The idea behind A Place in Belize
In February, 2006, we went to Belize to visit my daughter and fell in love with the country – so much so, that we went ahead and bought property to build a second home in a protected residential resort. My daughter was in Belize teaching, so while she was teaching during the week, myself and Jo-Ann explored the rest of Belize. We took the Hummingbird Hwy. down to Placencia peninsula, where ,although not planned, we bought property. The Hummingbird Hwy is a well maintained highway that is surrounded by lush jungle, citrus orchards and small villages. Our property is right on a canal with access to the Caribbean Sea and has infrastructure that could be found in any prestige North American development.
We’ve had some amazing experiences in Belize. The people there are open, welcoming and friendly, but the one experience that stands out the most in our minds – next to visiting my daughter, whom we haven’t at that time, seen since May 2005 – was the face to face encounter with a jaguar. Jo-Ann and I were hiking through the jungle in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary when suddenly there in front of us, was a jaguar staring at us. We weren’t too sure what to do, so we mustered enough courage to take a few pictures for proof of our encounter and then we turned around, and as calmly as we could, quickly walked back down the trail. We were terrified at that time, because we didn’t know how dangerous jaguars were, but the jungle guides there comforted us by explaining to us that jaguars are not known for attacking people. They were also very surprised at this encounter, as this was one of a few times that they heard people coming face to face with a jaguar in the middle of the day; jaguars are known to be nocturnal and usually avoid people. We wrote about our experience in the logbook they had at the reserve office.
In addition to nature’s beauty that surrounded us in Belize, and the jaguar encounter, we were pleased to find that there were so many things to do there. We went snorkeling and fishing, walked around Mayan ruins, ate and drank a lot. There are other things that we have not yet done, such as explore caves or sail among the many islands that are scattered in the Caribbean Sea. And of course, there is always the opportunity to sit on the beach or beside the pool to relax and enjoy the warm sunny tropical Caribbean weather. We love Belize and recommend anybody who is trying to figure out their next vacation spot or are looking for a peaceful place to build a new home.
The photo we took of the Jaquar
Enjoy!
