Bourbon Street, New Orleans

"Excuse me, sir, I bet I can tell you where you got those shoes, the city and state." My husband Bill said, “I know your secret.” The man laughed and said, “You've been around.” We laughed because the truth was that we hadn’t “been around.”  I just heard that story from a friend two days before we left and shared it with Bill.  {You are supposed to think this person is going to guess where you bought your shoes.  You bet with him, and he says, “You got your shoes in New Orleans, LA.”  You just lost the bet, and he won your money!}  I was surprised that we were approached for the shoe scam line the very first night in New Orleans! 

Bourbon Street, New Orleans, wakes up at night! As my husband Bill and I walked down Bourbon Street, he said, "You have to be here to believe it." The street was alive with loud music played by different bands, crowds of people walking the streets drinking out of plastic cups, in and out of bars, watching street performers, and just partying. 

Women stood outside of strip clubs in skimpy outfits and thongs to lure people inside. One girl stood wearing a thong, back turned to the crowd, and jiggled her booty to attract attention and tempt people to enter.  I almost took a picture of that but didn’t want to make a spectacle of myself, the tourist that I am!

After walking up and down the street several times, we entered a bar that hosted a New Orleans jazz band.  Some of the women stood up from the tables and danced to the music.  The lead singer called out to a woman from Seattle, Washington.  He called her “Sleepless in Seattle” and beckoned her to come up to the stage to dance with him.  The two danced well together and provided entertainment for the rest of us. 

As we were walking along Bourbon Street, people were throwing down different colored beaded necklaces from the balcony above Pat O’Brien’s bar. I felt compelled to pick up some from the ground to wear, so I did.  

We walked by a strip joint where three girls stood by the door in their skimpy attire.  One girl was sticking out her behind, and the other girl was putting her hand next to it to coax people in for their show. 

Further down, a street performer was posing as a construction worker taking his place on a ladder without moving.  People dropped coins in his bucket as they passed.  

Further on, a drag queen saw me taking her picture, so she posed and then asked me if I got it.  I said, "Yes", and she walked over to invite us in to watch a burlesque show. We didn't go in, but I took the brochure that she handed me of the show.

We walked into Sing Sing, a hole in the wall dive bar, and listened to the upbeat jazz band. The bar required a one-drink minimum as most did. The upbeat jazz music enticed people to get up and dance. There was a lively crowd at this bar; we enjoyed the atmosphere and the drinks.

All-in-all, Bourbon Street was a memorable experience in New Orleans! 

Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) Cave Tour in Belize.

Geared up for our ATM Cave Tour Adventure

I plunged into the small spring-fed pool and swam inside of the cave. The crystalline water gave hues of blues and greens, especially at the entrance.

Our tour guide Abraham had led us through three river crossings in chilly water up to my chin, to the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) cave. At first, I didn’t move, but with no choice, I took the plunge and swam to the cave and further inside since the water remained high for part of the way. The water was cold and being wet for the first half-mile, we felt chilled.

As a nonswimmer, I wore a life jacket to survive deep water levels and felt confident with the support. I wasn’t concerned with the panic of trying to keep my head above water and could enjoy the challenges ahead. As we walked or swam further into the cave, things started to get interesting, passing through narrow passageways.

Our group of six included myself, my husband Bill, two sons Matt and David, daughter-in-law Colleen, and our friend Patrick.

The stalactite formations were phenomenal because, according to our guide, they grow at a rate of 1/16th inch per year. Some stalactites were thousands of years old and formed in such a way that they were almost to the ground. We saw white stalactites and stalagmites that grew into each other resembling icicles hanging from the cave walls. I felt like we were in a winter wonderland inside of the cave. Abraham instructed us not to touch these sides of the cave because of the oils from our skin that could impact the formations by stunting the growth.

As we went more in-depth through the cave, the water level ranged from knee-high to neck high. We had to climb through narrow, rocky spaces, sometimes ascending massive tricky rock formations, and swim through tunnels. After about one-half mile into the cave, it became much more challenging as we approached the first boulder about 15 feet high.

My son David commented that the best part was seeing me looking at the rock as the guide was starting to give instructions on climbing it, and I was connecting the dots for the first time that we actually had to go up that rock. David said that my mouth dropped wide open as I stared at the boulder, thinking that everyone was joking, but they weren’t.

I honestly did NOT know how I was going to climb up that wet, slippery, mammoth boulder! Of course, I was elected to go first, so the challenge began. With our guide’s assistance from the top telling me where to put each foot every step of the way and the guys from the bottom, giving me a boost when needed, I made it. My son Matt was behind me trying to help. I couldn’t look back but said, “I don't care where you touch me, Matt, just get me up there!!”

We hoisted up to the next level, which was very high, where we sat on a ledge, took off our water shoes, and put on socks for the next half of the dry cave. We climbed a ramp, holding on to the edge of the cave wall to keep a grip. My son David hollered from up ahead, “Mom, don’t fall!” Then, he added, “Matt, stay close to mom.” Well, I had Abraham at my side holding my hand for support through challenging maneuvers. Abraham said,  “This is my new mamma.” 

We continued up to a higher level and entered the ceremonial chamber. We observed shards of pottery, ceramic bowls, and jugs that the Mayans brought in for offerings of food and water to the gods. There were smooth-rimmed, narrow-mouthed clay pots that held liquids and wide-mouthed that had contained food.

Abraham provided a wealth of information about how the Mayans performed ceremonial rites to the gods to try to appease them to get rain during the drought season in the late classic period, which was about 900 AD. When the gods didn’t give them rain, they started to bring in animals. Human sacrifices were brought in as well into the ceremonial cavern of young deformed skulls.

Further inside the cave, we came to the first set of scattered bones, deformed skulls, and human remains for live sacrifices. The Mayans brought into the cave typically young, strong children, usually of royal families, because they were more valuable to the gods.

We climbed a tall, narrow ladder that leaned against the cave wall up to the rear of the highest level of the cave. There, we saw a whole skeleton that was believed to be a sacrificial victim whose bones have been given a sparkling appearance by centuries of calcification, referred to as the Crystal Maiden.

We took a few moments to gaze at the climax of our tour before descending the ladder, walking back to the ledge where we took off our socks and put on water shoes. The dry part of the cave had passed. Now, we would return to the water and make our way out of the cave.

Through this tremendous energy-intense experience, I overcame the challenges of keeping up with the rest of the group in deep, cold water levels, as a nonswimmer, maneuvering through extremely narrow passageways, and climbing a gigantic boulder without missing a step.

The ATM Cave tour was the most adventurous highlight of the trip, and I was delighted to take the challenge and survive!

Memories of Belize

My first morning in the rainforest of San Ignacio, Belize, I awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and the barking of our neighbors, the howlers, high up in the trees of the jungle surrounding a panoramic view of the Macal River. We stayed in a cabin near the river, providing a primitive setting that brought us close to nature for the first half of our visit.

The riverbank nestled in the rainforest, and the sun shone through the trees with a golden glow. The sounds echoed in the open air of the howlers who made their presence known. The guys discovered a hanging rope from which they swung into the river to see who could land the furthest out into the water.

A highlight was the tour of Xunantunich Ruins of where the climax was climbing to the top of El Castillo (the castle). A hand-cranked ferry carried us across the Mopan River. From there, we continued to the ruins passing a family of howlers up in a tree. Of course, we jumped out of the van to see the monkeys. Our tour guide advised, “You don’t want to go directly underneath them. Monkeys don’t wear diapers. When they have to go, they just go.” Living in Belize, he was familiar with the monkeys!

Xunantunich means Stone Woman in Mopan (Yucatec Mayan language). Our tour guide explained that Stone Woman refers to the ghost of a woman dressed entirely in white with glowing red eyes. She generally appears in front of El Castillo, ascends the stone stairs, and disappears into a stone wall.

The most famous building in Xunantunich is El Castillo, a pyramid soaring 130 feet above the main plaza. El Castillo is remarkable due to its large stucco frieze on its eastern side that details stories of the gods and stories from Maya creationist myths.

The nine rooms of the royal palace represented the nine chambers of the underworld. The Mayans believed that close friends of the emperor lived in this palace. We climbed the wide, steep stone steps to the ledge and then made our way further up the palace. From that point, we hiked to the back of the castle. We climbed up another set of steep steps to a ledge and then further up passing through doorways ascending to the top where we took in the fantastic view that stretched beyond the border of Guatemala. We were on top of the world!

Another highlight was a tour through a sacrificial cave, Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM), where the Mayans brought food and drinks as offerings to the gods for rain.

We walked two miles on a dusty trail in between three river crossings to the entrance of the cave. When we came to the first crossing, our tour guide, Abraham led the way through the roaring river with a chilling water level up to my chin. Fortunately, each crossing had a rope to hold, and that’s just what I did as I dog-paddled to the end. We continued the trail until the second river crossing, which, to my delight, was ankle-deep. After more hiking, we came to the third crossing and, surprise, it was also ankle deep!

Now that we went through three river crossings, I imagined the rest to be of ground level. To my astonishment, we approached a small spring-fed pool that required swimming to the inside of the cave. The crystalline water gave hues of blues and greens, especially at the entrance. At first, I didn’t move, but with no choice, I took the plunge and swam through the pool to the cave’s entrance and further inside since the water remained high for part of the way.

The headlamps attached to our helmets guided us through the dark cave. Bats flew above us and some rested in holes in the walls. As we walked or swam further into the cave, things started to get interesting, passing through narrow passageways.

The stalactite formations were phenomenal because, according to our guide Abraham, they grow at a rate of 1/16th inch per year. We saw some stalactites and stalagmites that grew into each other. Abraham instructed us not to touch these particular sides of the cave because of the oils from our skin that could impact the formations by stunting the growth.

As we went more in-depth through the cave, the water level ranged from knee-high to neck high. We had to climb through narrow, rocky spaces, sometimes ascending massive tricky rock formations, and swim through tunnels. After about one-half mile into the cave, it became much more challenging as we approached the first boulder about 15 feet high. After climbing the wet, slippery boulder, we hoisted up to the next level, which was very high, where we sat on a ledge, took off our water shoes, and put on socks for the next half of the dry cave. We climbed a ramp, holding on to the edge of the cave wall to keep a grip.

Continuing up to a higher level, we entered the ceremonial chamber where we observed shards of pottery, ceramic bowls, and jugs that the Mayans brought in for offerings of food and water to the gods. There were narrow-mouthed pots that held liquids and wide-mouthed that had contained food.

Abraham explained how the Mayans performed ceremonial rites to the gods to try to appease them to get rain during the drought season in the late classic period, which was about 900 AD. He further explained that when the gods didn’t give them rain, they started to bring in animals. Human sacrifices were brought in as well into the ceremonial cavern of young deformed skulls.

As we continued to walk further into the cave, we saw the first set of scattered bones, deformed skulls, and human remains for live sacrifices. The Mayans brought into the cave typically young, strong children, usually of royal families, because they were more valuable to the gods.

Continuing, we climbed a ladder up to the rear of the highest level of the cave. There, we saw a whole skeleton that was probably a sacrificial victim whose bones have been given a sparkling appearance by centuries of calcification, referred to as the Crystal Maiden. We took a few moments to gaze at the highlight of our tour before descending the ladder, walking back to the ledge where we took off our socks and put on water shoes. The dry part of the cave had passed. Now, we would return to the water and make our way out of the cave. The ATM cave tour was the most adventurous part of our trip, and I was proud of myself for taking the challenge and surviving!

From the rainforest of San Ignacio, we transferred to the Caribbean coast of Placencia to spend the remainder of our trip at a beach house. The scenery was full of palm trees, white sandy beaches, black frigate birds, and brown pelicans flying over the waters and floating in the sea soaking up the sun.

On our last day in Belize, we rode on a fisherman’s boat across the sea to a small private island, Ranguana Caye, for a day of fun and relaxation. The small island provided a paradisal setting as an ending to our Belize vacation.

By Linda A. Egelston