Belize Trip

I just arrived back from my trip to Belize.  I only have a travelers visa, which means that I must leave Guatemala every ninety days in order to renew it.  The only countries in Central America to renew a travelers visa are Belize, Mexico, and Costa Rica.

Mayan ruins in Petén

I started my trip by myself, but I met up with two other St. John´s volunteers in Cobán and stayed there for one night.  Cobán is about five hours away from Esquipulas with higher elevation.  I was happy to stop for the night there.  It was interesting to see what the other volunteers do at Cobán.  They do a lot of english teaching in some of the nearby aldeas of Cobán.  Their monastery has a school or the beginnings of a school on their property.  It looks like it will be a nice facility.  I enjoyed talking with the monks and other monastery workers to gain their perspective on their region.  The majority of people consist of native indigenous background with many different dialects in and around Coban.  The largest dialect is Q’eqchi, pronounced ke-chi.

Royal Palms, the largest in the world, covered the pathways

The next day we left early, but not as early as we hoped.  We planned on leaving at four in the morning, but we received a torrential downpour that left us without any electricity in the morning and roads in Guatemala are dangerous enough without water.  Once on the road we made a detour to see Mayan ruins.  We went pretty far on a worn down, dirt road.  The ruins were not all that impressive, but the atmosphere was.  We walked into the jungle and all we could hear was the echo of Hollower Monkeys.  Some seemed really close to us.  The echo resonated throughout the whole forest.  Plus, near this location, in Petén, they filmed the movie Apocolypto.  I could almost picture the Mayan people walking among us.

Welcome to San Pedro

A long day on the road and we finally made the Belize border.  I could tell from the start that I would like Belize.  I actually enjoyed the bus trip from the border to Belize City, which I can´t really say for any bus trips within Guatemala.  The buses are nicer and they have reggae music playing all the time.  It really can put a mind at ease.  Once in Belize City, we saw that the British settlement had a large impact on architecture and the currency still has the picture of the queen.

View from our hotel room

San Pedro, on Ambergris Caye (pronounced key), maintained the highlight of the trip.  Picture tropical isle with white sands, palm trees swaying in the breeze, and the water as bright blue as the sky.  Paradise.  We enjoyed nice accomodations at a low price on top of everything else.  Our two days were filled with snorkeling with sharks and rays; eating delicious seafood; and enjoying the sun.  Also, we just so happen to be on the island during the Garifuna Holiday.  Garifuna people consist of the African slaves that escaped captivity and made the mainland.  They have a distinct way of life and a unique dialect of english.  I have to mention that they have great musical taste.

Apparently this is the narrowest street in the world

Our trip back was great too.  We stopped along the way at a place called Placencia.  Here the mood was even more tranquilo than San Pedro.  There was little traffic because some of the main streets, or walkways in my mind, did not apply to cars and the place consisted of more sand than roadway.  It was a quick 24 hour visit, but the food and tranquil atmosphere recharged our batteries to enable us to finish our journey and return to Guatemala refreshed.

I will have to make it back to Belize again sometime.

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