Where is John McAfee hiding?
Murder mystery in paradise
Nigel P. Miguel
B.F.C.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Laidback Living on Belize’s REAL Caribbean Escape
Laidback Living on Belize’s REAL Caribbean Escape
By Glynna Prentice
By Glynna Prentice
I arrived in Caye
Caulker by water taxi from Ambergris Caye, as many people do. The trip
takes half an hour, costs $7.50, and is worth the money—skimming across
the Caribbean’s blue waves, you can watch the island’s white-sand
shores, fringed with palms, gradually grow closer. This approach also
drives home a reality of life here: On Caye Caulker, you really are away
from it all.
The island is only
five miles long and at most a mile wide. Only the southern half is
developed; most of the north half is jungle and mangrove—and it’s
separated from the south by a channel called the Split (the most popular
swimming spot).
At Caye Caulker
Village, where the water taxis come in, the island is at its narrowest:
only three streets wide. These bear the imaginative names of Front,
Middle, and Back and are simple packed sand. You’ll see no cars here and
only a few golf carts—most people walk or get around by bicycle.
And no one’s in a
rush. Here, life is all about the water. You can swim and snorkel right
off the beach, and the barrier reef is a mile away, an easy trip by
motorboat. In fact, you’ll see boats in many backyards and moored on the
lagoon. Walking down Front or Middle Street, about every third
weather-beaten, wood-frame house you pass seems to be a tour-guide
operator offering diving trips off the barrier reef or the Blue Hole, or
for snorkeling in Hol Chan, all big draws in the area.
If you’re a sucker for beach living, you may soon find yourself kicking back and falling for Caye Caulker’s seductive charm.
Within an hour of
arrival I was going barefoot. I snorkeled. I swam. I got a tattoo.
(Okay, truth? I didn’t get the tattoo. But I did think about it...
seriously...which says something about the spell this island can cast.)
Canadian expats
Cindy and Barry Beer have called Caye Caulker home since 2007. "As soon
as we got here, we knew this was it," says Cindy. I chatted with the two
on the deck of their simple wooden house, the Caribbean just a stone’s
throw away. Like many houses here, theirs sits on stilts to put it above
water surges—Caye Caulker is only eight feet above sea level. The
Beers’ boat rests in the sand nearby.
The two admitted
that they "don’t go out a lot." There’s not a lot to do on Caye Caulker
once the sun goes down, except go out to dinner or drink in bars. The
Beers, though, like Caye Caulker’s tranquility. They say that it’s easy
to go to San Pedro when they want city thrills—and they find they seldom
do.
N.P.M.
Belize Film Commissioner
Monday, November 26, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Monday, October 29, 2012
Saturday, October 20, 2012
How Much Longer Does Kobe Have At The Elite Level
I guess that's why we play the games, if nothing else the Lakers will be good TV and at the end of the day it's all entertainment. I love the new additions that the front office made and like most NBA Insiders we want Kobe & Lebron in the finals, has anyone seen CP3. I see the Lakers winning 60 games and meeting the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
Nigel P. Miguel
B.F.C.
Caye Caulker The Best Deal In Belize.
Affordable Islands of the Caribbean
By Glynna Prentice
By Glynna Prentice
I’m paddling idly in
the cool waters off the Split, wondering if I should drag myself to the
bar of the Lazy Lizard for a beer. I’ve spent the morning snorkeling off
the Barrier Reef, viewing coral formations and brightly-colored fish.
Now, with evening coming on, I’m taking a last swim in Caye Caulker’s
best-known swimming spot before showering and dressing for dinner.
Though here, "dressing" is pretty casual... it means I’ll probably put
on flip-flops rather than going barefoot. Probably.
These days Caye
Caulker, a five-mile-long island off Belize’s Caribbean coast, has the
laid-back, beach-bum vibe that brought expats to nearby Ambergris Caye
20 years ago. The streets on Caye Caulker are still packed sand. Most
people get around by bicycle. And for those who come here, life is all
about the water.
Small-town, island
beach life isn’t for everyone. But if it’s for you, it doesn’t get much
better than Caye Caulker. And real estate here is still surprisingly
affordable. Lots, depending on where they are, can run well under
$50,000. Simple vacation cottages start at less than $100,000. And on an
island this small, no place is far from the beach.
If you want to be
near the action—the restaurants, bars, dive shops, and Internet
cafes—look at properties in the village along the three main north-south
streets. (They’re named Front, Middle, and Back.) The village is the
most expensive part of the island, especially for waterfront, but you
can still find bargains.
A small two-bedroom,
two-bath on Middle Street, for instance, was recently for sale for
$225,000. It’s not on the water—but the island at this point is only
three blocks wide, so the sea is very close. Want an easy business? A
large, fenced property near the village is going for $279,000. It
already has four cabanas on it that are vacation rentals, with plenty of
room to build more.
Most expats, though,
tend to settle well south of the village area, where they can enjoy
greater privacy and quiet. There are some neighborhoods here, with names
like BahÃa Puesta del Sol, Pelican Point, and Eden Isle. You’ll find a
few homes for sale—for example, a 720-square-foot, two-bedroom home,
with three extra rooms for short-term rental, is currently for sale for
$178,000. But much of this area is still jungled undergrowth, and people
tend to buy lots to build on. Eden Isle is still off the grid.
You get great bang
for your buck on this part of the island, yet you’re only a 10- to
15-minute bicycle ride to town. A 5,400-square-foot corner lot near Caye
Caulker’s southern tip, for instance, with sea views in two directions,
was recently on offer for $49,000. One row back, a lot just as big was
going for $34,500.
In Caye Caulker you
can build homes up to three stories high. And while you can build a
large, luxurious home, you don’t have to. One expat couple I met settled
for a simple, one-bedroom wooden house by the sea, with an outside deck
for enjoying their morning coffee. The house was built to order by
workers from Belize’s industrious Mennonite community... who showed up
at the lot one morning and put up the house in a flat seven days. The
cost: just $10,000.
And the lifestyle: priceless.
N.P.M.
Belize Film Commissioner
Friday, October 19, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
The Friendliest People On The Planet!
The Friendliest People on the Planet?
By Suzan Haskins
By Suzan Haskins
Walk down any street or narrow village lane in tiny Belize (only about the size of the U.S. state of Rhode Island) and you’ll hear any one of a half dozen or more languages—pretty remarkable in a country that's less-populated than many U.S. cities (320,000 inhabitants).
But this little country is far more diverse than most U.S. cities. (Happier, too, I’d say, judging from the infectious smiles.) And most of its population is not just bi-lingual, but tri-lingual.
English is the official language of the country, formerly known as the colony of British Honduras. (In 1980 it won its independence from Great Britain and has appeared on maps as Belize (or Belice in the Spanish language) ever since.
Spanish is another language you’ll often hear, thanks to the country’s borders with Mexico and Guatemala. Most Belizeans speak both English and Spanish.
Some Belizeans speak Mayan. The Maya were the original inhabitants of this part of the world, and they’re still here in large numbers. If you think Belize is just a Caribbean diving and snorkeling destination, think again. The traditional Maya communities and ancient archaeological sites that have been uncovered in its dense, lush jungles should be on the "must-see" lists of any travelers here.
Many shopkeepers, especially in Belize City and Corozal are of Chinese descent (with a sprinkling of Taiwanese and Korean, too). Some are descendants of the 480 Chinese immigrants that were brought to British Honduras in 1865 as indentured laborers on the ship "The Light of the Ages". They went to work in the timber camps, but a year later, about 100 of them deserted. Another group came just before the outbreak of World War II. Controlling much of the economy, they’ve become dominant players in the grocery, restaurant, fast food, and lottery trades.
More than 10,000 conservative Prussian Mennonites live near an inland town called Spanish Lookout in the Cayo district, where farms and grazing land stretch for miles. Known for their cheese-making and carpentry skills, they speak German. You can outfit your Belizean home with furniture made by these fine craftsmen or even commission them to make a complete exquisite cabin for you out of Belizean hardwoods that virtually last forever. (A decent-sized cabin will cost less than $30,000.)
There’s one more language spoken in Belize—it’s the most common of all. While Belizean children are taught English at school, out and about, everyone speaks Kriol. It’s heavily influenced by the Garifuna people, descendants of African slaves, who escaped captivity in the Western Indies and settled in Belizean coastal villages like Dangriga and Seine Bight in the early 1830s. They have a strong, vibrant culture and language all their own.
This melting pot of cultures is what makes Belize unique in Central America…in the world, if truth be told. Nowhere else can you find such diversity, such tolerance, and yes… cheesy as it sounds… such love for people of so many different ethnic and economic backgrounds. Belizeans may be the friendliest people on the planet. And I’m guessing they got that way because they learned early on that we all have to live together and the best way to do that is happily.
What it all boils down to is this: no matter what language you speak, chances are good you’ll find someone to talk to in Belize. Even better odds are that they’ll have a great big happy smile on their face.
Editor's note: Whether you’re drawn to Corozal or the Cayo…or one of the many beach options in Belize…get everything you need in our "Ultimate Escape to Belize Kit," which makes this country so easy, you could be living the tropical dream before you know it.
Nigel P. Miguel
B.F.C.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
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