Learning to relax again

I’m starting to relax and slow down to the pace of Belize. Things get done, albeit at a much slower speed, and that’s OK with me. I’m not here to change Belize but to let Belize change me. The studio apartment I am renting from Bob and Martha is a nice place out on the point of Consejo village. If you are planning to visit the Corozal or Consejo area, maybe to look at properties or just relax, their place is an excellent spot near the sea with nice trade winds to keep the temperatures comfortable.

The view of the bay from Bob and Marthas' side yard

Bob has a wood shop in the back of the house where he turns bowls, vases and tables. Below is an example of just some of his artistic woodwork. Beautiful hardwoods gathered from around the country provide him ample supplies to work with. A former logger by trade, Bob knows his hardwoods and how to bring out the beauty that is hidden within.

Bobs' artistic woodwork.

If you are interested in any of Bobs' work, or maybe renting the studio apt for a day or week, please contact them at alwayswright@btl.net. Just tell them Perry sent you.

On Sunday, my contractor John Harris, invited me to his house for rice and curry. He said that is the official food of the English, replacing fish and chips. My how the world has changed. And he can cook a good batch of chicken curry. He has a beautiful place on the shores of Four Mile Lagoon that rivals any place in the States.

They say that Belize is a third world country but I have found that, at times, it is better than where I came from in SoCal. I went today to register my Toyota truck and get new licence plates. The whole process to less than twenty minutes. The only strange thing to happen was that they took my certificate of ownership (pink slip) for the Toyota and issued me a new pink slip. I need new licence plates for my truck, but they are out of them and requested I check back in a month or so. They also requested I remove my California plates, so I now have no license plates, at all. So my Toyota truck is now an official Belizian Toyota truck and will live out the rest of its' entire life as a Belizian.

Next, it was to the bank. There, I deposited a personel check, talked to the manager about transfering construction funds from the US and visited the ATM to withdraw money to live on. Again, this took no more than twenty minutes. From there, it was over to the butchers' to get meat, chicken and eggs, all fresh. They cut the bacon from the slab as I waited. Ten minutes later, I was off to the gas station to fill up the Toyota. This whole process took less than an hour and a half from start to finish, including the drive time. I was back to Consejo village just in time for lunch.

Now it was time for a Belikin and to relax at the shoreline. It's a tough job, but it's something I gotta do.

My Life at Consejo