Remember September

Or, let's party! To Belizeans, September, as well as being the doom and gloom of back to school that it is for everyone everywhere (although technically many high schools and college/university students went back mid August), is celebration month. On the 10th, they celebrate fighting off the dastardly Spaniards (quote from a play we saw about it) at the Battle of St George's Caye, and on the 21st (after I leave) they'll be celebrating gaining their independence from we Brits. For today however, the Brits are the ones who helped fight off the dastardly Spaniards, so we're OK.

Did I mention not to rely on me for a history lesson? Not without warning me first, anyway.

So, I missed the official launch of celebrations on August 29th due to being daaan saaath in wan lee place too small for festivities, but worry not! There was lots of marching around the church to patriotic music on Sunday morning (and an extralong service consequently, hooray). Then on Monday evening there was an Evening of Patriotic Song, in which I sang patriotically (for Belize, although good old Queenie got a mention, alongside the obviously far more important Queen of the Bay). The patriotic songs themselves, as we sung them, were disappointingly lacking in Caribbean Rhythm but there was plenty of that from the Steel Band, and then we got the Imperial Band (who did a Kriol Folksong Medley, and then threw in a whiff of Rule Brittania and God Save the Queen to their patriotic medley). There was much dancing and marching and waving of red white and blue, the Belizean national colours (if I ever went in for Last Night of the Proms, I could just reuse my colourful tat, but alas I do not.)

So; everywhere is red, white and blue. And everyone, too. Yesterday Ebenezer Primary were patriotically dressed, and Maggie went to a meeting with Red White and Blue Food. Today being the 10th there was a citizen's parade. With lots of people, in cars and on floats, all in red white and blue. (The man at the top was on one of the floats. I have also seen him twice in town, totally randomly, dressed like this, in my time here. I'm not sure of the cultural significance.)

This one is the Rev C David Goff (son of Rev Charles Goff who my parents met in Jamaica...small world...) who was the Grand Marshall of the parade and got to sit on this car waving. There are not many cars like this in Belize- I might have seen 4 cars that are neither in some way falling apart nor SUVs in my time here- so not sure where this one came from. It's not Rev's! (Some of the SUVs are very swish, mind. But the roads aren't good enough to merit a car like this one!)


Other things that have happened this week:
A Fire Engine Parade. This was exactly what it says on the tin; all the fire engines, and ambulances, paraded around the city from 7pm until well after 8pm, sirens wailing and lights flashing, and by all accounts lots of people went and watched. We did too, since it came right by our house. All in all it was very loud, but I waved at lots of firemen and worried that all the boys on bicycles in the dark in front of the trucks were going to fall off and get hurt, and laughed because I thought the whole thing was rather random.
The Queen of the Bay nominees got very upset about curtseys. As part of trying to win Queen of the Bay, they have to curtsey, but the curtseys are nothing like I've ever seen; as far as I can tell its just a leg strength exercise; they go as far down as possible, and then they have to try to raise up again without buckling or toppling sideways. And they have their arms outstretched. Really, considering the dresses, it strikes me more as the kind of thing drunk rowers would do after a ball to demonstrate their awesome power than something elegant you'd see in a royal court. but there you go. Only the rowers would be able to do it without looking constipated-with-fake-smile-stuck-on. Anyway, two of them Flunked it and cried and it was on the National News. No, really. (Some of them were really quite good at it, I should add; see the photo below; and they are very pretty, and other things too because it isn't-just-a-beauty-pageant.)

Holiday pt3: Punta Gorda town and adventures in Stann Creek District

this is the last holiday installment, honestly!
Sunday 22nd-Weds 24th
After church on Sunday (8am, remember) I headed home and finished packing before catching the bus at around midday. After about 7 hours of wind-whipped bus travel, through dry flatlands and beautiful mountains, orange and banana plantations, two stops in towns and innumerable stops to pick people up in various villages, I arrived in Punta Gorda. PG is the district town of Toledo district in the South, an area of very different ethnic make up to the city- lots of Maya still live down south- and made my way to the home of the JVIs there, which sits on the seafront. The next few days were spent swimming, lazing on a sofa swatting mosquitoes and devouring 2 1/2 novels (I may have mentioned before that I sometimes risk treating the JVIs as a personal library), enjoying good conversation, admiring the views of Honduran and Guatemalan hills across the bay, having drumming lessons (!) and watching nightly lightening displays (big storms hit PG pretty much every night, but the days were still and clear.) All in all, a wonderful two days!
On Wednesday I took my leave and headed north as far as Hopkins, a small town on the coast in Stann Creek district (next up from Toledo) and found myself surrounded by American expats for the afternoon. I then met up with Shelly, an American volunteer at Sitte River Methodist School who I'd been emailing lots to arrange a meeting with, and went out for a fabulous dinner.
Thurs 25th-Friday 26th
Headed to Cockscomb basin national park and 'jaguar sanctuary'. Getting there was a minor adventure but once I did I enjoyed lots of butterflies, sightings of an armadillo, a tarantula and a hummingbird, two waterfalls and lots of climbing up hills in ridiculous heat! The views were well worth the exertion and the realisation that I have become very unfit. The second waterfall was visited in a torrential downpour however, which seems to have done for my camera screen. Which is bad. When I emerged from the national park I met Shelly again who took me on a tour of a shrimp farm and a VERY good evening meal before a good night's sleeo.
Sat 27th
Went out on a very nice boat (courtesy of Shelly's connections, again). I have never seen the sea so still, the way it merged into the sky, and the patches of colour, were truly breathtaking. Inside the reef, that was; outside the reef it was rocky enough to make some feel the worse for wear but I managed to stave it off and enjoyed a beautiful day clambering around the boat, swimming in the clear blue Caribbean, not getting burnt (!), eating smoked fish, watching people catch barracuda, and generally enjoying life. A pod of dolphins accompanied us back, too- what could be better? (except seeing a seaturtle, which others did while I was looking the wrong way. Doh.)
In the evening we hung out at a friend's house, listened to music, played games, and swam in the sea (a hazardous occupation seeing as I always end up with cuts and bruises when I swim in the sea in the dark- this was no exception).
Sunday 28th
Lazed before helping Shelly paint a mural at the school- she is a very talented artist and I can just about manage painting blocks of colour when instructed, and we made good progress. In the evening we headed into Hopkins to watch 'Duets', the Belizean xfactor type thing, on TV in a chinese.
Monday 29th
After another adventurous journey to get into Dangriga, the district town of Stann Creek, caught a very hot and sticky bus home to Belize (Belize City that is), where I swear it is hotter than down south!!!