Back in Punta Gorda Town

After few hours on a bus and only three transfers along the way Liz and I arrived in Punta Gorda Town around 8:30pm. We stopped at a Chinese Restaurant for take out and then walked to my house. Punta Gorda is a very small town, my house is at most a 10 minute walk to anywhere else in town. We arrive at my house, dropped our bags and dug into some Chow Mein.

I took the following day to show Liz around town. We went to Market and collected sea glass along the coast. The rest of the week was spent helping the newly organized Small Business Resource Center (SBRC) to prepare for a visit from officials in the Ministry of Economic Development. The SBRC is funded through a European Union Development Grant that Plenty, working with numerous partners throughout the Toledo District, received.

Cacao-fest happened to fall during the second weekend of Liz’s visit. Cacao is the seed that is used to make chocolate, the whole weekend was a celebration of this seed. Friday the organizers of the weekend planned a swanky Wine and Chocolate night, which we did not attend.

Saturday morning Liz and I volunteered at “Cacao For Kids”, a whole day event in the town Civic Center which provided free entertainment to a few hundred kids. We worked at the Cacao Bean Toss game, giving out school supplies as prizes. Other activities included; face painting, coloring, mural painting, limbo, cultural dancing, and movies. The Civic Center must be one of the worst designed buildings in all of Punta Gorda, it was so hot!

We were only scheduled to work in the morning, so during the afternoon we were free to check out the displays, crafts, and foods for sale. We went on a nice Kayak paddle out into the sea around Punta Gorda.

Sunday Cacao-Fest left Punta Gorda Town and headed to San Pedro Columbia Village. The Lubantunn Mayan Ruin became the venue for the Deer Dance. A unique cultural experience put on by villagers from San Antonio Village. Liz and I explored the ruin, enjoyed the Deer Dance, and ate some organic Chocolate made locally. Sunday evening we were exhausted, but the day was not over yet. I made pizza for dinner, I have made 54 so far this year. Sunday night, after Pizza we went to Punta Gorda Central Park for a free concert and the fire work finale. Right before the fireworks the organizers of Cacao-Fest drew the raffle winners. Liz only bought two tickets but still she won the 2nd place prize of a 6 day jungle trek! I won a t-shirt, I guess we are both pretty lucky!

Liz arrives!

On Friday May 17th Liz arrived here in Belize for an extended visit! We have been planning to visit me for sometime. Her first weekend here we traveled to Caye Caulker. Caye Caulker is a beautiful little island located about 9 miles off the coast of Belize. We stayed at a nice guest house, Tree Top Guests House, for two nights. The accommodations were excellent, very clean, hot water, and no bugs.

While on Caye Caulker we enjoyed the sun, sand, and surf. On Saturday we went snorkeling in the Hol Chan Marine Reserve, where we saw a ton of fish, sharks, coral, turtles, and two manatees! This was the best snorkeling trip that I had been on so far. We left Caye Caulker Sunday morning and began the long journey to Punta Gorda, making a brief stop at the National Agriculture and Trade Show in Belmopan. We arrived in Punta Gorda Town around 8:00pm, approximately 12 hours after leaving Caye Caulker. It was an excellent weekend.

Monday Liz and I walked around town, stopped at market to buy some fruits and vegetables, and grabbed a bite to eat. During the first week of Liz’s visit we helped the Small Business Resource Center (SBRC) a newly established organization funded by the European Union. More to come soon.

Plenty’s Mothers Day Banquet

Happy Belated Mother’s Day to all the Mothers out there!

This year Plenty Belize (my host organization) hosted its 2nd Mother’s Day Banquet.  The event was held on Saturday evening, one of the local politicians was having a large event on Sunday and we did not want the competition.  The event is organized by the Board of Directors as a fund raiser for Plenty, last years event lost $400.

Planning began back in February, it looked as if everything was set.  All the board members and staff were asked to sell 4 tickets for the event, a seemingly easy task.  I was only able to see 2 of my tickets, some people did not sell any.  The food was based on the expected amount of attendants.  I was asked/volunteered by the board members, to make pizza as an appetizer for the event.  I spent most of Saturday in the kitchen preparing 6 pizzas for the banquet (I have been keeping track of the number of pizzas I’ve made this year, so far it is 55).

Mark, Plenty’s Executive Director arrived at my house around 5:30pm to bring me and the pizzas to the banquet.  I had yet to bake the pizzas, the plan was to bake them at the banquet facilities.  The event was scheduled to begin at 6:00.  Luckily everyone (Guests, Servers, Board Members, and other kitchen helpers) showed up late.  The first pizzas were out of the oven around 6:30, just as people were sitting down and enjoying their drinks.

The evening went well, entertainment was provided by a local band and group of drummers from a neighboring village.  I spent the evening in the kitchen watching pizza cook, washing dishes, and drinking a few beers.  Contests were held throughout the night for the mothers, my favorite was the “cry like a baby” contest.  Other not so exciting ones included; the tallest mother, oldest mother, youngest mother, most pregnant mother, mother with the most kids (12).

It was a fun evening, I am still not sure of the official numbers but it looks like we did worse then last year.  I guess I should have sold those two other tickets.  Oh well, at least the food was good!

Picking up Cow Manure

This morning I had a unique Peace Corps Experience I thought I would share.  Working with Plenty I have a chance to do a lot of work dealing with agriculture and organic gardening.  One of the schools that I regularly work with, St. Benedict Roman Catholic School, was in need of some organic fertilizer.  Ermain (Plenty Field Officer) and I scheduled to go out with some students and a teacher to collect cow manure.

We arrived at the school around 9:00 this morning and picked up 8 students and the teacher responsible for the garden.  Everyone piled into the back of our pickup truck and we headed off.  While driving the short distance to the pasture I commented to Ermain that if we were in the States someone would loose their job for allowing 8 elementary age kids to ride in the back of a pickup truck.  Please note that our truck does not have a cab or a working tailgate.

So we arrived at the field and spent a good 45 minutes picking up dried cow manure.  I have never seen children so excited to be picking up something that came out of the back end of an animal.  To them it was a contest.  We just about filled the truck with manure, everyone pilled back into the truck.  We drove back to the school and then unloaded the goods.

The reason behind the manure collection is to incorporate it into the soil to add nutrients that plants extract while growing.  However I am sure that the kids saw it as a chance to get out of the classroom, eat some unripe fruit from a farmers trees and then throw dried cow crap at each other.

In all it was quite a successful morning.  I only wish I had brought my camera!

Toledo Food Food Fair

Since my arrival in Belize I have been working with the Toledo School Feeding Committee, providing any assistance that I can. The Feeding Committee oversees the School Feeding Programs (SFP). Currently there are 13 schools throughout the Toledo District with School Feeding Programs, basically a school lunch program. Individual schools are responsible for their SFP, the Toledo School Feeding Committee helps to support the individual schools in numerous ways. The Plenty Belize GATE Program (Garden Based Agriculture for Toledo’s Environment) works hand-in-hand with the SFP. GATE works to establish organic school gardens, schools with a Feeding Program use the food grown in the gardens to supplement the school lunches. The remainder of the food is purchased by each school through the Committee.

Each year the Toledo School Feeding Committee organizes the Toledo Food Fair, this year the 3rd Food Fair was held. The Fair took place on Friday April 11th. Preparation for the event began months ago, many meets were held to ensure the success of the Fair. My role as the Plenty Belize Peace Corps Volunteer was to attend meetings, write letters, call participants, schedule meetings, and numerous other tasks.

The Fair began at 9:00am and run throughout the day ending at 3:30pm. Well over 1,000 children were in attendance. Each primary school from around the Toledo District was invited to create a display and sell food, most schools sold out! Local Non-Governmental Organizations, Businesses, Trade Schools, and Research Groups were invited.

In my opinion the highlight of the day was the Plenty Belize Home Garden Contest. Plenty Belize is always looking for new ways to encourage organic gardening and the Home Garden Contest does just that. Back in December we began advertising the contest, we had over 150 students from over 15 different villages involved in the contest. Prizes were awarded to the 7 best gardens, prizes included: $500 Scholarship to High School, set of garden tools(wheelbarrow, shovel, rake, hoe, matook), weed whacker, bicycle, school supplies, and many other items. I am really proud of all the participants, everyone work hard and really enjoyed themselves.

The Food Fair is funded through donations and through fund raising. The Committee organizes a raffle each year, I actually won a great cookbook through the raffle. It was a long day, but it also was a incredibly fun event which I am glad I was part of.

Pete and Jack come to Belize: part 2

So it was Thursday Morning, 5:00am. I found myself waking up everyone in the house. The six of us; my Dad (Pete), Jack, Dov, Danny, Josh and I needed to be at the bus station by 5:45am to catch the 6:00am express bus to Belmopan. After a quick shower and some cold pizza I was all set to go. Thankfully everyone had pack the night before. We set off to the bus station and staked our claim on six seats. The bus ride was uneventful until we were about 15 miles outside of Belmopan. The bus shut down and would not start, after about 10 minutes Pete and Jack took it upon themselves to fix the bus. They hopped off and sure enough we were on our way in about 20 minutes. I was told what the problem was, but it was rather technical and I do not remember what they said. Once in Belmopan we caught the next bus heading west toward the Guatemala Boarder.

We arrived at the boarder around noon, we crossed with out incident. Belize charges a fee of $32.00 BZD to all Americans leaving the country. Guatemala charged $10 Quetzal to enter. Once in Guatemala we found a van to bring us to Flores, along the way we made a quick stop to pick up some drinks. The trip to Flores took about two hours. Our driver had no where idea the hotel was, we spent 20 minutes searching the small island for it. Flores is a small city of about 2,000 people located on a island in Lake Peten.

The Island was once a Spanish Fort. Recently a causeway was built to the island, forever connecting it with the mainland and its neighboring city of Santa Elena. I was able to make reservations for the hotel on-line, avoiding the hassle and confusion of calling the hotel and struggling through the process with my limited Spanish.

We spent three nights in Flores. It was wonderful, the city is so different from any other place that I have been. The food was excellent, I have not ate as well since leaving Guatemala. Thursday evening after dinner we made our way to the traveling circus that was set up on the lakeside in Santa Elena. It was incredibly entertaining, Dov left convinced he was going to quit Peace Corps and travel throughout Central America with the circus.

Friday morning, after a excellent breakfast, we made our way to Tikal. Tikal is a little over a hour from Flores. The ruins at Tikal are some of the most impressive in all of Meso-America. The site was built over hundreds of years, at is peak is supported a population of approximitely 100,000 people. It boasts the tallest Mayan Temple in all the world, Temple 4. I recently found out that Tikal is actually used for a background shot in Star Wars: Episode 4. It was a long day but I was able to see most of the park.

On Saturday I went to the Peten Zoo with Josh, Pete and Jack. The zoo had a lot of interesting animals; spider monkeys, scarlet macaws, a jaguar, and a puma just to name a few. When we returned form the Zoo Josh and I walked around Flores, we ran into Danny and Dov along the way, they were entertaining local residents by doing flips off a dock into the lake.

Sunday, Easter, we left went into Santa Elena to look for cowboy boots. My Dad was in dire need of find some Guatemalan boots and were we able to find a excellent boot shop, Danny made a purchase too. After leaving the market in Santa Elena we returned to the hotel to pack and wait for our ride back to the Belize Boarder. Our ride never showed up, we waited on the curb for two hours. I finally set off to find someone who could bring us to Belize. I located a small van, the driver agreed to carry us to Belize. Finally after a few hours in the hot sun we were off again. Once in Belize again we made our way to San Ignacio Town, more commonly referred to as Cayo. We had planned to spend a few night in Cayo with some Peace Corps Volunteers, Catherine and Ashli. For Easter dinner we ate Chinese food.

Plans had been made for everyone to go to the ATM Cave on Monday. The cave is home to the remains of 15 sacrifice victims. The ancient Mayans used the cave as a sacred place, they made offerings to the gods in the form of human sacrifices for hundreds of years. After a hour ride and a 45 minute walk we arrived at the cave. Inside one can view some of the most beautiful rock features in Belize. The cave was littered with artifacts and one is able to see numerous skeletal remains on the tour. I strongly encourage everyone who visits Belize to take the tour.

On Tuesday, Josh, Danny and Dov left for Punta Gorda. I remained in Cayo with my Dad and Jack. We visited two Mayan Ruins located near Cayo; Xunantunich and Cahal Pech. Although not as impressive as Tikal, both are well worth a visit.

Wednesday morning we awoke early and we traveled to the Belize International Airport. After we all checked into our flights we said our goodbyes and I boarded my plane to Punta Gorda. It was a excellent trip, I am so happy that my Dad and Jack were able to come and visit me here in Belize. I know they had an excellent time and would have loved to stay longer, and to see and do more. There is always next year!

Pete and Jack come to Belize: part 1

On March 16th my Dad (Pete), along with his friend Jack, came to visit. They stay for 10 days, during which time we went on a rapid trip across southern Belize and into Guatemala. I had a blast and I am sure they did as well. Planning was in the works for sometime, after my Dad expressed an interest in visiting I went about finding the right time for his stay. In January I began planning a trip to Guatemala with fellow PCVs: Josh, Danny, and Dov. Amazingly Pete was able to schedule the time off and join us on the trip to Guatemala. I made numerous promises that the days preceding and after Guatemala would be action packed and well planned. Although I was still making reservations and arranging events the week before their arrival everything went flawlessly.

Sunday morning I woke up and took the bus to Independence Village, form Independence I caught a boat to Placencia Village. I meet my Dad and Jack a little while before noon. We made our way to Harry’s Cozy Cabanas to settle in. The rest of the day was spent exploring Placencia, eating at the Purple Space Monkey, and having drinks at the Barefoot Bar. On Monday we took a trip to Laughing Bird Caye, it was amazing. The aquatic life was incredibly diverse, I saw so many different species of fish. The boat ride was a little rough, a strong wind was blowing and the sea was rolling. No one on our boat got sick, however the second boat made frequent stops for the seasick passengers on board. Tuesday morning we made our way to the airport, I was treated to a flight. We made it to Punta Gorda in record time!

Upon arrival in town a quick stop was made at my house and then we went out to lunch. One of the best things about the visit was the many meals eaten in restaurants! It was awesome. Around 4:00 the three of us caught a bus to San Pedro Columbia Village. I had made previous arrangements with Maya Mountain Research Farm to spend the evening out

in the bush. To reach MMRF one must take a doary (wooden canoe) up river, the trip took roughly one hour, we only had to exit the boat 4 times

due to shallow water. Jack and Pete did their best to repair a leak in the boat with chewing gum, it held for about 10 minutes. Mr. Garcia, our “captain” was very knowledgeable, he provided us with the names of all the flora and fauna that we saw. His dogs even made the trip with us. We made it to the farm around 6:00, just in time to settle in and eat dinner. I gave a short presentation to the students of a permaculture design class about what exactly it is that Plenty Belize does.

Wednesday morning we awoke early, had a delicious breakfast and went on a wonderful tour of the farm with Chris, the director. Around 10:30 we began the leisurely float down the Columbia Branch of the Rio Grande on inner tubes provided by MMRF. Our plan was to catch the 1:00pm bus back to Punta Gorda Town, to make sure we made the bus we made a mad dash through the village. The residents did not know what to make of 3 crazy Americans running through their backyards while yelling about the bus. Luckily we made it in time. After showers and repacking for part two of our trip we had dinner. With the help of the 4 other PCVs spending that night at my house I made pizza. Jack and Pete said it was great, personally I know I can make it better.

Check back soon for part 2.

Pueblo Viejo Garden Graduation

Pueblo Viejo Village, located approximately 10 miles from the Belize – Guatemala boarder was host to a large party this past Friday. The school was celebrating their successful participation in Plenty Belize’s GATE Program. The school has been receiving weekly technical visits, tools, seeds and other necessary supplies from Plenty for the past 3 years. The ultimate goal of the GATE Program is for participating schools to keep the garden running smoothly after they stop receiving support from Plenty. Out of the 32 schools with gardens across the Toledo District 11 have graduated since the inception of the program in February 12th, 2002.

Majority of the village was in attendance for the celebration, which included a opening ceremony, the presentation of a certificate of achievement, and of course the meal prepared by local cooks and two cooks brought in from Punta Gorda Town. The school worked hard to prepare for the event by organizing committees to ensure things ran smoothly. The villagers participated in the planning process by suggesting menu items, purchasing food that could be found within the village, setup for the day, cooking, cleanup, and of course eating the delicious food that was prepared. The menu for the day included: Pork Caldo, Calaloo, Veggie Boil Up, Tamales, Ducunu, Shut, Clear Soup Turkey, Cho Cho, Corn Tortilla, Lime Juice, and traditional Cacao Drink.

With my belly full and my sunburn beginning to hurt I hopped back into the Plenty pickup truck and headed back into town. It was a long day, but a very fulfilling on too. This day allowed me to see the final goal of the GATE program, sustainability.

Jamie and John come to visit

On Wednesday, March 5th my sister Jamie and her boyfriend John were in Belize City. They were taking a Cruise which made a stop here in Belize. We have been communicating for weeks organizing and planning for their brief visit. I had been in San Ignacio Town the day before and was able to catch a ride all the way to Belize City with a friend, of which I am very grateful. I arrived in Belize City around 7:00pm Tuesday evening and went to dinner with some Peace Corps friends. I spent the night at a PCV’s apartment in Belize City. I woke early Wednesday anxious and excited. After a short walk to the tourist village I waited for Jamie and John to arrive. The tourist village is a collection of shops, restaurants, bars, tour operators, and other commercial enterprises all with the common goal of charging cruise ship passengers the highest possible price for mediocre goods and services. I was amazed at the inflated prices, items which can be purchased for $10 BZD ($5 USD) any where else in the country cost up four times as much. Needless to say I did not purchase much, actually the only thing I tried to buy was a Beliken Beer Lighter for $1 USD, when I went to pay and handed the cashier a $2 Belize note I was informed they only accepted US currency. I became upset and might have made a small scene by asking what country I was in and how could a business in Belize refuse Belizean currency, lucky John was there to give me a dollar.

So, Jamie and John arrived around 8:30. During my wait I located a tour operator that would bring us out to Caye Caulker for a snorkel trip out to the Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley. The trip was scheduled to leave at 10:30, so Jamie, John and I took to the city. I gave them a quick tour of downtown Belize City, we made it into a few shops and purchased some gifts. They both were amazed at the difference between the Tourist Village and the City, I would compare the Tourist Village to a shopping mall while the city is more like the unsavory neighborhood that most people do not care to venture into. We returned to the Tourist Village with plenty of time, boarded the boat and were off to continue our adventure.

The boat ride took about 40 minutes. We docked at Caye Caulker to let some folks off for a day of sun, I took this opportunity to purchase a few Belikens. We were soon off for the snorkeling. The water was incredibly clear, it was the best I have ever seen it (please note this was only my second time snorkeling off Caye Caulker). We swam for about 45 minutes at the first stop and then took the short boat ride over to Shark Ray Alley. Shark Ray Alley gets its name from the abundance of sharks and sting rays that make the are their home, in the past fisherman would stop here to clean their catch before bringing the fish to market. To this day many rays and sharks still live in this area. The water was about waist deep, it took some encouraging but everyone got into the water. The tour guides attracted some rays (about 15) with small fish. After everyone got over their initial concerns of life and limb the rays were being petted and held by all. It was quite an experience. Following the snorkeling we went ashore for a quick bite to eat and a short swim. Personally I could have spent a few more days relaxing on the beach!

We left Caye Caulker around 2:00 and headed back to Belize City. Along the way we saw two dolphins swimming, a mother and her baby. I remained at the tourist village with Jamie and John until about 4:00, they boarded a shuttle boat back to their ship and I took a taxi to the Belize Municipal Airport. I flew back to Punta Gorda, the flight took one hour during which time we made 3 stops. The typical bus ride takes about 6-7 hours. Thanks for the flight Jamie! I had a wonderful time and hope that the next time Jamie and John visit they can stay for longer.

Plenty Belize receives EU grants

After months of meetings, writing, and waiting we at Plenty Belize have been notified that the EU has accepted two of our three grant applications. Everyone is very excited about this wonderful news. On Tuesday, March 4th Mark, Tasha, Ermain and I traveled to San Ignacio Town for the official signing ceremony. These grants will provided us and our granting partners with a great opportunity to help more people throughout the Toledo District and Belize.

The first grant, the Toledo Grant, focuses on helping to develop existing businesses throughout the district. The grant has been awarded to Plenty Belize, the Toledo Teachers Credit Union(TTCU), and Sustainable Harvest International(SHI). All organizations will be receiving funds to help create new projects, support existing ones, and to award large group grants to qualified recipients. Established business groups will be applying for a one time grant of up to $22,500 BZD ($11,250 USD) to help expand their business. Over the nest two years ten groups will be receiving grants. This is a wonderful opportunity for the residents of Toledo. Working with our partners and the project director (yet to be hired) Plenty will help to chose the recipients of these grants. Plenty will also be receiving funds to establish a Business Resource Center, which is to be housed at the Plenty office in Punta Gorda Town. We plan for the Resource Center to provide services to entrepreneurs and residents throughout Toledo by assisting them with trainings, guidance, advice and support.

The second grant that Plenty, working with Belize Enterprise for Sustainable Technologies(BEST), received, Microgrants for the Rural Poor, will provide grants to Belizean residents across the Belize, Cayo and Toledo Districts. Plenty will be working solely in the Toledo District by providing microgrants to qualified persons interested in starting their own small business, while BEST will be working in the Belize and Cayo Districts. Plenty worked with microgrants this past year, we feel that our previous experience and knowledge with microgrants will ensure a high rate of success for this upcoming project. Together with BEST we aim to disburses 200 grants within the 3 districts. Due to the higher costs associated with working in Toledo we hope to provide 60 grants, while BEST aims to selected 70 recipients for each of the two districts they will be working with.

These grants will provide a exciting opportunity for everyone involved to really help make a difference in the lives of a lot of people. I look forward to the up coming changes, which means a lot more work but also the feeling of success associated with helping.