Belize, Sustainability, and Auburn Abroad

Best day so far— one of the best days ever. We woke up, ate breakfast and left duPlooy’s to head to the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) cave. Besides almost getting carsick on the hour and fifteen-minute ride to the cave, the ride was fun because there was a nervous anticipation in the air since no one really knew what to expect of the cave. When we got to the beginning of the hike to the ATM cave, we split into a group of eight and four because the maximum a single tour guide could have was eight people. I went with Emmitt, Bo, and Michael, and then we were joined by 2 teenagers, their dad, and his friend. This “hike” (a very easy walk) was so fun because we would walk on the trail for a little while then have to cross the river. The first river crossing was the worst but also the most fun because it got too deep for me to stand in the middle, so I had to swim. The second and third river crossings were super easy because the water only came to about shin/knee height. When we got to the front of the cave, I was already blown away. The water was a super bright blue, almost like the color of a Glacier Freeze Gatorade and there were little fish swimming in it. We had to swim to a part of the cave where we could climb up on the rocks and start our tour. Raanan led us through small crevices, freezing water, and basically on a rock-climbing adventure and it was one of the best experiences I have ever had. We waded and swam through clear and murky water with gorgeous river rocks and geological formations all around us. The iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium and quartz minerals made the inside of the cave very beautiful because of the different colors that were produced from chemical reactions and the shininess of the quartz. Also, the stalagmites and stalactites were extremely cool to look at because they were huge and had different designs from the ways calcium was deposited on them. The cave was also very tall at some points and it was amazing that water once filled the entire thing. At one point we climbed up a very large rock to get to ancient Mayan remains. There were ceramic pots and plates (one used for bloodletting) that were used to summon the gods and for ceremonies, which is why the Mayans came into the cave in the first place. There were also a couple sets of human remains, including a full crystallized skeleton that was stunning. These remains were from 700-950 AD and it was magnificent to see all of the untouched ancient remnants of the Mayans, still where they were when they were originally found, which was in the 1980s. We ended up walking just over half a mile into the cave. On our tour, we were talking to Raanan about why we could not have cameras in the cave. He said that the rules had changed over the years for multiple reasons. At first, they did not have a problem with people taking cameras, then they only allowed them to be taken to the cave entrance, and now they have to be left in the car. This is because people spent too much time on the cameras instead of taking in the true beauty of the cave. I think camera-free was the best way to explore the cave because it would have been easy to miss something while looking at a phone. Even though we were one of the many groups that were touring the cave, it was really cool when it was just us and we turned our lights off. We really got a feel for how small we were in the massive geological masterpiece and it was amazing to think that ancient peoples once roamed the cave exactly where we were, the only difference was the light source: they used torches and we used head lamps. Raanan really wanted us to appreciate where we were and he was so passionate about the tour that he made it more enjoyable, even though it was already a million times more amazing than I thought it was going to be. When we were in the parking lot with Raanan after the tour, he made a quick comment about there being no trash cans around because if there were, litter would be everywhere, which I did notthink about. The area was extremely clean, as were the bathrooms, and if we were in the United States, it would not have been like that. There would have been trash in the tree line and the bathrooms would have been disgusting. In most cases, we just do not respect or appreciate nature and the environment like they do in Belize. It is like it is Earth day every day in Belize and more Americans need to experience that so they understand what we are doing to the environment and what we should be doing to help it. After we ate lunch, we got back on the bus and rode to the hotel, put stuff down in our rooms and had more free time. One thing I noticed about the hotel was that when I looked out the front door, I saw the city, but when I looked out the back, it looked like I was in the jungle which was kind of cool to me. For dinner, we dressed up nice, and after, the cave group played Dutch Blitz which is a super fun, stressful and fast paced card game. This was one of the best, coolest, magnificent, and breathtaking days ever. I guarantee the cave excursion will be my favorite part of this entire trip and we are only on day four.