We were planning a 7 day stay in Placencia at the Soul Shine Spa.

We received a call last night from a friend who told us that he had heard that several guests and the resort had been robbed and that money, passports, luggage, etc. had been taken from the guests.

Can anybody confirm or deny this for us....we don't want to change our plans if this is just a hoax.

Thanks

We just got back from a few days in Placencia. We didn't stay at the Soulshine, but some friends did and they really liked it. I didn't hear anything about robberies etc.

I found this comment on another board about Belize. I have had no personal experience with this place and do not know about the poster's reliability.

We stayed at Roberts Grve in Placencia which was very nice. We decided to go to Soulshine resort and spa "on it's own privates island" for a massage and dinner at their spa. Well, the private island is a piece of land on the lagoon! with no beach. The "spa" is a cement room with a thatch roof, a massage table and two bathtubs (not hydrotherapy). The surroundings were totally disappointing, we decided not to stay for dinner to say the least. BIG FALSE ADVERTISING!!!

I stayed at SoulShine in June and found it very nice. I had heard all the mixed reviews and was frankly expecting much less than what I found. Very nice place, 5 large spacious cabanas with microwave, coffee maker, A/C, guest bathrobes, private porch, etc. True there is no real sandy beach, but there is water and docks all around. Hammocks, kayaks for guest use, beautiful spa/massage studio with many types of treatments, excellent massage therapists (I signed up for a "salt glow" but ended up having a long massage due to a power outage from storms during the night.) They offer yoga & other fitness programs although not much equipment in the "gym." The food was very good (had breakfast & 4 course dinner (homemade seafood ravioli - yum!) Sat on one of the docks one night and watched tons of fish jumping all round so I would guess the fishing is good! I thought it would be really buggy & hot since it's not on the sea side but it wasn't at all. Very breezy and pleasant. I was impressed. Haven't heard of any problems with theft but it might have happened after I was there (if it happened). It is on a small private island so they would have to be some pretty crafty (and seaworthy) theives if it's true.

There has been some very nasty comments about Soulshine on this & other boards - that's part of why I wanted to see it & stay there myself. I think the owners living on site now has made a BIG difference. I recommend it.

Feel free to email me for more info.

~Barb www.barbsbelize.com

Thanks for the response guys

Seems I have two who approve of Soul Shine and one with a bad experience.

We are scheduled to depart in 3 weeks and will continue to monitor this board for any additional input.

We don't have reservations, just planned to drop in as this time of year appears to be wide open so we can change our plans on a moments notice.

Thanks Again

Just remember....our definitions don't always matter.....

Thanks Grace but if I can't get info here where else can I get it other than first hand.

At least this way we are trying to get info.

My shilling's worth:

Since Barbara, who knows Belize hotels very well, had a pretty good experience at Soulshine recently, I'm willing to take another look at it.

I would say, however, that past marketing by Soulshine has been misleading, to say the least, and close to smarmy. It's been positioned as this "private island" resort, when in fact it is just on a chunk of land 30 feet across a channel on the back side of Placencia, across from one of the busiest bars on the peninsula, Sugar Reef (formerly Lagoon Saloon). I think a lot of people would think it's an island in the Caribbean when it's not.

Certainly the feedback we've gotten on it, and what I've seen posted on the Internet, is "mixed" -- at best.

It also was actively for sale for a couple of years -- don't know if that's still the case or not.

In the past, I've felt it would be difficult to give even a lukewarm recommendation to Soulshine given the many excellent alternatives on the peninsula which are on the Caribbean with a beach and with a proven track record of value and service.

--Lan Sluder
Belize books and publications by Lan Sluder:
Belize First Magazine (http://www.belizefirst.com)
Fodor's Belize & Guatemala Guide (new 4th edition coming this summer)
Adapter Kit: Belize (the first and only comprehensive guide to living, retiring, working and investing in Belize -- a best-seller on Amazon.com)
San Pedro Cool (the first and only visitor guide to Ambergris Caye)
Belize First Guide to Mainland Belize
UpClose Central America
Belize Book of Lists

Hey Lan, do you know what's going on with Kitty's Place? I heard it was for sale (maybe has been for awhile), stayed across the road at Craboo Landing when in Placencia in May and loved the flowers/birds/beach at Kitty's.

Regarding Kitty's Place - yep, it's for sale. I'm working with Kitty on that. Since this message board is not for selling real estate, I won't do a marketing pitch, but if you want to buy it, or know somebody who does, please contact me at:
<camp@btl.net>
As for whether the possible sale affects how you will experience a stay at Kitty's Place, you will still have a great time there. Elena, the new manager is bright and caring, there are active plans for continued upgrading and marketing. Craboo Landing consists of private homes owned by Kitty, Ran and family. They will be available on a continuous basis too. We spent last weekend at Kitty's Place and (as usual) LOVED it.
The beach is wonderful and the food was better than ever.

Kitty's, which is a fine place, been for sale for a couple of years. I'm told it almost sold last fall, but at the last minute the deal fell through. Of course, half the hotels on the peninsula are for sale one way or another -- Nautical Inn, Luba Hati, Barracuda & Jaguar Inn and others. Like Kitty's, most continue operating as usual until a buyer comes along. Placencia is just a tough place to make a living in tourism, a lot harder than San Pedro which is hard enough, though in the end I guess most owners make some money on their real estate.

--Lan Sluder

I,ve never been to the Soulshine Resort but if it's as close to the Suger Reef as Lan says it is count me in!

I do think that SoulShine is currently still for sale. It was close to that bar across the lagoon - we could see it but we didn't hear any noise from it. Granted I was there for only one night and it was not a weekend so that may make a difference.

We have been to Placencia Peninsula a couple of times and loved it, stayed at Kitty's Place. Town was fun too...

But when we stopped there on the way to the Rio Dulce, it was very very depressing. I understand that most of the resorts up the beach have been rebuilt, but much of Placencia has not yet been cleaned up too well after the hurricane.

Worse, people seemed very dispirited, sullen and unfriendly. The bar on the beach ("JR's?" or something like that) was not the way it used to be, the people running the place were unfriendly and downright rude to us, even though we bought several rounds of beers and of course we tip (and no, we were not drunk or loud or dirty..)

We stopped off at a little store to buy a few provisions and the owner (I think her name was "Olga" or at least the store was called "Olga's") was very unpleasant, even accused us of being shoplifters because our Belizean friend opened a little tin of sausages while we were shopping, told her to put it on our bill and went outside to eat (I was still inside the store putting stuff into my shopping basket.) She screamed at us at the top of her lungs while I was paying for the stuff we bought. I almost left my purchases on the counter but we did not know if there were any other grocery stores in town.
Maybe they just don't like cruising sailors (we came aboard on the dinghy) but gee whiz, we were there to spend money, and to get dissed by two vendors we spent money with was not pleasant.

As a consequence, we are telling people who sail to bypass Placencia Village, it's not sailor-friendly...people were much friendlier and niceer when we stopped at Tobacco Caye.

About Placencia - and cleaning up ........ the amount of debris was horrific after the storm. I was there a week after Iris. Compared to where these poor souls began, they have literally moved mountains of debris. The problem was and is, where do you put all that stuff? The latest plan to take care of the last of the debris is in place. The road is being paved. Trucks bringing in material for the road work will leave filled with debris and take it to appropraite dump-sites. This should make a major impact on the remaining junk laying around.
As for attitudes ....... hurricanes are exhausting and traumatic. We went through Keith on AC, and the entire island was truly suffering from PTSS for at least a year. Most folks in San Pedro, if they really fessed up, admitted that they did not sleep through the night for at least 6 months following Keith. Many spent a lot more time drunk or drinking than ever before in their lives. Kids drew scary pictures for a long time. The jitters got worse, not better when the NEXT hurricane season approached. Tired, scared and broke, it's hard to see storm season back in your face.
Please give these good folks another chance - they have been through a lot and they deserve some compassion and support.

You're right, Diane, about the sense of helplessness felt by people of the Placencia area. As a businessperson from there wrote recently in a Belize newspaper editorial letter, "If Placencia were a person, BTL would be standing trial for murder." Almost a year after the storm there are still no land line telephones (there are 100 such lines for select persons/businesses, not nearly enough), just to mention one extreme handicap to the resumption of normalcy.

I can't imagine Olga screaming at the top of her lungs at anyone without some sense of provocation. She's a serious businesswoman with a good reputation and I'm sure she has plans and hopes that include future success for her and Placencia.

I do understand that stress makes for short tempers..but we did nothing to provoke either of these establishments other than spend money. As I stated: We were not intoxicated, loud, dirty or otherwise obnoxious. We spent money.
As for "Olga's" loud temper tantrum, as I stated: We were in the store loading up our cart, walking around discussing what we needed to buy. One of us took a can of sausages outside, stopped by the cash register to let her know to put it on the tab and went outside to eat it (mindful of the sign that says "no eating inside the store..") and we continued shopping for about 5 more minutes. We were obviously all together and obviously engaged in shopping.
When we got to the cash register and I pulled out my money, we were treated to a LOUD lecture about why did you try to steal something from my store without paying for it, did you think I wouldn't catch you," etc. etc....all this as I was pulling out money and she was wrapping our items! As we left the store, she was continuing to yell and gesture and as we left, she pointed at us and told the next person in line "those people are thieves."
Of course we had not stolen anything and paid for everything (including the little tin of sausages....) And as I said, I was sorely tempted to throw everything back on the counter and tell her in precise terms what she could do with her stuff but I didn't. I just told her that she was out of line in her manner of talking to customers, paid for the stuff, and walked out.
My point was that this is not the way you treat tourists especially when they are spending MONEY in your establishment.
I hate to say it, but....I suspect racial prejudice. We were a mixed group and one of us was obviously a Mayan person. I was the only Caucasian looking person in the group.
Maybe the lady was having a bad day, But her behavior was inexcusable.

Susan, I don't think she was acting that way towards you because you were "sailers" or your skin color. You must have said something that let her know you were a lawyer. You know how they pronounce lawyer in Belize? More like "lier".

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-07-2002).]

Bywarren, you must be right. She must have said.....let's by some Lawyer's food.

Bad day at Olga's.
Perhaps she is hard of hearing and didn't hear your friend say, add it to the bill.

It doesn't make for a fun visit when things like that happen.

Sorry folks, but the only "conversation" we were having while shopping was about whether to buy this or that. Ms. Olga had no idea what I do for a living (nor did she know how much money I had contributed to the hurricane relief fund, for that matter!)
Look, the lady was being nasty and bitchy. Sad but true. You just do not talk to customers that way. Ever. It's just not acceptable.
(And I don't think it was MY skin color that was the issue....My Mayan friend told me that it was not the first time he has experienced that kind of disrespectful treatment in his own country.)
Look, it was no big deal for me, I am thick skinned. Our response is simple: We won't go back there...but the point is: Someone who behaves like that towards a customer is unlikely to only do it to one customer.
The point is also that people talk to each other and when the word gets out that the townspeople are not friendly to tourists, tourists stop coming. And the word does get out.
Perhaps it would behoove the local tourist industry trade group to do a little bit of training in the Placencia Town community on the fact that everyone who deals with the public is part of the tourist business -- even shop keepers. Nobody wants their ass kissed, they just want to be treated with simple respect.

Believe me, Olga was expressing the cumulative effects of how bad things are down Placencia way. Rightly or wrongly, that's what it was, plain and simple. There has been an upsurge in petty theft since after the storm last year, probably something she does deal with on a daily basis in her store.

It was a misunderstanding of your intent from the get-go.

Perhaps so...but a customer-wise shopkeeper would have observed that we remained in the store, continuing to shop and came to the cash register to pay for our goods. At that point, any "fear of shoplifting" would have been allayed and she should have zipped it.
Instead, she loudly berated us, continued to run her mouth while holding her hand out for my money, ran it still (even louder) while placing said $$ in the cash register, and inexplicably, even continued her tirade as we exited the store.
There is no excuse that could possibly justify such behavior towards a customer. Coupled with the rather sullen attitude we encountered at the seafront bar (I personally don't appreciate either myself or my companions being asked "what do you need it for?" when requesting a key to the bathroom, when we are paying customers), we came away from Placencia Town with a very negative impression. We have since advised other cruising sailors to bypass Placencia Town when planning their trips along the Belize coast.
This experience was very un-typical of our travels in Belize, including everywhere we stopped when sailing from Ambergris Caye to the Rio Dulce.
Obviously, tourists can be assholes like anybody else, and if they behave like drunken idiots, are certainly entitled to be put in their place..but we were not doing anything like that. We were simply thirsty, hungry and looking for a place to spend our money.

Susangg

First, I am sure that there was no intention on the part of your companion to steel the can of sausages.

I could not help but notice that everything you write has the word MONEY somewhere in the text.

Could it possibly be that there is an attitude problem associated with MONEY involved here ?

Sure would like to hear the other side of this story...

I bit my tonge, counted to 10 a thousand times and slept on this one. I am trying to live up to my image http://community.webshots.com/user/bywarren
of a cute, kind, loving individual who just wants to get along with everyone, BUT,

Susan, you are quick to write voluminous words describing your opinions and exalting your activist agendas, which I more often than not disagree with, and enjoy the debate and the opportunity to point out our differences. But in this case, I think you are going too far and should reassess your position.

The people of Southern Belize have suffered tremedous hardships due to Iris. For you to suggest that tourists should bocoytt them and the Government needs to train them on how to handle tourists is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG.

Just because you pissed off a store lady or just because she was having a bad day, is no reason to call for the extreme measure you are.

And, don't give me that "feel good crap" that just because you donated to the relief fund you are "holier than thou" or just because you are spending a few of your bucks in her store that you have the right to suggest all of Placencia be bypassed by your sailing buddies.

If given the choice, the people of Placincia might prefer the "intoxicated, loud, dirty and otherwise obnoxious people" as opposed to your kind and tell you to take your money, spend it elsewhere, and use some of the long winded air that comes from you to help you to just sail on by.

I don't think you or your money will be missed all that much. If everyone was like you, tourism in Belize would probably disappear and they would all go back to fishing. There is alot to be said for just having to deal with smelly fish.

PS: Susan, re-read your post on "support the Wavedancer Victims". Your words, "a boycott is a powerfull weapon and should not be used mindlessly". Where is your mind on this one? I guess 20 people getting killed doesn't compare to someone giving you a piece of their mind.

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-08-2002).]

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-08-2002).]

Warren: Nobody is calling for a "boycott."
But one of the many purposes of this board is for people to discuss their experiences in Belize..That is what I did. I formed an opinion and shared it and explained the facts of what it was based on.
Personally, when I or my friends are mistreated by people (especially when it seems that the mistreatment is related to racial prejudice, which I continue to suspect it was) I believe it a reasonable reaction to the experience to choose not to return to where it occurred, as well as to express my opinion of the behavior.
Others who read it are free to form their own conclusions. I doubt very much that reading what we experienced will be a major factor in anyone's travel plans, but if a few people decide to plan their trip so that they choose another place to dock rather than Placencia Town (and there are quite a few to choose from) well, that's the way it goes. One town's loss, another town's gain.
And I'm sorry, but I just don't consider the fact that there was a hurricane there a year ago an excuse for rudeness, hostility and verbal abuse. If you do, well, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.
Furthermore, my "recommendation" had nothing to do with "Southern Belize" as a whole, nor am I suggesting that people should not visit Placencia Peninsula. I would definitely go back to Kitty's Place or to any of the many lovely hotels and resorts along the peninsula beaches. My comments were addressed primarily to cruising sailors who are looking for a place to dock their boat and spend a few hours, go shopping, have a few drinks, in town. My recent experience there led me to believe that there are other places that are friendlier and nicer for that purpose and I continue to believe that and you know why.
For example, when we got to Tobacco Caye, the bar next to the dock was closed, but the bartender was sitting around chatting with a couple of friends. When we walked up and asked if we could get a round of Margaritas, he ran next door, got his boss, and they opened up. We ended up staying there for two hours, had three rounds of drinks and walked around town, found a restaurant and waited for them to open up for dinner.
Everyone was really friendly and nice and seemed happy that we were there.
See the difference? Why is it "holier than thou" to recommend Tobacco Caye as a good place to stop and Placencia Town as NOT a good place to stop? In one place, we were treated nicely and in the other, we were not.
Or is there some unwritten rule on this board that you only share the good experiences? I don't think so....



[This message has been edited by susangg (edited 09-08-2002).]

My mistake. You used the word "bypass" and not "boycott". That must make all the difference in the world. It is my lack of a legal education. I am still trying to figure out the many meanings of the word "is", so excuse me if I am having trouble with two syllable words.

Warren: Please don't misquote me (or more precisely, quote out of context.)

On the Wave Dancer issue, I supported a boycott of the Peter Hughes Corporation for gross negligence leading to many deaths and lack of remorse for same.

However, someone else was calling for a boycott of the entire country of Belize because the government had re licensed Peter Hughes. I disagreed with that and pointed out that it was unfair to punish the people of Belize for something they had no power to do anything about (licensing of a business which we all know is based on money and graft, not safety or the feelings of the public.

It was in that context that I made the comment about "a boycott is a powerful weapon and should not be used mindlessly."

There is a big difference between calling for a "boycott" and opining that a certain town is not a very friendly place and sailors might want to consider stopping elsewhere. A "boycott" is a calculated and organized campaign targeting a particular business, industry, place, etc. to persuade people not to do business with it in order to achieve a particular political or economic goal. Describing a negative experience at a tourist destination and suggesting that people pick someplace else to visit on a chat board is not a call for a "boycott."

No legal experience is needed to distinguish these two things...just a bit of common sense.

i can't be mistaken for anything BUT a caucasian tourist, and that said, i'd like to state that this summer when i shopped at olga's i found it well stocked and the woman in charge (i am assuming the same woman under discussion here) to be friendly and extremely accomodating. i remarked one day a few days after i had bought a tub of what i thought was yogurt, that what was in the tub was not yogurt at all, but a thick creamy stuff somewhere between sour cream and cream cheese. she explained what it was (something between sour cream and cream cheese, used for pastries and such.) while i considered it my mistake and my loss, she offered to take it back if i returned it to the store, even after i told her i had given it a stir with a spoon. i thought it was pretty nice of her, i hadn't spent a ton of money there, just bought juice, water, beer, veggies, bread & cheese for one person. i hadn't even asked for an exchange, i was just curious about what the heck i'd bought.

i guess we all have good days and bad days. in fact, the woman from olga's and i had a brief discussion once about how some days are just awful for some things: like some days are all about dropping, or giving incorrect change, or leaving belongings behind and so forth. maybe that was her bad customer relations day.

regardless, there are other nice grocery stores and other bars in placencia. it's still a lovely place and i'd go back again.

peace---
gogo

[This message has been edited by gogo (edited 09-08-2002).]

Susan, you can parse and re-phrase your words all you want. The point is, you were opposed to a boycott/bypass/do not do business in Belize, because it might effect people who had nothing to do with the incident in question, and I agree with that position. But, I think it is inconsistent on your part to call for people to "bypass" Placencia, or any part of Southern Belize, just because according to your side of the story you had difficulty with some of the people there. That to me is my "common sense" view.

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-08-2002).]

OOPS, now you have hit my raw nerve.
We are generous and we do make donations$$ to people in Belize. Then we hear "you think you are holier than tho". Excuse me, we contribute out of the goodness of our hearts. We do bring money$$ to spend in Belize. All that being said. People deserve respect even if they do not make donations or have loads of money to spend.
Dissing is just not acceptable anywhere.
We travelers, do have choices and we good hearted travelers have choices on giving donations too. When we choose Belize, that is good for all Belizeans, and business people. Trust me we give and come to Belize because we LOVE Belize, not to get a tongue lashing.
We do not expect a red carpet to be rolled out, just that we too are treated like good customers/tourist.
What method of payment can we use in Belize except $$$$$? Can we barter with beads?
I think not.
We with big mouths, normally are good at earning big money$$, so there you go.
Belize is great, so let's work to keep it great.



[This message has been edited by Chloe (edited 09-09-2002).]

There were many good people who contributed to the relief fund. I only know of one who feels she has to tell us she did and use that as part of her justification to call for people to "bypass" all of Placencia Town because of her experience with a few of the people. It looks to me like she is painting all the people with the same brush, and I call that being "holier than thou". And as was mentioned, it would be nice to hear both sides of the story.

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-09-2002).]

The topic that this started under is "Placencia lodging." If one were browsing under the topic looking to explore Placencia and found what the discussion had become, i.e. Placencia people are surly, it surely would be a turn off.

Olga would not ask to be excused for her behavior. She runs a good store and has plenty of practice with people five-finger discounting her wares. Having spent hundreds of dollars in many, many shopping excursions over several years I've seen the store expand with its shelf stock and seen it on days when you couldn't turn around in there for the crowd. I don't fear the place is going to regress because of the outburst, but I do fear the regression in the whole area because storm recovery has been so fractured and business has suffered for that reason.

This is pure speculation on my part but maybe because Olga's is a grocery shop and not a restaurant her standard policy says you pay first and then you are free to eat what you've purchased. Those customers with less honorable intentions would be "confused" if they observed the practice of eating the goods and then paying (if they remember to pay.)

The effect of charitable donations addressed feeding and housing and some health care for displaced persons immediately after the storm. But longer term and as it should be, people have returned to their own resources whatever they may be and those resources are obviously short of what's needed. Complicating factors include lack of organized government intervention in helping with money, labor and machinery and BTL's lack of concern over getting communications back up.

So it's slow going for the residents of the Placencia Peninsula. And the ripple effect is the place looks like hell and it will be another tourist season (at least) until the soul of the area can experience some peace. The greatest hope of all right now is that there is no insult added to injury in the form of more adverse weather this storm season.

[This message has been edited by ckocian (edited 09-09-2002).]

Bywarren,

I don't mean to correct you but Susan is calling for a "bypass" of Placencia Village because of one person, not a few. Hmmm, who was having the bad day while visiting? I'll be staying in Placencia for a few days and make sure I visit Olga and see for myself. Everyone has a bad day don't they Susan? Also have to agree, a store is not a resturant. Pay first.

Mddev: thanks for correcting me, even though I did not need it. Susan also complained about the people who gave her the key to the bathroom and asking her what she needed it for. That is surely a case of racial prejudice, or at the least sexual discrimination. That's assuming there were two bathrooms. Maybe she just ask for the wrong key. That could be the other side of the story. It is probably too much of a "common sense" approach to think that a Belizean would be so perceptive to know that someone is so full of it that they just needed any key. But again hopefully, they will get the training needed to better deal with these people in the future, even though there will probably by no future thanks to the "Susangg bypass". Just another wastefull government program. And if that does not work, we can start another relief donation. I want to be the first to contribute. I can't wait to tell all my friends that I donated.

You don't get it...do you Warren? I was not the one who was asked why I needed the bathroom key. When I asked for the key, it was given to me. THree minutes later, it was my Belizean (Mayan) traveling companions who were asked WHY they needed a bathroom key and "what are you going to do in there" in a very snotty way. By the same guy who had given it to me when requested without a peep.

Similarly, I was not the one who (I believe) was the target of what I think was prejudicial treatment in the store. Once again, it was my Belizean friends who were being insulted and yelled at. I incurred the lady's ire when I intervened and asked what the problem was, at which point she began screaming at me also, and we all got the screeching meeemee treatment until we left.

We were all visitors to Placencia, though my friends are Belizean. An inhospital way to treat visitors. They told me that this is not the first time they have experienced such treatment in their own country. We were all together and therefore, we were all offended and insulted by this kind of treatment. If you insult my friend when we are together, you insult me.

Like I said..you can draw your own conclusions. I am old enough and experienced enough, I think, to distinguish between mere testiness, "bad day" syndrome or run of the mill bad service and deliberate nastiness. The former never bothers me, the latter does. Happening twice within a half hour, yep, it gave me a real bad feeling. And if some people don't like that I mentioned it...well, that's just too bad.

OK Susan, you convinced me. I am a big enough person to admitt when I am on the wrong side of an issue.
Therefore, to help right the horrible wrongs you and your friends suffered, I would propose we organize a demonstration in lieu of a Bypass. We can set in front of Olga's and eat opened tins of sausages. We will make arrangements to pay for them after the demonstration. Then to make the point that we will not accept racial prejudice, we will pickett the toilet chanting "no key, no pee, no key, no pee". We need to figure out what to wear. The white sheets and cross thing has already been done.
And, since you were not denied the key, we can call the demonsration "Susan's Movement".
That should get the attention of those Placencia people.

PS: keep in mind, Placencia is in the southern part of the country. It wasn't that long ago they had separate stores and toilets for Mayans. Attitudes really did not start changing until after school busing.

[This message has been edited by bywarren (edited 09-10-2002).]

OK Susan, your movement is getting motion. You might want to start a separate topic called "Susan's Movement". I would do it but mine always get deleted.

Anyway, I just got off the phone with Jackson, Farakahn and Sharpton. They all expressed an interest in getting "behind" your movement. Jackson wants to start a branch in Belize. He will call it the "Rainforest Coalition". I assured Farakahn we could do a 10 man march and Sharpton, well, he is just coming to pig out on the sausages after his recent hunger strike, but I assured him we would pick up the tab, that is if they see us take the sausages and we end up having to pay for them.

So, I think we are well on our way and, if this works, we can have more "Susan's Movements" on a "regular" basis.

I dont want to drag this on, but I have only just seen this post and felt that a couple of questions needed to be asked of Susangg for the benefit of all others reading this. Placencia can do without a one-woman crusade to do any further damage - it has been hurt enough.

Susangg:

Please answer with one word only - Yes or No will suffice, I cant bear another 500 words on the topic!

1. As you have rental property in San Pedro, could it not be that you are hoping to encourage people to visit Ambergris Caye as opposed to Placencia as you have a vested interest?

2. Could three rounds of Margaritas on Tobacco Caye and "several" rounds of beers at the bar in Placencia have had ANY effect on your behaviour? Maybe you "thought" you were walking in a straight line and acting "normally"....

One final point. Most of us donate quietly and annonymously for the purpose of easing suffering, not so that we can build our own self-esteem in the eyes of others.

Annielou

I dont want to drag this on, but I have only just seen this post and felt that a couple of questions needed to be asked of Susangg for the benefit of all others reading this. Placencia can do without a one-woman crusade to do any further damage - it has been hurt enough.

Susangg:

Please answer with one word only - Yes or No will suffice, I cant bear another 500 words on the topic!

1. As you have rental property in San Pedro, could it not be that you are hoping to encourage people to visit Ambergris Caye as opposed to Placencia as you have a vested interest?

2. Could three rounds of Margaritas on Tobacco Caye and "several" rounds of beers at the bar in Placencia have had ANY effect on your behaviour? Maybe you "thought" you were walking in a straight line and acting "normally"....

One final point. Most of us donate quietly and annonymously for the purpose of easing suffering, not so that we can build our own self-esteem in the eyes of others.

Annielou

Good God Almighty!
This is like beating a dead horse or talking to a telephone pole.

Shit happens! Maybe Olga did have a bad day and Susan just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm not saying bad behavior is excusable, but it does happen to the best of us.
Maybe Olga had had a recent incident of thievery in her store and it was still fresh in her mind.
Who knows?...Who cares? Is it really worth arguing over?

I highly doubt that Susan has any ulterior (sp?) motives for "dissing" Placencia because she has property on AC. Get real! I mean how much business do you really think she would get from Placencia goers?
And I don't really think that Susan would concoct this story out of the blue for the purpose of painting a bad light on Placencia. What would be the point of that? She doesn't strike me as the type that would need to do that.

My head hurts....LOL

:rolleyes:

It couldn't be racism could it??? why no, it must be the margaritas and beers???? it couldn't be racism could it???? no it must be all in susanng's mind - surely she must be at fault and must have imagined it. It couldn't be racism could it???? - No, susanng is just trying to drum up business for her own condo. When a store employee follows me around like i'm going to steal something - I don't go back. When I go to a store and treated like i'm invisible despite others coming in after me being served, I don't spend my money there. And guess what - I tell others not too either. IT COULDN'T BE RACISM COULD IT!!!!!!!!

:rolleyes: Racism??? What the hell has that got to do with anything?

Susan, aren't you sorry you even posted a reply to this topic? LOL

Did you read Susanng's prior posts? She felt that they were treated that way because her friends were belizean/mayans. (when she asked for the key to the bathroom, it was givin - when her mayan friend asked for the key, he was questioned rudely as to what for; when her mayan friend was shopping and told olga to put it on S's bill, the tirade began; when susanng supported him, she was treated rudely as well.hmmmmm, yeah, what does racism have to do with it??????

Playin' the race card.....

Never mind that Olga and her whole extended family are dark Belizean/Guatemalan as are her sundry non-family member employees. Nah, has nothing to do with race but it does have to do with the hombre tipo that wants to shoot up in the bathroom and steals to eat. Sad, I know. Just like the radical Muslim extremist 17-40 year old male who wants to blow stuff up. It's not the little kids and grandmothers who are doing the deeds. Blame the degradation of civil society.

Looks like it is a FULL MOON time again!
The wackos are loose.

WELL, we made our trip to Placencia, upon our return we review this post and found that it had degraded to a shouting match. Make us sorry we posted in the first place.

Anyway, we did get to Placencia and based on the limited we received (Mr. Sluder and another travel agent (barbara ??) who are supposed to be "in the know" about Belize we decided to go ahead with our plans for staying at Soul Shine Lodge.....BIG MISTAKE

Without a reservation we made our way to the Lodge vai taxi ?. We stood at the edge of the canal for about 5 minutes before we noticed a buzzer which we should push to get someone to come across the canal and pick us up...we pushed the buzzer, and pushed, and waited and pushed, and pushed and waited and then resorted to yelling.....FINALLY a girl jumped into a small boat and came across to get us.

We asked if they had a vacancy and sure enough they did. We asked for a rate and was quoted 110.00 per night double...we thought this was high since this is supposed to be the off season but.....

Since we were there and it was getting late (5:30 pm) we decided to stay as we figured that by the time we got back across the canal, into the village to another motel/hotel ??? that it would be too late and it was hot.

We were given a cabana w/thatch roof/ ceiling, small refer, coffee pot, micro, etc. and the cabana had AC...sounded pretty good....MISTAKE #2

Bugs appeared about sundown...lots and lots of bugs...the girl said to use skin so soft which of course we did not have.

The AC was barly functional..it seemed to just blow barly cool humid air. OH well....dinner time...no place to eat but the lodge so...MISTAKE #3 They had fish tasted like it was last swimming in a lemon ????? We were afraid to eat the salad because we did not think that the greens had been cleaned properly and was wilted.

We forked through the food, scattering it around the plate, had a few beers and retired to the cabana....we finally showered and prepared for bed and !!!!!! motor boats kept running up and down the canal zooom...zooooom

Sleep finally came and then we woke !!!!!!all kinds of noise in the thatch, we thought perhaps there were bats, BIG bugs or lord know what...this racket started about 4:30 AM and continued until we finally got up...we wished for a mosquito net to keep the bugs off.

MORNING...Thank God....we had coffee and breakfast
in the restaurant and asked that our bill be prepared as we would be leaving around noon.

We went to the village and made arrangement for a room at another motel and got a taxi to take us back and pick up out luggage.

We crossed the canal again, went to the bar and asked for our bill....SURPRISE....it was astronomical compared to what we received...1 double room, 4 beers (2 ea.), 2 dinners ?, 2 breakfast 175.00 ?????

Oh well, good lesson learned.

We did manage to salvage our trip and had a great time diving and snorkeling at some of the cayes and enjoyed good food and lots of friendly folks in the village....we look forward to returning to Belize bearing in mind the lessons we learned.