Today was a good day. I woke up with the girls at 7am to go to San Ignacio. San Ignacio is one of Belize's urban centers and 9 miles from the border of Guatemala. We were supposed to be at the bus station by 8am but ended up arriving at 8:20am and missed the first bus. We were also a little lost, and didnt know which bus to get on but luckily since people are very friendly we were directed and informed that the green and white bus was the bus we needed to take to get to San Ignacio. After 15 minutes the bus that was pretty much a US school bus just painted green and white pulled into the compound and we boarded on our way for a fee of 3bz of $1.50 US. The scenery and landscape reminds me very much of parts of Kenya so its definitely something you should see or experience. Cows, sheep and the occasional horse munching on grass are what you see. The landscape was not as mountainous or as hilly as I expected.
Although the bus was the express bus (meaning it does not stop as often as the non-express bus) the bus did stop quite a few times. I really wonder how the non-express bus would be if we had chosen to ride that one instead. After lulling in and out of sleep from the vibration of the bus we arrived in San Ignacio sweating but in a good mood. The hot sun was a constant reminder of the tropical location of Belize but with Sunscreen it was enjoyable.
After walking around the market and buying some cheese quesedillas with chicken and beans, we began our trek through San Ignacio while listening to the far-off music of a band playing music, a soccer game in the distance and a group of evangelists preaching the word of God. The smells of the market were definitely tantalizing. My main interest was the fruit (guinep, papaya, pears, mangoes, pineapple, starfruit, watermelon etc). My mouth is watering at the thought of all the fruits now. After eating and re-energizing we began our walk to Cahal Pech, a Mayan archeological site that is worth the 2 mile walk up the two very steep hills. This site was not filled with tourists, I only saw about 7 other people besides my group of 5, so we had the ruin to ourselves and were able to explore all the nooks, take pictures, sit, appreciate and enjoy. After over an hour of exploring the site we walked back to San Ignacio exhausted but fulfilled.
The ride back to Belmopan was quiet as we all slept on the bus or took in the scenery around us. Belize definately teaches me more about myself. Below is a Belizean proverb.
"HAG ME ASK EH MUMMA WHEY MEK EH MOUT SO LONG, EH MUMMA SAY NOH WORRY BABY WHEN YOU GROW UP YOU WAH FINE OUT.
Hog asked his momma why is his mouth so long, His mother replied, don't worry baby when you grow up you will find out.
Meaning: You will learn more about yourself as you grow."
http://www.belizeans.com/grauma.htm
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