AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Belize by District Stann Creek Stann Creek/ Santa Marta/ Gales Point

This summer, I am going to have the oppurtunity to visit Belize mainland for three weeks and do volunteer work. This program is run through EIL and is called Project Belize. The first week is spent at the Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. Where is this and what should I expect as far as lodging? The next two weeks are going to be spent doing a "homestay". A belizean family will take me in to their home and along with the group, I will work on building nautre trails, houses, helping in schools and doing other basic volunteer work. The villages we stay in are Santa Marta and Gales Point. What are these villages like? What are most of their houses like? They told us that many houses do not have indoor plumbing and some do not have elctricity. If so, then where is our bathing done? I have only ever visited Ambergris, Caye Caulker, Placencia and Belize City so I am looking for information on what to expect in these villages. Luckily after these tough conditions, we enjoy a week at Caye Caulker/Ambergris. If anyone has any information on what to expect, it would be greatly appreciated

Well here is what I have experienced when staying with the locals. Most times two small structures. One is the outhouse and the other the bathing facility. If you are in staying at a stilt home the bathing place might be located under the house and just enclosed with a tarp. Since your host family will have no electric, they will heat water on the stove and you will take that with you. So you have to give about 5 to ten minutes notice unless you are brave and like cold water bathing. So off you go with your hot water in a margarine size bowl and the regular water is ususally inside in a five gallon bucket with another margarine bowl inside it. So work fast and then that little bowl of hot water will be gone and WOW throw a couple of bowls of cold on you and your out of there. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

One other thing I will say is that if you stay with a local family lots of times no screens on the windows. Mostly just shutters so the bugs are going to come looking for you. Make sure you take some bug spray and apply it often.
Enjoy yourself and have fun and thanks in advance for the volunteer work that you will be doing in Belize. Its greatly appreciated by the locals and also by me. Love those hiking trails.

My Stann Creek family recently upgraded to a garden hose "shower". That's only cuz I brought the hose. Best things about village living - FOOD & family get togethers.

Monkey Bay is off the Western Highway near the Belize Zoo, JB's and Cheers. The lodging is basic but okay -- raised platforms for tents and a bunkhouse. Believe everything is solar.

Gales Point is a Creole village. It has a beautiful setting on the Southern Lagoon. This area is known for its manatees. I don't think I've ever been to Santa Marta village.

--Lan Sluder
Belize First http://www.belizefirst.com/

how did you manage to set up your homesaty?? Did you organize it through an organization?
Let me know because I am looking into occasions like that.

My homestay was set up through a program called Experiment in Learning. It is designed for high school/college students. The website is www.usexperiment.org Another similar program is run through www.globalroutes.org Melissa
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Just fixed the url for global routes Melissa
Jim

[This message has been edited by Sandcrab (edited 11-16-2001).]