The Cacao Festival for 2011 is definitely on, despite any rumours to the contrary and will be as entertaining as ever. The dates are set for the weekend of May 20-22. It will be packed with exciting events and activities for young and old alike, not only to pay tribute to the finest organic cacao grown by local Mayan villagers, but also to honor Ek Chuah, the ancient Mayan god of merchants and cacao.

Friday night opens with the classy Wine and Chocolate Evening with music by one of Belize’s foremost singers, Nelita Castillo and will be held for the first time at the Coral House Inn.

Saturday’s festivities will feature the town of Punta Gorda and the natural wonders of the
district. Visitors and townies will have a map and list of events around town that will include
music in Central Park, the morning market, a cacao center at Cotton Tree Chocolate in town, a tour of the fire house, a chance to sit inside a Tropic Air plane, a tortilla making exhibition at the Fajina Centre, an art exhibit and an archeology exhibit and art display sponsored by NICH.

The archaeological display will be held in the Special Events Centre attached to the Town Council offices by the airstrip. There will also be a fine arts display of work by Belizean
artists. There will be a variety of tours to the cayes, nearby Mayan ruins and inland cacao trails by the Cacao Association.

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The Lodge at Big Falls has increased its capacity to eight units with the addition of two new elegant cabanas. Features:  Hardwood floor and ceiling made from a mix of secondary tropical hardwoods including nargusta, santa maria and milady - Insulated roof helps cool in hot weather - 2 Queen beds - Two ceiling fans - Air conditioning - En-suite bathroom and shower - On-demand gas water heater is energy efficient and you will not run out of hot water - Kitchenette with refrigerator, microwave, table top stove with two burners - Outside verandah facing the river bank.

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We have come to that time of year again when Punta Gorda (Peini in the Garifuna language)
becomes the centre for activities surrounding the November Garifuna celebrations.

While the weekend of Friday 19 celebrates the reenactment of the arrival of the Garinagu on the coast of Belize, the previous weekend is the focus of musical celebrations with the fifth annual Battle of the Drums.

There is a new element added this year for the Battle of the Drums’ fifth anniversary. Friday night at the PG Sports Bar will offer Garifuna food and music. The food will be prepared by chefs from Machac Hill Lodge and the Radisson Fort George in Belize City using traditional Garifuna cuisine and adapting it to a contemporary style. Live music performance will feature Paul Nabor, Mario and the Umalali Group, Lloyd, Nuru, Adrian the Doc and Lascelle Martinez.

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Now that Belize's Southern Highway has been completed the site at Nim Li Punit is more accessible than ever. It is located just north of the village of Indian Creek with its entrance off to the right when approaching from the north. It is one of the more modest archaeological sites in terms of the size of the standing structures but the site is most well known for the abundance of carved stelae discovered there.

The visitors’ centre houses a number of these including one 9 metres in length. It is the largest carved stela in Belize and the second largest in the Mayan world. This stela depicts some of the history of the region and one of its rulers whose elaborate head-dress gives the site its modern name which translates as “Big Hat”.

Within the excavated areas of the site further stelae have been left in their original locations and are protected by palm thatched roofs. The Mat stela is part of the south group and is depicted on the face of the Belize two dollar note although its location is not identified there.

The archaeological reserve covers 121 acres in total of which just a few have been cleared and excavated. One can only wonder about how much more awaits discovery. The same is true at Lubaantun and throughout much of Belize leading to the conclusion that so far just a small proportion of Belize’s archaeological secrets have been unearthed.

The warden is Adriano Mas from Indian Creek village. Mr Mas has worked here for the past nine years. At weekends he tends his own plantation. He is presently serving as alcalde (local magistrate) for the village so his evenings are pretty busy too. Walking through the site with Adriano it is easy to see why this location was inhabited. Present day Indian Creek village lies at the bottom of the hill and then to the east lies the vast expanse of the coastal jungle plain. This extends right up to the water’s edge in Port Honduras. The sea and cayes, ten miles distant, are all clearly visible from the site.

Ancient Nim Li Punit would have had easy access to the sea and the ancient salt works at Punta Negra. Westwards they would have had trade access with modern day Guatemala through the valley occupied by the modern villages of San Antonio, Santa Cruz and Pueblo Viejo. Inscriptions on stelae point to political and social links with Copan in Honduras about two hundred miles to the south.

Like so many archaeological sites in Belize Nim Li Punit is carefully tended by the warden and his assistant and large forest trees grow among the ruins.

Nim Li Punit is a wonderful place for birding either early in the morning or towards dusk. Groups of a dozen or more keel-billed toucans have been seen. A parrot and a palebilled woodpecker may fight over a nesting hole excavated by the woodpecker but coveted by the parrot. It is a great spot to see many of the species that live below the canopy of the rainforest.

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