This is a guest post from Richard. Today was all about Mayan ruins. And wildlife, and McAfee's house. We joined a group of US military (here in an unofficial capacity of course) on a boat trip and tour of Lamanai, a significant Mayan site. It was several times larger than yesterday's ruin; it was home to over 60,000 people at its height between 400 and 700 AD. Significantly, we learned more about the whole "human sacrifice" thing. It seems there is some disagreement among historians on this point. Either they sacrificed people willy-nilly or they only did so in times of extreme distress or to avoid conflict. Either way, we do know that the kings had bones through their noses so that bit remains true, which is reassuring.
One thing that has been on our minds since we got here is the American expat eccentric/nut job Bill McAffee. For those not up on his story, McAffee came to Belize several years ago, ostensibly to develop a wonder drug made of ingredients found only in the rain forests of Belize. Always an odd bird with a penchant for guns, McAfee gradually spun out of control. He took up with a 16 year old girl (of ill repute), and later shot and killed his neighbor(allegedly, reportedly). He was on the run from the authorities for several months, all the while showing up on podcasts and in press interviews before eventually returning to the States. I had always heard that McAfee lived out in the rain forest. Turns out, his compound was located next door to the Lamanai boat docks. We got some nice photos of the 12-plus buildings in his compound (enough to house his armed guards) . So, in the end, we saw three mythical things today: the ancient Mayans, McAfee and the US military.
