June 17th and 18th

June 17th, 2018

OMG Belize is gorgeous!! I got off the plane and was immediately hit with the thick humid air. I thought I was prepared for the humidity, but it is so thick, sometimes it’s hard to breathe. Goring through customs was so easy, but took forever because the line was so long. The guy literally took my passport, scanned it into the computer, and I was on my way. We all collected our bags and waited for our bus. Alex our official bus driver for the trip, is the nicest guy and wouldn’t let any of us pick up our own luggage to load onto the bus because it was too heavy. What a gentleman!!

The drive to Monkey Bay was the most beautiful, heart wrecking drive I have ever been on. I knew going into this trip that Belize has a very high poverty level, but nothing prepares you for what I saw on that drive. People literally live in shacks, or have houses that are missing roofs/half of the house. Some families don’t even have shelter, and live on mattresses that are protected by a chain-linked fence. It honestly breaks my heart to see what little these people have. I almost have a feeling of guilt because I was raised in a place where I had access to anything and everything. One of the things I noticed was, it didn’t matter that these people had nothing, their faces still lit up with joy and love. It was as of no object/amount of money defined their happiness. As long as they have their families and love, nothing else matters.

The land and the views in Belize are breathtaking and I have only just started exploring the country!! I feel like I have stepped foot into the jungle book. Everything is so green, there are so many different species of wildlife (and we sing all the time).

The Monkey Bay Sanctuary is such a cool place. There are hundreds of living species on the 25 acres of land. People come from all over just to explore the lands, so what a cool place to call home for the next two weeks. We are staying in cabins which is an experience itself, because I’ve never done anything like it. In our cabin, there are two rooms with 5 bunk beds in each room. There are 12 of us on the trip, so we split into two groups of 6. I’m on the top bunk which is kind of nice because the ceiling fan is right above me, but it is a pain to get in and out of. Our bathrooms are the next building over, which is very convenient. I went to take a shower earlier and found out there is no hot water in Belize. That was a wakeup call for sure! Also, you’re not allowed to flush anything (not even toilet paper) down the toilet. This means the bathrooms are super smelly, and the humidity doesn’t help. When we got to our rooms, they gave each of us a net to put over our beds to keep the bugs out. At age 6, the only thing I wanted but never got was one of those canopy things you put over your bed. I feel like I am finally living out my dream, but instead of having a cute canopy, I have a net. Oh well, it’ll do for now!

June 18th, 2018

Hola everyone! Today was the busiest day ever! We mostly sat through presentations/lectures that were based on the camp we are running. We started out with a history lesson about Belize, but then transferred into talking about the Tykes camp we will be starting in the next day or two. I am so excited for this camp and to meet all the little kids! There are 6 different stations the kids will be going through each day, so we were split up into teams of 2. Each team will be leading a station. Along with the station, we are also in charge of mentoring a child and doing therapy with them throughout the day. I’m in charge of the storytelling station. My partner and I will be reading a book and doing some fun activities alongside the book.

After hours of planning in the heat, our program director decided it was time for a break They took us to the local public river for an afternoon swim. There were so many people there having barbecues and hanging out. I was so surprised at how many of the locals were trying to talk to us and ask about the program we were doing. When we got back to the classroom, we busted out a few more hours of planning and then it was time for dinner.

Let me tell you about the food….

IT IS SOOOO GOOD!!! There are three ladies that work full time in the kitchen, and lemme tell you…it really is a full-time job. They prepare breakfast, lunch, and dinner for us every single day. Every meal has all the food groups included, and it is very healthy. For breakfast every morning, they serve biscuits, eggs, sausage, fruit, homemade yogurt and granola, and fresh squeezed juice. For lunch and dinner, they switch it up day to day, but some of the meals we have had so far include… chicken and rice, pasta with homemade sauce, and curry chicken with more rice. At every meal, there is always something sweet, which is right up my alley!! We had the best carrot cake with blueberries the other day, and I think it was the best carrot cake I have ever had. A really weird thing they do in Belize is put salt on their watermelon, and they also eat a salad with every meal. It is going to be a huge change when I go home and have no one to cook three meals a day for me.

I love staying with five other roommates that are so similar to me because there is never a dull moment. We have only been at Monkey Bay for 2 nights and we have already helped each other through boyfriend problems, health issues, and tons of drama with friends back home. I seriously feel like I have just gained 11 new friends, and already know them so well, and it has only been two days. I feel so blessed to be able to share these experiences with this group of girls, and I can’t wait to get to know them better over the course of our time here at Monkey Bay.

P.S Check out the pictures!