home sweet home....

Well this is my last post on this blog. I am now officially home. I have to say that it was sad to go. I have been back for about 30 hours and am still acclimating to being home. Waking up in my own bed was surreal, like waking from a wonderful dream. Belize was a dream, the experience of a lifetime.

On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday Dr. Kubasko did some professional development after school with the teachers. This was one of the things they were really looking forward to. There are not a lot of opportunities like this for most of the teaches here. Some have never even attended a workshop. Dr.K got suggestions from them and then on Wednesday we, the interns, actually delivered our own professional development. Each of us picked a topic that we felt comfortable with and taught the teachers at San Pedro High. I led a group on note taking strategies. I used KWL charts and Cornell Notes. I have never actually used the Cornell Notes in my own class but I really like the idea and think that this is something that I will try when I get a job :) The other 3 taught group discussion techniques like fish bowls, concept mapping, and foldables. I heard that the teachers really enjoyed the idea of foldables. This is something I would like to know more about!

On Friday the teachers and students gathered to send us off. They called an assembly and the school band, Peace and Rock played for us. They were great. We then gathered with the staff to enjoy rum punch and cake. The last day at school was sad and I found myself getting misty at the thought of leaving, it was becoming real. Lots of hugs from students and we were officially done with our internship. We went home to Ak'bol and enjoyed a lazy night in.

On Saturday we went for one last snorkel at a place called Mexican Rocks. This was the first time I went on a real snorkeling trip. Going off the end of the dock had nothing on this. We saw Brain Coral, Purple Sea Fans, Parrot Fish, Snapper, and the list goes on. The day was cloudy and it rained while we were in the water. That was quite an experience, to be bobbing in the ocean during a storm. No lightening though so we were safe. The storm blew over and we went to the beach to enjoy lunch supplied by our guide Adrian. More storms blew in so we went home after that. That night we went for dinner at a restaurant called Sunset Grill. This restaurant is known for the fact that you can feed the Tarpon. Now before this I had heard of Tarpon but never seen them. They are absolutely huge (and these were babies). The waitress brought us down there with some small dead feeder fish. She stuck her hand in the water with one of the feeder fish and I heard a loud commotion and there was the Tarpon attacking her hand! She pulled her hand back out and she hand little knocks on her knuckles that were bleeding. She said that once one of the Tarpon actually swallowed her whole hand and that she had to pull it out! These fish are voracious! Needless to say I did not feed the Tarpon. John, Will and Wendy did though. Braver souls than I.

On Sunday we wrapped up unfinished business and packed. We returned our bikes that I have grown so accustomed to. I think I am going to ride my bike more (and walk more) after this trip. We then headed to Dean Ellis' house for one last goodbye with the teachers. Most of them showed up and it was really nice. We cooked out and drank and hung out all night. The principle, Mr. Vasquez presented us with t-shirts that had a San Pedro High School emblem and our names embroidered on them as going away gifts. This was a really sweet gesture. He welcomed us back anytime and presented Dr. K with one of the nicest letters I have ever heard. This was the first time that I had heard that he was semi against the internship. He said that he had been wary of how it would turn out. But he said that it had all worked out and that he was very proud of us and his teachers and that things could not have gone better. He said they had really learned a lot from us. We in turn presented cards as thank yous and showed a short little montage of clips and pictures that we had taken on our trip. Will is in the process of making a documentary of our visit and of the high school. The one compliment that really stood out to me was a conversation that I had with one of the teachers, Mrs. Naima. She said they were also wary of us when we came. I have to admit that we did feel some hesitation from some of them when we started. She said that they were afraid that we would come in with attitudes that we were better than them an try to assert ourselves as superior. But she said they we came in and made ourselves part of their group with open minds and hearts and did not act as though we were above them. I let her know that this thought never crossed our minds and we were here to learn from them! This really made me proud. I felt like we really represented UNCW well and had done what we came here for. We were the first, the pioneers for this exchange program. I feel like we have all worked together to make it possible for more to come next year and to have this amazing experience and continue the San Pedro and Wilmington Sister City relationship. I know we became part of that community for the short time that we where there. I will never ever forget this experience and I am a better person and will be a better teacher someday for it.

( If you recognize these pictures I have to thank Margo. My camera broke about four days before the end of the trip so I am stealing some from her blogs! Hope you dont mind :))

Hump Day...

It is the middle of our last week. Some of us started our service project last night. I have decided to paint the basketball court. Now this sounds easy....or maybe it just sounded easy to me. WHEW! It took us two hours just to sweep it off. It is outside and covered in beach sand. We had to sweep it to get the paint to stick. The kids are so excited about it though. I think it is going to look really good. As soon as I get pictures of it from someone else I will post them.

By the way, Happy Earth Day! We are taking the fourth form class out to clean the school yards today. We were going to do a beach sweep but we didnt get permission in time. Cleaning the school grounds is a good idea though. There is a lot of trash around. Dogs and racoons get into the cans at night and spill it everywhere and you know kids, they throw trash everyhwere. I hope that you guys all do something today to celebrate or at least got to go to Hugh McRae park this weekend! I am so upset that I was not there for that, we go every year! But hey, that is the price you pay for spending 6 beautiful weeks in Belize. Next year I guess :)

Armadillo anyone?

Nothing much going on here. Today is the first day back to school. The kids are very excitable today :) Still working on my portfolio.

Some interesting conversations going on. We had test corrections in class today for the life skills test that I gave. Again, the students here are just like home.The grades were all over the board. For test corrections we picked the questions that the students seemed to have the hardest time with to go back over. One was the difference between prescription medication, OTC meds, and "drugs of abuse". Now I guess I can admit that I had preconceived notions that this was "common knowledge". I was wrong. I had a student come up to me today and ask what an example of a prescription drug was. I asked her to think back to a time when sh was at the doctor and he wrote her one. She said she had never had a prescription written from a doctor. I was taken aback. It turns out, after asking a couple other students, that they had never taken a prescription drug either. I realize that a lot of Belize is developing but this is not a country that looks third world, especially San Pedro. I was really surprised by this.

Another conversation that we had in chemistry class was the fact that Belize's barrier reef system, a world heritage site since 1996, is facing possible delisting due to the degradation of the reef. It was interesting to hear the kids talk about what that meant to San Pedro. They realize that tourism plays a huge role in the economics here. They also realize that "money talks", as one student so simply put it. There is a lot of development going on on this island. That means more tourists and more money but at what cost to the environment. They were also discussing a story that some guy hit the reef on his yacht this past week. He supposedly ripped out a huge chunk of coral. Yet, according to the paper and the students, there were no repercussions for his actions. He was not fined. What kind of example does this set for the students and people who live here?

On a lighter note....we all tried a true Belizean delicacy today....ARMADILLO!!!! The Mayan call it wetch. It was a little scary to see the whole body boiling in a pot! But I tried not to think about it and tried a little piece. Taste like chicken, imagine that.Why does everything taste like chicken?!?!?!

The Belizean Blood Bank

Well we are officially settled into Ak'bol. I must say that this is quite different than Pedro's. It is very quiet on this side of the island. Before, we were on the south end a little closer to town. We are now over the bridge on the north end. There is not much on this side besides construction for fancy condos and resorts. It is a nice change though.

Ak'bol is a yoga resort. I have indulged in two sessions and am loving it. The classes are taught over the water on a gorgeous dock. The owners Kirsten and Emilio are still working on the place. When the resort is done I am sure that this will be paradise. It is beautiful already. Like I mentioned before there is no AC or TV. We have been finding creative ways to fill our time and doing lots of school.

The one drawback to this side of the island are the voracious bloodsucking animals known as mosquito. I can officially say that I have donated my fair share since returning to San Pedro. If they don't kill me then the Deet will. But it is the price we pay for solitude and beauty I guess.

We have all rented bikes and that is another story. I never realized how dangerous San Pedro could be until I tried riding a bike here. Beware of sand that looks like road. It is virtually impossible to maneuver a bike while going through 4 inches of sand! I have almost bit it a couple of times but so far so good. Another danger here are the dogs! They are completely desensitized to traffic of any kind. By that I mean they will not, I repeat NOT, move for anything or anyone. They lay in the road and expect that people, bikes, and golf carts move. And we do but it can get scary at times. Another hazard that I ran into today are the wee bikers. I think children here learn to ride a bike at the age of two (with no training wheels). I ran into a wee one today and it was like a drunk driver! I almost ran him over, he was swerving all over the place. On a bike you must also be aware of other bikers, walkers, and the crazy taxis that will run you over. Oh yeah, one last danger: the elusive pot hole. They blend in but they are there and they will either send you flying or bruise your butt.

As mentioned before, this week we have all been trying to get work done. I spent all day (well most of it ;)) working on my inquiry project. The vacation is over! Next week we go back of school and then it is back to reality. I am ready though, I miss Wilmington (if you can believe that).

INLAND- DAY EIGHT

Saturday (GO DOWN AND START AT DAY ONE!!!)

We returned to San Pedro today. We caught a two and half hour bus ride to Belize City and then from there we caught the water taxi. I think we are all happy to be back on the island. It is nice not to be moving from hotel to hotel. Don’t get me wrong, we had a blast! Inland and San Pedro are like two separate worlds. I think we really got a better feel for Belize from the trip inland though.

We are now staying at a place called Ak’bol. It is a yoga and eco-resort on the north side island. We are staying in the barracks. The rooms are beautiful but sparse. Some more excited about it than others. No more A.C. or T.V.’s ! We will see how it goes.

INLAND- DAY SEVEN

Friday

Today we did the Lamanai Tour. This is one of the most famous Mayan ruin tours in Belize. To reach Lamanai we had to take a boat 36 miles up the New River. Along the way we saw Crocodiles, Iguanas, Spider Monkeys, and so many Epiphytes. You might know them by their common name, air plants. They grow of the trees and gets there nutrients from the rain and the air. I love them. The most common kinds we have back home are bromeliads which they sell in stores.

One of the main highlights of the boat ride were the monkeys. The spider monkeys were so cute. The tour guides called to them as we went along and they followed the boat till we stopped. You could see them swinging from tree to tree. When the boat stopped the tour guides gave us bananas and the monkeys actually came onto the boat and took them straight from our hands!!

Lamanai was the same deal as Xunantunich except this time we had a tour guide. It made the tour much more educational. We got to see sketches of each ruin and what they looked like when they were active. The Mayans never tore down what they had already built. They just added on. So each ruin was layer upon layer. The pictures showed what each stage of construction looked like spanning hundreds of years. We also got to see the “ball court”. This is where the Mayan played a game that is similar to basketball. The winner of this game earned a great reward, SACRIFICE! I am pretty sure I would not want to win this game but it was a great honor to them.

INLAND- DAY SIX

Thursday

On Thursday we headed to the small and sleepy town of Corozal. It is located in the most northern part of Belize and you can easily reach Chetumal Mexico from here. We decided to take a taxi here instead of a six hour bus ride. I am glad because that is a long time to be on those buses! Many of the teachers that we work with at the high school are form here and we met up with some. We stayed at a place called Hotel Paradise Bay Villas. This place was crazy. It was like stepping into a time warp. The man who owned the place was named Herman and he was from Germany (he calls himself Herman the German). The hotel was decked out in kooky decorations and there were large mirrors on the ceiling over the beds! But the price was right (we are on a budget!). That night we went out with one off the teachers from San Pedro and he showed us where he went to high school and took us around town.

INLAND- DAY FIVE

Wednesday

Today a group of us decided to do the ATM caving tour. ATM stands for Actun Tunichil Muknal. This is a cave that contains many Mayan artifacts including actual skeletal remains. To begin the tour we drove about 45 minutes outside of San Ignacio. We then hiked into the jungle for about a mile. The cave is nestled there. The entrance looked like something out of a movie. We were equipped with hard hats and headlamps and in we dove. To get to the caverns inside we had to wade and swim through the water for about a mile. Sometimes the water was so deep that we had to hang onto the walls and shimmy or we would be underwater. At one point our guide had us turn our headlamps off and we were in actual complete darkness. By that I mean that honestly there was no light in the cave. You could not see your hand in front of your face. It was spooky. We got to see a lot of cave formations including stalactites and stalagmites. Bats and small catfish were also hanging around. Once we reached the main cavern we were asked to remove our shoes and to wear socks. The shoes would scratch the cave floor and the oils in our feet would also ruin some of the formations. As we had hiked in we were asked not to touch certain parts of the cave walls with our hands for the same reason.

The main cavern held lots of Mayan pottery. The Mayans believed that these caves were sacred and the entrance to the underworld known as Xibalba. Here they would pray and offer food (and people) to the Gods. The skeletal remains were unbelievable. The first ones we saw was just a skull. Due to the ways cave form and grow all the remains were under a layer of calcium carbonate. It covered the bones in a white layer. The second set of bones were that of a person who had died from a disease called encephalitis or swelling of the brain. The tour guide said this person was not sacrificed but had died and been carried into the cave. The third and fourth sets of bones had been human sacrifices. Much archaeological work has been done to see if these remains were male of female and to tell a cause of death. The last one we saw was the most magnificently preserved. It is called the crystal maiden. The bones still lay in the formation of a body after 1000’s of years and are preserved under a layer of white.

INLAND- DAY FOUR

Tuesday

After the previous day we were exhausted. Most of us stayed at the resort and relaxed but I got a wild hair. I really wanted to see the Belize Zoo. It came highly recommended. Usually I am not a fan of Zoo’s. I do not approve of catching animals and then caging them just for viewing pleasure. But the Belize Zoo is different. There is a lot of illegal trapping and sale of animals. There are also a lot of displaced and injured animals here. The zoo here takes in confiscated animals that are being traded or ones that are hurt. They then rehabilitate and release these them if possible. If not they are kept and well cared for because there is no other option for them. The Zoo was started by a woman that came down here in the 70’s to do some work and had a soft spot for all the creatures she came in contact with that were injured. The history said that by the time she was ready to return home she had a least 20 animals she had taken in and they had no place to go. She decided to stay and build a shelter that turned into the Zoo. They do a lot of education for teachers and students there now along with the rehabilitation.

The first animal that we came across was the national animal of Belize, the Tapir. This strange creature is also called the mountain cow. It looks like a cross between a horse and a hippo (smells like one too) with an anteaters nose. It was so strange looking and so cute. While there we also Spider Monkeys, Howler Monkeys, an Ocelot, a Jaguarondi, the Gibnut (also know as the royal rat), Parrots, Toucans, and the list goes on. I think my favorite was the elusive Jaguar. They are supposedly all over Belize but they are rarely spotted. This little guys name was Junior. He has been in the Zoo all his life and is “tame”. Don’t get me wrong, I would not stick my hand in that cage! But one of the Zoo keeper’s sure did. He was petting this guy like he was a house cat! And the Jaguar was purring like one too! The keeper then took out some chicken feet and fed Junior so that we could get some pictures. Another thing about this Zoo, the barrier between you and the animals is minimal at best. I would describe the cage as chicken mesh. So that is all that stood between me and the Jaguar. It was hard to believe, and a little scary.

Another animal that I really enjoyed seeing was the Harpy Eagle. I have never seen one. This bird was the size of a person, about 5 feet tall, with talons as big as tree branches. It is the second largest raptor in the world. I think it could have picked me up and flown away with me for dinner if it wanted to. I love the way the feathers on its head looks.

I am really glad that we got to go to the Zoo. After that we took the bus back to San Ignacio. Have I mentioned much about the public transportation here? Everyone uses the buses. Sometimes it can get really crowded. The locals call the bus to Punta Gorda the chicken bus. This is because people are crammed in there like poultry. Sometimes there is only standing room in the aisles and you just hold on. Seats are not taken for granted. Also, the bus drivers are crazy. I did not know that a school bus could travel that fast. My motion sickness has been put to the test on multiple occasions but no puking yet! But you can’t beat the price. We traveled from San Ignacio to Belmopan, which took an hour and a half, and it only cost $5 Bz (which is $ 2.50 US). Great deal if you can handle the ride!

INLAND- DAY THREE

Monday

On Monday we decided to check out our first Mayan ruin. They are scattered all over Belize. We went to one called Xunantunich. It was active from 300 AD to about 900 AD. We took a bus to the river and then had a 1 mile hike in (BTW we found out that the temperature that day was 100 degrees!). From there we entered the grounds and hiked around for about 2 hours. We climbed one of the biggest ruins and you could see Guatemala from the top. Guatemala borders Belize to the west and south. Mexico is north. It was absolutely beautiful! It is amazing to see these relics from the past and to try and image life as it was in the time of the Mayans.

After Xunantunich we went into town and explored a little of San Ignacio. It is relatively large city based on Belize standards. We ate lunch at a place called Hannnah’s that served curry and I love curry. This was the day we did that hike up the hill that I mentioned. By the time we got home we were spent. We took the rest of the day off and lounged at the pool.

INLAND- DAY TWO

Sunday

The Black Hole Drop! A long hike into the jungle followed by rappelling 300 ft down into a sinkhole! If you look at the picture to the left you can see where we went down. It was to the right of the cave and there is a brown spot. That is the tarp that they have down to stop the rope from fraying due to friction. It was probably one of the most amazing and stupidest things I have ever done. As soon as I was standing on the precipice of the cliff about to rappel I think I saw my life flash before my eyes! But it was too late and the only way out was down.

A side note- the big joke on the trip has been the infamous Bot Fly. This is an insect that lays its larvae in other animals. The larvae then feed off its host till it emerges as a fly. I have heard about this creepy bug in my biology classes but never knew it was an issue until we arrived at Cave’s Branch. Our guides had all had them many times. And they had the scars to prove it. They informed us that mosquitoes can be carriers of the larvae so when one bites you and you smash it you have left the larvae on your skin and they can enter the bite wound left by the mosquito. One guide actually still had one in his arm and he said that he could feel it squirming and feeding on his flesh!!!!! To extract the Bot Fly one must suffocate it and then extract it. EEEWWWW! So needless to say even the least squirmy of us were grossed out by the idea of being a breeding ground for the Bot Fly. The only way to know if you have one is that you have a mosquito bite that doesn’t go away! We all think we have one!!!

Well enough about that! We left Cave’s Branch after our excursion on Sunday and headed to San Ignacio. I wish we could have stayed there forever. We took a bus ride that lasted about an hour. We stayed in a place called Cahal Pech. The view from the balcony was incredible. San Ignacio is set in the mountains of Belize and Cahal Pech is on top of a steep hill. And when I say steep I mean steep. The following day we walked into town and just going down the hill hurt but the walk up, insane. We were hurting the next day. Who needs a stair master when you got that!

INLAND- DAY ONE

Saturday

We have packed up and left Pedro’s!!! It was sad to go but we are off to start another adventure. We took the water taxi from San Pedro to Belize City. The ride was beautiful. It took almost two hours. The water taxi was very crowded because everyone was leaving to start their Easter Break. Many go inland to visit family. I moved to the back to get fresh air and was invited to ride on top of the boat. Now that is the way to travel on the water taxi! Some of our student’s from San Pedro High School were on the taxi so I had a chance to chat with one of them outside of school. We ended up talking about music. All the kids here like the music that is popular with the kids back home like Akon and Chris Brown. He was disappointed that I did not have any of it on my Ipod so he asked if I had Guns and Roses. Again, disappointment! I hate G and R. So we compromised and listened to Bob Marley. Haha!

When we reached Belize City we caught a taxi to “Old Belize”. We were encouraged to go here by some of the teachers from San Pedro. I am under the impression that this is sort of a museum/theme park for tourists. There was a tour you could take where you walked through a building with themed rooms, each showing some part of Belize’s history. It started with the Mayans and ended with the British Colonization. It was a nice history lesson.

We were picked up from here and taken to our next stop, Cave’s Branch. This place has to be heaven on earth. This is an eco-lodge/resort where guests can participate in “excursions” out into the jungle like cave tubing, hiking, and spelunking. The funny thing is that Cave’s Branch claims not to be any of these things, probably for liability purposes. They made us all sign a long waiver in case of death. We stayed in these huts with no electricity and only kerosene lamps for light at night. The showers were located outside!!!

We got there late in the day so no big plans. We did go out to see the Blue Hole. It is located in Blue Hole National Park. This is not to be confused with the Blue Hole out in the Caribbean that is famous for diving. This Blue Hole is a sink hole in the middle of the forest. The water is the most azure blue due to the depth of the water. It is also freezing cold! Jumping into that was like jumping into arctic water. It was incredible. Later that night we signed up for the next day’s excursion. I decided to do…..