From Saturday, March 3, through Saturday, March 10, 2012 we were in the tiny country of  Belize, to pursue our theme of ancient Maya 'Caves and Cayes', exploring the site of enormous Caracol, the small site of Cahal Pech across the street from our hotel, and extraordinary Xunantunich, near the Belizean/Guatemalan border. Due to heavy rain, we could not enter ATM cave, with human sacrifices and pottery still intact, but we visited the innovative Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center, and spend three days on St. George's Caye, a tiny island in the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, where we visited an aquarium, went sailing and kayaking and snorkeling. We loved Belize so much, we are planning on returning in 2013!  

This trip is not sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh.

Although designed for those interested in anthropology, archaeology and environmental science, it is open to all students, faculty, staff, alumnae, board of directors, and their family and friends. If you are interested, contact Isabelle Champlin at igc@pitt.edu  

See the full itinerary and prices at the Maya Exploration Center website:     Maya Exploration Center 

For information about the Maya Spring Break Travel Award (The Brian Calhoun Travel Award), see the links to the right.  Fill out the form and contact Prof. Champlin for an appointment.  

Maya Spring Break Application:  Maya Application  

The group at a pair of ceiba trees at Caracol. From left to right: Isabelle Champlin, Dr. Morio Arimoto, Dr. Christopher Powell, Karen Croyle, Janet Thorn behind Annette Morales, Abbie Arnold, and Morgan Emery behind Yumiko Noda.
The tiny English-speaking country of Belize. We were mainly in San Ignacio, in the west, and on St. George's Caye, the island east of Belize City.	Entering Actun Tunichil Muknal cave, a portal to the Maya underworld. More about ATM Cave: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actun_Tunichil_Muknal
Belize is a wildlife lover's paradise, especially for bird-watching.	Snorkeling on the Belize Reef.
Caracol's gigantic Caana or Sky Palace is still the tallest man-made structure in the country. Each of the three pyramids on top is 'normal' size. It is shown next to a LIDAR image of it. For more information about the LIDAR survey, see http://www.archaeology.org/1007/etc/caracol.html