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Barefoot Caye Caulker
1 Review I saw "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem" signs at several places around town. Life truly is laid back here - I know I keep using this phrase, but I can't think of a better way to describe it. People are...
See All 13 Local Customs in Caye Caulker
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1 Barrel Rum is Belize's national drink. The winner of many awards, it is considered by many to be the finest rum in the Caribbean. It's a dark rum which is so smooth that you should drink it straight on the rocks. You can buy it in local supermarkets as well as at the airport's duty-free store.
Belikin Beer! My that sounds interesting, Would you like that in Lager or Stout my good man. Well actually I think I would like the stout tonight as it is such a nice beer warm or cold. Good choice if I do say so myself. Yeah I would definitely go with Belikin beer. The stout or lager come in the same, smart move, returnable bottles. So please look at the cap to distinguish which flavour you are shoving down your gullet.
Belizians consider themselves close relatives to Jamaicans. So with saying that ganjia is a relatively easy thing to obtain in Belize. It is not only frowned upon as well as not legal to use or obtain it for any reason recreational or religious in Belize it isn't hard to to. So if you want to try out the local culture some will probably ask you somewhere along the line in Belize to partake in the religious ceremony. Your choice.
The day after we arrived at the Trek Stop in the San Ignacio area, we asked the Belizian lady (Flora), who prepared meals in the kitchen, what was our best option to get our 13 days of laundry seen to. She said it was no problem to have one of the villagers in San Jose Succotz take care of it (US$6) and she would look after the details for us. That was great, so we brought our pile to her in a plastic bag and she sent it off into town, with a promise that it would be returned by the next morning. Later, as we walked along the highway through the village on our way to the Mayan ruins of Xunantunich, we could not help but notice a happy group of villagers doing their (or was it ours?) laundry at the edge of the Mopan River! In the distance you can glimpse a part of one of the sets of rapids on this river that we later braved while on our tubing trip. As promised, the laundry was returned...
After travelling just over half-way along the Hummingbird Highway from Belmopan toward Dangriga, on the east coast, it became evident that this Stann Creek District part of the country was home to numerous large citrus groves. Along both sides of the highway, orange (mostly) and grapefruit trees stretched off into the distance, partially climbing the slopes of the nearby Maya Mountains.Both driving to and while in the Hopkins area, we saw many large truck loads of fruit trundling down the highway (second photo) to the two juice concentrator plants that are located in this part of Belize. Due to the poor port infrastructure in Belize, they had to turn to juice plants because it was too expensive to export the raw fruit to the large but distant European and American markets. It turns out that the citrus industry was introduced to the country in 1926 and has grown significantly since then....
Belize is a diverse country with a mixed population of 49% Mestizos (Spanish-speaking Mayan/European mix), 25% Creoles (English-speaking African/European mix), 11% Mayan, 6% Garinagu (escaped African slaves from Caribbean islands) and 9% others such as Rastafarians, East Indians and Mennonites.We saw this group of Mennonite women waiting for the water taxi on Caulker, dressed in their usual garb of long skirts and head-coverings. They seemed to be having a good time, going off to get some ice-cream cones and lining up for various group photos. The Mennonites are relatively recent immigrants to Belize (ariving within the last 40 years) after leaving Germany following the Second World War to settle in Mexico for a while before finally moving on to Belize. Mennonites and Amish are basically of the same religion, but the Amish hold stricter views about not embracing modern technology and...
In some ways, our arrival on Caye Caulker was almost like a flashback to the days when we lived in Papua New Guinea! During a morning walk along the eastern shore as we headed south toward the Airport area, we saw a number of beachfront properties that were built on stilts - and they looked almost like the house we lived in for 3 years on the other side of the world. We actually saw houses like these all over Belize, used by the locals as well. In hot and humid climates the stilts serve a number of purposes. They get you a little further up and away from the creepy crawlies, the living space is up where the breezes are, you can park your car underneath in the shade and it even helps for the odd storm surge or two if you are living on the coast!The second photo shows another example of a stilt house, in the much less 'touristy' village of Hopkins along the south central coastline of...
The inland village of Crooked Tree is famous for its annual Cashew Festival, so it was no surprise to see these huge trees growing here and there around the village, including this one trying to take over someone's house!Originally found in northeastern Brazil, the Portugese colonizers of that part of South America exported it around the world to their various colonies that had similar tropical climates so they too could benefit from its many uses. The trees produce a double-whammy, a single oval seed fruit (the 'nut') with a large fleshy appendage about the size of a pear on one end of it (the 'apple').The cashew apple can be eaten raw, but is more often used to make jams, chutneys or drinks because of it's acidic nature. Another fine use for this part of the tree is to crush the apple to produce the ingrediants necessary for 'cashew wine' - very good, based on the sample we had at one...
The lifestyle on Caye Caulker is very relaxed...another words do not expect fast service nor businesses to be open on time. It is somewhat rude to rush service people on the island, just allot enough time if you have to catch transportation or a tour. Be kind and slow down your pace of life on this island. I don't think the "Go Slow" signs are just for the golf carts =)
Because Caye Caulker is so small, after a few days around town, you will get to know the faces you pass and they'll recognize you. At first, I did not think the island was friendly, but after a day of initiating hellos and waving to random people, the locals started recognizing us, which was very warming.There are many children around the island, under houses, riding bikes, and exuding carefree attitudes.Don't be afraid to say hello, a smile back is very rewarding.
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Q: Does anyone know where I can sell Belize Dollars in Melbourne? Or if anyone from Melbourne is heading to Belize and wants to take...
A: There are many money exchanges in Melbourne see list here http://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/melbourne_details.php?id=15172 alternatively you could go to the Travelex...
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