Leaving Wilmington, I spotted from the plane, a wild
turkey running along the tree line as we were accelerating on the runway. On the approach into Atlanta, I noticed
several craggy lakes and a greener-than-Wilmington landscape accented with lots
of big, boxy warehouses.
Back in the air again, flying at 34,000 feet over New Orleans and over Cancun and the Yucatan peninsula, I saw more open topography than I expected, a couple of large fires billowing smoke, pinkish hues in some of the trees which later from the ground I determined were withered palmetto fronds, endless shadows of clouds which gave the illusion of lakes on the ground, and few vehicles on the rural roads.
View from Plane
On our same flight were 30 seventeen year olds from South of London coming to study biology and geography for 10 days in Belize—kudos to that school for providing the opportunity for youth to learn experientially and globally.
I was surprised as to how small the Belize City airport is. We landed taking up the length of the runway, turned around and taxied half way back ON THE RUNWAY to the taxiway. Once inside, there was welcoming live Garifuna drumming music played by two drummers seated on a “stage” above the luggage carousel.
Belize City Airport
The weather here in Belize is drier than I had
expected. Some widespread differences I
have noticed include the use of cement in building structures including filigreed
cement blocks for décor and columnar banisters, painted signs as opposed to commercial
light-up signs, and the use of buses.
Some shops that look to be thriving in Belize would have a hard time
making it in the United States due to competition and franchises which influence
the market.
We got to meet two administrators from the
University of the West Indies and share over lunch what each of us is doing and
formulate a game plan for future collaboration.
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