- Als je een comment achterlaat, zet dan AUB ook je naam ín de comment. Ik zie geen e-mail adressen o.i.d , enkel anoniem-
-If you leave a comment PLEASE include your name ín the comment. I don't see e-mails addresses, only anonymous-
Pics and videos below in random order
Walking down the street to the guesthouse in Hopkins, I passed a few kids. They asked me if I wanted some cherries and opened one hand which was full of habanero peppers haha. I said no before I even saw them. Got to the guesthouse and was able to check in soon after. Sat on the beach for a bit and read my book. Finished it there as well on my last day. Also walked around for a bit, there's golf carts here as well as everywhere I've been to in Belize. It was sooo hot when I was walking on one of my days there, it's always hot when you are not near the water btw. Anyway, I passed a fruit stand with a golf cart in front of it and was thinking how great it would be to get a ride. They guy left and pulled up next to me and asked if I wanted a ride. Yes, please! Haha. Must have read my mind. Unfortunately I already walked most of it but still! I was again confronted with it being (s)low season. Also why it's been so hard doing any activities or tours, you need a minimum of 2 or pay double and most things are already $100. The place looked liked a ghost town. Everything I passed was pretty much empty. Until I got to this nice 'resort' with a pool. That's where the tourists were hanging out. I almost booked it as well but it was too expensive. Had a few drinks down there and made my way back to the guesthouse. Walked down the beach this time, which came with a nice breeze. And I had a buddy during my time at the guesthouse, a dog, that would always lay with me whenever I was on the beach :-). There's so many dogs and cats all around Belize, all well fed though. They seem to take really good care of them! Most have an owner but even the strays are well taken care off.
I met another local down here, she stayed at the same guesthouse I was in. And she told me about the economy and that there's more and more expats moving to Belize. It's good for economy but also bad for the economy as they also take some of the jobs. And I feel as if it takes away some of Belizes authenticity. She also told me how strict they are when it comes to tourism standards. And if you were to report a tour guide or a place you stayed at for not being treated well, they get high punishments and/or get their licenses taken away. Because the country lives on tourism. It was all very interesting. She also explained the history of Belize, the meaning of the flag, the origin of the Creole language, the other languages spoken in Belize and the different people that live here. Hispanic, Creole, Carribean, Chinese. Chinese have all the supermarkets haha, it's true. I also went out to dinner with her and another local friend of her. You don't use your seat belt. It is a 'new' law to use it, but she said that it was not enforced and people just don't care. Until there's an accident and somebody dies and they can blame it on them not wearing a seatbelt. But back to the car ride to dinner. Besides the seatbelt, all of the warning signs were either on or blinking and I've seen that in taxi's as well. But again, nobody seems to care. Her car had tinted windows, also in the front which made it very hard to see the road. Especially because we went over a super dark road, but she drove 5-10mph so it was ok I guess. Another adventure. The local place was fun. Her friend told me that she just heard about a Zika outbreak just as I got bit by a mosquito haha. Great times.
On my final night here, I finally was able to go on the bioluminescence boat tour. Wanted to do that on day one but two companies told me it was too bright with the full moon out. But the manager from the guesthouse told me I could still go that final night. You also see other things and the bio is still visible in the mangroves where it's dark he said. Besides, I'm always in for a boatride so I went! There was an older and younger guy. The manager had told me about the older guy and how much he knew. But it was the younger guy that would do the boat tour with me that night the older guy said.
The older guy said I had good vibes and should stay longer haha, also called me dear. And soon after wished us a good night and left. We got on the boat and the younger guy called me baby girl haha it was funny and I didn't mind. He went out of his way to get different types of mangos because he wanted me to taste them. There was over 20, Common mango aka mango no 11, Slipper, Blue mango. And also mixed ones. I tried a few, all with their different tastes and also depending on what stage they were in. The trees are always so full. It's a sight to see, sometimes reminded me of Christmas trees. Lots of iguanas as well and herons and other birds. A few crocs and a racoon up high in a tree. We got close to the banks a few times when it was super dark and after some talk of them spotting jaguars once, that was quite excited. What if it would jump on the boat haha. We ended up at the Bioluminescence spot, which looked like a huge lagoon part. And this guy had studied everything about it he said and still loves learning about it. And so I got to see it, and not just in the mangroves. He went in circles and the water just lit up. It was just like magic!!! Some said it reminded them of Life of Pi. And for some reason I was thinking of The little Mermaid. But it was so cool. Also when I touched the water with my hand and made different shapes and stuff. A bit scary at first cause you could see all the fish that lit up as well. An underwater galaxy, one to remember!!
I left the next morning and have had a bit of a cough and a cold for the last few days. Maybe from the a/c and the air coming out. And so I slept ok that last night. To be fair, I haven't had a full night sleep the entire time I've been in Belize hihi. Anyways, I coughed up a bit of yellow saliva to pretty sure it was a sinus infection of some sort. Recorded a short video on the beach for a babyshower that I couldn't attend that day. And took the taxi to the Junction where I had to take a bus to Belmopan. I was going to meet up for breakfast with the local lady I met in Hopkins, before catching a bus to San Ignacio. It was a comfortable bus, music was blasting through the speakers (great local music though!!) and a/c was also on full power, I even put on a sweater. The views were great, lots of green and small villages in between mostly. I wrote my first blog on this bus. And I also looked at the scenery a lot. It made me want to stay longer and explore more of this country
but also this part of the world. Having limited time already made me want to stay longer to begin with. I've got a longer leave planned for next year but as I'm traveling again as I am now, back to basics, meeting great people and wanting to take my time, I want to just do it now.
On the way I also saw a few people dressed as Amish (Mennonites here) and it reminded me of the two I saw on the flight here. I later learned that there's a big community and that they own Western Dairies, yucky icecream haha. But we were told it was Belizes best so we tried it.
Got to Belmopan and met up with the local lady. She showed me around Belizes capital. And again told me a lot about the country and culture. We also talked about traveling and other stuff. We walked around for a bit as well and she then dropped me off at a bus stop half way to San Ignacio already. She waited with me. I saw a flyer with a missing woman, white lady and her face being crossed out... The bus finally showed after almost an hour but it was full and didn't stop. There was a taxi right behind it, collectivo, so I hopped in for a few Belizian Dollars and said good bye to the local lady!
Paid a few extra dollars extra to get dropped off at my accomodation. No a/c again but jungle like setting on the river! Plenty of chances to spot birds and maybe other wildlife and free(style) tubing on the river. Welcome to Parrot Nest Lodge!!
No comments:
Post a Comment