Adventures in Belize: Good-bye Josh; Hello Jalacte!

After an awesome week of showing Josh some of the beautiful parts of Belize, it was time to say good-bye. However, I was the one leaving not Josh. Unfortunately, the last 2 days Josh was here got cut short, because I had to travel to southern Belize to fulfill the service project aspect of my study abroad experience. I was pretty bummed about leaving Josh as I got on a water taxi at 6:30 Saturday morning, but somehow I think he was fine since he spent the rest of the day on beautiful Caye Caulker in the sand and sun! We did get to see an amazing sunrise as we were waiting for the water taxi to arrive. It was a perfect way to begin the day and to say good-bye...

After a short water taxi ride to Belize City, I repacked my backpack for the the next couple days that would be spent in Punta Gorda and a small Maya village named Jalacte (Huh-lak-tay). We took the 7 hour bus ride to Punta Gorda and stayed there Saturday night before traveling the final 2 hours to Jalacte. A local man named Mr. Palacio gave us a ride to the village since he works there. When he arrived to pick the 6 of us up in a pick-up truck, we knew that it would be a longer ride than we had expected. Rachel and I rode in the back,which turned out to be a not-so-bad ride. We were actually joined by a guy named Dwayne that Mr. Palacio picked up on the way since he so worked in the village. We also learned along the ride that it was Dwayne's birthday that day... I hope he enjoyed spending the morning riding in the back of the truck with us!

waiting on the bus!

there it is... in all it's glory!

getting ready for the 7 hour ride

this was the truck that we rode in on the way to Jalacte

it was a bit of a bumpy, dusty ride but filled with lots of beautiful scenery

we saw lots of corn fields

and luscious mountains

The tiny village of Jalacte sits in the southwestern area of Belize in the Toldeo Distrcict and is just steps away from the border of Guatemala. The village is made up of roughly 104 thatch-roofed buildings and around 1,000 Maya people. Upon arriving to the village I could sense the calmness and peacefulness of area. There were lots of children playing around their homes and most mothers and fathers were busy working around the home or preparing the next meal. We were immediately shown where we would be staying for the night which turned out to be the preschool/community bulding of the school. Then we were taken to our host family for our first traditional Maya lunch... it was delicious! I was amazed by the overwhelming generosity and hospitality that came from this family and the hard work and time that was used to prepare our meal.

Chicken with vegetables, warm corn tortillas, and sweet tortilla water.... yum!!!

this their house. the thatch roof part is the kitchen, and the green/orange building is where they sleep.

this is the kitchen

they were so sweet! they also have 7 children who were absolutely adorable!

Henry was in my class. He told everyone that Ms. Vanessa was going to his house for lunch!

The oldest daughter. Her birthday was on Monday... Happy 17th!

other homes in the village

i want to learn to do this... i am amazed by the balance of the people here

I spent some time in the school on Monday morning after eating a breakfast consisting of black beans, corn tortillas, and fresh cocoa water (it was essentially hot cocoa but made with the purest and freshest ingredients... delicious!) This was first time having beans for breakfast, but I must say that it was quite good and I would definitely do it again, that is, if it came complete with hot corn tortillas! Before heading to the school, the family informed us that we would have "local chicken" for lunch. The daughter showed us what this meant... they got to the back of the kitchen house, grab the best looking live chicken they can find, and then prepare it for lunch. Fortunately, we left while the chicken was still alive.

"local chicken" aka "lunch"

The school staff, prinicipal, and children were more than welcoming, respectful, and hospitable during our time in the school and village. Mr. Chun, the principal, took us on a village tour Sunday afternoon along with one of the other male teachers. There are 3 female teachers, and 7 male teachers which is rather odd considering most elementary school teachers are female back in the states. I was in Infant 2 (1st grade) for the morning and taught 2 lessons on math and language arts. The students did well even though I was completely unaware of their curriculum and the students prior to me coming into the classroom at 8:30 that morning. I also discovered that they love to sing. We sang some songs together and they taught me some new ones. Most of their songs were religion-based since the school is a Catholic public school. I had some extra time before so I taught them "Jesus loves me" with some sign language... they loved it! (Thank you Rock Springs Youth Choir for teaching me so I could teach them! I miss hearing y'all sing on Sunday mornings!) I have some cute videos of them singing and reciting the Lord's Prayer to share with you once I get home. Life here in Jalacte is simple, yet fulfilling and purposeful. I have never felt more calm and relaxed than I did in the peaceful village. I am truly thankful for this experience and can't wait to share more about it with you once I get home.