Belize: see what to do and what to see – 12/20/2023 – Tourism

Located on a small sliver of land next to Guatemala and Mexico, Belize is a destination for a great Caribbean vacation. In just a few days, it is possible to go to well-preserved Mayan archaeological sites and visit the Garifuna, venture through caves in the forest and rest on white sand beaches and calm seas, protected by the largest coral reef in the northern hemisphere.

It is also a little-known destination for Brazilians and their neighbors — in the first ten months of this year, only 1% of visitors to Belize were from South America. Therefore, a basic presentation of the country is in order.

A Mayan territory, it was disputed by the English and Spanish until it officially became a British colony in 1862, named British Honduras. In 1973, it was renamed Belize, as one of the many rivers that cross its 23 thousand km² (slightly larger than Sergipe, with 21.9 thousand km²).

Independence came in 1981, but the country remains part of the Commonwealth, linked to the British crown. Today, it is a parliamentary democracy under the constitutional monarchy of Charles III.

The official language is still English, but more than half of its approximately 440,000 inhabitants are mestizos, of Hispanic or Latin American origin, and it is very easy to find someone who speaks Spanish. Another quarter of the population is Creole, descendants of enslaved Africans and Europeans. There are also many Mayans and some Garífunas, a group that emerged from the meeting of indigenous people from the Caribbean and enslaved Africans who emigrated from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

It is a poor country, which lives mainly on agriculture (exports sugar, bananas and citrus fruits), tourism and fishing, with a young population (the average age in the country in 2020 was 23.9 years old) and little education. Suffers from violence and drug trafficking.

None of this, however, is within reach of the tourist sitting on the sands of Hopkins, a village of 3,000 inhabitants founded in the 1940s by the Garifuna on a stretch of land about two hours’ drive from the former capital, Belize City.

Heading south, after the houses, small shops and inns, an elementary school and a community library, there is a row of resorts where tourists looking for a relaxing version of a Caribbean vacation can find it, from a panty ripper (a drink based on of coconut rum) in hand.

There, the attractions are the beach, the luxurious experience of big hotels for a few, and the seafood and fresh fish dishes — at the Big Dock Bar at The Lodge at Jaguar Reef, one of the local resorts, the fish for the ceviche is raised straight from the sea to the kitchen on the deck.

The village itself, its 6 km long, has not yet been covered in tourist traps and there is not much to know. But it is possible to book a cultural experience with the Garífunas, to learn how to play the punta on their drums and cook hudut, a type of moqueca with local fish and freshly extracted coconut milk.

Mayan culture is everywhere in Belize, in the faces on the streets, in the names of the rivers and, mainly, in the typical cuisine. The Belizean version of the English breakfast, for example, replaces the English muffin with fry jack, a fermented and fried corn dough, which can be filled with whatever the customer dreams of — the most traditional combination includes beans, cheese and chicken.

Ruins and archaeological sites preserve in stone what villages and organizations struggle to keep alive. Traces of ancient buildings remain, for example, in Cahal Pech, in San Ignacio (40 km from Belmopan, the capital).

In turn, Xunantunich, near the border with Guatemala, a large stone castle discovered only at the end of the 19th century, tells the story of the end of the Classic Maya period, after the decline of Caracol, further south, as the heart of a Valley that once housed up to 200 thousand inhabitants, according to historians.

50 km from Belmopan, the San Antonio Women’s Cooperative gives Yucatec Mayan classes to young people in the community — in the country, there are also Mopan Mayans and Q’eqchi’ Mayans. The guided tour of the group’s headquarters passes through the ceramics studio, where it is possible to see the resurrected history. With the help of archaeologists, the cooperative members reconstructed lost techniques from their ancestors for collecting and working clay and transforming it into the clay they mold into vases, plates and bowls, and into the paints they use to decorate them.

The tour ends in the kitchen with a roof made of dried guano leaves, where you learn how to grind corn to make tortillas. The Mayan gastronomic influence brings Belizean cuisine closer to Mexican cuisine. We eat different types of beans, pork, avocados, chaya (a vegetable between kale and spinach), plantains and lots of pepper — a lot of pepper —, powdered, whole or in sauces from the Marie Sharpe’s brand. , National pride. There is the traditional rice and beans, in which the grains are cooked together in coconut milk.

To cool off, drink Belikin, a Belizean beer, necessary in the face of the appalling heat even at the end of September, at the beginning of northern autumn. There are only two seasons in the country, in fact — the dry, from December to May, and the rainy, from June to November —, but it never stops being hot (the average annual temperature is 27°C) and the humidity is always high.

At least in the forest the feeling is more pleasant. And it’s not difficult to find yourself in the forest: almost 40% of the Belizean territory is protected by national parks, according to the NGO Nature Conservancy, and the population is still mostly rural (there are only two cities in the country, Belize and Belmopan).

Once in the green, there are many options for tropical adventures. You can go on a horseback trail through a reserve dedicated to jaguars, or explore caves in activities that range from the easiest (tubing down a stream) to the most challenging (the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave complex, in the Cayo district, for For example, there is a trail that requires more preparation and a licensed guide).

Less demanding is the boat trip along the Macal River, whose waters are pacified by a hydroelectric dam. Floating between mountains covered in green, full of orchids and iguanas, the boatman Roberto casually says that in a “cueva” between two hills he found vases with glyphs that explain a marriage alliance between Caracol and another Mayan city further north, in Mexico.

But if the peace of mind of having lunch on a barge parked almost inside a waterfall isn’t the version of a Caribbean vacation you’re looking for, there’s always San Pedro.

This is the most famous Belizean destination, perhaps because of its controversial relationship with Madonna’s “La Isla Bonita”. Legend has it (perpetuated with enthusiasm by the locals) that the island served as inspiration for the song — the singer already said in an interview that at that time she didn’t even know where San Pedro was, but that didn’t stop the community from embracing the epithet. “La Isla Bonita” is everywhere.

The island is busy and occupied by hundreds of electric carts driven by tourists through the narrow streets. A focus for Americans (who make up 70% of visitors to Belize), it has large chain hotels, such as Hilton, and many restaurants and bars. Reminds me of Cancún, according to a fellow traveler with the most miles accumulated.

From there, it is possible to hire one of the two local airlines, Tropic Air and Maya Island Air, flights over the Great Blue Hole, a vertical cave 125 m deep and 300 m in diameter, and boat trips at dusk or to dive in the Hol Chan marine reserve, in the company of rays, nurse sharks, barracudas, groupers and snappers.

Brazilians do not need a visa to enter Belize, but there are no direct flights between the two countries. Copa Airlines has two weekly flights departing from Panama City, and American Airlines, United and Delta offer several options from airports in the United States.