Belize's Eclectic Eden: Maruba Resort and Jungle Spa

Maruba Resort Jungle Spa is Belize’s eclectic Eden and the ideal base for explorations of the enigmatic Maya city-states in northern Belize and the spectacular Barrier Reef, a World Heritage Site. Prepare to be overwhelmed. Even the mysterious name of Maruba conjures up images of a lost sun-kissed cosmos of half-forbidden sensual delights. Miraculously located in the midst of the remote jungle 30 miles north of Belize’s International Airport, thatch-roofed pleasure domes are revealed as you dream-walk through jungle thickets. Whimsical Maya statues are strewn alongside the meandering white stone pathways. And in the evenings, a kinkajou may well make a bit of a ruckus as it drops a coconut on the way ahead.

Mystical Maruba is the labor of love of the larger-than-life Nicholson family, charismatic Trinidadian Dr. Merickston Nicholson, his gorgeous wife Anna and their four fabulous children. They envisioned a fantasy, an alternate way of life: providing guests with an unforgettable retreat offering holistic healing for body, mind and soul in an idyllic setting. Their artistic vision and tireless dedication bore magnificent fruit.

The avant-garde accommodations were brilliantly designed by Franziska Nicholson: feather beds with gorgeous hardwood headboards, a kaleidoscope of tiles on floors, in bathrooms, stone tubs; evocative objects of art adorn golden walls, and a profusion of red hibiscus flowers bids you welcome. Just relax...take it in...an alchemy of sorts takes place as surreal objects tantalize your psyche. Tentacles of ancient longings and reveries, dormant much too long, awaken. You’ll shed your old ways of seeing and thinking like a fer-de-lance sheds its outdated skin.

Guests revel in hedonistic rituals in the African-inspired treatment rooms. Exotic emollients are massaged into receptive, tired bodies; aromatic incenses and hypnotic music subtly alter emotions. Colorful Mood Muds as well as the leaves and blossoms of the red hibiscus are tattooed onto your body in a design of rapture; your hair, too, coiled with the mixture. Who knew that even mud can be beautiful? You are literally transformed into a work of art, a living, moving being of intense emergence! You reach forward and backward into the power of now. The goddess, the god, have been awakened, alluring, eternal Flora and the irresistible faun-like Pan!

To the stone baths in an open-air tiled enclosure in the midst of the sunlit green jungle. Astonishing multi-colored stone tubs await, and sheer silks of lemon and tangerine hung overhead waft gently in the breeze. Although you are cleansed of the magical Mood Muds, the memory has been branded into your soul to live on, from that defining moment forward, to shape your destiny!

Mornings may bring a workout in the small well-equipped gym. Routines are interspersed with occasional sips from a coconut embellished with what else but a red hibiscus. Breakfast is served in the charming patio or in what seems like a tree-house reached by a spiral staircase. Pastel silks softly billow from the ceiling; leopard and zebra print cushions decorate chairs. You drink in the wonderful view of fuchsia bougainvillea, thatched roof structures, allamandas and mandevillas entwined in the luxuriant jungle growth. The morning feast includes sweet natural juices, delicious freshly-made breads, preserves of pumpkin, mango, guava.

Dining in the evenings is like entering Casablanca. An Arabian Nights ambiance has been captured in the dining area lit by a glowing neon palm tree. Place mats are palm fronds at romantically arranged candle-lit tables. You have entered a sumptuous theater of the palate created by Maruba’s exceptionally imaginative, talented chefs. Taurean Jerry unobtrusively attends to every wish. The "nouveau jungle" cuisine includes wild game, seafood, and the most succulent sweet lobster ever; delectable soups and salads, exotic libations, and tantalizing desserts such as the fruit flambe.

Daytime pleasures may include horseback riding, medicinal jungle hiking, swimming in a waterfall pool, or merely lazing in enchanting, secluded little niches. Gracious attendants discreetly seek you out to serve delicacies and sublime rum-based concoctions. Tours off-property are efficiently arranged by the congenial staff, whether to Ambergris Caye for diving in the world’s second longest barrier reef or to the fascinating archaeological sites of Lamanai ("submerged crocodile" in Maya) and Altun-Ha ("rockstone pond" in Maya).

Incredibly, the vast Maya port city of Lamanai was inhabited for over three thousand years, from approximately 1500 BC to AD 1675, and in ages past may have been the "Great Eastern Capital" referred to in hieroglyphic texts. Lamanai encompasses over 950 acres, making it Belize’s second-largest Maya site, exceeded only by Caracol. It was to languish in near isolation for the next few centuries, bypassed by archaeologists until the 1970’s. Like Indiana Jones, tourists traverse the jungle trails with black howler monkeys (called baboons by Belizeans) hooting overhead, amidst towering guanacaste, mahogany and ceiba trees, and spying magnificent black orchids, Belize’s national flower. Many attempt a jaguar crawl up the steep steps of the 112-foot Preclassic "El Castillo" temple, N10-43 (200 BC). From the heady summit, you view the immense jungle canopy and the glistening broad expanse of the New River Lagoon. The descent may be perilous, even while clutching a thick sisal rope, especially if the rain god happens to bless the site during your visit! An enormous limestone face emerges from the mouth of a crocodile on "The Mask Temple," portraying a god or ruler whose name has been forgotten in the mists of the past. A stela (AD 625) depicting the ruler Lord Smoking Shell lies nearby.

Reaching Lamanai is high adventure in itself as most opt to travel there by canopied motorboat over the twisting wide New River. Great egrets, white ibises, rare jabiru storks, can be spotted and perhaps a crafty Morelet crocodile peering from the deep with dragon eyes. Basilisk lizards (also known as the Jesus lizard) "walk on water" and long-legged jacanas dance over masses of lily pads. On rainy days, although protected by thick yellow rain-gear, somehow water finds its way to totally drench adventurers onboard. Unless testing survival skills, sunny days prove a far less arduous travel experience.

At the relatively small but wealthy site of Altun Ha (600 BC -AD 900), deep within the recesses of the Temple of the Green Tomb, archaeologists uncovered the corpse of a priest-king accompanied by jaguar and puma skins, jade pendants and shells. However, the most sensational find at Altun Ha was the largest carved jade object found to date in the Maya world, an ornate mask sculpture of the "sun" preceding our era, the bird-deity Wuqub Kaqix. This awesome treasure, weighing 9 3/4 lbs., is stored in a bank vault in Belize City; the replica can be viewed in the Museum of Belize.

Countless treasures are securely held within the bosom of Mother Earth, likely never to be discovered. But the glorious artifacts which have been found are a testament to man’s amazing creative abilities and his abiding search for the beautiful and meaningful. After the peak experiences at Maruba Resort Jungle Spa and the secretive lost worlds nearby, nothing will ever be the same!

For reservations and information: Mayatour, 800-392-6292; info@mayatour.com, www.mayatour.com
Belize Tourist Board: Tel. 800-624-0686, www.travelbelize.org

For tours to this fascinating area, contact Mayatour:
800-392-6292
info@mayatour.com • www.mayatour.com