It is a charming, quirky, fun place where most people use golf carts, bicycles, or go on foot as modes of transportation. I am constantly surprised at how well people use bikes to double people or carry things most would not even imagine trying to transport on a bicycle.

There are so many things I love about San Pedro. Everyone smiles and says hello to each other on the street. I can walk out the door and be at the beach in ten minutes. I often refer to going out and about in town as taking a walk on Sesame Street – I am always guaranteed to see people I know and often end up sidetracked on fun adventures like iced coffee with friends or the beach. As a result, going for a five minute walk to the store can potentially sidetrack me for hours depending on who I run into.

On my walk down memory lane I am thinking back to our first apartment and our first experience volunteering in another country. We were still starry eyed at having landed on a tropical island and did not really know anyone yet. Paul and I luckily found a one bedroom – mostly furnished – apartment in town. It was on the small side and we did not have laundry but we were so happy to have our first place even if it meant sometimes washing our clothes in buckets and hanging them to dry on the veranda. I used to joke about it and say we were experiencing a taste of what life was like in the pioneer days. In reality I knew we had a lot going for us compared to some.  I did not quite realize just how much but that will come in a future post.

I have to admit we did not move here with volunteering specifically in mind.  It was an ad in the paper for registration of a new school called Holy Cross that got me thinking we could volunteer to help us meet people as we settled into our new community. I emailed Miss Francis, the volunteer coordinator, and she said to drop by on registration day and they would be grateful for any help we were willing to offer. I had no idea what to expect as we walked through town and across the bridge to a small building they were using to register children for the upcoming school year; I just knew this was a step in the right direction. As it turns out we were lucky enough to experience getting involved with the school from the ground up: with just over a month to get three buildings finished for the start of the new school year, there was a lot to be done. You can see pictures of the school being built on Holy Cross School Blog.

But first, let me start by giving you some information about the island past and present as well as bit more about my life here. Ambergris Caye is the largest of some 200 cayes (pronounced as “key,” meaning an island) along the coast of Belize. It is about 25 miles long and a little over a mile wide in some places and four miles at the widest point. Ambergris Caye is located on the Caribbean Sea just off the tip of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Being on the barrier reef makes the island a popular spot for snorkeling and divers. It is 190 miles long and is home to the second largest living coral reef in the world.

Back in Mayan times, Ambergris Caye was a trading post and the Maya dug the narrow channel that separates Mexico and Belize to provide a trade route from the bay of Chetumal to the Caribbean. Following the Maya were whalers, pirates and the ancestors of present day residents,  many of whom were fishermen and worked in the coconut plantations.

Two reasons why we chose Ambergris Caye were 1) everyone spoke English and 2) we were easily able to find a furnished apartment that was a mere 10 minute walk from the beautiful blue Caribbean sea.  I came as prepared for our new life as I could be, and packed everything but the kitchen sink. I could only fit so much in four suitcases and I stuck with the essentials – cutlery, pots, sheets, books and all the little things we needed to establish ourselves in our new place.

We arrived in January 2006 and I was in heaven. We had finally moved away from winter and ended up in a fun, quirky and tropical place. I felt at home immediately. There’s nothing like trading in snow and winter boots for sunshine and flip flops to make a girl happy.