Surreal and Real

The Belize City International Airport

Driving through downtown Belize City

More Belize City

More Belize City

Well, I landed in Belize safe and sound and the only word to describe it all is surreal. Everything is so beautiful and green. The buildings all are so small and simple. The International Airport in Belize City may be the smallest airport I’ve ever been to. This is supposedly one of the most developed areas in the nation of Belize, and I feel like I’ve travelled 50 years back in time. As the plane was descending and I got a closer look at some of the “neighborhoods” of the area, I was nearly moved to tears seeing what often qualifies as a “home” here. Many of the buildings looked like they were in terrible disrepair and that impression has largely been confirmed now that I’m on the ground. So far, I’ve only barely walked out of the airport and taken a seat while I wait for the program directors here to pick me up, so I’m sure there will be much more to add throughout the remainder of this day before I get a chance to post these first impressions probably this evening.

*****

Well, it’s now 7 hours later and I’ve had quite the exposure to Belize already. It’s hard to put all my thoughts into words right now in fact. I’ve driven through downtown Belize City, the largest city in the country, and driven 2 hours across the country seeing various little villages and other isolated impoverished rural households. Belize City is a crazy place. Bikers, drivers, and pedestrians share the extremely narrow alleyways recklessly and the streets are lined with lots of little shops where people sell tourist items and other staple goods. The prices are in Belizean dollars, which convert very easily to American dollars: 2 Belizean dollars = 1 US dollar (so something listed as $10 costs B $10 or US $5). You can generally pay in either currency, though change is always given in the local bills. We ate lunch at a local restaurant where I tried a fantastic garlic-roasted lamb wrap. Kyle, the program director for the country, and his wife Lindsey were kind enough to pay for it and give me my mini-tour of Belize City along with their local friend who acted as driver, Nathaniel.

It has been about 85 degrees and very humid. Honestly, the humidity (you’re going to think I’m crazy) has been a welcome change from the extreme dryness of Utah. I actually grew quite fond of the humid climate on my mission in Florida and have never quite felt acclimated to the dry weather since then, so I’m liking the moisture. Another significant change from Utah is a much earlier sunset. It is only 7:30 and the sun is already set, unlike the 9:30 I’ve been used to. This is primarily due to the fact that Belize is in the Central time zone, but doesn’t observe daylight savings time, so they are actually on the same time as Utah but are much farther east. Furthermore, the closer proximity to the equator makes for an earlier sunset, so the daylight in my days just got cut down by 2 hours!

I’m staying in the village of San Ignacio, which is admittedly more impressive than Belize City by way of upkeep and development. As a team, we stay in the upper floors of a 5-story building right in the heart of the village. The view from our balcony is gorgeous and lots of similar buildings to our own can be seen. We have a native cook named “Mama K,” (I don’t know her real name yet—that’s just what the other team members call her) who made us a fantastic dinner with chicken, rice and beans, cole slaw, and fried banana strips. The team is full of great people and I already feel fantastically at home in this foreign land which is far unlike anywhere I’ve ever lived. I’m excited to work here to help fix some of the problems that are glaringly apparent every time I turn around. Nonetheless, while the problems are very real, the other readily apparent thing I’ve noticed is the goodness of the people here. They are warm and genuine and welcoming and I look forward to forming a connection with them in the coming weeks.

I repeat my initial thoughts from getting off the plane, that this experience is surreal. However, now at the end of the day the reality of it is setting in and my purpose is clear before me: to help fight against a very real problem known as poverty. I feel so inadequate, and yet hopeful for the possibilities to bring about a positive change. I pray God will make me equal to this daunting and difficult task. The team that has already been working here in Belize has gotten some fantastic projects rolling and I’m excited to jump in 100% tomorrow and begin lending a helping hand. I hope you are equally excited to share in the updates with me.