Declan and I set off in order to get to the Guatemalan Consulate at 09:00 hrs. when it opened, leaving Diego slumbering in his pit. The Consulate was pleasantly air-conditioned and decorated with tourist posters of Guatemala. My passport presented no problem and I paid $10 US dollars for an instant visa, but Declan’s Irish passport was a puzzle for them. The Consul had no information on Ireland and after a few unsuccessful attempts to ring Guatemala for advice, he shrugged and issued Declan with a complementary visa.
On the way back we met Diego and grabbed our baggage. It was getting hot, and all the shops were beginning to open their shutters. Affluent Mexican holidaymakers wandered around in their best casual clothes or drove about in fancy American campervans and Winnebago's®.
We took a taxi to the Bus Terminal, stocked up with cakes, crisps and Coca Cola, and jumped on the “Venus” bus to Corozal in Belize. Corozal is a sleepy seaside town, located just south of the Río Hondo (Hondo River), which forms the border between Mexico and Belize. Set on a crystal-clear bay, Corozal was an important centre on the early Mayan trading routes, and the evidence remains in the ruins of Cerros and Santa Rita, and the old English Fort Barley.
The border crossing was quick and efficient, and we passed through Customs and changed Mexican money and travellers’ cheques with men waiting on the Belizian side. Two dollars Belize was equal to one $US American dollar.
Belize, formerly known as British Honduras, is a Caribbean country located on the northeastern coast of Central America. Belize is bordered on the northwest by Mexico, on the east by the Caribbean Sea, and on the south and west by Guatemala.
Belize was granted independence on 21 September 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation because of its longstanding territorial dispute with the British colony, claiming that Belize belonged to Guatemala. About 1,500 British troops remained in Belize to deter any possible incursions.
We were happy to be leaving Mexico and our spirits soared as we reboarded the bus which was now playing lively Caribbean influenced music. At the small town of Corozal we were dropped off at the “airstrip” which was more like a field. We enquired at a house and were told that it cost 50 Belizian dollars ($BZ) for the ferry to San Pedro on Ambergris Caye (Island), Madonna’s Isla Bonita, and not 26 $BZ as we had been told by Dennis.
Belize City is the largest city in Belize and was once the capital of the former British Honduras. It is situated at the mouth of the Haulover Creek, which is a distributary of the Belize River. The Belize River empties into the Caribbean Sea five miles from Belize City on the Philip Goldson Highway on the coast of the Caribbean.
The city is the country's principal port and its financial and industrial hub. Cruise ships drop anchor outside the port and are tendered by local citizens. The city was almost entirely destroyed in October 1961 when Hurricane Hattie swept ashore. It was the capital of British Honduras (as Belize was then named) until the government was moved to the new capital of Belmopan in 1970.
We waited on the dusty verge outside the Hotel Maya. Diego donned his “John Lennon” round mirror shades and bobbed and weaved to a Belizean radio station on his transistor radio while trying to thumb a lift. A local black man walked past us with a small crocodile on a lead, taking it for a swim in the bay opposite.
At 14:00 hrs. we flagged down a “Batty” bus to Belize City and started off sitting on the floor. Fairly soon though we got a comfortable reclining seat. The countryside was flat and moderately wooded, with some reed-like vegetation. The area was originally mangrove swamp and most of the wooden shacks with corrugated iron rooves were on stilts.
Now the shop signs were in English. At Orange Walk we saw a small quiet town with low buildings around a decaying plaza. The town was reputed to be a centre for the drugs trade. Orange Walk Town is the fourth largest town in Belize and is located 53 miles north of Belize City. The town is known for its diversity and visitors come to explore Mayan sites like Cuello and Lamanai and a variety of other natural parks.
One restaurant offered “The Best Service in Town” while the next offered “The Best Service in the Country”. We continued along the increasingly potholed road through several short sharp rain showers until we reached Belize City.
The outskirts were well spread-out shacks with black families relaxing on their porches. The amount of surface water increased and for the final leg of the journey we appeared to be running along a dyke. Adverts for Gordon’s Gin and Barclays Bank appeared. Finally, the bus turned left along a canal bumping along a pitted dry mud track to a small bus station.
We got off and walked between 2-storey wooden buildings towards the central swing bridge where boats for the cayes left. The Belize City Swing Bridge spans the Haulover Creek and connects the north side with the south side of Belize City. It is the oldest swing bridge in Central America, and the only manually operated bridge still functioning in the world. The bridge was constructed in Liverpool, England, in 1922 at a cost of $84,000.00, and brought to Belize by a USA company based in New Orleans. It was installed and opened to the public on 11th April 1923.
The locals were largely of African descent and seemed to be largely Rastafarians. At the riverside we found a right dodgy collection of rogues offering expensive boat trips to Caye Caulker and Ambergris Caye.
One of them tried a trick that we had been warned about. The local claims that a moored boat is his and invites you to get aboard and load your luggage and wait. He then goes to “pick up his outboard motor” after collecting some money from you “to buy petrol”. He goes off, never to be seen again.
We decided to wait until tomorrow, it being nearly dusk, and booked into the North Front Guest House. We got a clean simple room for 21 $BZ. Belize City is probably the most dangerous place that I have visited. The manager was a friendly American. The front door of the hotel had a peep hole and was securely locked from the inside. There was a baseball bat close to hand to deal with unwanted guests. Belize City is a dodgy place indeed, especially at night.
We went to a bar opposite to try the Belikin Beer. It was good and the bar was dark but pleasant. Unfortunately, a boring local latched on to us and we retreated to our hotel for a good Italian-style vegetarian spaghetti followed by chocolate tapioca pudding.
According to Wikipedia Belikin is the leading domestically produced beer brand in Belize. Belikin is brewed by the Belize Brewing Company, Ltd. which is owned by the Bowen family. The Belize Brewing Company was established in 1969 and began brewing Belikin Beer and Belikin Stout brand name in 1971. Its tagline is "The Beer of Belize".
The name "Belikin" comes from the Maya language and means "Route to the East". This is a term which some have suggested is the origin of the name of "Belize" (although the most accepted derivation says the name comes from the Belize River, meaning "muddy"!). The Belikin label features a drawing of a Pre-Columbian Maya temple-pyramid at Altun Ha.
The most common Belikin is a light lager beer. Lighthouse Lager, Belikin Premium and a stout beer are also brewed and sold under the Belikin name. The brewery is based in Ladyville, Belize District.
Declan and Diego went out for a smoke while I retired to my room to write up my logbook. They soon returned and we sat on the balcony overlooking the street until the lure of the bar opposite became too great. We crossed the road and pushed into the dim interior where a couple of black locals were watching an American show on TV.
We went out back onto a wooden jetty over the river and drank Belikin beer while hordes of kamikaze mosquitos attacked our ankles. The night was quiet with only a few lights were visible in the wooden houses opposite.
We decided that the cays were too touristy and commercial and decided against going out to them. Instead, we decided to head to a small, undeveloped resort called Placencia, which was mentioned in the South American Handbook.
We learned that prior to the European colonization of the Americas, the Placencia Peninsula was inhabited by the Maya. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Maya in this area produced salt and traded it with other settlements along the coast.
In the 17th century, Placencia was settled by English Puritans, originally from Nova Scotia and Providence Island. This settlement died out during the Spanish American wars of independence in the 1820s.
The Placencia Peninsula was resettled in the late 1800s by several families. Placencia prospered and soon became a village, earning its livelihood from the sea. The Spaniards that travelled the southern coast of Belize gave Placencia its name. At that time Placencia was called Placentia, with the point being called Punta Placentia, or Pleasant Point.
In the late 20th century, it became a significant tourism destination, and is now referred to as Placencia Village, or simply Placencia. We decided that it would be a good place to see in the New Year 1988.
We retired to our clean wooden room and turned on the ceiling fan on full to combat the mosquitos. It was reminiscent of the opening scenes of Apocalypse Now ("Saigon, shit. I'm still only in Saigon. Every time I think I'm going to wake up back in the jungle. When I was home after my first tour, it was worse. I'd wake up and there'd be nothing...I hardly said a word to my wife until I said yes to a divorce. When I was here, I wanted to be there. When I was there, all I could think of was getting back into the jungle. I've been here a week now. Waiting for a mission, getting softer. Every minute I stay in this room I get weaker. And every minute Charlie squats in the bush he gets stronger. Each time I look around the walls move in a little tighter. Everyone gets everything he wants. I wanted a mission, and for my sins they gave me one. Brought it up to me like room service").
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