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.