February 4
Life in the jungle: I did some small jobs around the house first thing. Today is my day off but I have realized I need to be out of the house first thing in the morning while Andy makes his breakfast and stuff. I did a quick cleaning of the chicken coops as tomorrow I head into a three day trip to San Ignacio. I really didn’t do much of anything the rest of the day but pack for tomorrow’s trip.
February 5
Life in the jungle: I walked out for my bus (versus riding my bike to the village). I am headed to San Ignacio until Wednesday morning. On Wednesday I have my Belize residency appointment in the morning in Belmopan. This was a good excuse to finally visit San Ignacio.
It was a long morning on two buses to arrive in San Ignacio by around lunch. After checking into the Yellow Belly Backpacker Hostel. I headed to the Green Iguana Conservation Project. I always wanted to visit there. I wasn’t really that impressed as the tour was rather tourist-oriented which I guess makes sense. But I learned a few things about how the project is run which is what I was kind of interested in, to begin with.
I learned that they release about 200 iguanas each year at two years old. They have three separate facilities including the one here at the San Ignacio Resort hotel. Another facility to raise babies and another one to raise 1 year olds iguanas. They incubate their eggs at lower temperatures to increase the female ratio to almost 95% females. I knew that could be done with lots of different turtle species. I didn’t realize iguanas were the same, or maybe I had known but forgotten. Also, the Belize Forest Department does a random once a month inspection. And now they are required to track the released juveniles.
Baby Green Iguanas
I have always been interested in something like this. It looks like there is a bit of an investment and government red tape involved. It would be cool to do, but until I become magically wealthy, I don’t see it my future anytime soon. I would also not be that excited about monthly random government visits. Understand the thinking behind the visits, but in this country with all its more important conservation challenges the resources are best utilized elsewhere. After all the government’s job is to make life easier and it’s a given that is not what’s going on here.
I did a bit of a walking tour of San Ignacio and returned to the hostel exhausted. So I took a short nap. The Yellow Belly Backpacker Hostel is all right. There is no privacy in the rooms. Which always bugs me. You have to rent towels for $2. I don’t plan to come here again unless I am unable to try out the other two hostels in town if I ever have to go back to this town.
Pizza every day while I was in San Ignacio – who knows when I get pizza again
It was interesting, pretty shortly after my arrival to San Ignacio I was already homesick for the peace and quiet of the jungle back home. Today I posted The Power of Naiveté: Turning Innocence into an Entrepreneurial Asset to Substack, Medium, LinkedIn, and my website.
The Macal River
February 6
Life in the jungle: First thing this morning I grabbed a short bus ride about 11 km west to Xunantunich Mayan Ruins. It’s a small ruin site with one major temple. It was ok. There was kind of overcast skies.
Xunantunich Mayan Ruins
Getting back to San Ignacio I also toured Cahal Pech Mayan Ruins. I think I ended up preferring Cahal Pech over Xunantunich. There were more photography options. Cahal Pech was located virtually right behind the hostel.
I have come to realize today that the more I see other places here in Belize the more I appreciate my little piece of paradise back home. Unless San Ignacio is being used as a home base for other trips a day and a half is all that’s necessary for a visit. The weather went back and forth between cool and hot throughout the day including a short but appreciated rain shower.
Cahal Pech Mayan Ruins
February 7
Life in the jungle: The guy sleeping in the bunk above me snored badly as in bad enough he should see a doctor. This morning, I got to Belmopan and checked in at 9:05 AM for my 10 AM residency application interview. The lady asked me where was my old passport. They had the photocopies why do they need to see an old expired passport when they never said to bring it? [I had to renew my passport six months ago.] Then she asked me where I lived. I replied Scotland Halfmoon Village. But where? In the jungle, I replied. She knows most small villages do not have house addresses in Belize. It was about then she passed me off to a much more pleasant guy.
Now they want three months of bank statements, a declaration of how I spend my money, a police record, and my TB test results (that the person who took my application back in December declined). It was kind of a gong-show how the government website says one thing and the person you talk to says another just so you get to come back and waste people’s time. I was at the bus station by 10:30 AM and back to Belize City in time for the 12:30 bus home.
It’s so nice to be home. The more I travel the more I appreciate my corner of paradise.
I posted The Power of Simplicity: Unveiling the Profound Importance of Keeping It Simple to Substack, Medium, LinkedIn, and my website.
More San Ignacio
February 8
Life in the jungle: It was cold last night. I spent the day house cleaning and chopping the river lot. I had cycling guests show up this afternoon via Warm Showers. A second hen is sitting on eggs now.
February 9
Life in the jungle: Yesterday’s bike touring guests left first this morning to continue their trip. I spent the whole day working on the new river pump water line that we installed the other month. Yesterday Andy dug a 220+ foot trench to bury the new line. I buried the line and worked on redoing the layout of the pipe when it reached the house. I had to go to the village for four sections of 20ft 1″ PVC pipe. That was a long tail (of pipe) sticking over my trailer.
I posted Unleashing Greatness: The Art of Doing Epic Shit and How It Transforms Your Life to Substack, Medium, LinkedIn and my website.
Buring pipe and picking up the pipe. Me and my bike fell as I was coming down my driveway
What would I do without this bike and trailer
February 10
Life in the jungle: I continued to work on the water line first thing. When I was absolutely out of materials I headed to the village for two more lengths of PVC pipe. Getting on my road I thought “It was a good day to see a jaguar on the road today, Lord.” And about seven minutes later there she was, way up ahead of me. Too far to photograph but I was able to see her for a little bit. That’s three mountain lion and two jaguar sightings in 26 months.
I spent the entire rest of the day finishing the waterline hook-up for the house. Jamie from across the river came over for a BBQ and later his father Joseph showed up. Jamie had helped me with my internet tower and Joseph helped me build my greenhouse. [Jamie now shows up every Saturday to cook supper with Andy.]
Today I found out that Jill left Belize on February 1. Jill and her husband Jack were responsible for my coming to Belize originally in 1997 and were my property managers for 20 years. But when I decided to stay in Belize over two years ago Jack went back to Canada and then they declared “war” on me. After supporting them for the last 20 years they caused me a lot of grief over these past two years but I guess I won the war they declared on me.
More San Ignacio
Belize Part 109 (Jan 18 to 25)
Belize Part 110 (Jan 26 to Feb 3)
Of Note: At this time I am currently 11 months behind in posting my Belize blog posts due to having no internet for the first 18 months of living in Belize.
Glossary of Terms
Glossary of words or people that may or may not be part of this blog post. This glossary will be at the bottom of every blog post for Belize.
Wayne – He is the son of the original owners of the farm (both owners are deceased). The original farm was two – 30 acre parcels minus two – ¾ acre parcels for my house. In 2017 Wayne sold me 40 acres of land from the original 60 acres (one 30 acre parcel plus 10 acres from the second parcel). Wayne lives in his parent’s house and has a few cows on his remaining 18 acres of land.
The ponds – I have two large (300ft long x 50ft wide x 10ft deep) ponds on my 30 acre parcel of land which is basically a jungle. I have about 60 coconut trees (mostly mature) around the ponds. In my first two years of living in Belize, I also planted about 250 assort fruit tree seedlings (Lime, jackfruit, custard apple, pomegranate, and avocado).
The coconut field – I have about 400 coconut trees planted (various growth states) on about 3 acres of cleared land of my 10 acre parcel. I have planted about 350 assorted fruit trees (lemon, starfruit, mango, soursop, cashew, lime, orange) all raised from seed since my arrival in Belize in 2021.
The river lot – my house sits on an ¾ acre lot. I have a second joining ¾ acre lot that allows me river frontage on the Belize River. I call that my river lot.
The dry – Belize has two main seasons. The rainy season and the dry (no rain). The wet is obviously the rainy season.
Chopping – using my machete to clear brush, vines, weeds, and unwanted trees. Generally, when I chop I am removing unwanted vegetation around my baby fruit trees.
Andy – A fellow Canadian who rode his dirt bike from Canada to Belize. When I offered him the use of an apartment that I recently built and the use of my greenhouse Andy decided to stay in Belize permanently and start a hot sauce company here.
