I finally took the leap, went out of my comfort zone, pursued my passion for travel; I booked a trip out of the country. As an introvert this was a big deal for me, as I would be going with a travel group full of strangers. My excitement and nerves were through the roof.
I’ll start off by talking about the travel company I went with, EF Ultimate Break. I’d been looking at their trips for a while and hearing about other peoples’ experiences with them. I became an ambassador for the company soon after but with no trip content or stories to share. Then the opportunity came along to go on an ambassadors only trip to Belize, and I said this is perfect.
EFUB planned the whole trip including flights, stays, transportation, meals, and activities. They do all of the above for their regular trips as well, which is perfect for those who are just starting to travel or are intimidated by a country. All of this is included in your total price with the option to add extra activities, room by yourself, and travel insurance. There are also different payment plans which help a lot (and $100 off with an ambassador code! UAChloe100 is mine (; ).
Our driver Charles took us by bus to each stay and activity. Also he would stay on the bus with our belongings at all times which was super nice! And our tour guide Keith was amazing!!! He knew so much about the country, found extra activities for us to do and food places to try, and even got me medicine when I needed it for the bus rides! He represented his beautiful country very well. He stayed behind to always make sure nobody would get left at a location and took extra care of each of us, making sure we were having the best time.
EF had so many cool things planned for us to do as well as beautiful hotel and resort stays. We did things I feel a normal tourist wouldn’t have thought of, which was nice. Even though a couple activities got changed up or cancelled most likely due to COVID, I had the best time with EF and would recommend travel with them to anyone.
Now let’s discuss the Belize trip. This country has everything you could possibly be looking for; culture, adventure, partying, nature, wildlife, and more. There is a diverse group of people that reside in Belize, with a lot of them being a mixture of different backgrounds. Some of the most popular are the Mayan/Spanish, Kreol, Mayan, and Karen (Indian/African). Belize is also home to a large population of Menanite and Amish people. I learned that Belize used to be controlled by Great Britain but gained their independence in 1981; however they still have a relationship with them, which is why their currency still pictures Queen Elizabeth. The Mayans resided there many years ago and left behind different structures we call the Mayan Ruins. We got to visit the Xunantunich ruins which included a palace, tomb, & an amazing view of Guatemala in the distance if you climb to the top. It was interesting to learn what each structure was used for, who lived there, & how archaeologists are able to determine these things today.
Belize is great if you’re interested in doing physical or adventurous activities. My group did cave tubing at Nohock Che'en Caves Branch Archaeological Reserve. This included going on a rainforest hike, then we each sat on tubes that were all connected and got pulled through the caves then down the river. I learned that the Mayans saw caves as the entrance to the underworld or a place of fright. We also did canoeing down the Macal River and got to spot a monkey and some iguanas, which was one of my favorite parts as I’ve never seen a monkey in the wild before. My other favorite part of the trip was going snorkeling with the company SeaHorse Dive Shop in Placencia. We took a boat out to the reefs and split into smaller groups, each with a guide who helped us when needed and told us the different things we were seeing. After this we took the boat to the private island Mojo Caye which was an amazing time. We spent most of the day here swimming, lounging on the hammocks, enjoying some rum punch, & eating a delicious BBQ meal. While in Placencia we stayed at the gorgeous Placencia Resort which had kayaks and paddle boards free to use. One thing I wish we did was go zip lining.
The country of Belize is a lot of fun when you find the right places with the right people. It’s not hard to find the right people as everyone for the most part was super kind. Even though there is currently a curfew due to COVID, checking out a local bar is a must. There were so many different drinks to try and they were delicious. Staying at a resort was even more fun. Placencia had a swim up bar that stayed open super late for our group and the bartenders were awesome. They also let us choose the music, making it more fun. Another resort we stayed at was Cahal Pech, which had 2 pools and the workers would bring your drinks down to you. Even with COVID there was still a night life in Belize. It’s fun as long as your careful and comply with the curfew while off of a resort. It would’ve been cool to experience the clubs here; maybe one day.
There was so much beauty to see here. Belize has lush rainforests, palm trees everywhere, and many cool plants and flowers wherever you look. The view from the balcony of my room at Cahal Pech was PHENOMENAL; too bad I never could wake up for the sunrise. The country’s bird is the toucan, which I got to see one of the 3 species of them. Just some small ones, but still cool. We were told before canoeing that seeing a monkey was unlikely, but luckily we were able to spot a monkey up in the tree. At the Placencia Resort there was a field with a whole bunch of huge iguanas in and surrounding it on the trees. Some of them were bright orange due to mating season. You could also sometimes spot small lizards. Since a lot of the reefs were dead we weren’t able to see too much wildlife while snorkeling. However I seen some cool fish and got to touch a jellyfish. All around the country there are many stray dogs. One was even at the Mayan Ruins and hiked to the top with us! Bug spray or wipes are highly recomended; even with these you still will probably get bit. There were so many bugs, especially by the pools at night.
Now for some interesting facts I learned from our awesome tour guide Keith. Belize has one of the highest exchange rates to the US dollar as it is 2:1 and doesn’t fluctuate like other currencies. US currency is widely accepted and appreciated here because it helps with the economy, imports, & investors. The Belizean people can even sell our currency to businesses that need it and earn a profit of about 5 cents per dollar. English is the main language of Belize and everyone learns it in school. Pretty much all signs and menus were in English, which helped out a lot being my first out-of-country trip. Spanish is another widely spoken language here and many people had a Caribbean accent. Tourism is the largest industry for the country and makes up about half of all revenue. Shop local! Eat local! Buy a gift for everyone you know! The people are super hard working, kind, and make so many beautiful, unique handmade items. COVID affected this industry badly for about 18 months, then experienced rapid growth after airports and cruises opened back up. The largest exports are sugar and oranges. Their oranges are yellow and green in color, and only turn orange when they are rotting.
The food here had large Spanish and Caribbean influence. The fruit juices were so good! Lime juice is like their lemonade, soursop is delicious (wanabanq), and the orange juice was the most fresh I've ever had. Rice, beans, and potato salad or cole slaw are pretty much with every meal. I had the best pasta salad ever. I was also able to try their version of one of my favorite foods, onion soup. They call it escabeche, and its similar to chicken noodle soup but replace the noodles with onions. The fried plantain with stewed beef was one of my favorite meals (highly recommend going to Benny’s if you’re going to be in San Jose). Duck tamales were pretty good. For breakfast I got to try fry jacks, which is just fried dough pockets that can be eaten with eggs, beans, jelly; pretty much anything. I also tried these super yummy little cookie cakes; they were similar to a sugar cookie but with a lime taste. My group also stopped at a cacao farm where they produce their own chocolate and make candy bars and icecream.
Belize was the perfect place to start my travel journey and I had so much fun. I’m so glad I decided to go out of my comfort zone and have these experiences with this amazing group of people from EFUB. It was super exciting to receive my first passport stamp and I can’t wait to see where the universe will take me next. Thank you Belize and EF!
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