SimonBurchell
Justified & Ancient
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2001
- Messages
- 2,742
- Location
- Somewhere in the labyrinth
Looking for somewhere to dump this memory of a mystery buzz, it might as well be here as anywhere I suppose. About 20 years ago I was living in Guatemala, and would regularly take myself off into the back of beyond to explore Maya ruins (the country is covered with them). On this occasion I had headed out to Uaxactun, a small jungle hamlet built around an old disused airstrip, and an uncomfortable and long bus journey from Santa Elena, the nearest town. The hamlet is in the middle of the ruins of an ancient Maya city, largely eaten by the jungle, but with a few prominent buildings cleared by archaeologists. I stayed overnight in the only hotel, and made the mistake of relying on their mosquito net rather than my own, much to my regret the next morning...
Anyway, the next morning I headed out to explore the ruins, divided into two main groups on either side of the airstrip. I was visiting a quite famous (in Maya archaeological terms) pyramid in a jungle clearing, I recall there were a couple of horses tethered in the clearing to graze, but no-one else was around. The pyramid was manky and moss-covered, and the stucco sculptures for which it was famous were pretty much obliterated by the moss etc. As I was standing by the pyramid I became aware of the distant buzz of insects gradually getting louder and louder, until it was an overwhelming roaring buzz. I was expecting to see a migrating swarm of bees fly directly overhead but could see nothing - although I could only see the sky in the little clearing around the pyramid, otherwise the forest canopy was too dense. I was somewhat concerned that I might become the victim of a stinging horde of nasties but after a minute or two of this roaring buzz, it gradually faded and eventually disappeared. I still think there must have been a huge swarm of bees passing nearby, but I didn't see a single one. If it was that loud and I couldn't see them, I can't imagine how loud it must have been directly under the swarm.
Anyway, the next morning I headed out to explore the ruins, divided into two main groups on either side of the airstrip. I was visiting a quite famous (in Maya archaeological terms) pyramid in a jungle clearing, I recall there were a couple of horses tethered in the clearing to graze, but no-one else was around. The pyramid was manky and moss-covered, and the stucco sculptures for which it was famous were pretty much obliterated by the moss etc. As I was standing by the pyramid I became aware of the distant buzz of insects gradually getting louder and louder, until it was an overwhelming roaring buzz. I was expecting to see a migrating swarm of bees fly directly overhead but could see nothing - although I could only see the sky in the little clearing around the pyramid, otherwise the forest canopy was too dense. I was somewhat concerned that I might become the victim of a stinging horde of nasties but after a minute or two of this roaring buzz, it gradually faded and eventually disappeared. I still think there must have been a huge swarm of bees passing nearby, but I didn't see a single one. If it was that loud and I couldn't see them, I can't imagine how loud it must have been directly under the swarm.
Last edited: