Guatemalan Maya make their living selling souvenirs at the border between Belize and Guatemala at Benque Viejo.

A simple bus ride from the capital of Belmopan or the commercial capital Belize City west for the town of San Ignacio, will allow the adventure traveller's dreams to become a reality. For once you arrive in San Ignacio Town, the 'de-facto' capital of the Cayo District of Belize, one should waste no time. Real time in-country information about what is actually happening in Belize as well as the Cayo District of the western Caribbean hot spot can be best accessed by talking to Bob Jones, owner and operator of Eva's located at 22 Burns Street in the heart of San Ignacio Town. No doubt, Eva's is the best place in San Ignacio to gain that local Cayo perspective you will need to answer questions regarding your safety and security that those rough guidebooks and Belize forums failed to address. No matter how much time you spent trying to get those ex-pat brains on Belize to clarify their position, in the end, it's you and yours upon against the challenges of travelling in Belize.

At Eva's, Bob Jones will explain in no uncertain terms over an ice-cold local beverage of choice just what travel around Belize or over the borderline into Guatemala will entail. He and his family and staff have advised travellers for years about the in and out of adventuring in western Belize. Mingled in between the advice, well they all guarantee that you and yours will be provided some of the very best food you'll likely to find in all of Belize, for the restaurant is one of the longest continually operated bargains in all of Belize.

Salvador, a Guatenmalan Taxi driver is working along the Belize-Guatemalan border, chauffeuring passengers to and from the border. For the right price Salvador can be hired for any destination in Guatemala.

And although some of the popular guidebooks tend to not mention Eva's, take it with a grain of salt, for Bob and his wife and the staff could care less about what those trivial travelogue advisers have to say about he and his family. Despite the crushing reality that I have never received a free meal nor a complimentary beverage from Eva's, I have been honoured by hours of clever conversation and insight discussing with the Jones what really happens in Belize.

Though the Belize forums are filled with chatters chatting furiously about what they believe is going goes on in Belize, only Bob and the folks at Eva's actually live there and in turn can tell you what to expect in the end. They are not vacationing ex-pats but are Belizeans with a heart and a family they live in San Ignacio day in and day out. Eva's still runs a clean place with excellent food and offers up massive burritos that will surly put Mexican vendors to shame. Best yet, Bob Jones will always, and I mean always, take the time to talk to a lonely traveller about the Cayo adventurer's options as they pertain to Guatemala. He will also answer any distant e-mailer queries from anyone possibly contemplating an adventure trek to Belize.

I know this because for close to ten years now I have come off the bus seats that pass through the town of San Ignacio on their way to their way west to the Belizean border shared with Guatemala, aptly referred to as Benque Viejo. From there it's a simple exit with the smile of the polite Belizean immigration and custom officials complimented by a short walk through the no-persons zone. Of course, you should be advised, the Guatemalan officials are not like the Belizeans and therefore you should be on your guard. For the Guatemalans realize for the most part that Western travellers are vulnerable. No, they realize that westerners are for the most part naive and will smile and simply agree to any form of intimidation they may care to levy in the travellers direction.

Temple I, the Temple of the Giant Jaguar, built in AD 870, towers 145 feet above the Great Plaza at the Maya Archaeological site of Tikal in Guatemala.

So if you are planning the road trip from Belize to Tikal, please do take the time to chill, to take that extra moment to ask Bob at Eva's to work you a border crossing deal with a reputable Belizean guide from San Ignacio who has a government issued license to protect you and yours. Even if you choose to do the trek on your own, Bob's free advise will inform you just how much to expect to pay to cross over the border, how much to make the trek to Tikal and how much time and effort you will be required to afford to make the trip and return back to where you began.

The best way to make the day trip or better yet a two day excursion to the Guatemala Maya site of Tikal is to let Bob recommend a Belizean based tour operator. The guide can finesse the Guatemalan immigration officials as well as insure that as soon as you either walk across the border or drive through that the process will be safe, secure, legitimate, and most importantly, culturally rewarding. However, Bob at Eva's guarantees a one-day tour package price of US$75 that includes transport, a qualified guide, lunch and entrance fees to the archaeological site of Tikal Guatemala. The only change after years of offering the package is the additionally newly imposed BZ$37.50 for the exit and return fees at the border between Belize and Guatemala. All said, your road trip from Eva's and back will cost you less than US$100 per person for the adventure of a lifetime. Please note that if the guide is better than expected then tip he or she. And if they were less than expected, tell Bob about your ordeal when you get back to Eva's.

When the hassles of departure from Belize to Guatemala for your return road trip are put aside, and once you have either taken a spot on a tour or been met by the Guatemalan counterpart on the other side of the checkpoint, in the end your adventure to Tikal will impress even the seasoned travellers beyond belief. The temples are stunning, the cultural experience will last a lifetime, plus by the end of the day when you are completely drained of energy, not to worry. For when you get back to Eva's Restaurant Bob Jones will be there with a cold one and hot meal, smiling and asking from the heart, "So, how'd it go?"

For additional information and reserving your spot on Eva's adventure to Tikal please write Bob direct at evas@btl.net.