You better BELIZE it!

Now, only a few of you know how dismayed and unenthusiastic I was to take this trip. My NGO thought it better to send 4 American girls on a voyage to Belize for visa renewals, rather than put us on a safe plane and have us on our way, in order to save a few dollars. I have some choice words for this said NGO, but I can only be so angry, hmm that is a strong word, I will use irritated. Yes, so like I was saying before, I can only be so irritated because I did not die. Have any of you ever seen the meme about someone driving recklessly/bad driver and the driver says, "but did you die?". It's funny when you see the meme, which if I find while writing this I will attach, but not funny to be the passenger in the car, or in my case the American who needs her visa renewed in order to keep teaching my cute little poor Hondurans.

Anyways, let me begin the story. Ok, I am not completely ready yet because I have to inform you that the only reason I am writing this blog post at 9 am on a Monday morning is solely because school was cancelled today! Lord Jesus knows how happy I am because I am still so exhausted from this weekends' travels. I woke up with the notion I would be fatigued all day at work, but then we got to the bus stop and our driver says it was broken, hallelujah! I screamed. While my director was figuring out what to do about the children and the day etc, I said a short prayer that I will share with you all today, "Dear God, I have never asked you for anything today, please let school be canceled because of this bus, Amen". Low and behold my prayers were answered!

Finally, I am ready to tell you all about this ridiculous journey to Belize. Remember, no planes were boarded in the process of writing this post* The plan for us was to take 2 buses to the Honduran border (public buses), get out and walk to the migration office and cross the border by foot, then get on a bus (public bus) in Guatemala to travel to Puerto Barrios. While on the bus in Guatemala, we were to stop at an migration office and give the driver our passports to get stamped (not a joke, but I am chuckling as I write this), then go to Puerto Barrios and go to the migration office there and then get on a speedboat to Belize. Now, remember the above mentioned was the plan they had for us to go to Belize. I was livid about this plan and downright frightened. I forgot to write ransom money for each American traveler was to be given to hide on their person, if you so happened to get kidnapped on this trip. I had no plans of dying while in Honduras, but if God forbid it happened, I imagined it to gang violence while doing a really heroic thing like teaching, or getting robbed on my way to work and one of the assailants guns goes off. Something like that (I'm still chuckling), but the fact that I already live in the most dangerous country in the world, I was very shocked my company was willing to play with my life like this.

Ok, so what actually happened was we got a ride to the Honduran border by one of our trusted drivers -2 hour ride. We then had to go to the migration office in Honduras and get the paper tourist visas that we got upon entry ripped out of our passport (such an ugly nuisance for me), then we walked across the border and we had to change money. Changing money on the street you will always get ripped off, but what choice is there. So we exchanged Lempiras (Honduran currency) to Quetzales (Guatemalan currency) and then we got on one of those sketchy buses on our way to the port. Luckily for us, it was very early in the morning so it was mostly women on the bus, and the only real sketch-ball was the man who collected the money and helped people load and unload. We went to the migration office in Guatemala, got another stamp since we were exiting the country, and stayed in Guatemala for 2 hours waiting for the boat to come. Then, at last the little speedboat came by, and we boarded. To my surprise I do not get sea sick. Once I ignored the fact I was in a little speedboat, with too many people in my opinion, I just looked out into the beautiful Caribbean Sea for the hour ride.

Alas, we get to Belize, I did not think anywhere could be hotter than Honduras, I was wrong, not the first or last time. Belize is hot my friends, I think the sun is hotter there. I felt like the sun was standing behind me the entire time I was there, but it was beautiful! We stayed in Punta Gorda, a very quiet beach town. This is a place you do not know what language to speak first, English is the official language, but this place reminded me more of Trinidad and Jamaica. I loved it! There is a heavy current Mayan culture in Belize - Mayan ruins are located throughout the country. The food was amazing. I think, actually I know, the reason I liked Belize so much was because it's a caribbean country and I am, you guessed it, Caribbean. I felt like I would eat this food at my grandmothers house or aunts, fried red snapper, red beans and rice, fried plantains, pickles (there is an accent somewhere there). I also found hair products! I was so happy. I needed shampoo with a colored girls face on it and products that would not make me go bald. Although I was there for a very short period of time, I got a chance to really enjoy it. I could have stayed longer, the girls were missing Honduras, but I did not at all haha. I took a shower, with temperature control and water coming out of the shower head for the first time in 3 months, I almost cried (I'm cracking up). I then slept in AC with a full size bed for the first time in months, it was just a lot and wonderful! I had a lot of me time over looking the water and thinking and praying and I loved that! I am not completely anti-social, but I have a firm, non-negotiable need for alone time. Nonetheless, it was an adventure, the trip back was exactly the same.

I purposefully wrote this to answer all of my friends and family's questions simultaneously about my trip to Belize, enjoy the pictures!

                                                                  Happy Reading,
                                                                         Fabiola

Belize's national beer! Not bad

Many stamps- I don't hate it!

More stamps

Rainbow Cafe- Awesome breakfast!

Fry Jacks- so good! Tasted like Beignets

Me, Kate, Loli, Ella, Caroline- at the natural juice stand

Shot of Blackberry Wine @ 11am - You better BELIZE it!

View outside of the hotel room

Fresh Juice stand where we met Reggie and Loli - So many juices, we had Gooseberry, Ginger, Cantaloupe and Pineapple

Market on the water

 

My favorite breakfast! Chicken and Eggs

Chocolate and Vanilla x3 HAHA

Smile God loves you! At Waluco for our last dinner( I had the fried red snapper, but was too hungry to snap a pic and just devoured it haha)