A Day in Belize

Now that I'm settled, there is not much to write other than describing what it's like here for me. In the States, the white noise I listened in the morning, day, and night consisted of street traffic like sirens, trucks, and street cars; birds in trees mostly pigeons and seagulls; and other street sounds like construction equipment from across the street from my apartment; garbage men picking up the large trash bins. I was looking forward to a quieter environment in a country less developed. Well...I do have it - now I wake up to roosters crowing and dogs barking. The roosters are interesting - it's like the whole place becomes a symphony of crows. One rooster starts the crowing then it's picked up by another rooster in the distance, then another and another - soon they're answering back and forth. At first I thought it quaint and so country until it happens every morning starting at 5 in the morning. Then the dogs begin their own concerto - barking at something or someone passing on the street. As I noted before, dogs are kept outside mainly for protection so when I walk down any street I will come across barking dogs behind fences, some tied or loose. Peace Corps recommended keeping rocks on hand whenever a dog appears to attack - good thing all of us got rabies shots. Many volunteers opt to have dogs but I can't or won't - for me it's too much a responsibility and I can't see myself having an outside dog. Besides my poor history of keeping pets are not the best as the kids will attest. Now on top of the roosters and dogs, I still have the street noise - yup, my back yard faces the main city street thorough fare, consequently, I get all the cars and trucks whizzing by as I did in the States.

One interesting thing I found out today. The men who clean up the yard walked me around the house to see what shrubs and bushes I wanted to keep or cut out. Since my house is covered with huge trees and bushes resulting in all the bugs I am constantly fighting, I said to cut back as much as possible. As I walked around with the man, he pointed out the swarm of small bees going into a hole in the wall. He said not to worry, "They don't bite much, they live in walls of houses and are not harmful. The only thing that's annoying is when they get in your hair, like knits." I told him about my termite problem. He then said, "You really can't get rid of them, besides, you don't want to because termites help control the rain forest by eating and decomposing the wood. But, if you want to keep the termites down, you should get some chickens in your yard because they love to eat termites." A revelation, now I understand the reason for so many people raising chickens. Can you imagine me having chickens run around my yard? Yeah, right...not!

One exciting news - I visited the public library today and talked to the resident librarian who needed people to form a library committee. Of course, I eagerly volunteered which thrilled her. The library is only down the street, housed in its own building. The books are very old, worn, and outdated; selections very limited; and in need of organization - right up my alley. The library does have a handful of books by Belizean authors - intriguing, I read excerpts from one author writing about how the Afrikans were brainwashed by EuRAPED. He had frightening logic about the history of Blacks in this world.

This week is another Peace Corps training week - one thing I have to say, if anyone is at all interested in the program be aware that it is a government agency and along with that is a tremendous amount of paperwork and reporting. It's not the simple "Let me go into the country to help and do my work." There are pros and cons in the way volunteers are handled and what's required, but it's too involved to have a heavy discussion here. Ultimately, I am glad that I am part of Peace Corps - the organization does bring value to underdeveloped countries.