Belize — Great Natural Beauty of the Caribbean

Editor (Travel)

Every time you are chewing gum, what do you think about? Mint? Fresh breath? Anything else? It is high time you start thinking of Belize, the birthplace of chewing gum! Who would have thought that a tiny stretch on the north-eastern coast of Central America, just under Mexico, with only 3,34,000 inhabitants could invent such a thing. However there is more to this country than chewing gum.

There are a dozen tiny countries in Central America and they all share the same lovely, sunny and vibrant Caribbean atmosphere. So, why Belize? It is the only country in Central America where English is the official language. You will manage to bargain for the right price of fish or have a casual conservation with locals if foreign languages are not your cup of tea. In spite of English being the language of education and government, most locals in everyday life use Belize Creole, a code-switching language. It has been originated mainly from English but also contains a decent number of words from Native American and West African languages. Due to such an interesting blend, it is fascinating to listen to the sound of it.

One of the best excavated Mayan ruins in Belize can be found in Xunantunich (Cayo district, western Belize). It used to be a significant Mayan city with a big pyramid and a carved stela, which people can still appreciate. It is not difficult to reach the site; you just need to cross the Mopan River in San Jose Succotz. The name of the location translates from the Mayan language to ‘Stone Woman’. A legend tells that in the end of the 19th century, a ghost of a woman settled down in the site. She was dressed in white and had sparkling red eyes. Do not be scared if you see her appearing in front of El Castillo; she tends to disappear quite quickly into a stone wall. Another way to explore the ruins is on horseback. Hanna Stables in San Ignacio, one of the first horseback riding centres in Belize, offers a variety of tours.

Finding a good beach on the Caribbean coast should not be difficult but sometimes it can get tricky! There is only one beach in the Belize city called Cucumber Beach (which is actually not a real beach but more like a lagoon), a 10-minute drive from the port. You will spot a slide that goes straight into the ocean and a rope which you can swing off, so both children and their parents can definitely have fun! On the negative side, the water is not as clean as you would expect it to be when you pay $10 for entrance to the beach.

Belize is known for its rainforests but not all tourists are willing to go deep into them and get their clothes dirty or to lose their way. As an alternative, you can float above the rainforest and enjoy the scenery on a zip-line canopy tour. A howler monkey may approach you but they tend to be quite friendly.

If you are looking for souvenirs that are not forgotten on a shelf, consider Marie Sharp’s sauce available in different flavours, from mild to extremely hot. The sauce is made from a strong local Habanero chilli pepper, so you can bring back the taste of Belize to your home and remember the country every day.

Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons (Willamor Media, Josh from New Rochelle, acin355 from San Francisco)

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Ingrida Kurlinkute

Ingrida is currently a student at the School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University, United Kingdom. She is very curious about the world around her and is keen on sharing her opinion and knowledge with others. One of the biggest passions of Ingrida is travelling and therefore she heads the Travel Section on the website.