Guanacaste

(Don't forget: "Click" your mouse on any of the photos below to open a larger version.)


One of the wonderful things about being in Belize is that it still has lots of relatively pristine rain forest. Nobody is quite sure how long that will last. If the attempts to market Belize as an "eco tourism" destination attract more people to the unspoilt areas, those same areas will soon cease to be unspoilt. The development of a tourist industry on parts of the mainland coast already looks likely to create the same sort of "resort" you can find anywhere in the world.

The other big issue, long term, will be population growth - although it's not really seen as an issue here. Belize, at the moment, is relatively underpopulated. But families are very large indeed by UK standards, and the rate of population growth is staggering: it has more than doubled in the last 25 years.

One of the hopeful signs is the creation of a lot of national parks. Some are very small, but all of them are an attempt to signal the value of the environment.

These photos were taken in the very small (50 acre) Guanacaste National Park, on the outskirts of Belmopan. (The Guanacaste is a local tree).


It's a real privilege to be able to walk through this sort of forest. (A privilege you have to be willing to share with large numbers of small biting insects, alas, but I suppose they have to make a living as best they can).

As well as the greenery, there's lots of birdlife. (Photos on our other blog - "A bad birdwatcher in Belize"). We've also seen various rodents, including the Gibnut - a vegetarian creature much prized as a local food item! Apparently it was served to the Queen on a visit to Belize, and local lore says she was under-impressed. The good news for wild Gibnuts is that a development agency is sponsoring experimental small scale Gibnut farming in the south of Belize. Sadly, we don't have a photo of our own that shows more than a blur ... The Gibnut regularly features on the menu at one of the fast food stalls in Belmopan market. We haven't tried it yet, but I guess we might. We eat rabbit sometimes at home.

One of the other creatures that we are told sometimes graces the local tables is the Green Iguana. These are really striking creatures. They are relatively tame (one reason, I suppose, why they sometimes end up in the pot) and grow quite large. I would guess at over a metre in length. As well as seeing them in the undergrowth and in trees, I've also seen one dashing across the road ahead when driving along the Western Highway.

And a final note on the weather. (Well, we are English, and therefore have no other regular topic of conversation). It's now mid May, and the temperature continues to climb. This week it has reached between 36 and 38 C in the shade every day. We put the thermometer in direct sunlight, and it quickly read 42 C!