Growing up, I lived a shelter life in the
fact that the only country I have visited outside of the United States has been
Canada – and for some reason I feel like that doesn’t count. To be completely honest, I do not know a lot
about the countries to our immediate south.
When choosing a country to write about, the one thing that popped into
my head was The Blue Hole in Belize. I
have seen dozens of pictures of this phenomena and find it intriguing, stunning
and incredibly fascinating. Based on
this fact alone, I was inspired to research the country more to see what lies
within its borders.
Belize
has a strong and interesting history.
Something that is a bit out of the ordinary is that the country was a
British colony and remains part of the British Commonwealth, which is very
unlike Belize’s surrounding Spanish neighbors.
In addition, because of the rich climate and access to the ocean and its
plentiful offerings, there was a large Mayan population throughout the country. Today there are numerous ruins throughout the
country, some of which are tourist sites that can be toured, while others
remain unfound throughout the remote jungles of the country. There are many archeological expeditions
every year in hopes of uncovering new sites. This to me is impressive and amazing in that the
Mayan culture is still very present.
The
culture throughout Belize is incredibly diverse and because of the many
different backgrounds throughout the country, is a very mulit-ethnic area. Because of where the country is located, the
people living in Belize are of backgrounds such as Mayan/European, Kriol, Spanish,
Garifuna, East Indian, Chinese, and even Middle Eastern. Due to the numerous diverse backgrounds,
Belize is said to have extremely friendly people and is to be one of the most
peaceful countries in the surrounding region.
Something
else that I found to be remarkable is the ecology of Belize. The country has everything from lush
rainforests and jungles to mangrove swamps and coral reefs, another way in which
the country is diverse. The weather is
usually very warm, tropical and humid.
Overall, Belize seems like a country
with ample amounts of culture, diversity and history. It’s amazing how you can know so little about
a country or a place within the world and one small thing can spark an interest
into learning more about that location.
Belize is definitely a place of interest and I have hopes that one day I’ll
be able to explore the country and its many attributes.
Thanks for doing so much research on Belize! I would love to visit this country too, it seems so diverse and beautiful, just like what you talked about. I've heard a lot from friends who have visited there; they shared about incredible things they did and experienced. Belize's history as a British colony adds a very unique twist to typical Latin American culture, it would definitely be interesting to see what sort of British legacies still remain, while all of Belize's neighboring countries have had little influence apart from Spain and indigenous cultures.
ReplyDeleteI think it's great how you have not yet been to Belize but you have immediately convinced me to visit there as well. The research you've is fantastic; I had no clue that Belize is a part of the British Commonwealth nor did I know it has such a diverse human population! In addition, I've seen Belize only through photographs however without reading this blog I never would have known about its' coral reefs! I'm big on marine life so this news made me quite happy... I find it great that you chose a location with an ever present Mayan culture. If there is one reason though to go to Belize I would think it would be to visit the Mayan ruins.
ReplyDeleteI can agree with you that I am not too familiar with the countries to the south of us. But like the other two have mentioned it seems as if you know a lot about their culture. Maybe a past life? : ) It would make sense about the coral reefs given that it is geographically located on the ocean, but I have never considered this whrn one mentions the culture. Your blog was great and it was informational. You have taught me a little that I never knew before. Thank you Crystal!
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