Belize / Yucatán,Guatemala (2003)

Placencia is a place where one doesn't really have to go, I thought. Wrong: best beach, best swimming and best stay in Belize. Plus, you see sharks even when you don't pay for seeing them :-)

St. Ignacio is good for trips to Guatemala (Tikal, very steep pyramids!) and inland trips. Highly recommended to go there. One can do lots of things, meet friendly people and a lot of people who speak "Low German" (Niederdeutsch, Plattdeutsch). Moreover, St. Ignacio has a suspension bridge!! Plus, a visit to Cahal Pech is highly recommended - I loved it. And, you can experience candlelight postcard-writing due to electricity loss, sometimes.

Caye Caulker had the most interesting doctor from Cuba. He had no idea what "ticks" were. Well. But the diving and snorkeling is great - never seen so many spotted Eagle-Rays and turtles. And a snorkeling guide who can dive 9 metres without air. Very impressive!

Running out of time but still want to visit Chichen Itzá in Mexico? The only thing left to do is a guided bus trip. Do it, none the less, it's worth climbing the pyramids. It's a wonderful panorama for 3 hours and you can hear the eagle cry. Just forget about all those all-inclusive tourists on the bus.