belize1.jpgThis year I’ll be spending Christmas (and the week after) in Belize with my brother and sister. It all started a few months ago when my sister called me and asked if I wanted to go to Belize. “Sure,” I said, quickly Googling Belize, “I’d love to go to that great …. Central American country under Mexico.”

So, maybe you’d like to learn about Belize too? Here’s what I discovered:

  • Belize is slightly larger than Massachusetts
  • Belize was formerly the British Honduras until the name of the country was changed in 1973
  • Bounded on the north and part of the west by Mexico, and on the south and the remainder of the west by Guatemala
  • National Bird: The Keel Billed Toucan
  • National Animal: The Tapir or Mountain Cow
  • belize2.jpgMore than 500 Mayan ruins dot the country
  • Caracol is the largest of Belize’s Mayan ruins. One pyramid is one hundred and forty feet high, the tallest man-made structure in Belize
  • Belize also consists of over 200 cayes (islands)
  • English is the official language and is widely spoken, as is Spanish. Other languages include Creole, German, Mayan and Garifuna
  • Some tourists prefer to fly into Cancun as air fares are cheap. Then from Cancun catch the ADO air conditioned buses to Belize - about a 4 hour ride
  • The 2nd smallest country in Central America
  • The capital is Belmopan, 35 miles inland from Belize City
  • About 1/3 of the country’s population lives in Belize City
  • Member of British Commonwealth
  • Approximately 30% of all Belizeans live outside the country
  • Belize became a British Colony in 1862
  • Most (60%) of Belizeans are bilingual (mostly English/Spanish)
  • Creole: make up the majority population (60%); generally the offspring of the original English & Scottish settlers who married freed African slaves
  • Mestizos: (Latinos): a mixture of Amerindians (often Maya) with Spanish (Mexican) blood; mostly mixed-race slaves who entered from the Yucatan during the War of the Races (ca. 1847-48); approx. 20% of the population
  • Garifuna: blacks of mixed African & Carib Indian ancestry; many were forcibly expelled from the West Indes in 1797; approx. 20% of the population
  • 70% of Belize is still covered by forest
  • Belize has the 2nd largest coastal barrier reef in the world, which runs 10-40 miles offshore along the entire 185-mile length of Belize’s coast
  • The region receives over 150 inches of rain/year
  • Population of approximately 239,000

src: http://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/factsbze.html