Xunantunich

 

To go here by local bus is about a 15 minute ride. You take the bus from the city center that shows the name Benque in the window. That will also be the bus you take to go to the border, btw. You tell the assistant, who collects the fare, "Xunantunich", and he'll charge you for the ferry as well. They will let you know where to get off. Then, go down to the ferry, have the guy crank you across, and then you'll have about a 1 mile hike. All uphill. If you feel (or are) weak, or have difficulty walking, before you cross, there will be taxi drivers who offer to take you to the entrance. The ferry handles cars. I walked, so I can't tell you how much the taxi will charge. Xunantunich is called the most accessible Mayan ruin anywhere.

 

A little help from Google Maps

 

The Bus to Benque will depart from here, the San Ignacio central square.

 

Got off at the ferry and had to wait for a school class come across from a trip to the ruins, then it was my turn

 

 

And then, a little while later, there it was. An impressive pyramid and well kept grounds

 

 

A picture perfect site, compact and easily covered within a couple of hours

 

The gran plaza from above, perfectly sculpted by light
Magnificent views toward Guatemala and Belize from the top

 

 

And, back at the bottom, the inevitable ball court

 

 

 

 

Then, ready to depart I saw these guys, museum employees gathering weyan fruit, while waiting for the last tourist to depart. This guy offered me some, and the next moment I was crawling around picking and eating. The howler monkeys love them, so do tucans, squirrels, and school kids. Right now, only miniature tucans were eating them and pelting us with the empty shells.

 

I simply could not get focused on the toucans, and the light was not much in favor. Playing with the software, I finally resolved this one. There were a number of them, but they moved very quickly, busily eating

 

Once the final tourists and guide came out of the ruin, the museum employees offered me a ride back to town
...in the back of their pickup. I accepted, and cars and people piled onto the ferry

 

Two of the museum employees and the ferry man. The guy on the left has been working at the ruins for 20 years

 
On the way back, this young man, who runs the ticket counter, pointed out that you could see the pyramid even from the highway. Sure enough. I enlarged the detail of the picture even more, and there it was, the mighty Maya guardian. I inset the crop to show how it looks from the road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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