Video: LAMANAI Mayan Ruins

Come join me on a tour of a very impressive Mayan city called Lamanai, in Belize, Central America. Lamanai means "submerged crocodile" and it is one of the largest Mayan cities in Meso-America.

It was inhabited for over 3,000 years, beginning about 1,500 BCE. Situated on the edge of a natural fresh-water lagoon and the navigable New River, it was an ideal place for the Mayans to live and work.

Lamanai can be reached by rough roads, but the ideal way to see it is from Orange Walk Town in Northern Belize. A speedboat takes us 32 miles downriver to the site with an impressive array of wildlife visible along the river banks as we go.

Like most Mayan city sites, Lamanai is only partially excavated. There are three main temples and other living quarters and ceremonial structures. The temple pyramids are: Jaguar Temple (named for the rough jaguar mask on the front bottom of the structure); the High Temple, which towers over 100 feet and affords a view of the jungle and river; and the amazing Mask Temple, with its two large carved masks. The faces on the masks show a strong Olmec influence along with formal Mayan royalty.