Macal River

After one of our canoe journeys, I suggest Will swim across the river just for fun. He did, and was very proud of himself. Eva of course HAD to do the same thing. I dropped her on the east bank of the river, and she swam across to the landing for the River Camp with me following along in the canoe (as I had for Will). Both kids were very proud of their accomplishment.

Interestingly, we had been assured that there were no crocodiles in the Macal, only at lower elevations closer to the ocean. Except on our last day at Chaa Creek one of the workers mentioned seeing a five foot croc the day before, and related a legend about the relationship between dogs and crocodiles. Apparently in legend the dog borrowed the crocodile's tongue so it could talk, and has never given it back. Now whenever a croc hears a dog bark, it chases and eats the dog to get its tongue back. Whether or not this story is true, apparently crocs are known for loving to eat dogs. We will be very careful in the future swimming in the Macal.

Cath - This is the girl who I had to haul through the water in the cave and who Bill had to force a life jacket onto during the Placencia snorkeling trip. I am hoping that Eva's swimming skills get a big boost in camp this summer and that she learns to have her confidence in line with her ability. I am appalled about the crocodiles.....especially after getting to see one go after food Live and In Action. See post further on down.

Eva at Breakfast

This is a photo of Eva during breakfast at the River Camp.   We loved breakfast at the River Camp, there were always a variety of birds - hummingbirds, thrushes, yellow birds, etc., and the food was great - every breakfast started with a big platter of fruit, always perfectly ripe.  

Macal River at Sunrise

I took this photo on our last morning at Chaa Creek.  It is just down the hill from our tent cabin in the River Camp and the view is looking down the Macal River toward San Ignacio.  The river was incredibly peaceful in the early morning, save for the many birds and the crowing rooster, who seemed to wake up at 3:00am every night.  

'The Inn' Robert's Grove

This is where we stayed for the last four nights of our vacation, The Inn at Robert's Grove. This is the main building with the restaurant, bar and reception. We stayed in an out building to the left and set back from the water.

We had a wonderful apartment for our stay. Chaa Creek was a very rustic and camplike affair with one room, five cots, no electricity and shared bathrooms and showers. Here, we had two bedrooms and a big living room. All the kids had beds, and Cath and I had a bed IN A SEPARATE ROOM. The housekeeping staff took away dirty laundry and brought it back, magically cleaned and folded. We also had a second floor deck with a table, lounge chairs and a hammock. Much of the early part of this blog was written on the deck at Robert's Grove.

Unfortunately, our apartment was the best part of The Inn. We read many five star reviews and spoke with many people who raved about this resort for a family location but our experience was more average.

The three pools were beautiful but all were 4.5 feet deep. There was not a single place for Lyra to play where one of us didn't have to get in a swimsuit and get all the way in with her. Even Eva (almost 9 and tall) had trouble standing comfortably in the pool. The edge of the sea, while shallow, was very choppy because of the wind, so Lyra needed very close supervision there too. If you have small children, this is probably not the place for you.

Excursions for snorkeling, horseback riding etc. are very expensive compared with nearby alternatives. Horseback riding at Chaa Creek was $45/person for 2.5 hours. It was $110/person at the Inn. A half day of snorkeling was $77/person at the Inn but $30/person locally.

We wish the menu had more variety. There were only two kinds of fish and few local dishes on the menu. However the guac was the BEST and the mangoes at breakfast were exquisite.

Mostly, we wish the service was more personal and attentive. I think it was the owner who was so kind and gracious when Will was stung by the jellyfish, but the rest of the staff was not on board. It's not that the service was bad; it wasn't. But we had to tell the same server every day about Eva's nut allergy and ask (again) what food was safe. They did not really engage with us, try to remember our names or preferences, or offer a special level of service. It would have been so easy for them to remember that Eva loved hot chocolate, had a food allergy, and bring a hot chocolate and an update on safe food every morning without being asked. We have vacationed at other places that provide this level of service, so our expectations may be different from the average Joe.

I could go on, but this is not meant to be a review. We enjoyed our stay at Robert's Grove, but not enough to justify the high price or attract us to return.

Sunrise 22 March 6:07AM

It must be a rule that every beach front tropical resort have a long pier with a thatch bar at the end.  This is the view from just in front of the Robert's Grove resort restaurant, and it is pretty, especially very early in the morning.  

Another Sunrise Shot

This just seems like a classic tropical beach sunrise photo.  Silhouetted palm trees, sliver of beach, sun reflecting on the water.  Too bad it was 6:30am.  

Leaving Placencia

We arrived in Placencia by road, the last 20 miles of which were dirt, now in the process of being paved.  We left via Maya Island Air using the Placencia airstrip.  

The airstrip is narrow, and looks barely paved.  It reminds me of a country airstrip in rural America, not an airport.  The airstrip runs east to west, perpendicular to the road into the village of Placencia.  The road into town literally curves around the airstrip (the road is the flat dirt area in the foreground in this photo) and cars must stop when a plane is taking off or landing.

I have to say though, I liked this way of flying.  No security screening, no x-rays, no security lecture, no control tower delaying takeoff.  Just jump in the plane and go.  

Our Plane

The airstrip is oriented west to east so the planes can take off to the east, into the sea breeze.  The runway is narrow, but it is paved.  The runway spans almost the entire width of the peninsula, with the east end being just short of the water line.

Please Ship Your Cash FedEx, Not Maya Air

So do people tell Maya Air that the boxes they want to ship contain bricks of Ben Franklins?  Sadly I can't think of any explanation for this sign at the airstrip other than the presence of drug money in Placencia.  

Placencia Peninsula

Placencia is at the southern end of this peninsula you can see out the window of our plane.  The ocean is on the near side in the photo and the lagoon (where the crocodiles live) on the far side.  

Sister Support

This is Eva holding Lyra's hand while we fly.  In reality, Lyra did not seem to have any issue with the small plane at all, actually telling me later she preferred it to the bigger jets.  I suspect this was partly because we flew 20min from Placencia to Dangriga, landed for five minutes to take on two passengers, and flew 15min more to Belize City.  Much easier than three hours from Belize City to Houston.

Village of Placencia

During the four days we stayed at the Inn at Robert's Grove, we went into the village of Placencia about six times (it is a 10min cab ride). It is a wonderful little town, very undeveloped in appearance, but with a diverse variety of restaurants, shops and bars. (Thankfully no chains except the Shell station.)

There is a mix of cultures in evidence, from global hippie, to Spanish, Maya and Garifuna. Most locals speak very good English to tourists, but revert to Creole when speaking to each other.

In the eyes (and taste buds) of the Phelps family, the #1 attraction in Placencia is the TuttiFrutti Gelateria. We went to TuttiFrutti every time we were in Placencia. It is owned by real Italians, and the Gelato is fabulous.

Cath - I had 3 hours to kill in the teeny weeny town of Placencia while Bill took the big kids snorkeling and Lyra spent the entire time trying to find TuttiFrutti, having been there with Bill the day before. She was incredibly singleminded. It was like Laurel and Hardy.
"Lyra, do you want to go to the playground?"
"The ice cream place is down there."
"Why don't we go to the beach?"
"The ice cream place is near the beach!"
"Do you have to go to the loo?"
"No! It's time to get ice cream at the ice cream place!"

Placencia Sidewalk

You can just see Lyra and Will walking along the Placencia Sidewalk, it is 4,071 feet long and 4 feet wide - according to the Guiness Book of World Records, the narrowest main street in the world!

The Placencia Sidewalk is the heart of Placencia Village, an artery that linked the visitors, residents, businesses and homes of Placencia Village.

There is also a road into town, but more houses, shops, restaurants and hotels actually front onto this sidewalk than onto the street.

Di Guava Tree

Clever and amusing signs seem to be a local tradition. Some appear to be formally placed by the town, many others like this one are informal.

Cath - Oh but there were so many signs that I WISH I'd photographed.

Like the one for the boutique located "behind the old graveyard and around the corner on the sidewalk" since nothing here has an address, just a relative location on "the sidewalk."

Or the one at De'Tatch,for evening entertainment: "For Poker Game (Secret) Call Fred 660-697-****" That reminds me of a secret love note Eva wrote to her friend, Jacob, ON A POSTCARD.

Or important driver information near the Placencia Airstrip (NOT Airport, AirSTRIP): "Drivers must give way to landing and departing aircraft." Eek. But we all did survive the taxi rides and the flight out too.

Pet Crocodile

Next door to TuttiFrutti there was a building with a restaurant and travel agent - and a small pond out front with turtles, fish and two small crocodiles. Cathleen took this shot at feeding time when a man came by with a platter of raw chicken for the croc.

Apparently this croc was caught last year in a nearby lagoon as a baby. It is now about five feet long. There used to be many small turtles in the pond. Now there are only a few big turtles, and one other smaller croc that hides most of the time.

Cath - Where was the $&@*#$(@# video camera??? It was cool to watch the croc suddenly sink straight down out of sight. There was also a smaller crocodile who had to sneak out for his chicken because this one wouldn't let it go anywhere. Even the turtles and fish, very carefully, found a way to get their share. I did not know turtles would eat chicken.