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Published: November 14th 2011
(Pretend I posted this on time, when I first started writing it last weekend...)
After a hard week at school I was in dire need of some spirit rejuvenation and some inspiration. And where else to look but to nature and history!
In the morning, after the market for my veggies, I took a run out to the big hill at the back of town called Cerro Hill - about 5km from my house. After running way past where the "path" starts, I finally saw some people who I could ask about it. I was a little tentative about asking two men where the tiny, lonely, far from town path was when I was clearly alone, but I figured if I got weird vibes, I would take note of the entrance and come back another day. Here were the directions "Go back a way then there's two old cement houses where nobody live, there's the path." The houses turned out to be these two small shed sized cement constructs, and the entrance to the path was a slightly less densely overgrown area haha No wonder I missed it!
After pushing through the leaves and vines, the trail was
Wire Rope
A bit of a climb at some points!narrow but defined, so I was grateful. I figured as long as I kept going UP I was going the right way. And when I wanted to get back, I would just go DOWN. And up it definitely went. It was so steep all the way out - it's a good thing I've done a lunge or two before, my legs were getting a workout! At one point there is even a wire rope because it's just all rock face and you really have to just climb it with hands too.
Hikes like that are always worth the effort because the view from the top of a steep hill is unbeatable! I swear I could see our whole district - trees and trees forever! And looking back toward town you could see PG and the sea beyond it. A beautiful moment where I could really appreciate the beauty of where I have been living!
The climb down was as much of a challenge as the scramble up. I made it down after only falling on my butt a couple of times. Oh, and there was the thing with almost running face first into a giant tarantula in her
web that was made across the trail. Being eye to eye, 2 inches away, is close enough for me thank you! All in all - made it out with just a couple scrapes and more than a few bug bites but enough beautiful views to keep me going for a while.
The afternoon of my adventure day included taking the bus about 45 minutes out of town and getting dropped off where the road turns in to the Nim Li Punit ruins. It's only about one kilometer to the ruins entrance from the highway, and again - thanks to some big hills to walk up, you get some beautiful views of the rainforest!
The ruins themselves aren't really spectacular, but the highlights of the site are the stele (long piece of rock, stonehedge style) with maya carvings on them. Also - there were two tombs that they had excavated that you could look down into. My history heart thinks that kind of thing is pretty cool - cool to be standing where someone stood hundreds and hundreds of years ago, looking at the same thing they did. Also pretty fun to walk around a ruins site by yourself
- I was the only one at the site, other than the guard at the main office.
After walking around a bit, I headed back to the highway to wait for the next bus that felt like driving by, flagged it down, and went home.
So after a lovely Saturday of local adventuring, my spirit was definitely rejuvenated, to say the least.
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Auntie Paula S
non-member comment
You truly look like you have a Happy Spirit
It's so great to see how much you are enjoying your surroundings, and taking advantage of the time you have there. I am enjoying this place so much through your eyes. Keep the pics coming. XO