Embracing My Inner Hippie in the Jungle

Most people know of Belize for its beautiful beaches and touristy hot spots, but I will forever remember Belize for the jungle I lived and worked in. Let me paint a better picture of exactly where I am. Once I got to Belize City, I rode an old rundown school bus to the small town of San Ignacio. When I say small, I mean the main part of town runs about three blocks and everyone knows everyone. From there the only way to get to our final destination of Barton Creek is to hitch a ride from one of the three neighbors that live out there. Taxis won't go out there because a)it's way too far out there and b)a car can't handle the rocky terrain and creeks in the middle of the "road." So, Kamille and I rode in the back of Mike's truck with the kids. I knew we were really getting out there when we started passing a few Mennonite families riding horse and buggy style in their traditional clothes and bonnets. It was like watching a clip from Little House on the Prarie, but apparently there are about 30 Mennonite families who live in the area. They've been there for about 40 years. We continued to drive deeper and deeper into the jungle until we hit Barton Creek. Since the previous owner of the outpost was a botanist who spent 18 years tending to a citrus grove, tropical plants and flowers, the land is extremely well kept. I've definitely come to rely on what the land has to offer since there aren't any modern conveniences (such as electricity) out here. For example, we bath in the creek, eat dinner by candle light and paddle up the creek to the neighbors to refill our jugs of drinking water. Work is pretty varied. Some days I am teaching the kids a math lesson, other days I am planting flowers in the nursery, picking fruit, baking bread, or doing other house hold chores. Here are a few more things I've done: Attended a rabbit funeral put on by the kids (for Ace the pet rabbit), learned how to use a machete, rebuilt a cage out of bamboo for the animals, gained an excellent proficiency in hammock testing, fashioned the lepracy look with a galaxy of insect bites, had a toucans flying over my head, played with the neighbors monkey, and gorged myself with the tastiest homegrown fruit I've ever had.