gone south

Placentia, BZ.

Moved on down the coast, to the tip of a peninsula, to a town call Placentia.  22mi. of unpaved, bumpy road but we had hitchhikers with us (who could not get seats on the bus) and that helped pass the time as it took a 1.5 hrs. Belize has 3 main roads that are in good condition, and then the alternate roads quickly become the usual gravel, van size pot holes, “pedestrian bumps” at every village- and they are only a couple of kilometers apart and the ever present dog crossings.

The road leading in is under construction meaning that the base is there but no asphalt and the condition of the road varies according to the last grading. Due to this and the increasing popularity ( in non hurricane seasons) it appears to be the beginning of an end to a sleepy village populated by those unconcerned with road conditions, quite reminiscent of Provincetown or tiny town in Fla.keys.  Water is visible on both sides of the road and in between there is now huge mangrove area being filled, canal building and trophy houses going up along side of the for sale signs of small businesses. That being said, the point of Placencia is a tiny town with one road and a series of sidewalks that meander through the brightly painted houses. Lots of tourists but we managed to find a place to camp within walking distance of town on a perfect beach.  12 yr. old boys seem to be our attraction- Andy from next door joined Craig in the early morning and was present for the landing of a big “yellow jack”.  He was so pleased having never used a rod; he is now a firm believer in the power. We left him a sinker to use on his hand line but I think he would have preferred the rod.

Well, we did end up with new neighbor last night; a couple came in on kayaks after spending 9 days paddling around the cayes after parking their van in Dangriga. Needless to say, they also were from Quebec. By and large, the travelers that we meet are from Canada, not the US.- hmmm……

English, Spanish, Creole and Garifur are all spoken in the melting pot.

Just a last minute update on drinking here: Beliken Stout & Caribbean White rum are the beverages of choice in Belize. Kind of helps dull the ant bites at bedtime!

Posted from San Ingnacio campground WIFI.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, December 21st, 2008 at 8:27 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.