Won’t You Take Me To Monkey Town – Gumbolimba Park Roatan

Roatan, Honduras – Day 5 Part 1  Won’t You Take Me To Monkey Town – Gumbolimba Park

I woke to rain (again) but then saw the faintest rainbow, and I knew it would be a good day. I showered and ordered my room-service breakfast and got online to see what Veronica was up to. It was the first day since I’d been in Roatan where an outing was possible, and since I had no interest in water based activities I reviewed the literature Ana the Guest Services Manager had left for me.

I went to the lobby of Las Verandas to see what we could arrange and to call for Emsley. Keila, the General Manager to beat all General Managers, came to see what I was up to. She made a few calls, and the next thing you know I was off to pick up Veronica and head out for our days adventures: Gumbolimba Park and Horseback Riding.

Keila had suggested we go to Gumbolimba Park as they had many things to do in one location. The park is in West Bay, which is about 45 minutes from Las Verandas. We were greeted upon arrival and given our visitor badges. But first, some pics with the My Beautiful Belize Informational brochure from San Pedro Sun. Apparently, even Conquistadors love the periodical

Ryan, our tour guide, brought us into the Insectarium.

There were a lot of bugs in there, and tons of beautiful butterflies. It was really rather interesting and I wanted to take pictures of all the butterflies but really, who wants to look at those pics? Here are my favorite from the Insectarium.

 

Next we were taken to the Coxen Hole Cave. This man-made cave houses a mini museum. We entered the ‘history room” (as I call it) and the guide pointed out the fruit bats hanging from the ceiling. I am a wuss, and I was afraid and sorta screamed like a 5 year old girl, which of course resulted in making the bats start flying around and toward me, which resulted in me screaming more and sorta flailing about in a very elegant fashion.

Ryan gave us a geographical overview of Roatan, and also reviewed the murals on the wall which depicted the various cultures represented. Interestingly, Roatan also has a village called Punta Gorda, and it is also where the Garifuna have settled. The Garifuna are descendents from the laves brought from Africa and they have maintained much of their incredibly rich, vibrant, musical culture.

 

We were then led across a suspension bridge, and this is when things got really interesting. Before we finished crossing, white faced monkeys started coming toward us. And then they started climbing ON us. This little fella just clung onto me as I walked around. Veronica wasn’t nearly as enthused by this whole thing.

“Won’t you take me to, Monkey Tooown!” – try to get it out of your head…

All of their monkeys were either donated, rescued or born at the park. Diego, who apparently enjoys My Beautiful Belize, was a pet at one point in his life, so he was very friendly and loved to sit on your lap and be petted.

The macaw is the national bird of Honduras and they have several of them at the Park. The macaw mates for life and are inseparable once paired. The only way for a human to tell the difference between the male and female, according to Ryan, is via DNA test.

While macaws normally nest in the trees, this is not an option at the park. The birds adapt, and this pair is digging a hole, together, for the babies which must be on their way.

In the late 90’s, according to Ryan, the rare Black Iguana was discovered in Roatan. Apparently, it is only found in Roatan, and in no other place on earth. It is cold blooded, unlike the green iguana, and lives on the ground and must be warmed by the sun. This fella has a skin infection, and that’s what the white is about. Ryan said something about it, but I forget.

They have some beautiful trees and décor at the park, and I really think it would be an incredible place for a wedding, reception or party.

 

The park costs $30 usd and includes full day use of the pool and beach. There is another optional ziplining tour that takes about 1.5 hours. We didnt do that this day, but we did some folks flying through the air. Unfortunately, I couldnt get my camera out in time.  

is this the same as a gibnut?  they called it something different in Roatan, which was originally named Rat Island, interestingly enough.