Jungle lodge

From Iain: We've been staying in the jungle just north of San Ignacio for the past four days, at Parrot Nest Lodge.

Tanya, Sierra, and Bethany at Parrot Nest Lodge

The no-frills lodge is in a large patch of semi-cleared jungle and consists of about ten different-sized cabins and tree-houses, as well as a larger building housing a communal area for eating, reading, playing board games, etc., and the living quarters for the friendly family who run the place.

The jungle was, of course, hot and humid, but not unbearably so (it was even a trifle chilly early in the morning).  We didn't see or hear too much exotic wildlife during our stay, although we did see an agouti (like a giant guinea pig) hopping around and scores of fireflies winking on and off at dusk.  We also saw more than ten huge iguanas sunning themselves in the trees along the river when we went tubing.  Most of the iguanas we saw were orange males, some up to about four feet long, although we spotted a few less brightly coloured females too.  Tubing was great fun once Bethany, Sierra, and I, as first-timers, got the hang of steering.  There was one particularly exhilarating part where we dropped down a few feet through some narrow rapids, all of us somehow managing to stay upright on our inner-tubes.

We also went on a couple of tours during our stay here, a canoe trip to Barton Creek Cave, a visit to the Iguana Conservation Project in San Ignacio, and a horseback trip to the Mayan ruins at Xunantunich.