Belize Zoo and one last hurdle ! 24 Nov 07
Hello again,
My last post on Belize, written on a very grey London morning. It's a loooong read, so best to skim-read or PRINT (!)... The last 48H have been eventful, yet again, to say the least… This trip will have been full of hurdles from day 1 to day 10, really. Very few things have gone according to plan… but I guess it's why it’s called an 'adventure'… there has to be room for last minute surprises !
It was cloudy when I left Punta Gorda ("PG" as the locals fondly call it) and so I couldn't take any decent shots of the beautiful cayes below… sigh. My driver came to pick me up at 8am on the dot, from the tiny airport that is Belize City. His first language was Creole and Spanish so I asked him to speak to me in Spanish as much as possible as I hadn't really practised it once (shame on me!) since I'd been here. Most people speak to you in English by default (as English is the official language and the one taught at school) but Spanish is equally spoken. In fact, strangely, I heard far more Spanish being spoken once I landed in Miami… it was odd, to say the least.
Anyway… my very dedicated driver had lots of interesting things to say and was very keen to show me the former capital city. I say 'former' because a hurricane destroyed Belize City in 1961 and so the government officials felt it was best to move the city a few hundreds Kms back, more inland, to protect it from further lashes from Mother Nature. They called the new city Belmopan and were planning to develop it full on but Belmopan only has a few famous Mayan ruins next to it. The major draw for tourism is still the reef and the lush jungles and all the fishermen also needed to access the sea more easily… so, in effect, the official capital has moved, but Belize City was rebuilt from scratch from all the ones who loved it was a it was and needed the work that the location provided. Of course, people aren't stupid and do realise that that when the next hurricane strikes (whenever that might be) their lives and livelihood will be left in ruins all over again, but in the meantime, they have to make a living and being nearer the sea is their best bet. One of the major tourism magnets are the cruise ships that literally invade the country (up to 25,000 passengers a day – that's 10% of the national population!) at all the ports of calls along the coast. Some malls have been built especially for the cruise passengers, who get off and have 6 hours on shore to 'see it all'… It's a huge business and companies who have contracts with the ships will never be short of money.
Belize became independent from the British in 1981. It was previously called 'British Honduras' if you have some older maps. My driver who was about 50 I'd say, remembered the colonial days very well and he said they were very happy during those times. In fact, the common people had NO desire whatsoever to become independent as Great Britain took such good of care of them all. They had access to free medical treatment, free education for all the kids, paid very little taxes on goods and generally enjoyed a pretty enviable quality of life compared to their other fellow South American countries. No nasty dictators… It just took one guy at the top to become greedy for more power to ruin it all for everybody.
The independence was negotiated as a very peaceful hand-over. The Belizeans, in fact, are SO peaceful that no riots has ever taken place here. Better still, the US Embassy is made of wood and is not protected by armed guards, it is the only country in the whole world where the US Ambassador knows he will be safe from attacks. The only one with no marines outside. You can still see the small building now, though the new embassy is now in Belmopan.
Ever since they became independent though, it all changed for the worse. No more free health care or education for a start ! Corruption has become rampant… and unfortunately, the fact that the local population is 'too nice' has gone against them. The people at the top are almost making it blatantly obvious, rubbing their noses in it as if to say 'we know you are not the kind to rebel, you hate troubles, so just grin and bear it'… but my driver feels that their happy days will soon end ' as even the most peaceful of people can only take such arrogance for so long'. In the last 7 years, the costs of their food (the vast majority is imported) has gone up by 10 times when their salaries have only doubled. Their foreign debt has also gone up from a few millions to 2.5 billion dollars… "and there is nothing to show for it". Where did it all go? I asked. "Dunno. Building private villas for the guys at the top I guess". Whilst my driver's kids walk to school, some are driven over (to the same school) by chauffeurs in Limousine and wearing super fancy clothes and trainers. It's by far the worst foreign debt they have ever had and it will take Belizeans some 20 years or so to clear it, by increasing the taxes of the common people. He's paying USD 4.90 for a gallon of petrol for instance, which includes 70% tax – the highest price in Central America. Venezuela has decided to come to their rescue by selling them oil at reasonable prices (to uncut Bush I guess… it's from the same guy who famously criticised him lately, saying Bush was evil… remember?).
There is also a big divide between the few elite families who live in the North of Belize City and the working class, who live in the South. A river runs through it and you can virtually see the difference… in the style of houses and even the skin colour of the people. Many here are descendants from African slaves who arrived in the mid-1700 to help with the mahogany trade and look very black. Most look idle too and not really looking for work because wages are too low (3 B$ per hour, which is about 1.5 USD = 75p/hour). Hence, crime is rampant… it's easier to steal money than to earn it.
They also have the oldest Anglican Cathedral in Central America, build in 1812 with bricks imported from England and one of the few buildings that stood the test of the hurricane in 1961. Many famous people have been crowned and buried here. My driver remembers the whole congregation was packed inside during the hurricane - they could feel the wall tremble, but the building didn't collapse as the material was so strong (much stronger than stones from Belize). Neither did the jail (same material).
They also have a museum here that holds all the Mayan treasures ever discovered, and the biggest jewel made of Jade (as precious as gold to them). Most of the exhibits are now held in what used to be cells for inmates. At the time, when the British built the cells, they were due to be for one person only, when they felt the country, as taxes went up like crazy, so did crimes and so they ended up having to squeeze up to 8 in one cell. Unfortunately, the nearby influence of violent US where drugs and guns were easy to buy, deeply affected the new generation here. Also, anybody from a working class background will be denied a VISA to visit the USA. You will only be granted one if you are part of the elite – which makes people even angrier.
After this interesting but depressing first half of the morning, I was driven to the zoo. I had heard of this zoo for SO long now, I was getting truly excited. Even Greg Basco, the photographer who trained me in Costa Rica told me that 'when all fails and you cannot photograph a jaguar in the wild, you go to Belize Zoo and people will never know as the habitat is similar'. This was a key sentence to me ! This very statement is the one that started to stir me towards reading more on what else Belize could offer… and for such a small country, it truly can offer a LOT. I've been plagued with poor health and poor weather, but I'm sure in the sun it'd be amazing.
Anyway, the zoo itself is fairly small, but they have about 25 enclosures and it is a bit of a maze with few signs. I was glad my driver was with me because I'm sure I'd have missed some if not. Being an expert in animal psychology by now (he must have done the zoo 50 times or more) he bought a bag of peanuts before we set off, to lure the shy ones out of the bush. And it worked. They all recognised him too !:)
The zoo was first set up in the 60's I believe, when a TV crew had finished doing a documentary on wildlife here. By the time the shooting was over, the animals had become so tame and so attached to them that it proved impossible to release them in the wild otherwise they couldn't have fended for themselves. So, the producer decided to improvise and create an education centre to promote that animals are worth more alive than dead. The zoo is full of fun signs for kids next to some cages on the lines of '"Don't worry, be happy"… yeah, we used to sing that tune too, until someone caught us and put us in a cage and destroyed our home'… They constantly reiterate that "our home is their home too" and that it's crucial they are treated well and respected. The average Belizean is aware by now that eco-tourism is the major source of revenue for the country and they are even gutted we have to pay a US$ 35 departure tax to leave. It doubled in the last 5 years.
You can google 'Belize Zoo' and find lots of info and see lots of beautiful pix, but some of the cuties that I got to see were:
For birds : harpy eagles, king vulture, scarlet macaws, green parrots, jabirus storks, pelicans…
For cats: margay (3, snoozing up in a tree, they are usually nocturnal), jaguar (1 black female, 1 normal up a tree, 1 'junior', 6 months old, who played with his ball the whole time… bless), ocelots (stunning !), puma (amazingly crystal clear green eyes).. Most of these you'd never see by day as they hunt by night but because they are fed chicken, they no longer need to hunt so are used to be being sociable by day. I also saw a pair of smaller cats, with a light brown coat, whose name I cannot remember, like jaguarondi maybe. They behaved just like domestic cats, rolling on their backs, etc.
Misc: 6 tapirs (and I have to add here I saw one with a loooong erection and it was *scary*… I mean, I have NO idea why God designed them that way but it looked like he had a double hammer head at the end, or a femur bone, instead of what you'd expect and boy, it must be painful). It's the kind of sight that I found quite disturbing actually… as I worried about his 'wife' (!) for the rest of the day. I'll send you a photo if you're intrigued ! They had 25 coatis (soooo cute), some agoutis, 2 grissons (like mangeese), some howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, crocs, and other marsupials whose names I'd never heard of. Oh, and gray foxes with a cute pointed face, that could climb trees as easily as a cat ! It's the only species of foxes in the world that can. And I did get to see a couple of lesser ant-eaters, and they look so fluffy and cute. I loved those. I never got to see any in the wild in Costa Rica and they were playing right in front of my eyes. I took some nice shots with the sun in their fur highlighting it beautifully. They just don't look real…
Unfortunately, I didn't get any decent shots of the baby jaguar. The better one, when he was looking straight at me, with his ball between his paws, came out toooo dark (though I used my flash-gun) because my speed was still on 100… ahhh… Then I changed it to 800 and the light and colours were right but he never posed as beautifully again. And even with 800 the shots I took later were a touch blurred. I could have cried with frustration. The pictures work in some ways, they look slightly more natural I guess. But the one that was too dark could have made me rich I think ! sigh. Junior had been rejected by his mother so was left in a huge cage on his own, but he was having 'a ball' (literally) just the same. He had no idea he was in a zoo, and it seemed as if he really didn't want to be anywhere else either. He felt safe, he was fed, his workers played with him on a regular basis… he had a big pond to splash in on a hot day, lots of leaves for cover, lots of trees to climb. This was a zoo where the animals could be as close to you as THEY wanted to… if they had no interest in interacting, they'd just go to the other end, snooze high up a tree, or behind a large leave, and you would never even see them. It was like a safari really !
All the animals looked pretty ok actually.. only the black panther looked a bit sad and lonely (her husband, normal coloured jaguar, was snoozing right up a tree, as he did every day). The ocelot and the pumas looked happy to play with us but we were not allowed to scratch them (sigh). But they didn't look so lonely as they are naturally solitary animals so they made a point not to mix them with others, so as not to mess up their natural instinct where they'd seek solitude.
My driver also pointed out to me some 'hot lips' flowers. If you imagine a woman pouting, with bright red lipstick, that was the shape of the flower. And he said that when women have given birth, they are made to stay in a room where they boil the leaves and the steam will cleanse them inside & out, and soothe the pain of childbirth too. It's been used for centuries by the Mayans and is supposedly the best pain killer there is. (I'd still ask for an epidural if it were me though… ).
Then, it was time to head back to the airport, sadly. We drove past more swamp lands with many huge puddles in the fields and palm-trees. We even stopped at a Chinese restaurant on the way back.
I checked in ok and was due to leave on time, for a little while, but then we were told that 'due to a mechanical fault, the flight coming in from the USA would be an hour late'. EEEKK. I only had 2h15 to spare between my next connection to JFK and that was going to be tight already , so 1h15, no chance. I went to the counter and explained I'd most likely miss it but the staff were very dismissive 'of course not , you've still got 1h15, the law says that we have to allow one hour minimum'… 3 times I went back, 3 times they blanked me out. Even though the counter had a sign that said 'if you require assistance, talk to us… [NOT]'. They even promised: 'we know that 70 of you have got connections, so we will ask them to hold the flights if possible, don't worry'. None of us really believed it.
Anyway, we took off 45mns late but still arrived 1h later than scheduled. They asked that those passengers with no connection remain seated so that we could all run to passport control but unfortunately, 2 planes had landed *just* before us and so their passengers had already grabbed the best queues… so that wherever you looked, all 15 queues had a minimum of 25 people in them. I did the maths and soon realised that 3-5mns per person x 22 (the number I had in front of me) was going to mean : NO chance I'd get on that next plane. And so no chance I'd get back to London that night. I went back to the AA desk 'Do you not fast-track your people in such situations?' 'No ma'am, you have to queue like everybody else'. 'But the queues are the same, whether you exit in Miami or connect… how can this be logical?', 'Not our problem, nothing we can do about that Ma'am'… They did have fast queues for e-passports I noticed, 'So, could I use those?' 'No Ma'am, that's just for US Citizens'… grrrrr. I looked seriously p** off with a 'don't you Ma'am me one more time' look on my face and then heard: 'But you'll be alright Ma'am, no worries, 1 hour is plenty'… I insisted: 'NOT with a foreign passport, can't you see the queue is NOT moving fast enough?… 'Neah, you'll be fine, just don't lose your slot in the queue'… and on and on it went. Like talking to a non-brainer.
When it was dead obvious that there was NO way I'd make the flight (I still had 5 people in front of me and I was supposed to take off in 25mns) I went back to a different staff member and asked 'so, will you hold the flight, as promised?'. 'Well, of course not. We don't hold back flights for one person. Where did you hear that ?'. 'Can't you still not fast-track me ? PLEASE' 'No, because you still need to pick up your luggage and re-check it anyway'. 'What ? I was told I'd need to pick it up at JFK, when I change airlines, not before. 'Oh yes you do, every time you re-enter the USA, it has got to be scanned all over again'… More non-sense. That was the last straw.
The queues were not moving because, (a) even though they'd taken 2 digital prints before and 1 eye scan, on the way in, they still wanted to do it all over again, on the way back … (2) even though I was just in transit they made no allowances for fast-tracking. They don't care. Even if you are only in the USA for a few hours, they'll make your life hell just the same. I had to spend £50 on a new passport for that stop-over, and still got the same amount of cr**, I even had to buy a new lock for my suitcase so that 'the authority could open it with a master key without destroying my luggage'… I mean, where else do you see such paranoia??? NO WHERE. The whole system is such a joke… They check your ID 5 times over in 30mns. In contrast, when you land at LHR, you have 75 people in front of you and the sign says 'Please beware that due to tougher procedures, you may have to wait up to 5 minutes in this queues'. Ah ha ha… I almost wanted to laugh hysterically. I was through in 3.5 minutes !
Anyway, as immigration took sooooo long, I did miss my connection. By the time I collected my luggage I was in tears, one officer asked me 'what's wrong?', I couldn't even answer… I felt like saying 'I'm in the Land of Madness, THAT's what's wrong… I WANT OUT NOW ! I'm being held prisoner vs my will'… But of course, it's not politically correct to state that and they are giving us all this grief 'for our protection', you understand. Only Americans believe in what they do… no one else does. You speak to other tourists and you can feel the hatred grow as the years go by and the bull-shit gets no less.
So, AA had to make up for their insanity and pick up the bill (well over $1,500 x 70 passengers). They treated me well from then on, I have to say. Some people gave them all kind of abuse, but I could tell the authorities were the ones who messed up. They looked at their computer, all other flights to LHR had gone, all other flights to JFK had gone too. I was stuck in Miami then – one place where I didn't have any friends, pity. They gave me a voucher for the night at the Holiday Inn, US$ 50 worth of food vouchers for the next 24H, and re-booked me an AA flight (even though I was due to return with Virgin Atlantic) direct from Miami to LHR (hooray – MUCH easier). AND I could claim air-miles as they are part of One Alliance, when Virgin isn't. That flight alone would have easily cost them $1,000 I'd say (at such short notice).
So, whereas I could have been sleeping on the floor at JFK for 7 hours and getting really tired, I was in a very comfy bed (a night there cost… $599 per person !!!! but only $610 if there are two of you --- shows how unaffordable it is to travel on one's own!) and they had a swimming pool so I could sun-bathe in the morning. I had a nice blueberry pancake for breakfast (I only wanted a small one, they gave me 3 big ones, I had to leave two and just pick the blueberries out). I wanted to use the internet but it was broken in the morning, eeeek… I wanted to call some US friends, but the time difference didn't work… So, I just stayed put and polished up my tan.
I'd been advised to check in 5 hours early the next day as it was the end of Thanksgiving and one of the busiest times of the whole year. And sure enough, nothing simple again… endless security checks, you check-in but then have to take your luggage to the drop off point (the conveyor belt wasn't working)… just mad. I was also totally shocked by the NUMBER of bags that people had. I wanted to go up to them and say 'Why on earth do you need 5 HUGE bags for ONE person? No wonder the queues are not moving. Have you got the kitchen sink in there or what?'. It totally baffled me. What on earth DO people take on holiday with them??? Then I tried to find an internet café but there was none. If you don't have a computer here you are stuck , wi-fi is ALL they know. And if you say 'excuse me, is there an internet café here?', they will only reply 'you can plug your computer over there' and I'd say 'I don't have a computer, did I say I had a computer?'… They don't even hear you. And it was like 'oh well, then, I can't help you'. This is a first world country (supposedly) and they have fewer facilities than 95% of airports in the Third World… beats me.
So I had to kindly ask a guy who had a laptop if I could borrow his 5mns no more to check my messages and see if my sister had at least got the quick note I'd sent the night before to say I'd missed my flight (mother would have been worried if not). No message from her, ahhhh. Then I had to spend ages trying to find a phone booth that worked and even more so how to work it! Anyway, we managed to talk for about 30mns, once I'd found a phone that actually had a number that she could call me back on.
The interesting exercise in all that, is that most Americans I spoke to who travelled in Belize hated Bush, and the Belizeans just can't stand the guy either. They also went right off Blair the moment he teamed up with Bush. The hatred is pretty much unanimous the world over by now… people really resent being brain-washed into a terror programme that we refuse to abide to.
Anyway, it's my 7th page, sorry I've rambled on for so long… and my lunch-break is now finished… I'd better pack up my kit for my next visit. I'm feeling quite refreshed today, thank God.
When I landed it was 6:20am, but of course just 00:20am in my head… so, a bit steep to go straight to work. And I had the migraine from hell (PMT + jet-lag didn't make for a happy combination). And I didn't have enough pills in my hand luggage to fight it. So when I landed I was in such a daze that I couldn't face going to work… I went straight to bed and woke up at 1:30am (i.e. the time I'd normally wake up in Belize !) and then slowly (my brain was still very foggy) unpacked, hand-washed and just put things back in their place. It took me a good 4 hours to do that… and my suitcase wasn't huge !!! By 6pm I was wide awake again (of course, it being noon in my head) but I soon realised I'd have to be fast asleep by 9pm if I wanted to have 10 hours' sleep and not be out of synch forever more. So I took a very strong sleeping pill that Roberto had given me in Borneo and it did the trick, boy… I dropped off to Dream Land in record time and woke up 10 hours later. As a result, I'm now ok… I took an energy drink when I got to work and all is well ! J My ankle is not swollen anymore and I haven't got too many mossie bites…my tan is a nice soft brown but I can't show it off. Just my fridge is totally empty so I'll need to get some food soon!
All in all, if I had to summarize the trip I'd give it a 5/10 rating. It wouldn't come in my top 10, it wouldn't come in my last 10 either due to its beautiful rainforests.
The bad points were:
1. The endless journey to get there (*but* as of next year, a new direct route will open from LHR to open up Europe, they just need to extend the runway, bliss !!!)
2. My tripod fell into 3 pieces… sad. We had a happy relationship whilst it lasted.
3. My ankle got badly stung by fire ants and I'd never been so sick on any holiday
4. My skin also blistered badly with the toxic sea grass
5. I had 3 days of torrential rains that interfered with activities
6. I saw no toucan or jaguars in the wild, the reefs were poor
7. I had to go via the USA (new passport, new lock = MORE hassle)
8. I had never missed a flight before in my whole life… but for US immigrations (!)
The good points:
1. I swam in a cave for the first time
2. I tubed down a dark cave for the first time (pitch black when all lights were off)
3. I enjoyed zip lining again
4. I saw many beautiful big cats at the zoo, many for the first time
5. The warmth of the people was exquisite
6. The lodges were beautiful
PS – I can't send any photos till I get my laptop back from Janet's though. She came to see me on my last day to take away all the precious things (my photo albums, other cameras and laptop) in case it all got rusty very quickly due to the damp infestation. Till I get it back, I am totally unable to download or put on CD any photos at all. So, patience… it'll be worth the wait ! You might even want to go too… ???
Hello again,
My last post on Belize, written on a very grey London morning. It's a loooong read, so best to skim-read or PRINT (!)... The last 48H have been eventful, yet again, to say the least… This trip will have been full of hurdles from day 1 to day 10, really. Very few things have gone according to plan… but I guess it's why it’s called an 'adventure'… there has to be room for last minute surprises !
It was cloudy when I left Punta Gorda ("PG" as the locals fondly call it) and so I couldn't take any decent shots of the beautiful cayes below… sigh. My driver came to pick me up at 8am on the dot, from the tiny airport that is Belize City. His first language was Creole and Spanish so I asked him to speak to me in Spanish as much as possible as I hadn't really practised it once (shame on me!) since I'd been here. Most people speak to you in English by default (as English is the official language and the one taught at school) but Spanish is equally spoken. In fact, strangely, I heard far more Spanish being spoken once I landed in Miami… it was odd, to say the least.
Anyway… my very dedicated driver had lots of interesting things to say and was very keen to show me the former capital city. I say 'former' because a hurricane destroyed Belize City in 1961 and so the government officials felt it was best to move the city a few hundreds Kms back, more inland, to protect it from further lashes from Mother Nature. They called the new city Belmopan and were planning to develop it full on but Belmopan only has a few famous Mayan ruins next to it. The major draw for tourism is still the reef and the lush jungles and all the fishermen also needed to access the sea more easily… so, in effect, the official capital has moved, but Belize City was rebuilt from scratch from all the ones who loved it was a it was and needed the work that the location provided. Of course, people aren't stupid and do realise that that when the next hurricane strikes (whenever that might be) their lives and livelihood will be left in ruins all over again, but in the meantime, they have to make a living and being nearer the sea is their best bet. One of the major tourism magnets are the cruise ships that literally invade the country (up to 25,000 passengers a day – that's 10% of the national population!) at all the ports of calls along the coast. Some malls have been built especially for the cruise passengers, who get off and have 6 hours on shore to 'see it all'… It's a huge business and companies who have contracts with the ships will never be short of money.
Belize became independent from the British in 1981. It was previously called 'British Honduras' if you have some older maps. My driver who was about 50 I'd say, remembered the colonial days very well and he said they were very happy during those times. In fact, the common people had NO desire whatsoever to become independent as Great Britain took such good of care of them all. They had access to free medical treatment, free education for all the kids, paid very little taxes on goods and generally enjoyed a pretty enviable quality of life compared to their other fellow South American countries. No nasty dictators… It just took one guy at the top to become greedy for more power to ruin it all for everybody.
The independence was negotiated as a very peaceful hand-over. The Belizeans, in fact, are SO peaceful that no riots has ever taken place here. Better still, the US Embassy is made of wood and is not protected by armed guards, it is the only country in the whole world where the US Ambassador knows he will be safe from attacks. The only one with no marines outside. You can still see the small building now, though the new embassy is now in Belmopan.
Ever since they became independent though, it all changed for the worse. No more free health care or education for a start ! Corruption has become rampant… and unfortunately, the fact that the local population is 'too nice' has gone against them. The people at the top are almost making it blatantly obvious, rubbing their noses in it as if to say 'we know you are not the kind to rebel, you hate troubles, so just grin and bear it'… but my driver feels that their happy days will soon end ' as even the most peaceful of people can only take such arrogance for so long'. In the last 7 years, the costs of their food (the vast majority is imported) has gone up by 10 times when their salaries have only doubled. Their foreign debt has also gone up from a few millions to 2.5 billion dollars… "and there is nothing to show for it". Where did it all go? I asked. "Dunno. Building private villas for the guys at the top I guess". Whilst my driver's kids walk to school, some are driven over (to the same school) by chauffeurs in Limousine and wearing super fancy clothes and trainers. It's by far the worst foreign debt they have ever had and it will take Belizeans some 20 years or so to clear it, by increasing the taxes of the common people. He's paying USD 4.90 for a gallon of petrol for instance, which includes 70% tax – the highest price in Central America. Venezuela has decided to come to their rescue by selling them oil at reasonable prices (to uncut Bush I guess… it's from the same guy who famously criticised him lately, saying Bush was evil… remember?).
There is also a big divide between the few elite families who live in the North of Belize City and the working class, who live in the South. A river runs through it and you can virtually see the difference… in the style of houses and even the skin colour of the people. Many here are descendants from African slaves who arrived in the mid-1700 to help with the mahogany trade and look very black. Most look idle too and not really looking for work because wages are too low (3 B$ per hour, which is about 1.5 USD = 75p/hour). Hence, crime is rampant… it's easier to steal money than to earn it.
They also have the oldest Anglican Cathedral in Central America, build in 1812 with bricks imported from England and one of the few buildings that stood the test of the hurricane in 1961. Many famous people have been crowned and buried here. My driver remembers the whole congregation was packed inside during the hurricane - they could feel the wall tremble, but the building didn't collapse as the material was so strong (much stronger than stones from Belize). Neither did the jail (same material).
They also have a museum here that holds all the Mayan treasures ever discovered, and the biggest jewel made of Jade (as precious as gold to them). Most of the exhibits are now held in what used to be cells for inmates. At the time, when the British built the cells, they were due to be for one person only, when they felt the country, as taxes went up like crazy, so did crimes and so they ended up having to squeeze up to 8 in one cell. Unfortunately, the nearby influence of violent US where drugs and guns were easy to buy, deeply affected the new generation here. Also, anybody from a working class background will be denied a VISA to visit the USA. You will only be granted one if you are part of the elite – which makes people even angrier.
After this interesting but depressing first half of the morning, I was driven to the zoo. I had heard of this zoo for SO long now, I was getting truly excited. Even Greg Basco, the photographer who trained me in Costa Rica told me that 'when all fails and you cannot photograph a jaguar in the wild, you go to Belize Zoo and people will never know as the habitat is similar'. This was a key sentence to me ! This very statement is the one that started to stir me towards reading more on what else Belize could offer… and for such a small country, it truly can offer a LOT. I've been plagued with poor health and poor weather, but I'm sure in the sun it'd be amazing.
Anyway, the zoo itself is fairly small, but they have about 25 enclosures and it is a bit of a maze with few signs. I was glad my driver was with me because I'm sure I'd have missed some if not. Being an expert in animal psychology by now (he must have done the zoo 50 times or more) he bought a bag of peanuts before we set off, to lure the shy ones out of the bush. And it worked. They all recognised him too !:)
The zoo was first set up in the 60's I believe, when a TV crew had finished doing a documentary on wildlife here. By the time the shooting was over, the animals had become so tame and so attached to them that it proved impossible to release them in the wild otherwise they couldn't have fended for themselves. So, the producer decided to improvise and create an education centre to promote that animals are worth more alive than dead. The zoo is full of fun signs for kids next to some cages on the lines of '"Don't worry, be happy"… yeah, we used to sing that tune too, until someone caught us and put us in a cage and destroyed our home'… They constantly reiterate that "our home is their home too" and that it's crucial they are treated well and respected. The average Belizean is aware by now that eco-tourism is the major source of revenue for the country and they are even gutted we have to pay a US$ 35 departure tax to leave. It doubled in the last 5 years.
You can google 'Belize Zoo' and find lots of info and see lots of beautiful pix, but some of the cuties that I got to see were:
For birds : harpy eagles, king vulture, scarlet macaws, green parrots, jabirus storks, pelicans…
For cats: margay (3, snoozing up in a tree, they are usually nocturnal), jaguar (1 black female, 1 normal up a tree, 1 'junior', 6 months old, who played with his ball the whole time… bless), ocelots (stunning !), puma (amazingly crystal clear green eyes).. Most of these you'd never see by day as they hunt by night but because they are fed chicken, they no longer need to hunt so are used to be being sociable by day. I also saw a pair of smaller cats, with a light brown coat, whose name I cannot remember, like jaguarondi maybe. They behaved just like domestic cats, rolling on their backs, etc.
Misc: 6 tapirs (and I have to add here I saw one with a loooong erection and it was *scary*… I mean, I have NO idea why God designed them that way but it looked like he had a double hammer head at the end, or a femur bone, instead of what you'd expect and boy, it must be painful). It's the kind of sight that I found quite disturbing actually… as I worried about his 'wife' (!) for the rest of the day. I'll send you a photo if you're intrigued ! They had 25 coatis (soooo cute), some agoutis, 2 grissons (like mangeese), some howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, crocs, and other marsupials whose names I'd never heard of. Oh, and gray foxes with a cute pointed face, that could climb trees as easily as a cat ! It's the only species of foxes in the world that can. And I did get to see a couple of lesser ant-eaters, and they look so fluffy and cute. I loved those. I never got to see any in the wild in Costa Rica and they were playing right in front of my eyes. I took some nice shots with the sun in their fur highlighting it beautifully. They just don't look real…
Unfortunately, I didn't get any decent shots of the baby jaguar. The better one, when he was looking straight at me, with his ball between his paws, came out toooo dark (though I used my flash-gun) because my speed was still on 100… ahhh… Then I changed it to 800 and the light and colours were right but he never posed as beautifully again. And even with 800 the shots I took later were a touch blurred. I could have cried with frustration. The pictures work in some ways, they look slightly more natural I guess. But the one that was too dark could have made me rich I think ! sigh. Junior had been rejected by his mother so was left in a huge cage on his own, but he was having 'a ball' (literally) just the same. He had no idea he was in a zoo, and it seemed as if he really didn't want to be anywhere else either. He felt safe, he was fed, his workers played with him on a regular basis… he had a big pond to splash in on a hot day, lots of leaves for cover, lots of trees to climb. This was a zoo where the animals could be as close to you as THEY wanted to… if they had no interest in interacting, they'd just go to the other end, snooze high up a tree, or behind a large leave, and you would never even see them. It was like a safari really !
All the animals looked pretty ok actually.. only the black panther looked a bit sad and lonely (her husband, normal coloured jaguar, was snoozing right up a tree, as he did every day). The ocelot and the pumas looked happy to play with us but we were not allowed to scratch them (sigh). But they didn't look so lonely as they are naturally solitary animals so they made a point not to mix them with others, so as not to mess up their natural instinct where they'd seek solitude.
My driver also pointed out to me some 'hot lips' flowers. If you imagine a woman pouting, with bright red lipstick, that was the shape of the flower. And he said that when women have given birth, they are made to stay in a room where they boil the leaves and the steam will cleanse them inside & out, and soothe the pain of childbirth too. It's been used for centuries by the Mayans and is supposedly the best pain killer there is. (I'd still ask for an epidural if it were me though… ).
Then, it was time to head back to the airport, sadly. We drove past more swamp lands with many huge puddles in the fields and palm-trees. We even stopped at a Chinese restaurant on the way back.
I checked in ok and was due to leave on time, for a little while, but then we were told that 'due to a mechanical fault, the flight coming in from the USA would be an hour late'. EEEKK. I only had 2h15 to spare between my next connection to JFK and that was going to be tight already , so 1h15, no chance. I went to the counter and explained I'd most likely miss it but the staff were very dismissive 'of course not , you've still got 1h15, the law says that we have to allow one hour minimum'… 3 times I went back, 3 times they blanked me out. Even though the counter had a sign that said 'if you require assistance, talk to us… [NOT]'. They even promised: 'we know that 70 of you have got connections, so we will ask them to hold the flights if possible, don't worry'. None of us really believed it.
Anyway, we took off 45mns late but still arrived 1h later than scheduled. They asked that those passengers with no connection remain seated so that we could all run to passport control but unfortunately, 2 planes had landed *just* before us and so their passengers had already grabbed the best queues… so that wherever you looked, all 15 queues had a minimum of 25 people in them. I did the maths and soon realised that 3-5mns per person x 22 (the number I had in front of me) was going to mean : NO chance I'd get on that next plane. And so no chance I'd get back to London that night. I went back to the AA desk 'Do you not fast-track your people in such situations?' 'No ma'am, you have to queue like everybody else'. 'But the queues are the same, whether you exit in Miami or connect… how can this be logical?', 'Not our problem, nothing we can do about that Ma'am'… They did have fast queues for e-passports I noticed, 'So, could I use those?' 'No Ma'am, that's just for US Citizens'… grrrrr. I looked seriously p** off with a 'don't you Ma'am me one more time' look on my face and then heard: 'But you'll be alright Ma'am, no worries, 1 hour is plenty'… I insisted: 'NOT with a foreign passport, can't you see the queue is NOT moving fast enough?… 'Neah, you'll be fine, just don't lose your slot in the queue'… and on and on it went. Like talking to a non-brainer.
When it was dead obvious that there was NO way I'd make the flight (I still had 5 people in front of me and I was supposed to take off in 25mns) I went back to a different staff member and asked 'so, will you hold the flight, as promised?'. 'Well, of course not. We don't hold back flights for one person. Where did you hear that ?'. 'Can't you still not fast-track me ? PLEASE' 'No, because you still need to pick up your luggage and re-check it anyway'. 'What ? I was told I'd need to pick it up at JFK, when I change airlines, not before. 'Oh yes you do, every time you re-enter the USA, it has got to be scanned all over again'… More non-sense. That was the last straw.
The queues were not moving because, (a) even though they'd taken 2 digital prints before and 1 eye scan, on the way in, they still wanted to do it all over again, on the way back … (2) even though I was just in transit they made no allowances for fast-tracking. They don't care. Even if you are only in the USA for a few hours, they'll make your life hell just the same. I had to spend £50 on a new passport for that stop-over, and still got the same amount of cr**, I even had to buy a new lock for my suitcase so that 'the authority could open it with a master key without destroying my luggage'… I mean, where else do you see such paranoia??? NO WHERE. The whole system is such a joke… They check your ID 5 times over in 30mns. In contrast, when you land at LHR, you have 75 people in front of you and the sign says 'Please beware that due to tougher procedures, you may have to wait up to 5 minutes in this queues'. Ah ha ha… I almost wanted to laugh hysterically. I was through in 3.5 minutes !
Anyway, as immigration took sooooo long, I did miss my connection. By the time I collected my luggage I was in tears, one officer asked me 'what's wrong?', I couldn't even answer… I felt like saying 'I'm in the Land of Madness, THAT's what's wrong… I WANT OUT NOW ! I'm being held prisoner vs my will'… But of course, it's not politically correct to state that and they are giving us all this grief 'for our protection', you understand. Only Americans believe in what they do… no one else does. You speak to other tourists and you can feel the hatred grow as the years go by and the bull-shit gets no less.
So, AA had to make up for their insanity and pick up the bill (well over $1,500 x 70 passengers). They treated me well from then on, I have to say. Some people gave them all kind of abuse, but I could tell the authorities were the ones who messed up. They looked at their computer, all other flights to LHR had gone, all other flights to JFK had gone too. I was stuck in Miami then – one place where I didn't have any friends, pity. They gave me a voucher for the night at the Holiday Inn, US$ 50 worth of food vouchers for the next 24H, and re-booked me an AA flight (even though I was due to return with Virgin Atlantic) direct from Miami to LHR (hooray – MUCH easier). AND I could claim air-miles as they are part of One Alliance, when Virgin isn't. That flight alone would have easily cost them $1,000 I'd say (at such short notice).
So, whereas I could have been sleeping on the floor at JFK for 7 hours and getting really tired, I was in a very comfy bed (a night there cost… $599 per person !!!! but only $610 if there are two of you --- shows how unaffordable it is to travel on one's own!) and they had a swimming pool so I could sun-bathe in the morning. I had a nice blueberry pancake for breakfast (I only wanted a small one, they gave me 3 big ones, I had to leave two and just pick the blueberries out). I wanted to use the internet but it was broken in the morning, eeeek… I wanted to call some US friends, but the time difference didn't work… So, I just stayed put and polished up my tan.
I'd been advised to check in 5 hours early the next day as it was the end of Thanksgiving and one of the busiest times of the whole year. And sure enough, nothing simple again… endless security checks, you check-in but then have to take your luggage to the drop off point (the conveyor belt wasn't working)… just mad. I was also totally shocked by the NUMBER of bags that people had. I wanted to go up to them and say 'Why on earth do you need 5 HUGE bags for ONE person? No wonder the queues are not moving. Have you got the kitchen sink in there or what?'. It totally baffled me. What on earth DO people take on holiday with them??? Then I tried to find an internet café but there was none. If you don't have a computer here you are stuck , wi-fi is ALL they know. And if you say 'excuse me, is there an internet café here?', they will only reply 'you can plug your computer over there' and I'd say 'I don't have a computer, did I say I had a computer?'… They don't even hear you. And it was like 'oh well, then, I can't help you'. This is a first world country (supposedly) and they have fewer facilities than 95% of airports in the Third World… beats me.
So I had to kindly ask a guy who had a laptop if I could borrow his 5mns no more to check my messages and see if my sister had at least got the quick note I'd sent the night before to say I'd missed my flight (mother would have been worried if not). No message from her, ahhhh. Then I had to spend ages trying to find a phone booth that worked and even more so how to work it! Anyway, we managed to talk for about 30mns, once I'd found a phone that actually had a number that she could call me back on.
The interesting exercise in all that, is that most Americans I spoke to who travelled in Belize hated Bush, and the Belizeans just can't stand the guy either. They also went right off Blair the moment he teamed up with Bush. The hatred is pretty much unanimous the world over by now… people really resent being brain-washed into a terror programme that we refuse to abide to.
Anyway, it's my 7th page, sorry I've rambled on for so long… and my lunch-break is now finished… I'd better pack up my kit for my next visit. I'm feeling quite refreshed today, thank God.
When I landed it was 6:20am, but of course just 00:20am in my head… so, a bit steep to go straight to work. And I had the migraine from hell (PMT + jet-lag didn't make for a happy combination). And I didn't have enough pills in my hand luggage to fight it. So when I landed I was in such a daze that I couldn't face going to work… I went straight to bed and woke up at 1:30am (i.e. the time I'd normally wake up in Belize !) and then slowly (my brain was still very foggy) unpacked, hand-washed and just put things back in their place. It took me a good 4 hours to do that… and my suitcase wasn't huge !!! By 6pm I was wide awake again (of course, it being noon in my head) but I soon realised I'd have to be fast asleep by 9pm if I wanted to have 10 hours' sleep and not be out of synch forever more. So I took a very strong sleeping pill that Roberto had given me in Borneo and it did the trick, boy… I dropped off to Dream Land in record time and woke up 10 hours later. As a result, I'm now ok… I took an energy drink when I got to work and all is well ! J My ankle is not swollen anymore and I haven't got too many mossie bites…my tan is a nice soft brown but I can't show it off. Just my fridge is totally empty so I'll need to get some food soon!
All in all, if I had to summarize the trip I'd give it a 5/10 rating. It wouldn't come in my top 10, it wouldn't come in my last 10 either due to its beautiful rainforests.
The bad points were:
1. The endless journey to get there (*but* as of next year, a new direct route will open from LHR to open up Europe, they just need to extend the runway, bliss !!!)
2. My tripod fell into 3 pieces… sad. We had a happy relationship whilst it lasted.
3. My ankle got badly stung by fire ants and I'd never been so sick on any holiday
4. My skin also blistered badly with the toxic sea grass
5. I had 3 days of torrential rains that interfered with activities
6. I saw no toucan or jaguars in the wild, the reefs were poor
7. I had to go via the USA (new passport, new lock = MORE hassle)
8. I had never missed a flight before in my whole life… but for US immigrations (!)
The good points:
1. I swam in a cave for the first time
2. I tubed down a dark cave for the first time (pitch black when all lights were off)
3. I enjoyed zip lining again
4. I saw many beautiful big cats at the zoo, many for the first time
5. The warmth of the people was exquisite
6. The lodges were beautiful
PS – I can't send any photos till I get my laptop back from Janet's though. She came to see me on my last day to take away all the precious things (my photo albums, other cameras and laptop) in case it all got rusty very quickly due to the damp infestation. Till I get it back, I am totally unable to download or put on CD any photos at all. So, patience… it'll be worth the wait ! You might even want to go too… ???
posted by Sylvie at 6:29 PM
