Can you BELIZE it?!: Week Two's Top Four Adventures! #top4 #research

During my stay and study in Belize, I will be focusing on my research on youth development in San Jose Succotz. I have been asked to conduct research on this area to see if this community could create a youth development program and to have it be sustainable for the years to come! I will be documenting my travels to show you the work I am doing and the adventures that I have had!

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With week two down, it is amazing to see how fast my stay here is going. I have had the opportunity this week to experience once in a lifetime adventures and want to do a different spin on this weeks blog. Instead of writing about EVERYTHING that I have done, I will be picking the top 4 experiences that I have had this week! They aren't in any certain order, but each adventure was a blast!

 

 

1. Great People= Great Projects

This week, I decided to take a different approach at meeting the people in the village of Succotz. I had a list of people that I had to meet so I decided to make my presence known by going to their areas of work or houses and personally getting to know them. It was there where I found out about two great organizations led by two empowering women. The first group was the local youth group with the FCD (Friends for Conservation and Development) led by Nidia Panthi, which focused on building a green house for the primary school and then the Women's Group led by Ms. Olivia Pat who focused on empowering women in the community. Both of these amazing women worked hard after their jobs and school to better the community where they lived.

 

2. Learn about where you are

I learned that it is imperative to get to know the area and the history where you are staying to help you better understand the culture and traditions in whichever country you are staying. You can opportunities to do awesome things! On Wednesday of this week, the House of Culture in Benque organized a day of learning and fun to the community because it was International Museum Day! When I went there, I learned about the marimba instrument, the different traditions Belize celebrates, and I even learned how to write my name in Mayan! If you are studying abroad or even passing through a different place, learn about their history and take a leap to ask questions!

 

3. Transportation Systems

This week, I left the host family "nest" and traveled around Belize by myself using the taxi system. As weird as this sounds, I was actually nervous to go by myself. A lot of the taxis here are not like the regular ones you would imagine in NYC. They are regular cars that are set apart because they have green license plates. You also share the taxi with other people that need rides so you can be in a car by yourself or you crammed in with 4 other people! The great thing though about the taxi system here is that it is so cheap! $3 Belizean to get me over to the next town ($1.50 U.S.) is fine by me crammed or not!
 

 

4. Iguanas are better than Parrots!

As crazy as this is, yes that is a real live iguana on my shoulder (don't try this at home kids!). I went to the Iguana Conservation Project in San Ignacio to romp around with some iguanas! These little guys were very tame and friendly which helped a lot because I was a little out of my element! Overall, with help and guidance from the handlers there at the project, I was able to learn a lot about the iguanas and the history to them!
 

This week was a great one and I am looking forward to the new experiences that I am going to have this week! By the end of this next week, the green house for the FCD should be completed, I will attempt to sew a placemat with the Women's group, and I will be meeting more friends along the way!

 

Can you BELIZE it?!: Week One in Succotz #research

During my stay and study in Belize, I will be focusing on my research on youth development in San Jose Succotz. I have been asked to conduct research on this area to see if this community could create a youth development program and to have it be sustainable for the years to come! I will be documenting my travels to show you the work I am doing and the adventures that I have had!

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Hola and Welcome to Belize!  A country full of great food and great people. When I arrived on Monday to Belize City I had no idea what to expect, and didn't know anyone at all. That is where I met my very first friend who welcomed me into the country and drove me all the way to San Jose Succotz. Now, Belize is a little different than America in multiple ways including the road system. They have one central highway that takes you to any village, town, or city and of course there are no road signs or speed limits. As we flew down the highway and the sun was setting, I truly got to see Belize in a special light as Joshua was telling me about the history and different stories of Belize. I was very fortunate in the fact that Joshua was training to be a tour guide which made him very knowledgeable about Belize and it's history.

After a 2.5 hour ride, we finally arrived in Succotz outside of the town San Ignacio. It is a small village with some of the most welcoming people that I have met. We pulled into the driveway where my host family lived and they all rushed outside to see me. The family that I am staying with has two daughters, Fatima and Leeyah, and then their parents Vanessa and Daniel. When I unloaded all of my belongings, we went down the road to go visit their parents and grandparents that night. Surprisingly to me, they all lived in the same village because they all have lived there their entire lives. My family lives across the United States and I only get to see them once a year so it was awesome how strong their family bond was after meeting their entire family.

As the week started, I began my research by first visiting the agricultural high school called Mopan Technical in Benque. One of the previous graduating students at Penn State (Kate Basset) had student taught there, and she was able to start a couple projects at the school to help them out. After discussing with them about what Kate did and about their current projects at the school, we were able to talk about implementing a youth program that some of their students might enjoy. I had multiple conversations with several teachers, students, and even the principal, to get a good understanding about what they wanted and how we are to accomplish those goals.
After two days at Mopan Technical, I was able to go sight seeing with my host family as well as Dr. Penados's family around different areas in Belize. Some of the places I visited actually reminded me of Pennsylvania in the fact that they had an Amish and Mennonite community that made dairy products in the area. They had several American foods that included two of my favorites, pizza and ice cream (staple food groups for any college student!). After that, I was able to pick blueberries at a local farm and even got to visit the coast to see a museum and then go to the beach!

Week one has been great and I haven't melted from the heat just yet, thank goodness! Stay tuned to my next blog about riding the bus system (by myself yikes!), visiting the National Belize 4-H Center, and talking with the locals about their agriculture knowledge!