september celebrations

somehow amidst the mayhem of registering new students, distributing books, establishing classroom routines, and calming crying children, the entire school managed to coordinate a fantastic parade for independence day. each class chose a theme of sorts and the students all dressed and decorated themselves accordingly. some classes chose to represent the various ethnic groups of belize (mestizo, mayan, chinese, garifuna, mennonite, & creole) while others displayed the proud colors of the Belizean flag. the parade even featured a rocking soundtrack and pom pom girls. happy 28th birthday, belize!

i had to share this picture of an amazing sunset. it was taken from our side porch, overlooking the cow pasture.

preschool students dressed as the belizean flag

the infant 1 "queens" of the parade

in the spirit of celebrating belize, we had the opportunity to travel deep into toledo district for the inauguration of the san antonio market. a fellow peace corps volunteer assisted her community in creating a public market for san antonio and many nearby villages. opening day included speeches from local political leaders and many thanks and congratulations. several local organizations came out to display their goods and a few football (soccer) games managed to take place in spite of the drizzle.

volunteers demonstrate the precariousness with which one must cross the kendall bridge during rainy season. (note: this bridge connects toledo district with the rest of the country. one would think we could rustle up some bigger toothpicks, no?)

toledo cacao growers association won me over with their phenomenal chocolate samples and informative displays. the process of making chocolate was a mystery to me. did you know it all starts here?

this is a young cacao tree. (my friend here kindly posed alongside to give everyone some size perspective.)


they don’t much resemble a hershey kiss, but these pods are actually the source of all chocolatey goodness. the pods are left to ferment and eventually the seeds are processed to produce cocoa powder, which extraordinarily becomes chocolate in all of its phenomenal forms.

toledo cacao growers simply produce the cacao pods and then sell the seeds off to others, both locally and internationally. here are three names in chocolate which all originate from the beautiful toledo district of belize.

one of the two peace corps volunteers from san antonio village poses in front of the majestic mountain W.

we spent the remainder of the weekend exploring the wonders of mayan living with our fantastic host, joel. although he lives like a king in his cement house, joel has embraced the philosophy of simple living. with a water spigot outside and no electricity, everything slows down a few paces to let you look around at the breathtaking scenery.

joel's neighbor takes a quick break from chopping the yard with his machete to pose for this picture

rio blanco falls-just a few miles up the road from santa cruz village

santa cruz village

santa cruz village

joel and coy, proud owners of chaco sandals

partner yoga in the foothills of the maya mountains

popular modes of transportation in the maya village of santa cruz

september was a fantastic month to be a volunteer in belize. school was off to a slow start, but we had plenty to keep us busy. this month we've been working to start a reading group for students who need some individualized attention. we're focusing on 10 students in standard 2-4. currently, we're cleaning out the storage room to create a usable space for our lessons. aside from being dusty and poorly ventilated, it's full of hidden treasures! coy's also been busy organizing mini workshops for teachers at his school, addressing interactive math activities. although the women's exercise group has come to a screeching halt due to lack of space, i have recently begun another women's group geared toward learning skills and gaining information. tomorrow we will begin our nutrition unit with lessons on the food groups, vitamins & minerals, ingredients and making good food choices, cooking healthy, and eating for health and disease prevention.

with november quickly approaching, coy and i have been fervently making plans for our escape to mexico (aka coy's 30th birthday vacation bash!). we'll be travelling to merida (capital of yucatan state) with side trips to mayan ruin sites chichen itza, uxmal, and tulum. my only requirement for this entire trip is that baby lettuce greens be available somewhere in the entire city of merida. that's not too much to ask, right? i might be willing to donate my left pinkie fingernail to scientific researchers in exchange for the privilege of eating a delicious salad worth writing home about. ahhhhhhhhhhhh...spring mix, balsamic vinegar, and pine nuts, how i love thee so!