NEW YORK CITY 2026: CHINATOWN AND THE LOWER EAST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD

 May 29, 2026

Bob had planned a weekend birding trip to southern Arizona, and it dawned on me that I could ALSO plan a trip by myself. Where did I want to go? No problem there! New York City to visit our youngest son!

With not a lot of advance planning, I could not find a reasonable non-stop flight, so I caught a red-eye flight that went through Seattle and landed me in NYC around 6:00 AM.  I had boxed up and checked a family heirloom for our son, a carved wooden silverware box, that I had to check, and luckily for me, I have two free checked bags with Delta, so that made taking this along FAR preferable to shipping it some other way.

Also luckily for me, I got upgraded on both flights to Comfort Plus, which made the flights almost pleasant. I got a kick out of this life-sized stuffy that the man across the aisle from me was taking home. The flight attendant did make him put it in the overhead compartment. 😊

I arrived at the JFK airport, retrieved suitcase and my well-packed heirloom box (whew, it made it), which I attached it to the small wheeled cart I brought with me, and called an Uber. It cost me around $100 to get dropped off at my hotel, but the ease and convenience was worth it this time. I had a great view of Midtown Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge.

I stayed at the  Hotel Mimosa, a small boutique hotel in Chinatown a few blocks from my son's apartment.

GUATEMALA 2026: ANTIGUA

 March 21, 2026

Our last full day in Guatemala was spent in Antigua, which served as the capital from 1543 to 1773 when the country was part of the Kingdom of Spain. As a result, it is full of Spanish Baroque architecture and Old World charm and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Actually, Bob left early in the morning for a birding expedition, but I figured I could explore the Old Town area around our hotel by myself while he was gone. While I was looking for breakfast, I wandered into this park a few blocks from our hotel.

The "Fountain of the Sirens" was added in 1738. The four bare-chested women that are part of the fountain are quite eye-popping. It is no suprise that today the park is still a hub of activity, and when I was there, it was full of vendors, musicians, and tourists.

I enjoyed some pastries and wandered back towards our hotel. Shops across the cobblestone street from our room were just beginning to open. The street vendors were just starting to set up as well. Check out this guy bringing in an assortment of hats!

Before long, there was plenty of commerce going on. Under that pile of textiles is a little Guatemalan grandma selling her wares.

GUATEMALA 2026: LAKE ATITLAN

 March 19-20, 2026

We had an hour to kill in Flores in the afternoon before going to the airport. We had lunch in non-remarkable restaurant located on a floating dock, then walked around a bit near the seafront. Flores primarily exists these days as a jumping off point for Mayan ruins like Tikal, and yet it has a population over 45,000, ten times the size of the town I grew up in. The neighborhood around the restaurant was charming, and we even saw what appeared to be a working pay phone, something I haven't seen in years.

The Mundo Maya International Airport, just outside the city center, is very small--one small cafe, one large seating area, and one shop. Still, it is Guatemala's second-busiest airport.

I tried to get Bob interested in the birds flying around inside the terminal, but he wasn't buying it.

It was our first time, and probably will be our only time, on TAG Airlines (TAG = Transportes Aéreos Guatemaltecos):

The flight was short and uneventful. We were met at the airport by a driver who took us to our hotel about 30 miles away in Antiqua. (We had been told NOT to stay in Guatemala City.) The traffic was horrid and the drive took almost two hours.

GUATEMALA 2026: TIKAL NATIONAL PARK

 March 19, 2026

The next morning we had to be checked out of our charming ecolodge and ready to go by 4:50 a.m. We were picked up at 5:00 a.m. by a driver/guide named Roney, someone Bob had selected based on his reputation for birding expertise. Supposedly he is the best guide in northern Guatemala and we were lucky to have him as our guide in Tikal, our next destination.

Tikal was the #1 reason I wanted to travel to Guatemala. As a college student, I spent a summer on a study abroad in Mexico City. One weekend a group went on a field trip to Tikal, but I went with my friends to Acapulco. When the other group came back with their stories (but no photos as this was long before the digital camera), I was jealous and made the resolve that I would go to Tikal someday. That "someday" had come.

We got to the park just as the sun was rising, and long before we got to the archaeological site, Roney was scanning the treetops for birds, of which there didn't seem to be many. We spent a lot of time staring into the branches.

Not having binoculars, I had to be content with nature that was closer at hand. The red mushroom-looking thing below is a Helosis cayennensis (like "cayenne" pepper but not related except in color), a parasitic flowering plant.

BELIZE 2026: XUNANTUNICH, FAREWELL TO BELIZE, AND HELLO GUATEMALA!

The next morning we got up early to catch the water taxi back to Belize City, where we met our driver/guide who drove us the 2.5 hours to the archaeological site of Xunantunich (pronounced zoo-NAAN-tuh-nitch or zhuh-nan-TOO-nitch, depending on whom you ask). 

About halfway through the long drive, our guide spotted a Jabiru, a large stork on Bob's lifer list, which means it was the first time he had seen one. It has an impressive wingspan of 7.5 to 10 feet. Bob was very excited and got some photos of it on the ground as well as flying. This one is my favorite.

Shortly before the archaeological site, we stopped at a terrific little restaurant in San Jose Succotz called Benny's Kitchen, known for serving authentic local cuisine.

I had pibil, pork cooked in a pit and served with corn tortillas. It was fabulous--my best meal of the trip. We think Bob had cow foot soup, but he can't remember if he liked it or not.

BELIZE 2026: CAYE CAULKER DAY 2

 March 16, 2026

Bob had arranged a birding tour for our second day on Caye Caulker, which meant we got up at 5:30 AM. That was Joy #1. Joy #2 was when the first thing we did was get on a motorboat. After my experience on the water the previous day, that was exactly want I did not want to do.

However. it was a serene sea that we set out upon, and we never went very far from shore, and so my concerns were for naught.

Caye Caulker is actually two islands separated by a 20-foot channel know as The Split that was created by Hurricane Hattie in 1961. The southern island is home to the main village and tourist activity, and the northern island, where we were headed, is mostly uninhabitated and covered with mangrove forests.

BELIZE 2026: FLIGHT, A SPLENDIFEROUS HOTEL, CAYE CAULKER, AND MAL DE MER

 March 15, 2026

Spring break was coming up for me and we didn't have a trip planned. We decided rather last minute to take a trip to Guatemala, a country I've wanted to visit ever since I went to Mexico on a summer study abroad program in college. Bob connected with a tour company called Kimkim to work out the details. We decided to start in Belize as an entry point closer to Tikal, the place I was most interested in visiting.  

We left for LAX at 5:15 AM on March 15 and flew 4 hours and 40 minutes to Belize City, a relatively short flight for us. Belize City is the capital and largest city in Belize.

We were picked up at the airport by a driver who took us to the Golden Bay Hotel, a 30 minute drive. The hotel employee checking us in said, "Oh, looks like you got an upgrade."

That was an understatement.

Our very large door (on the right below) should have given us a clue as to what was inside, but we only noticed that later.