El Doctor Amor
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The Sea and Air Festival is upon us. Get your tickets and check out the entertainment. For even more entertainment stand around the gates and watch the guards throw out people who are trying to sneak in.
You may write to the Doctor at P.O. Box 35, San Pedro Town, Belize or fax 026-2905. For all of you cyberspace people - you may E-mail the good Doctor at [email protected].
Dear Doctor Love,
Your column is the perfect venue to encourage people to quit smoking
and ask for government legislation to control this filthy habit. Thanks
for your co-operation.
Dear Visitor,
Dear Developer,
Dear Pedestrian,
Dear Lowrider,
Dear Adventurer,
Dear Scoop,
I don't know how far your knowledge extends but I have a question of
great concern to Central America. While traveling in Mexico my boyfriend
and I took a bus from Vera Cruz to Chetumal. I was appalled to discover
that people were smoking openly in the bus stations. Even worse, there
was a section in back of the bus where people were allowed to smoke. I
used my limited Spanish to politely ask the man in the next seat to stop
smoking and he was very rude to me. I'm not sure what he said but it
certainly sounded nasty.
Visitor
Don't thank people in advance. You never know when they are going to
turn on you. The Doctor may not smoke but still believes it is the right
of free men everywhere to commit suicide if they wish. Why don't you hop
back on that bus and go back where you came from? People here can be
even more rude than they are in Mexico.
Dear Doctor,
There are laws against cutting mangroves here in Belize. The reason
is supposedly that mangroves hold the soil together and without them the
island would wash away. I don't think this is true. I was a builder in
Florida for years and I never saw any problems. One hundred years ago
the entire state of Florida was nothing but mangrove swamp and now there
are few mangroves left. Yet, the state is still there. How do you
explain this?
Developer
There are several possible explanations. One is that Miami sucks so
bad that the soil can't wash away from the state. The Doctor also has a
theory that the mangrove roots have been replaced with money and that is
the only thing that holds Florida together. Take your pick.
Dear Doctor Love,
Why is it that Caye Caulker has so few vehicles and San Pedro has so
many? Why can't San Pedro simply ban vehicles and let everyone walk? If
everyone walked or rode bicycles we wouldn't need vehicles at all.
Pedestrian
At the risk of insulting you the Doctor would like to pose several
questions. First; are you some kind of idiot? How do you think the
blocks and lumber for your house got there? Do you think they were
delivered on a bicycle? Do you realize there are many people on this
island who actually have a need for a vehicle? Have you ever ridden in a
taxi here? Just because you don't need a vehicle does not mean that
everyone else doesn't need one.
As for Caye Caulker, you could fit it on Ambergris Caye several
times and still have room for Belize City. This island is long and is
spreading out more every day. People must be able to move about.
One other thing is worth mentioning. People on this island already
have vehicles and it is too late to talk of banning. The Doctor pities
the political party that decides to take away something that the people
already have.
Dear Doctor Love,
I am thinking of bringing a vehicle here to San Pedro. Is there a
cheap, reliable mechanic on the island?
Lowrider
No to all three questions.
Dear Dr. Love,
At one of these bars on the island I ate something they called
saveechy. It tasted like pencil erasers marinated in lime juice and
chile peppers but the taste is addictive. I ate a whole cupful of this
stuff and found that it was made from octopus. Yech! How can they serve
octopus and not tell anyone what it is until later? This is a dirty
trick.
Adventurer
What do you mean a dirty trick? You got the good stuff, made of
octopus. In other countries they call it calimari and you have to pay an
arm and a leg for it. Here, bars serve it as a snack. The proper name is
ceviche and it is usually made of conch, fish or even chicken. Consider
yourself lucky to get octopus.
Dear Doctor Love,
Just before Banyan Bay there is a bar and store called, "El Rey de
Todos." They have no trash can. It shows. The street there is filthy. I
think they should change the name to "El Rey de Basura."
Scoop, the forgotten Pelican
You're right.
