Warning--Lamanai Landing Merchants

[maryannha123]

I almost hate to post this because the Lamanai trip was such a wonderful experience. I purchased a wooden bowl at one of the merchants at the Lamanai landing where the bus stops before you get on the boat for the trip upriver. It was a beautiful bowl which I purchased as a Christmas present for for a family member. When I went to wrap it, I noticed that there were two splits on the sides of the bowl. Obviously, the wood had not been dried properly before the artist made the bowl. There is probably nothing I can do about it, but it sent me scrambling at the last minute for a replacement present. This unfortunate incident did nothing to deplete my appreciation for the excursion & the wonderful people I met.

 

Maryann

[LeeW]

Sorry to hear you had a problem but it is actually pretty common with wood bowls. My cousin carves bowls to sell at early American fairs and sometimes sees this, especially on thin areas. We still have the one he carved for our wedding. Since we would never put liquid in it, the slight crack that has developed over 30 years isn't a problem. Pretty common in pueblo indian pottery as well, and doesn't detract much from the value.

[Mike2131]

I almost hate to post this because the Lamanai trip was such a wonderful experience. I purchased a wooden bowl at one of the merchants at the Lamanai landing where the bus stops before you get on the boat for the trip upriver. It was a beautiful bowl which I purchased as a Christmas present for for a family member. When I went to wrap it, I noticed that there were two splits on the sides of the bowl. Obviously, the wood had not been dried properly before the artist made the bowl. There is probably nothing I can do about it, but it sent me scrambling at the last minute for a replacement present. This unfortunate incident did nothing to deplete my appreciation for the excursion & the wonderful people I met.

 

Maryann

 

Hi Maryann!

Sorry to hear about your problem. When we took the tour in December we noticed a lot of the wooden items had some splits in them. Unfortunately we found very little in the way of appealing craft items to purchase in Belize. Like you, we absolutely enjoyed the tour but had done our shopping in other ports.