Week Four: Last Minute Adventures

Well, our last weekend in Belize is upon us.  I have mixed feelings about returning home.  I am very excited to see my friends, family, and my bed. I am more than ready to gorge myself on delicious, All-American holiday food...but I will miss Belize, especially my students and the friends we have made here. 

We have made it a point to enjoy our last week in Belize.  We started the week returning from Placencia Beach, where we had a relaxing weekend by the water.  We stayed at the Maya Beach Hotel where we were some of the only guests.  We had the beach almost to ourselves, except for at meal times.  The Maya Beach Bistro is a very highly ranked restaurant in the Placencia Beach area and at meal times, people would flood in to enjoy nice dining with a gorgeous beach view.  Below are photos of our mealtime view and an order of fish tacos that I enjoyed with every fiber of my being.

We also spent lots of time relaxing in the hammocks..

And even spent a day doing some ocean kayaking...

November 19th (Wednesday) was a national holiday here in Belize, called Garifuna Settlement Day.  Garifuna Settlement Day celebrates the arrival of the first Garinagu to Belize by dory (a dug-out canoe).  Garinagu are descendants of two ethnic groups, Carib Indians and Black Africans, that lived on the island of St. Vincent.  This holiday is celebrated in all Garifuna communities throughout the country, as well as in Garifuna villages throughout Guatemala and Honduras.  The celebration can last up to a week long and includes parades, dancing, live music, drumming, prayers, and the election of Miss Garifuna.  Some Garifuna communities throughout Belize include the villages of Punta Gorda, Dangriga, Hopkins, and Georgetown.  San Ignacio doesn't have a large population of Garifuna people, but we did snap some photos of a few celebrators.

Thursday was an exciting day at St. Andrew's Anglican School because it was "Sports Day."  The staff put together different games and sports for the students to play all day.  The games were relay games and races and the students either wore green or yellow shirts for teams.  My class was part of the yellow team and the other Standard IV class was part of the green team.  Only about half of the students came because parents knew there were not going to be any academic activities happening all day.  Here is a photo of my Standard IV yellow team!

Although I've only spent a month with these students, I've grown quite attached to them and have gotten to know some of them really well.  One of my students, Beyla, is new to Belize this year.  Her family moved to Belize in June from Orlando, Florida to open up a restaurant and grocery store.  Our group stopped in for lunch at their restaurant, B'z Place, in Unitedville on our way back from Placencia on Monday afternoon.  Meeting Beyla's parents was a great experience. The excitement on Beyla's face when I showed her a photo of her mother and I standing outside the restaurant was priceless.  I hope to keep in touch with her and her family after I leave via email. Below is a photo of Beyla and I and the photo I showed her of her mother and I.

 

 

If you find yourself visiting Belize in the future, make the approximately 30 minute drive to Unitedville and check out B'z Place!

Friday was my last day teaching at St. Andrew's in Mrs. Cocom's class.  It was a bittersweet day.  The students made me good-bye cards and wrote me short letters and Mrs. Cocom got me an awesome beach towel with the map of Belize on it (which I had been wanting but hadn't talked myself into buying yet)!  Here are a few photos from my last day.

Today, we made the spontaneous decision to venture into Guatemala with our trusty friend and cab driver, Tosh.  We spent a couple of hours shopping in Melchor de Mencos.  Many Belizeans travel to this village to do their shopping for many reasons: it's only one mile across the Guatemalan border, only eleven miles from San Ignacio, has several more shops than San Ignacio, and the shopping is cheaper.  Guatemalan currency is the Quetzal, which is one for every $3.50 Bz (that's one for every $7.00 American)!  I bought a mini guitar that I hope will be of use in my classroom someday, a Guatemala bag, and some nail polish all for about $13 American.  We were nervous about having some sort of trouble at the border because Belize and Guatemala don't have the best relationship, but luckily we had a pretty smooth experience.  Plus, we all got to add stamps to our passports which we were quite excited about!

I can't believe this journey is coming to an end... I am so excited to head home in two days but I can confidently say that Belize and the community of San Ignacio will always hold a special place in my heart.

Until next time :)