THETHE SANSAN PEDROPEDRO SUNSUN VISITORVISITOR GUIDEGUIDE January 5, 2007 FREEFREE The Island Newspaper Ambergris Caye, Belize Central America Kite Surfing and Archaeological Exploring! For the adventurer in all of us! - Sailsports offers kite surfing for those willing to challenge themselves in a unique and fun way out on the water. - Heading south of the island? Check out the Marco Gonzalez Archaeological Site for a great adventure. Reservations: 501-226-2012 Fax: 501-226-2338 Email: [email protected] The Airline of Belize www.tropicair.com January 5, 2007 Visitor Guide Page 1 Greetings to my visiting friends Where did you read your San Pedro Sun? Where did you take your San Pedro Sun & Visitor Guide? taking sea life. San Pedro is Take a photo of you and the paper and send it to us at: also home to world-class [email protected] fishing and scuba diving. For the more adventurous, “La Isla Bonita” offers a wide array of water sports and for those looking to get a glimpse of the mystical world of the Maya, these historical ruins are just a short expedition On behalf of the people of San away. You will also be able to dis- Pedro Town, I extend a warm wel- cover Belize’s vast cave systems come to all visitors arriving to and many natural sanctuaries that our shores. I assure you that your are home to our country’s unique trip to “La Isla Bonita” will be no flora and fauna. ordinary vacation. Our island is Whether you are spending your famous for its rich cultural diver- honeymoon at an exclusive resort sity, where Mestizos, Creole and or looking for an adventurous, yet Garinagu blend to form a unique romantic escape, San Pedro is encounter. While here, I encour- surely the place to be. I invite To find out more about San Pedro, Don Compardo reads a printed copy of The San Pedro Sun Visitor Guide online version while sitting you to explore our home and see age you to explore the Caribbean on a rock on a frozen lake in Dryden, Ontario, Canada. The Sea and find Belize’s abundant the many wonders it has to offer. temperature was around 5oC - a “beautiful”, if cold day! treasures. Hol Chan Marine Re- We welcome you with open Photos taken in unique and unusual places are pre- serve and Shark-Ray Alley are arms. Bienvenidos a San Pedro! ferred. Be sure to identify who is in the photo and just two of the many spots where you can enjoy our coral reef for- Elsa Paz, Mayor, where the photo was taken. Don’t forget to include mation and abundant and breath- San Pedro Town your names and what you were doing. The San Pedro Sun is mailed everywhere. Language can link us with other cul- tures, no matter how foreign the tongue Publisher The San Pedro Sun Ltd. may be. In an effort to share this form of Editor Ron Sniffin [email protected] communication with our audience, The San Editor Tamara Sniffin [email protected] Pedro Sun proudly presents – Words of Associate Editor Kainie Manuel [email protected] the Week. This week, we will Staff Writer Maria Novelo [email protected] present a few phrases in English Staff Writer/ Mary Gonzalez [email protected] and give you their Cre- ole and Spanish transla- Graphic Design tions. Special thanks to Sylvana Woods for her help with the Office Assistant Nathalie Manuel [email protected] Creole translations. Enjoy!!! Mail The San Pedro Sun, English Air pump, paint brush, screw P.O. Box 35, San Pedro Town Creole Yaa pomp, paynt brosh, skroo Ambergris Caye, Belize Spanish Bomba de aire, brocha de pintura, tornillo Telephone 011-501-226-2070 US Telephone (307) 460-4456 English Bolt lock, drill bit, machete Fax 011-501-226-2905 Creole Haas ahn staybl, jril bit, masheet E-Mail [email protected] Spanish Cerrojo, barrena/taladro, machete Internet/WEB www.sanpedrosun.net Main Office #63 Barrier Reef Drive, San Pedro English Eye lash, hair, forehead, nose Creole Aiy lash, hyaa, farid, noaz Name Spanish Pestaña, cabello/pelo, frente, nariz Address City State Zip Country Answers to Last E-mail: Week’s Su Doku Receive The San Pedro Sun & Visitor Guide weekly in your mailbox. 26 ISSUES (six months) US, Canada: $50 U.S. Puzzle Domestic: $50 BZ. 52 ISSUES (one year) US, Canada: $90 U.S. Domestic: $90 BZ.(Other locations vary.) More foreign subscribers than any newspaper in Belize! Page 2 Visitor Guide January 5, 2007 KiteKite SurfingSurfing 101101 with Sailsports Belize Kite surfing looks easy and effortless, but be sure to follow the proper run down that Chris and his able staff at Sailsports provide, for a safe and thorough experience. A magnificent sight from the shores high-tech contraptions that pull a kite on aerial acrobats. In reality, it is more you on your first voyage into the excit- of Ambergris Caye is the huge kites surfer effortlessly across the water. difficult than it looks and taking a les- ing sport. that sway back and forth in the con- As with most extreme sports, kite son is a must. Luckily San Pedro has Chris Beaumont, owner of stant Caribbean wind. These kites are surfing looks easy from shore as we an expert crew of kite surfing instruc- SailSports Belize, has been kite surf- not your typical childhood kites but huge watch the experienced kite surfer put tors at SailSports Belize who will take Continued on Page 5 January 5, 2007 Visitor Guide Page 3 cal guide. However, the existence of the face deposits of this swamp are mainly The Marco Gonzalez Maya Site site had been known to San Pedranos for mangrove “peat” (the predecessor of many years before that, as had most of coal) that over lie carbonate sands and the many other sites that are present on muds. Two small areas of Pleistocene the caye. limestone, the “bedrock” of Ambergris The site is approximately eight kilo- Caye, are exposed along the shore to the meters south of San Pedro Town, and is north of the site. The site is topographi- surrounded by dense jungle. Access to cally higher than the surrounding the site from the windward beach side swamps, its maximum elevation being was relatively easy, along cut trails, while about 3.6 meters above sea level. It is the site was being excavated by Drs. covered by white mangrove Graham and Pendergast from 1984 to (Laguncularia racemosa), gumbo-limbo about 1994. Now, however, the trails are (Bursera simaruba), white poisonwood overgrown and visits to the site are diffi- (“chechem”, Cameraria belizensis), sil- cult, especially during and immediately ver palmettos (Thrinax sp.), cabbage after the rainy seasons. palms (Roystonea oleracea), and a vari- The Marco Gonzalez Site is about 185 ety of vines, sedges, and grasses. x 355 meters in size, and it is readily The site is higher than the surrounding visible from the air immediately before mosquito-infested swamps because of landing in San Pedro from Belize Inter- human activities, specifically, buildup of Tucked deep inside the mangrove forests of Ambergris Caye is the Marco national Airport. The low-lying area the area resulting from millenia of accu- Gonzalez Archaeological site. around the site is close to sea level, and mulated, typically dark colored The Marco Gonzalez Maya Site is archaeologically in 1984 by Dr. Eliza- it is a “mangal” jungle-swamp of red “anthrosol,” which is soil composed pri- located near the southern tip of Amber- beth Graham and Dr. David M. mangroves (Rhizophora mangle) and marily of artifacts (e.g., pottery, tools), gris Caye. It was first recorded Pendergast, who named it after their lo- black mangroves (Avicennia nitida). Sur- conch and other shells, building remains, processing debris, and other wastes from human activities. Common lore has it that the Maya brought in the dark soil that surrounds all sites on the caye, but that is erroneous; all such “anthrosol” is a natu- ral product of long-lived habitation at each site. The presence of artifacts below the present-day surface, particularly beneath the mangal swamps, indicates that the site was once larger than is presently ex- posed. There are at least 49 structures and walls within the exposed, presently mapped area of the site. The structures at the north end appear to be arranged Continued on Page 12 call 226-4507 located south of town Page 4 Visitor Guide January 5, 2007 Kite Surfing Continued from Page 3 Su Doku (Answers in next week’s Issue) Ron enjoys his first lesson in kite surfing, applying techniques taught by Chris. ing practically since the sport emerged sound like a lot of time, but Chris says as a popular extreme sport about eight the learning curve is very steep, once years ago. His company is the only one you figure out the basics in a few days; offering lessons on San Pedro. For most you can look like an expert. He com- students wishing to learn, it will take pares kite surfing to windsurfing. two, two and half hour lessons to get Where with windsurfing it may take up and moving on the board. This may Continued on Page 9 January 5, 2007 Visitor Guide Page 5 Lamanai are not present at the Marco clude the queen conch Strombus gigas and Maya Site Continued from Page 4 Gonzalez Site. Building foundations are other shells. All of these materials were into small plaza groupings, whereas else- building foundations rather than pyra- composed mainly of blocks of Pleistocene probably brought to the site by canoe, and/ where the building plan appears to be less mids, that range in height from 30 centi- limestone that probably was quarried or were hand-carried.