Essential Dive Guide: BELIZE

In the September/October Issue of the ScubaDiving Magazine, Belize is featured as a top destination for world class diving. Written by Bronwen Dickey, this one page feature includes the top 9 spots for some of the best diving and snorkeling in Belize.

Opening Excerpts from Magazine: "This friendly Central American country's wide variety of diving makes it a perennial hot spot."
Home to the world's most famous sinkhole, the world's second-largest barrier reef, three of the Western Hemisphere's four atolls and hundreds of small island (cays), Belize's marine diversity makes it the perfect playground for divers. Better Yet - it's only a two hour flight from the mainland US. With topside attractions like ancient Maya ruins, bird and wildlife viewing and rainforest adventires, it's a distinct destination that should be one every diver's list.

Hot Spots 1-9

1. Hol Chan Cut: Moderate currents in this small, shallow channel provide a feast of nutrients for rays, turtles, nurse sharks, grouper and shoaling fish. If you're looking for a challenge, try this drift dive at night.
This little channel offers fantastic sightings of underwater friends...

2. Esmeralda: A hefty moray has moved into one of the reefs over hangs, but the real attarctions here are the packs of nurse sharks that cruise among the coral spurs and grooves right off Ambergris Caye.

3. The Blue Hole: Out at LightHouse Reef, this world-renowned underwater sinkhole plunges to depths of more than 400ft. There isn't much in the way of sea life - aside from the occasional patrolling reef shark - but the site's eerie stalactite forest makes this dive unforgettable.4. The Aquarium: Vibrant Corals and ginat vase sponges form an excellent habitat for queen angelfish, parrotfish, trumetfish and other psychedic denizens of the reef. Reserve half of your bottom time to explore the wall.

5. Half Moon Caye Wall: This dive starts on a sandy shelf, where garden eels and southern stingrays are plentiful, then progresses through coral spurs and out along the main wall, which is covered in red gorgonians and electric rope sponges.

6. The Elbow: Several major cuirrents combine just south of Turneffe Atoll and attract a bounty of spotted eagle rays, barracuda, and large pelagics (permit, tarpon). Caribbean reef sharks are common, and hammerheads have occasionally been spotted right off the wall.

7. Front Porch: This site is your best bet for finding whitespotted toadfish, a species endemic to Belize. They tend to hide out in small holes along the upper reef, but you can locate them by following their very audible croaks.

8. The Black Hole: Finning through the lesser-known sinkhole near Cross Caye rsembles a cenote dive in the Yucatan. It features a garden of stalactites and resident reef sharks, but gets dark as you approach the bottom. (110ft)

Read more of this issue and the Belize feature of the October Issue of Scuba Diving Magazine. www.scubadiving.com

The Belizean Situation (reprint from Amandala Newspaper)

“He has the support of the international community as well as the U.S., which canceled the visas of many officials in the interim government, and cut some aid to Honduras, one of the hemisphere’s poorest countries. However, Mr. Zelaya’s return is vehemently opposed by the country’s institutions, including the congress, the courts, the armed forces as well as the powerful Catholic Church.” ----- pg. A8, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009

- The political situation in Belize, the only English speaking nation, and the youngest, on the Central American mainland, was disturbed this week by two significant developments. The first was the urgent departure for medical treatment (back) in Miami by Prime Minister Dean Barrow of the ruling UDP, and the second was the news on Wednesday that former Prime Minister/former PUP Leader, Said Musa, a member of one of Belize’s wealthiest business families, was gaining substantial strength within the PUP executive.

Belize’s political system (first-past-the-post) is such that elected governments quickly become very strong, and the strength always translates to arrogance. More than that, the single figure of the Prime Minister invariably becomes of inordinate substance and power. To the best of the Belizean public’s knowledge, we have never had a sitting Prime Minister experience a medical emergency.

What complicated matters in the present case is the fact that the Cabinet in place is a manifestly mediocre one. It is completely dominated by Prime Minister Barrow. What would happen in Cabinet if the surgeon specialists in Miami cannot comfort and heal Mr. Barrow, is anybody’s guess. As it operates, the Belizean constitution depends on the single figure of the Prime Minister. Gapi Vega is surely no Dean Barrow.

It is at this precise time that the pro-Lord Ashcroft forces in the Opposition PUP have moved to increase their power in the PUP executive. It is more evident now than it has ever been since he resigned as PUP Leader in February of 2008, that Mr. Musa, who appears to be in relatively good health, is serious about a big time comeback. One has to conclude that the PUP’s two largest financiers, Michael Ashcroft and Barry Bowen, have placed their bets on the former Prime Minister.

The implications of these two developments for the masses of the Belizean people are not good. We think it is fair to say that, in the last five years the majority of the Belizean people have come to the conclusion that Lord Ashcroft is the most dangerous predator operating in Belize. Mr. Barrow, a beneficiary of Lord Ashcroft’s legal retainer fees and political campaign largesse for more than twenty years, emerged on August 24 as the Lord’s most serious opponent. Just a month later, a medical question about Mr. Barrow has arisen.

At this same time, Lord Ashcroft’s most prominent ally and collaborator, Said Musa, has gone on the offensive inside the PUP. It is no coincidence that Mr. Musa has announced that he will release his political memoirs next week, to coincide with the PUP’s 59th anniversary celebrations.

Mr. Barrow’s condition is only painful, not life-threatening. So there is no need for alarm. For those of us Belizeans who have been fighting against colonialism and imperialism, however, it is ironic that we should consider Mr. Barrow an ally of the people at this time. It shows us how truly desperate is the plight of the Belizean people where Belize’s politico-economic situation is concerned. All around us in Central America and South America, except in Honduras, neoliberalism is on the retreat. But in Belize, neoliberalism is in open attack mode, so much so that Belizeans have to be hoping that our accommodationist, mainstream, non-revolutionary Prime Minister has a quick recovery.

And the principal reason we are in this situation is because the previous Prime Minister had begun his public life, way back in January of 1969, as an outspoken enemy of colonialism and imperialism, as a brave critic of corrupt, right wing elements in the originally roots PUP. When he came to power in 1998, however, Mr. Musa proved to be otherwise than his earlier rhetoric projected.

In Central America, the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy has proven itself historically, and even today in embattled Honduras, to be an ally of the rich. In colonial British Honduras, the Roman Catholic Church was considered a friend of the poor and an enemy of British colonialism. But in the Belize of 2009, the masses of the people cannot look to the Church for leadership. The PUP has become a party of the rich, and the Church, which assisted in the formation of the party, has gone along for the ride.

The burden of proof, therefore, now falls on the shoulders of the trade unions in Belize. The pro-Ashcroft elements in the ruling UDP will benefit from Mr. Barrow’s ailment. Ashcroft is now on the attack both in the UDP and the PUP. The problem the unions here have had is that they were not specifically designed for political activity.

Because our political system was constructed the way it was, allowing for just two political parties – Government and Opposition, the majority of the Belizean people are not being properly represented. On August 24, under great duress, Prime Minister Barrow made the move which the majority of the Belizean people desired – he stood toe-to-toe with Ashcroft. But there are people in Mr. Barrow’s Cabinet who are on Lord Ashcroft’s payroll.

The situation in Belize is becoming imperceptibly unstable. With Lord Ashcroft now on the attack, the people of Belize are on the retreat. But this is a situation which will not continue indefinitely.

Power to the people. Power in the struggle.

Food Cook-off - The Belizean Way!

The Lime Bar's trend of hosting cook-offs has been the buzz around Town for some time, and on Friday hosted yet another spectacular culinary cook-off. This time, Belizean Cuisine was the subject of scrutiny as over ten culinary enthusiats took to the challenge to dish out their best Belizean meal. Food critics and those that stopped by for the benefit tasted food such as salbutes, black bean soup, beef enchiladas to delcious chicken tamales. The number 1 dish was the overall winner which were the Salbutes from El Fogon, Miss Susana won an green Ipod Shuffle!

yummo....
Over ten dishes were submitted

(Pics courtesy BoydiesBlog)

Lime raised over $500bz for Foths/Saga Humane Society which was ok as it was a quieter time of year and had been Independence day so a busy week for drinking and partying. The next cook off will be Friday 16th October and is likely to be a pizza one as that has been requested many times and there are a few out there that can go against each other and prove who really has the best pizza in San Pedro.

Diving the Great Blue Hole, Belize

Article in an Australian Paper on diving the Great Blue Hole, March, 2001

Deep and meaningful ... the Blue Hole is a wonder of nature, formed when subterranean caverns collapsed thousands of years ago. There are some phrases designed to put you at ease when you're 50 kilometres offshore and about to dive deeper than you've ever been before. "Don't worry about the sharks" is not one of them. Alex, our dive master, a softly smiling Belizean, quickly explained.

The sharks swimming alongside us would be of the harmless Caribbean reef variety. They might look intimidating, but they were just being inquisitive. No, really. They were so laid back you'd think they were listening to Bob Marley. Alex was briefing us before we set out to explore one of the world's great dive sites, the Blue Hole, off the coast of Belize. Don't feel too guilty if you don't know where Belize is. Most people don't. It's one of the world's smallest democracies, only 10 times the size of the ACT, with a population of 200,000, sandwiched between Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Many people still know it better by its former colonial name, British Honduras. Which makes it an oddity in the region: the only country in Central America where the official language is English, not Spanish. For most of its history, it has been content to be a backwater, not quite sure whether it was Central American or Caribbean.

But recently it has been put on the tourist map, for two reasons: regular flights from American cities such as Los Angeles and Miami, and the fact that the world's second largest barrier reef (after Australia's) lies in its territorial waters. Even further out to sea are three coral atolls, the Turneffe Islands, Lighthouse Reef and Glover Reef, which, in turn, means that Belize has some of the best deep-sea fishing and scuba diving on the planet. It was the diving which had lured us and, in particular, the Blue Hole. To reach it, we had set off at 5.30 am from Ambergris Caye, the palm-frocked island which doubles as the country's main tourist centre, in a threateningly small twin-engine speedboat. For two hours, the nine divers in our group had been buffeted as Alex negotiated a route through the relatively sheltered waters of the mangrove-fringed Turneffe Islands before hitting the rolling waves of an open ocean. Yet any discomfort was quickly put aside as Alex moored our boat on one of the permanent anchoring chains and we were able to see the Blue Hole for the first time.

From the surface, it looks mightily impressive: a dark blue doughnut the size of a football pitch, surrounded by the lighter turquoise waters of the Caribbean. The real majesty, however, is only apparent when you plunge many metres below. For the Blue Hole is a wonder of nature, formed 15,000 years ago when an ice age exposed the limestone beneath the reef and formed huge subterranean caverns. After the ice age, the rising water level forced the roof of the cave to collapse, forming a sink hole which plunges down 140 metres. Jacques Cousteau first popularised this dive in 1970, and what has drawn his disciples here ever since are the unusual features which cling to an overhanging remnant of the old cave: massive submarine stalactites, great columns of rock formed before the ocean encroached.

Alex's briefing was firm. To see the stalactites, we had to get below the overhang - and that was 40 metres deep. For safety's sake, we would have to descend very quickly. The group could not afford any stragglers since that would use up valuable air and bottom time. If you couldn't make it down to the 40 metres within the allotted three minutes, Alex's colleague would escort you back to the surface to snorkel while the rest of the party carried on. No ifs, no buts. So, with some nervousness, we rolled off the boat. Alex had warned that the initial 18 metres would be quite murky, but it cleared as soon as we reached the top edge of the wall, and we were suddenly confronted with a seemingly bottomless void of the most beautiful blues.

Better still, all nine of us were there to enjoy it. In unison, we sank ever deeper into the void. Long before the three minutes were up, our gauges were reading 40 metres, yet the temptation - as Alex had foretold - was to drop even deeper. Fortunately, the mysteries of the overhang were now revealed, and we took turns swimming through the maze of stalactite sculptures. On cue, we were joined by four or five Caribbean reef sharks, each one about 2.5 metres long. It's not easy to know whether people are smiling when they are wearing diving masks and their lips are fish-mouthed around regulators, but I swear all nine of us were. Certainly, by the time we were back on the boat, having slowly ascended through our safety stops, we were all stumbling over our words about what a magical experience it had been.
Not that our exploring was over for the day. Our next two dives took us to the other highlight of Lighthouse Reef, Half Moon Caye. Apart from being one of the most celebrated wall dives in the Caribbean, Half Moon Caye has some of the most unusual bird life. While our divemasters cooked lunch on the island - the Belizean favourite, chicken, rice and beans - we set off on foot to a little wooden observatory tower where we were able to watch the large colony of red-footed boobies, which are as exotic-looking as they sound. Most tourists to Belize are drawn by the diving, snorkelling, fishing and other water sports to be found on the cayes which lie off the mainland. The word, pronounced "key", comes from the Spanish "cayo", meaning low-lying island, and there are 175 altogether, many of them little more than sandbars with just mangrove trees and birds.

Essentially, there are two main groups of tourists to Belize: affluent Americans, who see it as a cheaper, and less spoilt, version of the Bahamas, or backpackers of every nationality who are travelling through Central America and see it as a perfect spot for some R and R. Neither group is disappointed, and neither will you be, provided you understand it is the simpler pleasures that are on offer here. Those seeking sophistication should head elsewhere. That's what the Spanish conquistadors did five centuries ago. Finding nothing to plunder, they left it largely alone, which turned out to be a mistake when, in the 17th century, it became a base for the pirates and buccaneers who made their fortunes plundering the treasure ships of the Spanish Main. Belize City, with its safe harbour, became one of the chief ports of iniquity in the Caribbean, until the whole province was snatched from the Spanish by the British in 1862, becoming one of the most obscure colonies of the empire. So it uneventfully remained until 1981, when it became an independent democracy.

All this makes Belize very different from its neighbours. There have been none of the coups or revolutions which have bedevilled the region, and the stable currency, pegged to the US dollar, means that it is much more expensive than the bargain-basement republics around it (expect to pay Australian prices). The main difference, of course, is that English is the official language, although many Belizeans converse in a singsong patois that is a cross between English and their native creole. By and large, visitors either decide to spend their time on the cayes or on the mainland. We chose the cayes, although the mainland, a mixture of lush farmland and rampant wilderness, has much to offer. The Maya Mountains, which run along the border with Guatemala, are covered in dense rainforest, streams and rivers, and are so rugged that the area was used as the jungle training ground of the British SAS. Forests, which used to be plundered by loggers, are now being cherished as a tourism asset, with the growth of a number of eco-lodges and wildlife sanctuaries.

Just as exotic as any wildlife are the large number of Mennonites who fled religious persecution in Europe and now farm much of the land around the country's new capital, Belmopan. You can see them at work in their fields, dressed in their dungarees, or sitting in their horse-drawn carts, looking for all the world like characters from the Harrison Ford film Witness. And if that's not enough, you can always visit some of the 600 ancient ruins left by the Mayan civilisation, the most celebrated being the temple complex at Caracol.

However, don't reserve too many hours for Belize City itself. Despite its colourful history, there is little left of any great moment. Battered over the years by one hurricane after another (which is why the capital was moved to Belmopan), it has a down-at-heel atmosphere which falls short of faded charm. Tourist muggings, once common, have been curtailed by the presence of special tourist police who patrol the main part of town. But, even so, Belize City is a place most travellers stay in no longer than necessary, which is usually the time it takes to travel from the airport or the bus stations to the quaint terminal from which ferries speed them to the outlying cayes.

The two main destinations are the two largest cayes, Caulker and Ambergris. Caulker - motto, "no shirt, no problem" - is the smaller, and the closer to Belize City, about 40 minutes away by motor boat. The charm of the island, and the islanders, was apparent as soon as we began to explore. Not that there is much to explore. The entire island is barely 7.5 kilometres long, and 1.5 kilometres wide. There are only three streets - imaginatively called Front Street, Back Street, and Middle Street - and none of them is any grander than a simple sand track since the only vehicles on the island are motorised golf carts, which double as delivery vans and taxis. We had no trouble finding a room in a beachfront hotel and then relaxed over a lunch of fish tortillas at a restaurant over the lagoon. Caulker is an unhurried, take-us-as-you-find-us place. There is not very much - a few bars, restaurants selling fresh lobster and conch, an Internet cafe, an American deli and stalls offering snorkel trips, dives, ferry rides and cycle hire (though why you would want to hire a cycle when you walk the island in half an hour is mystifying). The locals seem to typify the best side of the Caribbean - warm, friendly, welcoming, laid back with a minimum of the hassle that has taken over other Caribbean cultures. One of them cheerfully chastised us with the words: "Hey, mon! You're walking too fast. This is Caulker, slow down!" We found it so enchanting we were reluctant to move, but after a couple of days we took the morning speedboat to Ambergris, 25 minutes away. It differs from the other cayes in that it is not really an island; the northern end was actually attached to Mexico until the Mayans built a canal to separate it from the mainland. It is also more developed, a fact that became apparent as our boat cruised past a ribbon of 30 or 40 hotels which line the main beachfront leading up to the main town, San Pedro. There are plenty of visitors who find San Pedro already a little too developed.

Yet it's not Mexico's Cancun; for the time being, the streets are still made of sand and the main form of transport is still the golf buggy. We liked it. It is a more obvious place to base yourself, especially if you're looking for some kind of nightlife, though you can still walk from one end of the town to the other in less than half an hour (at Australian pace). It remains essentially an overgrown fishing village, where the church is still a centre of social life. Still, there is a greater range of restaurants, a lot more bars, and every type of accommodation, from simple cabanas to luxury resorts. Again, we found a beachside hotel with little difficulty (although in the peak season you should book ahead) and hired a cycle so we could swim and snorkel at some of the more remote beaches. One of the attractions of Ambergris is the proximity of the barrier reef, the Hol Chan Marine Reserve, which lies at the southern tip of the island and is one of the best places to snorkel and dive close to habitation.
It was to Ambergris that we returned after our adventure at the Blue Hole. That night, as the sun went down, we celebrated with some of our fellow divers at one of the restaurants on the island. This one specialised in Caribbean jerk cuisine, and as we tucked into a dish of spicy conch washed down with a decent glass of white wine, the man behind the bar began showing a video for some travellers who were thinking of diving the Blue Hole the next day. We couldn't help looking at the video. Generally it looked pretty accurate. Except for one thing. The sharks definitely looked smaller than the ones we remembered.

DESTINATION BELIZE

WHEN TO GO: For divers, it's a year-round destination, with water temperatures roughly the same as Bondi in summer. Visibility is supposed to be better in April and June. We went in November, a month after the wet season. Peak season is Christmas, when Americans flock south.

GETTING THERE: The obvious way from Australia is to fly via Los Angeles. The Star Alliance group of airlines, including United, has regular connections to Belize City. However, many backpackers will travel overland, either via Mexico or Guatemala. There are regular buses connections between Cancun in Mexico and Flores in Guatemala. We booked via Trailfinders, 8 Spring Street, Sydney; phone 9247 7666.

GETTING AROUND: Belize has only two paved highways, one running north to Mexico, the other heading west to Guatemala. The public bus system is well organised, with Belize City the hub, and fares are inexpensive. For the cayes, regular ferries run from Belize City. The fare to Ambergris costs about $30 one way.

Belizean Cuisine Cook-Off at Lime!

The lime bar and grill has been the venue for food cook offs in the past and today the food mill is running again. Last time the Lime hosted its appetizer cook-off, it saw over ten chefs and food lovers dish out there best stuff. This time around the Lime is at it agein and the theme is traditional Belizean dishes! So come out and taste the best of the best. $10bz per person and all the profits this time will be going to Saga as they need just $1000.00bz more to build the isolation unit!

Also please note that it will be smoke free between 6pm and 8pm so spread the word! Date: Friday, September 25th, 2009, 6pmLocation: Lime Bar & Grill.

RECIPE FOR AN UNBELIZEABLE VACATION!

The "Taste of Belize" event recently served up a diversity of sumptuous dishes and drinks, prepared by multi cultural participants; Andrew Zimmern of the Travel Channel showcased "Belizean delicacies" and Belizeans worldwide are cooking up "rice and beans" as they celebrate Belize's Independence.

Actually, Belize's attractions provide the perfect recipe for an unforgettable, affordable vacation:

Ingredients:-
A hectic work or life schedule
A desire to rediscover romance, family and friends
A few free days (3 - 7 days at least)
The location - BELIZE!

Method:
Choose YOUR Belize experience, a combination of fun, relaxation and adventure where the weather is served sunny side up!!
Look for GREAT packages being offered now! Find a beach, island, hiking trail all to yourselves with FREE nights, plus FREE tours and great food and other value added services; priced up to 40% off on rooms...
Check the airlines for sweet fares; there are great airfares to be had starting as low as $383.00!
BOOK it! Cut into a slice of paradise... taste it, Savor it! Belize - a vacation to suit every palate and budget.

Belizeans live up September celebrations!

The 2009 September celebrations have come and gone, and it is no doubt that this year’s celebration will go down in the history books as one to remember. 2009 is a special year for Belizeans: it marks the 28th anniversary of the birth of our independent democracy. The most striking aspect of Belize Independence celebrations has been the ubiquity of three colors – white, red and blue. Thousands of Belizeans across the country turned out in ideal Belizean weather to witness the official ceremony and to participate in the customary Independence Parade. In San Pedro, things were no different as everyone got into the festive moods and showcased much patriotism and pride as we celebrated the 28 years of our nations Independence.

Independence Day was topped off with a parade down the main streets of San Pedro, where hundreds lined the streets to view the great floats and enjoy the great music and dancing. The parade began when the fire engine sounded its horn, signaling the commencement of the parade. Following the fire engine was a large enthusiastic bunch that featured political personalities from both sides; marching bands, scores of flags, thousands of students, and a big jump up from several businesses. A sense of unity was felt through out the festivities as revelers broke into spontaneous cheers, whilst others danced and waved their Belizean flags in one of the biggest parades in San Pedro. Let the images tell the tale.

Rolando Albeno crowned karaoke champ!

Among screaming fans and a jam packed Jaguars Temple Night Club found 11 contestants singing their hearts out for the grand finale of Reef Radios Tele-Radio karaoke competition. Each contestant had the opportunity to sing in two tough rounds of competition and after each performance were critiqued by the esteemed panel of judges including, no stranger to the television airwaves, Ann-Marie Williams, Renan Briceno, Flor Nunez, among others. Overall a good show but for the most part the club erupted when Rolando Albeno took to the stage to sing his first song, a spanish romantic. Albeno was the first and only contestant to recieve 10's from the judges score cards. Performing to a fantastic rendition of "Zombie" by the Cranberries, Mavis Usher was also a crowd favorite.
After two tough rounds, Mavis Usher picked up second place and a cash prize of $1000 whilst Rolando Albeno took first place and won $2000 courtesy of Sundancer. Albeno is now the Reef Radio's Tele-radio Karaoke King 2009! Kudos!

Record for longest Saltwater dive broken!

A world record was broken in Belize on Wednesday; it was the record for the longest salt water dive. The old record was 36 hours and Robert Silva, an American citizen from Chicago, who had to spend at least 36.5 hours continuously under water to beat it. The rules were simple, he must spend more than the 36.5 hours under saltwater continuously. In addition – he must have spent at least 20 minutes at a depth of 20 feet. Sounds simple enough and on Monday morning at 10:30, Silva headed out to the Hol chan Marine Reserve on a boat from Ramon’s Village. 48 hours later at 10:30 this morning he remerged shattering the old world record. Silva will submit his proof to the Guinness Book of records and they will make a determination. Robert Silva probably knew what he was doing when he set out to break the record by 12 hours since we know of one person in Australia who planned to spend 40 hours under water in October 11th and the 12th. That of course will fall short of Silva’s record.

Silva accomplished the record setting dive with technical help from friends and the crew at the Ramon’s Village Dive Shop. They monitored him 24 hours a day – someone was always down there with him – watching and timing his countdown – by the minutes, the seconds, and the hours to the record books. But even more important was providing him an uninterrupted supply of oxygen. In forty eight hours he went through fourteen oxygen tanks.

(Excerpts from 7News)

Re-living Belize Independence carnival 2006!

Blast from the Past.....Belize independence carnaval 2006!

Scuba Diver to set 48 hour saltwater dive

Robert Silva, veteran Scuba Diver of Illinois, USA arrived on Ambergris Caye on September 13th, but his visit is quite extraodinary as he is not here on vacation, he is here to attempt and set a record for the longest saltwater dive in Belize. With a total of 48 hours underwater, Silva plans to eat and sleep on this dive, although he claims his consumption of foods are mostly liquid diets.

We wish Silva the best of luck in his brave and daring endeavor.

September 10th a Splash in San Pedro!

The Belizean Pride shunned throughout the month of September but on Thursday, September 10th, it was clearly visible as hundreds partook in the days events. There were events held for the parade, the official coronation of the new Miss San Pedro Ambassador and to top it off finsihed with a big splash at the Holiday Beach front with the Family Fishing Tournament. As big fish hit the docks, curious passer-bys and fish enthusiats stood around the weigh in to catch a glimpse of the monster fishes caught. At the end of the run, Ramon's Village took home the top cash prize by having the most poundage of fish; a total of 181 pounds. Kudos to all who participated as well as its organizers! Below find images of the day...do enjoy!

Uniform School Parade Miss Salvadoreno Comunidad, Miss SP High and Miss Lobsterfest

Here's looking forward to an even bigger and better Belize Independence Day!! find more images at http://www.sanpedrojournal.com/