Initial adventures

After a long, but relatively uneventful day of flights, Katie and I landed in beautiful Belize! It is incredibly hot here...with humidity like I've never seen. Belize city was our first stop. The first thing I noticed about Belize is that everyone is reeeeally nice. So nice that my inner traveler warning lights were going off. That's really great you'll be taking us to a cheap hostel...but what will you be taking from my bags? Haha... It took me a few days to realize that the people here really are that nice and in general they're not trying to swindle you into accepting some "special deal".

My first impressions of the city itself were a little disappointing. Because it is on the coast, the city is periodically ravaged by hurricanes, and for the most part is looks like they don't bother making repairs and just keep on living in whatever is left of the building that once stood in its place. The farther you move away from the city centre though, the more upscale the buildings become, moving from small run-down wooden shacks to well built cement homes with pastel painted walls. The city is built around a swing bridge that crosses an ocean tributary. It is rotated entirely by hand, and anyone who is around at the time is expected to help out. Streets of the city are lined with water-fillled gutters the kids play in and signs of "AIDS, don't turn your back on it" compete for space with the "Only abstinence protects love" signs. There is clearly a lot of awareness about the problem... it's just a matter of how useful it is in its goal.

The first few days Katie and I met with our contacts in Belize. We found out that despite having prepared to teach 3 of our 5 kits to highschool students we have only been booked into primary schools. We had to make some major changes and we won't know if they work until we try! Here's hoping! We also found out that kids here are often sexually active by age ten and you'd be hard pressed to find someone who wasn't at age 15. We also found out that girls who get pregnant essentially have no options. Abortions are illegal, and those performed underground often result in gross infection or infertility. Adoptions are virtually unheard of and are usually the result of foreigners who are looking for kids. Needless to say we are here to teach about responsible sexuality as more of a preventative measure.

Since arriving, Katie and I have eaten several times at a great restaurant called Nerie's. Rice and beans is the fare of choice- not to be confused with beans and rice which is a different meal. In an interesting test of practicing what you preach, I noticed that the arms of our young energetic waitress were covered in white sores. This is often a sign of HIV/AIDS. An initial discomfort sits in my stomach...but reality also hits. We are here to teach people about AIDS discrimination, we have a skit about a person with HIV in a restaurant being refused service. This is where it all starts...I stop and calmly review the facts: HIV can only be transmitted by blood, semen, vaginal fluid and breastmilk. It's a common misconception, but you can't get AIDS from a fork. I sit back, relax and enjoy a great dinner of rice and beans. We returned several times for more delicious food and the friendly face of my favourite waitress.

Thursday, Katie and I picked up the remaining travelers and we headed off to Caye Caulker for a relaxing weekend of bonding. The Caye was ripped in half a few years ago by a hurricane and now lies in two pieces. Dreads are the hairdo of choice and everyone seems to think we are "special, attractive girls". We ate dinner at a local place with a local character named Maurice who cooked up the catch of the day. We swam in the ocean, practiced our teaching and laughed at Kyle and Ian who returned to their boyish roots chopping coconut and chasing crabs. We have since returned, split into two groups and headed off to our first teaching towns. We start Tuesday... I'm getting hot....time to jump in the sea!