landmarks and attractions in belize

7/30/2019 Landmarks and attractions in Belize

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Most interesting

attractions and landmarks in

Belize

Gatis Pvils, 19 July 2010

No.26. http://www.wondermondo.com/Belize.htmImage: Xunantunich, El Castillo.

Michael Schamis, Flickr, CC BY 2.0
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Although Belize is small country, here are located numerous outstanding and surprising monuments.Country has at least four important features making it

very special regarding the natural and cultural heritage:

Area of Belize was a part of the realm of one of the

greatest ancient civilizations Maya;

Most of the country consists of carbonate rock and in

tropical climate here are on-going active karst processes country contains huge amount of very diverse caves

and sinkholes;

Approximately 60% of the country is covered with more

or less virgin tropical forest, containing huge number of

rare and endemic species;

Some of the largest coral reefs are lining the coastline of

Belize.

Part of the landmarks are popular tourism destinations

but part is known only to specialists. New exciting

landmarks are discovered every year. Thus in 2009 therewas discovered Tipan Chen Uitz potentially one of

the largest Maya sites in the country but in 2008 at the

bottom of two sinkholes groves of unknown species of

cycad with extreme healing properties later named

Zamia decumbens.

There is a saying: In every property in Belize there is at least one cave and in this cave there are Mayaartefacts. This is exaggeration with a grain of truth in it there really are lots of caves in Belize and lots of

these caves contain some traces of Maya civilization.

Actun Tunichil Muknal Cayo District. Important Maya sacrifice cave with skeletons of sacrificed victims.

Includes the famous Crystal Maiden crystallized, sparkling skeleton of a girl and dripstone formations

modified by Maya to resemble human faces and animals.

Barton Creek Cave Cayo District. Approximately 7 km long cave with giant passages, navigable river,

adorned with dripstone formations and natural bridges. In the past served as a Maya religious centre.

Caves Branch Caves Cayo District. Group of caves, consisting of three four segments with Caves Branch

River flowing through them. Part of cave system has been turned into tourism destination, giving altered

names to some segments of caves. Best known are Footprint Cave (with embedded footprints), Waterfall Cave

Great Blue Hole, Belize. Chris Alnatt,www.ambergriscaye.com, public domain

Photographs taken from the air show incredible,nearly perfectly round, deep blue circle in shallow

atoll some 70 km east from Belize City. This unique

formation is the Great Blue Hole enormous

sinkhole existing here at least for 150,000 years.

This 124 m deep, unusual formation containsnumerous large stalactites at 4 metre depth. Part ofstalactites are tilted hinting at tectonic movementsin the past. Mechanism of the formation of Great

Blue Hole though remains a riddle to be solved.

Wondermondo is unique project: it aims to describe the most interesting man made and natural attractions /

landmarks in the whole world.

Author of website www.wondermondo.com and each article in it is Gatis Pvils. Visit the site to find a lot more

information!
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(with six waterfalls in it) and Petroglyph Cave (with ancient Maya drawings from 300 900 AD.). Impressive

sight is the disappearance of Caves Branch river underground.

Entrance into one of Caves Branch Caves. Josh Steinitz,

Wikimedia Commons, SA-BY-SA-2.0

Chechem Ha Cave Cayo District. This cave contains

60 vessels of intact Maya pottery, mainly funeral pots

(ollas), from around 200 BC 900 AD.

Chiquibul Cave System Cayo District and part of

system also in Guatemala, Petn district. Group of giant

caves, one of the longest cave systems in Central

America. Earlier served also as underground bed for

Chiquibul River. Contains some of the largest known

cave passages (often 100 m wide and 50 m high) and

rooms (Belize Chamber 200 m wide and tall) in

Western Hemisphere, countless dripstone formations.

Total length of hydrologically linked explored passages

97 km. Four largest caves are Actun Kabal, Actun

Tun Kul, Cebada Cave and Xibalba. Contains Mayan

artefacts.

Giant Cave at Caye Caulker Belize District. Undersea cave, visited by cave divers only few times and...

each of the teams returned with different data. One investigation shows that passages of this cave have a total

length of 3,116 m, thus making it the longest known seawater filled cave. Another exploration shows that this

cave is 600 m wide cave chamber contender to be the largest cave chamber in the world.

Great Blue Hole Belize District, Belize. Perfectly round undersea sinkhole, 318 metres across and 124

metres deep. Contains tilted stalactites possibly hinting at tectonic movements.

Albion Island Quarry Orange Walk District. This is the only site where is well visible the impact of

Chicxulub meteorite, which, possibly caused the great extinction 65 million years ago. Among other exciting

features here is found a layer of small spheres condensate of evaporated limestone which fell from the sky

back in those terrible times.

Chiquibul Natural Arch Cayo District. Chiquibul River passes this arch before diving into Chiquibul Cave

system.

Hidden Valley Falls Cayo District. More than 450 metres high waterfall. In the upper reaches of the

waterfall there is a unique growth of fir, while down below there is a tropical jungle.

Zamia decumbensin sinkholes Toledo District. Zamia decumbens Calonje, Meerman, Griffith and

Hoese is extremely rare cycad, up to 2 m tall. It is found in seven places in Belize with just a few plants found

in most locations. The best groves consisting of several hundreds of plants are located on bottoms of two fairly

large, isolated sinkholes with approximately 50 metre tall vertical cliffs. Plant has huge potential importance

in medicine as it has powerful antiviral properties but it has been impossible to cultivate it thus far.

Whole area of Belize contains Maya artefacts and every year there are made new exciting discoveries. Most

likely Maya civilization did not come in empty place there was some interesting culture before but it stillwaits for its discoverer.

Entrance into one of Caves Branch Caves.Josh Steinitz, Wikimedia Commons, SA-BY-SA-2.0
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Altn Ha Belize District. Remnants of a

comparatively important Mayan city, developed in 200

900 AD. Nowadays there are seen remnants of a group of

pyramids and some other monuments.

Caracol Cayo District. The most important Mayan

centre in the area of present day Belize. Inhabited since1200 BC, flourished in 485 889 AD. At its heyday

covered an area of 168 km2. Contains the highest

pyramid in Belize Caana, some 45 m tall.

Cerros Corozal District. Coastal Maya city, ancient

harbour at the bay of Chetumal. Contains several plazas

with pyramids.

Lamanai Orange Walk District. Once important, very

ancient Mayan city, inhabited since 16th century BC and

flourished in 4th century BC 1st century AD. Occupied

until 17th century AD. Most imposing structure is the 23

m tall High Temple.

Lubaantun Toledo District. Important ancient Mayan city, flourished in 730 890 AD. Architecture style

is different from other Mayan cities, in the site were found numerous numerous miniature ceramic figurines

possible ritual objects. Here reportedly was found also the famous Crystal Skull belowed artefact of mystics

and seekers of preternatural things of the past.

Pacbitun Cayo District. Rather important ancient Maya site. Occupied since 1000 BC, flourished in 400 BC

250 AD and 600 900 AD. Area 30 ha, contains some 24 pyramids up to 16.5 m high, raised causeways,

palaces and numerous other monuments.

El Pilar Cayo District in Belize and Petn district in

Guatemala. Significant ancient Mayan city with

remnants of hundreds of buildings. Construction on-

going here from 800 BC to 1000 AD.

Tipan Chen Uitz Cayo District. Newly discovered

(June 2009) remnants of large Maya city. Contains a

group of diverse monuments including caves, large well,

large buildings, fortifications.

Xunantunich Cayo District. Important Mayan city of

Classical era, 200 900 AD. Contains numerous

buildings, the best known is the 40 m tall El Castillo

pyramid. Also site of legends: even the present name of

this site stems from deterrent ghost white dressedwomen with red glowing eyes seen at El Castillo.

Swing Bridge in Belize Belize City. The only manually operated swing bridge in the world still in

function. Built in Liverpool and transported here in 1923, spans Belize River.

Caracol, view from Caana complex.Russel Harrison, Flickr, SA-BY-SA-2.0

Xunantunich, El Castillo.Michael Schamis, Flickr, CC BY 2.0

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