Archive for February, 2008
Random Belize Photo of the Moment
Here’s a shot of some of the houses on Caye Caulker that are very near the main Water Taxi pier. They really give a great first-impression of the place as the boat pulls up, but most of the rest of the island isn’t painted in rainbow pastels, unfortunately.
Date: February 29th, 2008 |
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Random Belize Photo of the Moment
Here’s a shot from Ambergris Caye. You can see that the mangrove forests have been cleared out from this section of the beach, although most of Ambergris and Caye Caulker are circled by mangroves so this is kind of unusual.
Date: February 26th, 2008 |
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US Embassy in Belize
Going to an embassy while you are traveling often means something troubling has happened. If you lost your passport, need new pages, or have some other traveling-related mishap that requires government intervention you’ll need to contact or go to the US Embassy in the Belize capital of Belmopan. The old US Embassy was located in Belize City, but the new embassy in Belmopan opened in December 2006. If you see a Belize City address somewhere that information is old.
If you’ve never needed or visited an embassy while traveling before you may be surprised to know the things they can/can’t …
Date: February 22nd, 2008 |
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Canadian Embassy in Belize
If you are a Canadian citizen and you need the services of your embassy the news here is mixed. The good news is there is a consulate office in Belize City that can perform most of the citizen services you might need. The bad news is that their hours of operation are limited and most of the heavy duty stuff is handled at the Guatemala City Canadian Embassy, which runs the little satellite branch here in Belize.
The Consulate of Canada in Belize can be found at:
Consulate of Canada
80 Princess Margaret Drive, Belize City, Belize
Postal Address: P.O. Box 610, Belize …
Date: February 22nd, 2008 |
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Random Belize Photo of the Moment
This shot is one of the fine beaches on Placencia Peninsula. Unlike most of the cayes, most of the beach here is sandy rather than being clogged with those mangrove forests. It’s part of our Placencia photos collection in the Belize photos section.
Date: February 20th, 2008 |
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Beaches of Belize - Probably not what you expect
As fond as we all are of this tiny Caribbean country, I think it’s important to point out that people arriving for their first ever trip to Belize might be getting the wrong impression regarding beaches in the country. When people mention, as I did above, that Belize is on the Caribbean, it’s natural to assume that the country is lined with pristine sandy beaches. Unfortunately, it’s not.
But the most popular places for visitors to the country are the offshore islands, known locally as cayes (pronounced keys), so those must have excellent beaches, right? Sadly, again, no. There definitely are some great beaches in the country and they are in quite a few different regions, but it’s important to realize before you book your trip that most of the country’s shoreline is not suited to sunbathing at all. Mangrove forests in one form or another grow naturally along most of Belize’s coastline, and while these are a very important part of the overall eco-system, they make sunbathing and even swimming very difficult. Even if you go out past the trees you’ll find the footing below very slimy.
Date: February 27th, 2008 |
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Maya village homestay program in Punta Gorda
This is something that’s definitely not suited for most people, but could be really great for others. There are three small Maya villages in the Punta Gorda area near the southern tip of Belize that are participating in a homestay program whereby visitors can stay, eat, work, and live with a Maya family to fully experience their fascinating lifestyle up close.
The excellent Toucan Trail site has more information for those who are interested, but to summarize this opportunity:
Guests stay right alongside a family and do exactly what they do. As sexist as this may sound, men might be harvesting corn or working in the fields, and women might be grinding the corn, killing chickens, making tortillas, or doing laundry in the creek. The meals consist of corn tortillas at every meal combined with eggs, beans, hot peppers, and sometimes game meat. (This is actually making me really hungry right now!)
Date: February 25th, 2008 |
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UK Embassy in Belize
Going to an embassy while traveling often means that something has gone wrong, but they provide a variety of services for both travelers and expats living in the country.
Since Belize gained independence from the UK in 1981 there has been a High Commission located in the country. The current location is in the small inland capital city of Belmopan, which is 48 miles west of Belize City.
Citizens of the UK are advised to register their presence in the county (or any other) while traveling, but obviously most people don’t go to that trouble. If you’ll be living here …
Date: February 22nd, 2008 |
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Lagoon house for sale on Ambergris Caye, for example
Belize is the kind of place that almost everyone who visits at least briefly toys with the idea of moving there, at least some day in the future. An English-speaking country with a stable government and gorgeous tropical weather is an appealing combination, and if you add it affordable real estate prices it makes it even better.
We’ve recently launched a Belize real estate section where people can list properties for free and of course people can browse them for free as well. We have several different categories: commercial, houses, land, and even rentals, so there are quite a few things to look at.
Date: February 21st, 2008 |
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May in Belize
May in Belize brings a mixed bag for potential visitors. Most hotels drops their prices on the first day of the month to their low-season rates, but the heat starts getting intense and the rainy season really gets going in earnest about halfway through the month. So the first half of the month can be an excellent mix of decent weather, small crowds, and low prices, and there are also loads of events to consider as well.
May events in Belize
Labour Day, May 1 – The entire country celebrates this national day off, but of course restaurants and bars are open and resort areas keep doing their thing as well. The largest celebration is in Belize City, but you’ll find something going on everywhere.
Commonwealth Day, May 24 – This national holiday celebrates the Queen’s birthday and Belize’s colonial past with horse races in Belize City and Orange Walk, as well as an annual cycle race between Cayo and Belmopan.
Date: February 19th, 2008 |
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