Belize is the smallest country located in Central America. It is the first country you come to after leaving Mexico. For us, it was very different than the other countries we had visited in South America as it was more like Jamaica than Latino in atmosphere, and very expensive as tourism is its number one money maker. This is the view out of the Belcove Hotel where we stayed in Belize City.
The Home Depot was right down the street as well! There were no American fast food restaurants so we really had to work to find good places to eat. We found that Christmas is a huge holiday for the local people, and many closed up their businesses just to get in more shopping!
The Belize Zoo is a popular attraction with animals that were all rescued from a movie project years ago. They had an interesting collection of animals from jaguars to birds and monkeys, along with this entertaining fellow. They are not kidding about his peeing ability either!
The terrian was very flat and the weather in the 80s while we were there in December. This is our lunch break spot between the cave tubing and the zoo. Of course, we had the standard Belizian meal of chicken, rice and red beans; again.
The entrance for the river was about a 30 minute hike up through the jungle. The activity is very popular, especially with the cruise ships, so we waited until the loud big group in front of us headed out before starting. It was definitely way better with a small group of four and a knowledgeable guide than the screaming banshees up ahead of us.
This is the crew we went cave tubing with.
Inside the caves was very cool. You could see all the stalagmites and tites along with different rock formations. There were two sets of caves to float through, both formed by the river eroding away the limestone rock over time.
Steve heading through the rocks toward the river.
We went out to Cucumber Beach for the day, the only beach actually around on Belize. If you want the sandy beaches you see on TV, you have to take the ferry out to the surrounding keys off of Belize. We enjoyed having the place to ourselves after the tour groupies scrambled back to their boats!
This is out at San Pedro, a short ferry ride away. It was a great place to go out diving and snorkeling. It was amazing how many resorts were on this little island strip.
Steve always seems to be in all the pictures!
Couch is very popular to eat here and you could find piles of shells from where the meat had been cut away to serve in the restaurants. A little too chewy for me, but good exercise for your jaw I guess!
English is the native language as the country is still under the control of England and the Queen. Most people though spoke Spanish and their own version of Creole. If you can read the sign, you can interpret the Creole!
Belize was an experience that was different than we expected, but unique in its own ways and an enjoyable experience!