Blogs from San Ignacio, Cayo District, Belize, Central America Caribbean - page 10

There seems to be a real mix of influences and inhabitants to this part of the country. Creole, Lebanese, Spanish-Maya- Mestizo, English is the primary language spoken. American retirees mingle with traditional herbalists from around the district and the globe. On every street corner there are Chinese restaurants. There is a strong presence of time forgotten Amish, it’s at least 90 degrees with 90% humidity right now as I watch the men load horse and trap with their week’s supplies without breaking a sweat or a care to what is going on in the 21st centuries modern world, wearing starched long sleeved collarless shirts, denim bib overalls finished off with pudding bowl haircuts hidden under mennonite woollen hats. The ladies wear straw bonnets and long cape dresses similar to those seen on ‘little house on the ... read more

Belize, Orange Walk - San Ignacio So, jetzt bin ich also fast wieder up-to-date mit den Blogs. Bin gerade erst in Flores, Guatemala angekommen und tu mir wohl erst mal ein paar tage Ruhe an. Hab's mal ueberschlagen und bin bis jetzt so gegen 100 Stunden (also eine kurze Bucher-Arbeitswoche lang ;) ) in Bussen, Zuegen und Flugzeugen gesessen. Aber zuerst der Bericht ueber Belize. Von Tulum aus nach Chetumal an der mexikanisch-belizianischen Grenze gefahren, was wieder ziemlich gedauert hat und wollte mich eigentlich noch mit ein paar fancy Guetern wie nem Zelt, nem Kocher, Joggingschuhen, etc. eindecken bevor's dann ins richtige Zentralamerika ging. Aber im Bus Amil, nen Israeli, getroffen, der die gleiche Route vorhatte und so dann halt grad weiter gefahren nach Belize. Bloed war nur, dass er an der Grenze haengen geblieben ist ... read more

The wedding was amazing, something you only see pictures of and think that you cannot actually do that. We got lucky that it was overcast in the morning, so it kept it a little cooler and had a nice breeze. When the Sun would come out, it got hot quick. 2 cruise ships were visiting the site and gave us some great encouragement. People could not believe we were getting married up there. We changed in vacant rooms on the temple. Our minister could not make it up the steps, so we yelled our vows. It was hard with the wind blowing in our ears. The pictures are perfect, we could not ask for more. We are both so happy with how it turned out. On the way back, we were able to find some ... read more

One thing that I absolutely love about Galen is the emphasis they place on taking fieldtrips. In the past weeks I have taken many, but the one I am about to describe is stand alone. I did not think I would have the privelege to attend, as I am not in the course, though had inquired earlier. My roommates had left earlier for the adventure of a lifetime as far as I was concerned, and I was still lying about mentally preparing for the day (i.e. wishing I was still asleep, but thinking about getting up for breakfast). Imagine my surprise when my friend peers in the window, pops his head in, and shrieks, "ATM, now!" What is this ATM, that could be so exciting you wonder. Here in Cayo, ATM is synonomous with Actun ... read more

Sunday morning we woke up and headed over to Martha's to leave for an afternoon at the Pine Ridge. The ride out was over an hour on a dirt road in a van with a broken A.C. Needless to say it was pretty miserable. It might have been a bit better had the scenery not been so gloomy. What was once a beautiful pine forest (think Vermont) has been ravaged by the pine beetle for the last 5 years. What remains today is intermitant pine stands with massive pine mast artifacts in between. Our first stop was the Rio Cave. The cave has two entrances which can be seen from either side, and a sandy peninsula in the center. Our next stop was the Rio On Pools where we ate lunch and passed the time for ... read more