2nd part of the last post (March2)

I’m always unsure of how exactly to start off a blog entry. I feel like an inordinate number begin with a “so…” or “hey there everybody”... I wish that I could just pick up in the middle, total stream of consciousness style. I spent the past week in Belmopan at the All Volunteer Conference. Despite the countless times that I debated ripping out my hair in boredom (nothing about the conference, its just that Jacob was not meant to sit in a classroom for 8 hours a day) I feel like I learned quite a bit and made some excellent contacts. Being with all the other volunteers, hearing their stories and sharing my own has reminded me of two things; I remembered that I am incredibly lucky to be in a village that I enjoy alongside people I like, and I have the opportunity to do some amazing things here.

I returned back to the village on Friday and it felt like coming home. I was excited to see my house, hail my friends and cook hot dogs on my own stove. (For the record, a sandwich made up of banana bread, cream cheese and hot dogs is up there as one of the tastiest things I have ever made, Im emailing Anthony Bourdain after this.) Saturday was spent down by the river. I am attempting to extend an existing trail that runs alongside the river. At the moment its about ¾ mile. If I make it through the jungle, the brush, the pimenta forest and the swamplands the total length should be about 2 miles. Starting this project has reminded me of bushwhacking in Patagonia, except this time I have a machete. I am getting quite handy with it. I had no idea how useful of a tool it can be when you live in the bush. I have used mine for cutting chain link fence, opening coconuts, hacking my way through the undergrowth, chopping down trees, killing spiders that are as big as your hand, fixing the plumbing and picking my teeth. (well, maybe not the last one!)

So that was yesterday. Today I had a village council meeting in which I got to discuss some of the projects that I would like to see going on in the village. I’ll just drop a short synopsis/description of what I want to see happen in the village. Its looking like I will be spearheading three projects in the next few months. The first is what I consider to be the most serious and pressing of issues. The front part of my village is on the main N/S highway. If you are going from Belize City to Orange Walk (or further) you pass my village. The northern Highway is the main artery from Mexico and gets a lot of traffic. This two lane stretch is also used by the villagers as they move from one part to another. More than ten people, mostly children, have been hit by vehicles as they barrel past. No speedbumps, no sidewalk. If you ask me this is absolutely unacceptable. I feel like it is only a matter of time before someone else dies. The village has asked for funding from the Ministry of Works to construct a sidewalk about 10 yards away from the highway. Despite repeated requests, nothing has happened. I want to put together a photo album with a picture and a bio of everyone who has lost their life on this 2 mile stretch of road. We will see how it works and if anything can come from persistence.

On a lighter note, I will be starting work on setting up a library in the village. This is something I am super excited about. As of right now I am not quite sure of where books will come from, but I am feeling like if we start getting organized then the books will come. Guess you could call it a “Field of Dreams” mentality! I have been told that we can use a room in the community center, and with a bit of lovin I shall turn that cement square into a center for literary…ness. Yeah. Im psyched :)

The last item on the agenda is a fun project that I think could be interesting for Carmelita. As I hang out with the people of the village I am learning about the history of the place. Evidently the village is named after some dude’s horse or cow or something or other. Now this village is known for being multicultural. While Belize is incredibly diverse, typically communities tend to center around one ethnic group or another. Camelita is unique in the sense that living in close proximity you have Kriol, Mestizo, Mayan and even Mennonite. I think it would be fun and interesting to design a children’s book explaining the history of the village and celebrating the diversity. I am sure that there are some talented artists in the community who would be willing to illustrate. To continue to emphasize the diverse nature of my new home, I think it would be fun to have the wording in multiple languages. For example the line “Carmelita was founded in 1983” would be translated into Spanish, Maya Mopan and Kriol. The idea is in its infant stages but I think there is potential!

As far as things to write about I think that about covers it. The next few weeks are going to be super hectic. On Thursday I leave for San Ignacio and Friday is the 1^st day of La Ruta Maya. Four days later I will pull into Belize City and will probably never wish to step into a canoe again…wish me luck! (if you haven’t googled it yet, do it…its cool) And then on the 10^th Josh (lil bro!) comes to visit. I’m about as excited as I could be. I haven’t really gotten to spend any time traveling solo with him, and I think that it will be an awesome bonding type extravaganza. Plus I will be tossing him to the girls in the village, who will eat him alive. (Cant wait to see ya bro!)

Cool. Well, if everything has gone according to plan there should be some pics up here to enjoy as well!

Peace and love

jacob