Monday, August 18, 2003

Monday, Aug 18, 2003
Belize City, Belize

Just made it back to Belize City after visiting several Mennonite communities in the north and west of the country. Things went well, and we are back in Belize for only one night before heading out again for another three nights and four days. We will be visiting more Mennonite communities in the west and south of the country.

So far, it’s been quit eye-opening: visiting colonies that range from strict (no rubber tires on tractors, no music, conservative dress, no electricity) to fully modern (long haired youth driving up and down the main drag on their motorcycles – doing wheelies the whole way).

We visited a small border crossing between Blue Creek Village, Belize and La Union, Mexico. This is a water crossing, and we visited it twice. The first night we stopped at the shack that is the Belize customs house… when no one took any notice of us, we continued a couple of hundred meters to the water’s edge. Once parked, we walked to the Hondo River and called out in the darkness for someone to come fetch us. From the Mexican side, someone yelled out and flashed a flashlight. Soon, a Mexican was paddling a small, long boat to our side to fetch us.

We hopped in, and a few seconds later, we were standing on Mexican soil. There was no Mexican immigration officials to be seen, although we’ve heard that during the day, you are asked for BZ$1 by a soldier. The boat is BZ$2 each way, but we arrange to pay when we return, which will be after about an hour of swilling Corona and eating real Mexican food.

The return trip goes without any problems, until we drive up to Belize customs. The customs guy and a cop are pissed off: they want to know why we didn’t check in. After a bunch of “yes sirs,” and “no sirs,” we are on our way.

The next night, we attempt the same crossing, and make sure our departure from Belize is noted. After more excellent beer and food, we return to Belize and are on our way. Pictures to be posted in Sept.

And that’s all for now… stay tuned!

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