Mon, Feb 23 Chetumal, Mexico to Belize Zoo

Another awesome day. This trip just keeps getting cooler.

I left Chetumal early in the morning and got a good headstart to the day, to ensure I didn't have to rush through anything. Belize is a small country, and I've read and heard so much that I didn't want to miss anything.

The border to Belize has a large "free zone", with casinos and duty-free everything. I skipped that and went straight to the insurance shack, where I bought a week (it was cheaper than 4 or 5 days) for $15US. This came with yet another sticker that needed to go on my windshield. Too many of these and I won't be able to see where I'm going.

The border crossing:

I went straight to the crossing, which was apparently the wrong thing to do because I had to turn around, park, and get my passport stamped and vehicle import stuff done (which didn't cost me anything), then go back up the road a hundred yards to get the bottom of the bike sprayed with some chemical stuff. Maybe I'm dense, but I don't see any point in that. It cost me $5belize (a BZD is 2 to a USD). I gave them 50 pesos and got 2b back. I am not really sure how that math works out, but whatever. There was a guy talking me through all this, who at first I thought he worked for the customs, but realized later he just wanted a tip. I gave him my 2b change from the spray, because he actually did help out a bit. A very inexpensive and hassle free border crossing.

I found an ATM at Corozal, and on the way out of the town I was stopped and checked out at a police checkpoint. The cop was very nice and interested in my trip, and I kept getting an increasing feeling that I really like Belize. With reggae music playing at the customs building and cops who want to stop and chat, I felt very relaxed.

Out of Corozal I ended up on the wrong road, a REALLY bumpy, potholed, rutted, slightly paved farm road that went through huge fields of nothing. For a while I even thought that was the main road, and hoped it wasn't like that all the way to Belize City. Eventually it intersected what actually was the main road - a better paved, wide 2 laner with absolutely no road markings, and only an occasional sign. This was the main "highway". At this point, I gained enough relaxation and confidence in the few other drivers that I took off my helmet - something I rarely do, only on occasions like National Parks - and rode without it for the rest of the day.

And everyone speaks English! Even the Mexicans and Guatemalans, if only a little. Distances are measured in feet and miles, and speed in mph - very cool.

In Orange Walk I found an internet cafe and a restaurant where I had some old fashioned beans n' rice with some of the tastiest, most tender chicken I've had yet on this trip. I'm very glad that I'm eating meat for this trip - I'd be missing out on a lot of good eatin' if I kept doing the veg thing. After all that, it was off to Belize City.

The city really didn't impress me much, and seemed like it was just a place where lots of people live and work - nothing more. Even the touristy parts of town seemed a little bit lame. So I kept heading down the road (yes, there's only one). After a while, and in the middle of nowhere, I saw a sign for some sort of nature resort, or retreat, or education center, that advertised food and accomodations, so I figured I'd check it out. It's the Tropical Education Center at the Belize Zoo. A neat place that offers camping, and was giving a night tour of the zoo that night. They also have a dining room where dinner and breakfast is served. I'll take it!

Over the spaghetti dinner I talked with the other guests - a German couple driving down through the Americas, a couple of fun older ladies from southern California, and a dentist from England.

The night tour of the zoo was really cool - it was only 4 of us and one guide. The zoo is very rustic compared to the Bronx zoo that I'm more familiar with - it's more of a rescue shelter than a zoo. I got to hand feed bananas to tapirs, stand face to face with leapords, and hear the really loud shouts of howler monkeys. The zoo isn't very well supported financially - just about all the carnivorous animals are fed chicken, because it's cheap, instead of whatever their normal prey would be. All the animals we saw, being nocturnal, were very active and came right up to us.

It's been a good day. I like Belize.