A day at the races

I've been riding with several Belizean racers.  One man, Joslyn, is a guy about my age, with nine kids, who rode (with Greg Lemond) in the 1984 Olympics. Joslyn is training his four youngest kid kids to race, with his 20 year old  daughter and 18 year old son both racing in the elite categories, and his 10 year old boy and 12 year old girl riding in the juniors.

Joslyn wanted to ride in a race down in Dangriga, a coastal city about 80 miles away.  He didn't have a car, and he asked if I could drive them (his two sons, his son's friend, and himself) to the race.  I thought this would be a good cultural activity for for some of my students, so I agreed. 

He wanted me to race, but I was pretty uncertain, I took my bike, but thought maybe I would just ride around during the race.

We got to Dangriga, and race fever was in full force at the town roundabout.  The start line was marked, and the police motorcycle waiting the lead the race.  There were a bunch of cars and motorcycles both driving support, and just to watch.

Before I knew what was happening, Joslyn had me signed up as a team member with his little group, and I hesitantly lined up with the racers (see the pics).  One man from Dangriga came up to me, and told me not to steal the race from the locals. I assured him I was just riding for fun, and no way would I be winning.  He seemed quite happy about this. 

The race started, and there was a big surge as they left town, about 20 racers.  I had expected this, and I held back, knowing it was a waste of energy so early in the race (a 35 mile out and back road race). Actually I didn't even know how long the race was as we started, I only figured it out when we got to the 17.5 turnaround point! 

So I was last on the road, but as they slowed, after about 2 miles I was back in the middle of the main group, just enjoying the draft, and cruising at about 25, Then a guy in front of me crossed wheels with a guy in front of him and went down.  I was maybe 6 inches from his rear wheel, and I couldn't do anything but go right over him, so I went down myself. I somehow only got a little road rash on my knee. I saw my water bottles go flying, and as one hit the ground, the top came off, the precious contents quickly flowing out.  I jumped up, grabbed my bottles, made sure the other rider was okay (several support cars had stopped and were helping him up) and I straightened my brake lever, and took off.  I thought "Well, now I'm out of the main group, I can just ride at my own pace".

I decided I didn't want to ride the whole thing without someone to draft, and I got in a aero position, and started to chase down a group of riders, about a mile ahead of me now.  As I did so I noticed the guy who fell, behind me on my wheel.  As we continued, with me at the lead, we caught up with Joslyn's 10 year old son, and I shouted for him to get in line too. I finally, after about 5 miles, I caught a guy who was chasing the main group.  I wanted to draft for awhile and recover from chasing to catch up after the wreck. As soon as I got on his wheel to draft him he swerved and accelerated, trying to drop me and those drafting me.  Wanting his draft I reeled him in and he surged again. He did this a few times, and I finally shouted (perhaps too much adrenalin?) that I wasn't going to let him drop me. He settled down, and after a few more minutes, catching my breath, I decided to bridge up to the main group, and I passed him, with my little group of drafters behind me, and about 10 miles into the race I caught the larger group, including Joslyn and his older son Joslyn Jr.  Jr was favored to win, so everyone was watching him.  I asked and was told this was the lead group, about 10 guys.  I was surprised, but felt good, so I thought I would stay with them as long as I could.

I was getting thirsty in the heat, and from the high pace, and I was glad I still had the other water bottle, and that I had stuffed a Gateraid in my jersey pocket at the last moment.  I was even gladder for the Gateraid when I reached for the other water bottle, and found it now had a big hole in the side as I squeezed it! Also, I soon found out that a neutral support cycle that was following, was ready to hand bags of water to anyone racing. What a relief, as it was about 100 degrees!

Every few minute someone would drift to the left, to get rid of drafters, and jump, attacking.  The group would respond, and chase them down.  Then everyone would be winded, and slow down a bit.  I decided that was too much work on a hot day, and let the group go each time, but in a few minutes would always catch them without having to vary my pace.  Much more efficient.

Periodically we would pass spectators standing along the road.  Most of them had water bottles or bags, and they would spray us to cool us as we passed.

About 10 miles in we passed through a village, and encountered some typical speed bumps, going about 23 mph.  The guy in front of somehow flipped.  This time I had a little space, and braked, and barely got around him.  At 17.5 mile out we got to the turnaround.  The main group surged for the premiums, and I let them go, getting to the turn around after them.  We turned in to a headwind for the return, and mostly up hill.  I decided I needed that group draft again, and since we were mostly climbing, I reeled in the main group again.  

Jr and this guy with a Garmin jersey (Sherman, I found out later) were really marking each other, and the pace was fast, as they tried to prevent an escape.  I was glad when Jr and the Sherman finally escaped, about 15 miles from finish. I was happy, as I wanted Jr to win, and now the peleton settled a bit.  The guy who had fallen, and taken me down, rode up beside me, and thanked me for pulling him back to the leaders.  I told him I was happy to help.

One guy, with a huge bundle of dreadlocks in a hair-bag, was riding with us, with his phone on his stem (with a rubber band), loudly playing Reggae! I told him "nice tunes", and he smiled.

As we rode in the headwind, I found myself second in the line, and then the guy in front signaled for me to take a pull. I went to the front and pulled for several miles, into a pretty hard wind, and over several hills. I finally drifted left for the next guy to take over, but no one wanted to pull, they just all followed me left.  So I just slowly started to back-off my speed.  Eventually, after I dropped the pace to about 15, they went around me.  

However, no one wanted to pull.  And this one guy at the front started to weave left and right across the road, and everyone (including me) were weaving around, and I thought sooner or later there was going to be a wreck.  I felt great, so, exasperated, I raised my pace, and was soon riding tempo at the lead of the group again.  We were about 10 miles from the finish, and I pulled main group for the next five miles.

As I lead the group, the support vehicles were all pulling up beside me, asking if I wanted water, and spectators in cars were shouting, "go white-boy!". I felt pretty good, and I considered attacking the group, rather then pulling them, but then decided that would be foolish.  A support motorcycle came up and shouted that the two leaders were 6 minutes ahead. I thought good for them, well out of reach.

Then the unexpected.  The two leaders were jockeying, as neither wanted to pull the other the last five miles directly into a coastal wind to the finish. Also, Jr did not want a sprint finish for the win, as he felt sure Sherman could out sprint him. So they slowed, and suddenly ahead I saw this traffic jam of support cars and pickups and motorcycles as we caught the two leaders.  Then I saw Jr, and he was shouting to me and waving "go, go".  I was confused, and a little nervous with all the chaos.  The main group was around me, and they started to accelerate, so I went way to the left, around the neutral support cycle, and pushed hard, not sure what else to do. I assumed I had a group on my wheel, but didn't have time to check, and I was pushing hard at 20+ into the head wind on a slight downhill.

Then I looked up and noticed that the lead police motorcycle was cruising just ahead of me, honking to clear traffic, and I then realized I was first man on the road.  I looked behind, and unbelievably, no one was in sight, and I could see at least a mile back. I was shocked.  Very unexpected.  I knew it was about 5 miles into the wind, heading directly for the coast, to the finish.  I assumed they would catch me, as it was a group, but I thought I should at least ride my best to make it look good. So I put my head down, and kept riding a hard tempo pace. One car pulled beside me and the passenger yelled "you are pounding them man", while pounding his fist into his hand. He seemed quite excited by the drama unfolding.

I passed a larger group of spectators, and they all sprayed me with a massive blast of water, mostly to my head and face, almost knocking me over. I wasn't completely sure of their motives, but I did find the relief from the heat nice.

I didn't know what else to do, so I just keep pushing, basically riding in time trial mode, with my forearms on the handlebar tops in an aero position.  It was hard, and painful on my arms, because the road was really rough, and there were nasty speed bumps as I approached the town. 

At 2 miles out I looked back again, and there was still no one in sight as I entered the outskirts of town, just cars and pickups (filled with Belizeans) shouting "Go white-boy!".  

As I entered the town proper, I passed the 1 mile marker, and a man was waving a flag, thus signaling my winning of the last station prize. (There are intermediate sprint points in a race, and the first to cross each wins a special prize, usually cash).

About 1/2 mile from the finish, I hit a speed bump hard, and blew my rear tire.  I just kept pushing anyway, hoping my flat tire would stay on the rim.  If it came off, I would have to abandon, or try to win by pushing my bike and running. The tire held as I kept my pace high, and finally I passed the guy waving the finish flag.  I didn't know what to do next, so I grabbed a water bag, broke it, and poured it over my steaming hot head.  Some people were staring at me, a few came to shake my hand.  My two students were looking puzzled.  The professor won?

Several minutes later the leaders came in, and Jr sprinted for third, Sherman taking 2nd.  Jr's younger brother Derrick (at 10 years old) got best junior rider.  Joslyn came up after a few minutes and handed me $350 Belize dollars, and said these were my winnings for the team.  I hadn't even know we had a team. I took $100 to pay for the van fuel, and told Joslyn to distribute the rest to the "team".

This really was a team win, not a personal one. After the race I learned that the reason I got away without being chased was because my teammate Jr had shut down all attempts to catch me. By closely following any chaser, as a top placed rider, he could neutralize them. This is because they were unwilling to pull him back to me, only to have him (legs fresh from drafting) jump around them at the finish, and steal the win from them. So they would rather let me win, than take a chance on letting Jr win. Cycle racing is sometimes a strange and intriguing game, and I benefited from the other riders fear of Jr. Jr's tactics proved correct in the end, because the Garmin jersey rider did indeed out sprint Jr at the line. So by helping me win, we got a team win, something we would not have otherwise. So thanks to you Jr, I NEVER would have won without your help!
(Jr, wearing a pink team jersey, and his father Joslyn, are seen in a picture above, on either side of me, after the race)

Now they are trying to talk me into riding the main 70 mile masters classic.  This is a much more select group.  I don't know....

Jim

Race Information Link: http://amandala.com.bz/news/dangriga-sports-stats-9/

Friendly Island Adventure!

Today I rode the boat and got to the island. I slept on the car ride over, but not on the boat. I liked the boat, something about the way it floats encourages my imagination. I can conjure intrepid fantasyscapes, the tunes of a thousand false people play in my head. Basically, it's inspirational. I don't know what it is about boats, but I feel more comfortable on them than in cars. Too bad cars are much more prevalently used to travel.

I get a similar feeling on planes, to be honest, although planes are easier to ride on and they're more comfortable for sleeping (for me in particular because I'm so small and so my legs don't take up much space). It could be that it's just these modes of transportation are somewhat foreign to my life, but then again I have ridden on canoes and boats before, and I've also flown on a round plane trip before as well. Maybe it has to do with being in a more fluid medium? I'd probably change my tune if the turbulence was super bad or the waves were horrible. But who's to say for sure?

The island is super muddy, I wouldn't want to be here on a rainy day. Something tells me it's a possibility, though maybe I've just jinxed it.

Anyway, the internet is bad here, but it's really comfortable and the view is nice. Getting around here is worse than any place I've been at so far though with several flights of stairs, dust everywhere, thin doors and unnecessary steps everywhere. A nightmare for a wheelchair guy like me. Apparently this isn't a wheelchair accessible island.

But who cares about those wheelchair guys, am I right people?

Dad is sneezing up a storm here. He's allergic to something around here, probably. Or maybe this is his body's reaction to not getting a bicycle ride every two seconds. The truth is probably somewhere in between. You know what that means: THE GOLDEN MEAN FALLACY... STRIKES AGAIN!

Day Twenty Four in Belize:

     Today is the day, our last day before leaving for home. I am starting to get excited but I am sad that I am leaving this beautiful country. It has been a great experience to see everything and meet so many different people. The food will definitely be missed of course. Today most of us skipped breakfast because this place called, Glenda's was closed so I just slept in until about 9:30 this morning.
     We went to go snorkeling today for a couple of hours and we visited two different coral reefs and an area that had stingrays and sharks that we got to swim with and pet them. The guides would throw in food for the sea creatures to eat while we watch, pet, and take pictures with them. The shark skin felt like a cheap thing of sandpaper and the stingray just felt like wet rubber. I have been around these animal before, but not in the wild and not this big in size. That was our first stop. Our next two stops were beautiful coral reefs. The first one lasted about 45 minutes and we just followed our guid while he showed us all the different coral and fish on the way down the path. We saw three eels that were probably the scariest thing I have seen the whole time we were snorkeling (yes that includes the sharks and stingrays). Whenever you got close to the eel, it would come right for you with its razor sharp teeth ready to bite and sting you. So we just swam away after seeing that for a couple of minutes while the guid was messing with it. We saw so many different kinds of fish, but unfortunately, I had taken so many pictures at the first stop that I only had a couple pictures left for the rest of the snorkeling time we had. Stupid of me. So I just took the rest of the pictures of the coral and hopefully got some of the fish in them.
     After that stop, we went to our final stop. This stop was do whatever you wanted place. It just mainly just coral with a small amount of fish so there was not a lot to see but it was not to see the coral up close without someone guiding you the whole time. Now I want to go snorkeling at other places to see what all they have. When we were done there, we headed back to the boat and went back to the shore.
     We skipped lunch because we were going to get a big dinner that would cost a lot of money so we just did not eat until then. We just relaxed until dinner. We had a few different choices for dinner, so I had boneless chicken breast that was really good. It came with coconut rice and shrimp. It was worth the wait. After dinner, I went to go get some ice cream since this was our last night here. We all went our separate ways again and are now relaxing by doing our own thing. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, but I am ready to go home for a while before school starts up again.

Dinner in Caye Caulker

Day Twenty Three in Belize:

     Well today was the day. We left the log cab-ins and went on our long van ride to Caye Caulker. Apparently there was breakfast where the other guys were staying at but when I got there, all of the food was gone so I skipped out on breakfast. So I had a couple of my cookies before we left. We had two vans this time so we could hold more people and luggage. I am not sure how long the ride took, because I was asleep or busy playing games to pay much attention on where we were going. It just felt like a long time.
     Our first stop at a water taxi to get to the island. I never knew that had those down here and that was fun to ride in and see all of the different islands and the clear blue water on our 45 minute ride to our destination. Of course I took a lot of pictures on the boat. The boat was packed out with people so it was really uncomfortable when the taxi would hit a big wave. We had to stop at one place before arriving at Caye Caulker since that was the first stop for the taxi. Some people stayed there so that made more room on the boat.
     When we finally arrived at Caye Caulker, we stood right outside of the boat and enjoyed the view. The clear blue water, the palm trees, and all of the other islands around us. It was a great view and this place is beautiful. We started walking to our hotel shortly after this. This place is some kind of Chinese hotel that is super nice in every way. The building itself is huge and beautiful, and the rooms are big and well made even though there is sand everywhere but you cannot really help that around a beach. We had lunch shortly after we arrived. We had fried jacks with meat inside that was to die for. I have never had a fried jack that was so good before. This place also has the best orange juice in the world (so my professor and mentor says) and I believe that it is the best.
     After lunch, I decided to take a nap while most of the group did other activities. When I woke up, we went to dinner. We sat outside (glad it did not rain!) to eat our meal. They served French fries, chicken on the bone, rice, and beans. The chicken was a pain in the butt to get the bones out but the chicken was amazing.
     After dinner, we went out for ice cream. I had a scoop of chunky monkey (banana with chocolate chips) and a scoop of Oreo on a waffle cone that was so good. We then went into a shop, but did not have anything I was looking for unfortunately. Hopefully I will find the things I am looking for tomorrow. Tomorrow we are going snorkeling finally! Super excited about that and we are spending the day at the beach.

Day Twenty Two in Belize:

     Well, today is the last day at the log cab-ins for us that are going back home on Monday.  We are getting up early tomorrow to go to a new town that is more of a touristy area so I am sure there will be a lot to do around there. I have experienced so much on this trip already that I did not think there was going to be more activities in Belize! I am super pumped for all of the fun things we are going to do in the little time we have remaining.

     Today for breakfast we had cereal, yogurt, and a muffin. It sounds like a small meal, but it was quite filling so it did it well. We then chilled until we left for class in the afternoon. I did not know I was suppose to be doing some of the homework that the guys in the class were doing so I found out the hard way today while I was checking on my paper. What a surprise that was. Luckily, I got it all done today so it was not that bad and it was fun to be working for a class that I enjoy. We had two classes again today.

     After classes, we left to go back to the log cab-ins. When we got there, we all went our separate ways until dinner as usual. I was also helping my mentor with some networking stuff that had to be done before we leave. It was mainly finding out what was wrong with an access point and fixing wires so that it looks presentable in the cabins.

     We then went to dinner. This was probably the best chicken I have ever had. It was Parmesan chicken with backed potatoes, garlic bread, and a salad. I honestly could have ate another one if they gave me one. I am going to miss the food that they serve here and the people serving it. Everyone that works here are very nice and willing to help any way they can. We had a friend that is a teacher at one of the schools join us with him and his family. It was nice to talk to him as a friend and not as a co-worker since we did help his school with the Wi-Fi. He had the cutest little baby girl. I tried to make a funny face by giving her "raspberries", but she cried when I did that. So after a while, she was looking at me again and I just smiled big, she did as well. I finally knew what made her smile so I continued to do it every so often to see that cute smile of hers. We got chocolate bananas for desert that were out of this world. They were frozen on a stick that was unique. I do not think they have those in America, so I will miss those too.

     We went back to our rooms after desert. So here I am writing this to end my night. Our professor said that there was no class tonight that it was going to be a party. I believe they are watching a movie tonight but I did not hear which one so I am on my bed for the night unless I get a better offer. I cannot wait for snorkeling!

Day Twenty-one in Belize:

     This was probably the most relaxing day that I have had on this entire trip and it was much needed right before we leave this country. Our professor and mentor left early this morning to go to a meeting instead of eating breakfast with us. I was planning on sleeping in until noon, but that did not happen. I am too used to getting up at 6:00am and going to bed before 10:00pm and I have never done this in my life, even when college started I would have to get up at 7:30am but did not go to bed until after midnight. So I stayed up and waited for breakfast at 7:30am. We had French toast and eggs. I have not had French toast since our time in Guatemala so it was nice to have that again. I always enjoy a good breakfast and it makes my day much better so I am glad that I did not sleep in and skip breakfast.
     After breakfast, we all went into the log cabin that most of our guys stayed at to chill. We were there for most of the morning and played some video games to relax our minds. Today was also a homework day for those who were behind and we had plenty of time to do it all. Most of the homework was the journals I believe. I really hope I have enough to meet the requirement for them but it is hard to check it with no computer.  I have had to barrow a guys computer to just turn in some of the homework. I ended up skipping lunch since I did not want to leave my room so I just had a bunch of my snacks. That filled me up for the most part. I then continued to have a nice day with doing nothing since I do not have homework to do except this journal. After a while, I took an hour nap before dinner. It was amazing even though it was really hot in my room and I did not bother turning on the air conditioning. I am not sure why I did not do that, stupid me. I went to dinner after my nap. We had beef stew, rice, and a salad. It was a nice and tasty dinner.
     After dinner, we had class that lasted about two hours. It was definitely an interesting one. We discussed what we learned and what might have changed us during our time here so far since some of us are about to leave. So we took some time to reflect on everything we have done so far. After class, I went back to my room out my stuff there and came to the restaurant up the hill to enjoy a virgin piña colada while doing this journal entry. I could get used to this, but unfortunately, I am leaving in a couple days. We are leaving Saturday to go stay somewhere else for a couple of days until we leave. I hope we do a lot of fun stuff before we leave! The thought of going home is kind of bitter sweet. It is nice to realize how fortunate I am but it makes me sad that not everyone can enjoy what i enjoy. I am glad that I came on this trip to see how other people live their life.

Day Twenty in Belize:

     It was a good morning for me but I cannot really say for my mentor, Doug. He went to take our professor to the a bus station so that he can get to Belize city to get our new van and more supplies. Doug then went with a friend to the hospital that got into a dog situation. So he was there for most of the morning helping and supporting his friend and wife. Dr. Skon was gone for pretty much the entire day because of van and luggage issues he was having. Not exactly sure what happened but it took a while. Breakfast was excellent as always. Belize seriously has the best food I have ever had in my life. America has nothing on this!
     After breakfast, me and a couple of guys went with Doug to a school to instal some Wi-Fi. We were there for a couple of hours and it was a lot of fun. I have really enjoyed myself doing this kind of work and hopefully I will be doing something similar to this when I graduate. We set up two access points on a giant stick that was at a corner of their play ground. Hopefully it does not get hit and knocked over and break when we are gone. Those two points let three of their buildings have Internet access which was remarkable. I went around the school testing the connection on my phone and it was great everywhere I went so I have no fear of them losing connection anytime soon. We also gave the school ten laptops for their labs to help improve the labs since laptops are necessary for what they are doing with computers. Apparently, there was a magic show that was at the camp grounds where we were staying at before that some people from Florida are here and they are also doing some mission work. They seem like nice people and even invited us to go see it, but we were too busy with work to go watch unfortunately. I have not seen a magic show in a long time.
     After our work was complete there, we went out for lunch then went back to the log cabins. When we got there, we packed up and headed out to the schools again for our classes today. Doug taught both classes today since our professor was still in Belize city. We worked on a program called Wireshark that was really cool and interesting for the network security class that I cannot take yet. But that did not stop me from participating and give me a head start for when I have to take it. For the software class, we just went over our ideas for projects and reduced them to only a couple from each group because there were so many listed.
     After class, we came back for dinner at the cabins. We had macaroni and cheese today. That tasted so good and reminded me of home. When dinner was finished, we had our evening class. We talked about how we deal with people that have different views and beliefs on things such as religion and abortion. It got interesting and I did not speak much because everyone said everything that needed to be said I felt like. Now, here we are doing our own thing and I am writing this so I can go to bed and sleep in tomorrow since we do not have class all day so I think I am going to skip breakfast (maybe lunch too).

Day Nineteenth in Belize:

      Today was a good day and a decent morning despite having to get up at 6:30am. I woke up somewhat awake but it took me until about 7:10 to actually get out of bed and get ready. Breakfast was good as always with bacau, eggs, and biscuits with butter and cinnamon that my mentor kept from a couple of days ago that was still good. Apparently he does not to waste his food and I do not blame him at all because I do not either (it is clearly noticeable).
     After breakfast, we just chilled out for the day and worked on homework until lunch. We had a rough draft of a paper that is due tonight that all of us worked on pretty much the whole morning. Lunch came around. We had tortillas with peanut butter and jelly. It was the soft tortillas that I really enjoy since I do not care for crunchy food and with peanut butter and jelly, it could get really messy easily if it breaks.
     After lunch, we went over to the school to have class. It was our lab day so since it was the kind of the first day, we just brainstormed on projects that we would be interested in. There are three groups of at least three people in each group so there were significant number of ideas being thrown out from each group. Our group started out with seven different ideas, but we were told to reduce it to about three or four which was kind of hard since we all liked our ideas and wanted to do them, but a couple of them were pointless down here in Belize. Each group has one person from Belize since they are taking this course as well. I cannot wait to see what they are capable of and hopefully learn a couple things from them before I leave next week. We only have two more class sessions with them.
     After class, we went into town to get some supplies and some of us wanted to go shopping. I went with another guy and the professor to get food for tomorrow's lunch and to help carry it all back to the van. I had to carry a ton of pop that was really heavy, another guy had to carry a heavy thing of water, and our professor had the peanut butter and tortillas. I wonder what we are having tomorrow?! It is always a good meal to have so I am not complaining. When we came back, we got ready for dinner. We had chicken, vegetables, and rice. That was probably the best chicken I have had down here so I definitely wanted more, but I could not find the room to put it in since I was so full.
     I thought we were going to have class after dinner, but I guess not so I am writing this instead to get this out of the way so I can enjoy my night with no homework and no worries. Tomorrow sounds like it is going to be a chill day (hopefully) to get more homework done and relax for our busy week we are about to have.

A trip near home

1/18

Today was a hard day for me.  Originally, we were supposed to go tubing on one of the rivers around here.  But according to Marcus, the man who would have taken us, it was too cold to do it.  That was a little frustrating.  But I am going to be down here until May, a good 3 and a half months yet, so there will be plenty of other times that we can go do something like that.  At the very least, I am sure that there will be one other chance.  So instead of the tubing, Dr. Skon was throwing some ideas around for what we could spend our day doing.  The idea that stuck was to go to Spanish Lookout.  We were told that it was a Mennonite community here in Belize.  That instantly struck a chord with me.  My mother grew up as a Mennonite, and I have lived in an area not far and heavily influenced by the Mennonites and the Amish.  I was quite eager to go for a handful of reasons.  I was really curious to see how it might be different from the type of community back home, which was of the Swiss Mennonite background, compared to the Russian Mennonite down here.  And frankly, I was hoping that it would be very similar and that it could serve to help ease some homesickness I have been feeling pretty badly the last few days.  

We got on the road shortly after lunch, it was supposed to be a relatively short drive.  After leaving San Ignacio, we headed North.  On the way out of San Ignacio, the sights were pretty much the same, makeshift houses that looked pretty beat up on the outside and woods and hills around us.  Then we got to a river that had to be crossed.  But this river did not have a bridge spanning it, rather it had a small ferry that traveled back and forth often.  The ferry could hold up to 3 vehicles (plus some motorcycles) and passengers.  It had just left when we arrived, so we had to wait a while for it to reach the other side, unload, load back up, and unload on our side.  When it was our turn, Dr. Skon drive up the ramp onto the boat and we followed close behind him.  I immediately understood why it took so long for the ferry to go across the river.  It was a hand crank powered vehicle.  There were two large steel cables spanning the width of the river, one to make sure that the vessel did not go downstream and one to allow movement.  The man who was running the ferry was obviously quite strong from all of the cranking he did.  It was a peaceful ride across, the view was very impressive.  Once we reached the far side, we walked up the hill a ways and waited for the van, so that we would not hold up traffic.  Very shortly after getting away from the river, I notice a huge change in scenery.  Suddenly… it looked like home. Not the Log Cab-Inns, but like Holmes County.  Literally, if the palm trees were replaced with pines, it could have been a scene from the country landscape not 15 minutes from my house.  It was marveling to me to see things so very similar to home there.  Not long after we reached Spanish Lookout did we start to see people.  They were dressed as I would associate the Mennonites from home, very conservative and plain.  It was definitely a sight for sore eyes.  As we drove around town, so many things seemed right, the right types of shops and people were there.  Once we got to the hardware store and stepped out of the van, it hit me.  While this place may seem very similar to home… it was not.  I was still more than a thousand miles from home.  And I would be that far from home for a long time.  

Walking through the store was very conflicting.  On one hand, it felt right, being at a store like that with the type of people who surrounded me, yet in addition to light skinned people such as myself, there were native Belizeans who were, of course, Latino.  In my mind, this type of mix just does not really happen.  I was getting more and more homesick every minute.  As I was walking towards the exit, I overheard some of the employees speaking.  It was not English, and it was not Spanish, rather, as I had suspected, it was a form of German.  I was quite excited to hear it.  While it was likely not the same dialect that is used at home, it was still understandable to me.

Once we had all checked out, we left the store and went off to dinner.  As usual, I was one of the first people in line of our group, but was next to last to order my food.  That is what I get for being so non-aggressive I suppose.  The seating for our group had already been filled up by the time that Mike and I got our food, so once again, we were the two off at our own table.  It gets tiring always being one of the ones to be cut off. I did not feel much like speaking at that point, so I drifted off into my own world and thought about home the most I have on the trip so far.  Once we left, I once again noticed just how different it looks in that part of Belize compared to the rest of what we have seen.  It looked in general a lot more upkept and even more wealthy.  But yet, this part of the country is where the agriculture is.  It is strange, in the US, many farmers and agricultural areas are looked down on by those in the city, they are seen as poor rednecks and hillbillies.  Yet down here, the farming region seems like it is doing better than the rest of the country.  I think that goes to show that what we are taught and how we associate things in the US may not always be in align with what reality is.  

On our way back, some of the same old stuff began to surface once again.  People started bickering and arguing.  It really gets old very quickly, all of the disrespect and immaturity.  I really do hope that it gets better after the temporary guests leave in 9 days.  I also hope that getting into a regular routine helps, I really do miss home a lot right now.

One week left till the party splits

That's right, there's one week left of this particular arrangement. A week from now, we divide. I have been put in charge of a software engineering project with three other people. Right now, we have a number of assignments we've got to do such as writing a journal, designing a lab and the service project.

School is about to start. In fact, it already has started. Sacred Heart and MVNU are out of sync after all. So it's time to get back in the student mode.

Day Eighteenth in Belize:

     Here comes 6:30am again everyday for the rest of the week. I thought sleeping until 7 was terrible yesterday, but even half an hour makes a huge difference. I felt tired throughout the day but that did not bring me down I still stay active and positive throughout the day trying to get stuff down. We had a great breakfast this morning. It was pancakes and eggs. I seem to really enjoy their pancakes here there is just something about them that makes me want more but they are so filling that I cannot eat anymore.
     The two Sophomores (including me) went with our mentor to one of the schools to test Wi-Fi connection there. It was a great experience and I ran into some people from the education group that were teaching. Personally, I really enjoyed working with the internet and seeing how it all works. I really think that I picked the right major for me. We went all over the school to make sure every classroom and every corner had connection. It ended up being very successful and hopefully we will instal it this week before we leave so I do not miss out on it.  We were there for a couple of hours.      
     After we were done, we brought our equipment with us back to the log cabin. The others were waiting for us to get back so that we could go to the other school to start some classes. A few people from Belize are taking the courses which will be nice to get to know them and know their skills with computers. They both work for IT so I assume that they have some skill. The first class was a internet security course that I found really interesting and I am really excited to be in the class in a couple of years when I have met all of the requirements for the class. Some of the things that they talked about was a little scary. Some of the stories that were on the news about people hacking into companies computers and stealing all sorts of knowledge and money. Unfortunately, there are still many hackers out there today that need to be shut down, but with a course like this, it will be nice to know how everything works and how to help prevent hackers from getting into things they should not be in to. The other course that I am a part of is software and system engineering. I heard from some of the guys that this will be a difficult and time consuming course and I think it will be even more hard when some of us will be in the States while the professor will be staying here. But I am sure that I will do fine (I hope!).
     After classes, we came back home and chilled until our meeting. Our mentor, Doug, gave a presentation on how the internet worked at the log cabins and the troubles he had with it because of the material theses buildings are made out of. I have heard this subject a hundred times so I know it from the inside out and I am glad I do since it had a lot to do with my major and I helped work on it and saw all that he did beforehand. After that, we had dinner. They had fried chicken, salad, and mashed potatoes that was all delicious of course! I am weird because I hate picking off the meat off the bones and am afraid that I will get a bone in my mouth and something bad happen. That is why I only had a couple of them, but they tasted fine, I just do not like to work for my food I suppose.
     We had our evening class when we were finished. We mainly talked about the courses today and the projects we will be doing for them and for seminar of development. It will all be a challenge, and I will prevail with an A on my final grade (again, hopefully). Tomorrow is our first day of lab for software and system engineering that I am kind of nervous about, but being on a team will help out.

Day Seventeenth in Belize:

     The new medicine is working remarkably! I cannot believe how much they have helped so much in such a short amount of time. I almost feel no pain in my stomach and my running nose has almost stopped. I am feeling really blessed (not for drugs) for God helping me through all of this. Without Him, I would be a huge mess.
     We woke up this morning to go to a Apostolic church that a friend of my professor and mentor goes to. I have not been to a church like that in years. I was shocked and found some things humorous in church that I never knew or had forgotten before. One thing that shocked me was how short the sermon was but everything else lasted a long time that included; prayers, scripture readings, communion, greetings, and singing. I found it quite hilarious that every week the priest asks everyone if that have a birthday, anniversary, and international travails going on during the week and he will have the people come up and he will pray for them. It was a really good idea I thought but different. The people there were as nice as can be and the church was mainly filled with white English speaking people. Felt a lot like home except the whole Apostolic routines. It was interesting to see what kind of other religions there are out there, but I think I will stay with the crazy Pentecostals.
     We skipped breakfast to get to church on time so we ate breakfast when we got back to the cabins. I skipped breakfast to work on some homework and relax for a while. We all just chilled by doing our own thing until lunch time. We ended up going out for lunch around three today which was a pretty late meal but it was definitely worth the wait. We went to a local pasta restaurant and got spaghetti that had a chicken wing in it. It was an interesting combo, but it was good. The garlic bread though was to die for. You could put that with just about anything and it would fit right in. That was our last meal for the day. It definitely filled me up so I am still good for the night.
     After dinner, a bus pulls in and it was the education group just passing by. So, we stayed and our professor and mentor talked to them for a while and the departed as did we. When we got back, me and a couple of guys went to the restaurant at the resort to get some desert. They did not have anything good so me and another guy got virgin piña coladas. The bartender was new and was not sure how to make it so it took him a while to get it to us but it still tasted good enough for me. I feel like I have to get at least one when I go to a tropical place. Tomorrow we are going to the schools for most of the day and that is all that I know of but anything could happen between now and then.

Day Sixthteenth in Belize:

     Today was a good day. Woke up feeling better but still went to the bathroom a couple of times during the night and I got to sleep in until 8am! Had breakfast around 9:10 which was just milk and cereal that seems to always fill me up. We ate the log cabin since we could not eat it at restaurant part of the resort because we brought food in from outside and we did not want to be rude. We then relaxed until until lunch time. For lunch we had peanut butter and jelly tortillas (surprise!) but I really enjoy that kind of meal. It's nice, simple, and easy to make.
     We were going to go tubing today, but we canceled that because it was too cold which was around the 60s I believe and it was really cloudy so the sun was not even out. So instead, we went to a Amish country (yes in Belize they have Amish countries). It really reminded me of home because of all of the farms, cows, restaurants (Golden Corral), building, fast food places, roads, lands, English speaking people, and Caucasians. I have not been more homesick than I was today. We went into this super market that reminded me of Walmart. It had just about anything you wanted so I got a few snacks and some drinks for later. They took American money and credit cards which was kind of surprising to me, but I used Belize money so that I would not have to worry about converting it all when I got back to the States.
     We were in the Amish town for a couple of hours. We then ate dinner at this ice cream place that reminded me of Dairy Queen. It had just about everything that they would have and it tasted better. I had a burger with a chocolate milkshake that was really good. The shake tasted different, but in a good unique way. So we hung out there for a while to enjoy home.
     After dinner, we were on the road back to the log cabins. We came back and started to go our separate ways to enjoy our Saturday night by resting and recovering from a long week of work and school. There are only eight more days left that I am here for so I am going to make the most out of the days that I have left (when my stomach feels 100% first). I am really hoping that we go tubing at least once and snorkeling once too since I have never done either of those activities. I enjoy being out and away from a computer screen for a while to enjoy the many things Belize has to offer for us and to enjoy the beautiful scenery around us. Tomorrow is an 8am church service and after that, I do not know what we are doing, but I am sure it will be a good time as always!

Day Fifth-Teen in Belize:

     My professor bought me some medicine last night for my stomach that actually worked. I slept like a baby last night and woke up in a good mood because my stomach was feeling a little bit better. I did not think it would work so fast but I am truly glad it did. Maybe I will be almost 100% for tubing tomorrow so I can enjoy that to the fullest. I also have not been to the bathroom as much for my stomach, I have mainly been in there to blow my nose due to the drastic weather change here so it is more than likely to be sinuses so I am not too worried about that. I just hate that the snot goes down and gets into my mustache then it becomes a nuisance.
     For breakfast we had two burritos (I believe that is what they were). They were not too bad but I am trying to stay away from beans for a few days until my stomach calms down completely so that I do not have any more problems. We then just chilled until some of the guys went to one of the computer labs that was around here. I missed my chance on going because I found out at the last second and the bus had already left but I saw that some other guys had stayed behind so I do not feel as bad for not going even though it would have been a nice experience. So I stayed behind and worked on some homework and blogs for the day. It was a nice and relaxing day that was much needed to get caught up on some homework and sleep. I took an hour nap today that was glorious.      
     Not long after the guys came back, we went to get some dinner. This was probably the best meal they have served at the resort. It was chicken alfredo that was to die for even though I took the few tomatoes that was in it out of it. We also had a biscuit with it. After dinner, we went out as a group to go in town to get some ice cream. I had a scoop of sour sob and a scoop of oreo cookie that was delicious. I almost forgot the taste of ice cream because it has been so long since I have had some. Hopefully I am losing some weight since I have not had many sweets on this trip.
     When we came back, we had our class session for the day. The group was going to watch a tv show but I decided to come back to my room early to write this and get a good night sleep tonight since we get to sleep in until 9am tomorrow! Plus we are going tubing down some river that will be a blast. I am so excited for something exotic and fun to do.

Day Fourteen in Belize:

     Wow, it has already been two weeks since I arrived to Belize. The time really does fly by when you are having fun. It has been a great two weeks seeing everything, meeting new people, and of course trying all of the different kind of foods they have here. During the whole two weeks, there was only one time when I did not like the food. That was obviously the hotdogs at the camp grounds. I cannot believe that we only have a week and a half left here, but it is kind of bittersweet.
     Another sleepless night due to stomach problems and bathroom visits. I wonder when this will start to get better. It just feels like it is staying the same and sometimes it feels like it is getting worse. I cannot even tell anymore. Went to breakfast around 7:30 and waited until 9 as usual. I decided that I was not going to miss out on another trip with everyone because of my illness that I was just going to fight through it. We headed out. We went back to the high school and helped with some computer work that needed to be done. We were done in about an hour so after work we just chilled and talked until lunch arrived. We had Mexican food that was good even though I am trying to stay away from beans for a while. We then went out and visited some places around town.
     Our last stop was at a resort that our mentor was interested in for him and his wife to stay at sometime in the future. This resort was beautiful in every way shape and form. The land was extremely large and we did not see a lot of it apparently. One of the first things we saw was their pool. The pool was up high and had a waterfall at the edge of it coming down to ground  level. The pool was made of marble that was beautiful. We then walked around and saw all of the different houses that you can stay at. To stay there was only $250 a night in American dollars which is decently good price and I bet the food is outstanding there too. But I am happy at the log cabins. We get to experience some wild life while enjoying technology around us.
     The guys were making fun of me for being the outcast by staying with our mentor alone, but I have found it very beneficial for my major and I have enjoyed his presence and our conversations together. And the bed here is big and comfortable. I hope this weekend comes fast so I can finally go tubing and have some fun! And I hope and pray that I will get over this sickness and enjoy the rest of the time that I am here.

Correspondance From Those Left Behind

I had a call with my family from Beyond The Gulf. Kati, my sister, is home and I'm not there to see her. Sigh. We had a good talk, across a video screen and they got up to some facebook antics.

Here in Belize some slight tensions are rising. The shouts are a little less friendly. I, of course have remained stoic all the while, in my impeccable mannerly fortitude. Bask in it, my readers.

On the Belizian front we visited a school or two. Got a look at some computer labs. Checked out their computer problems, ate some food, drank some OJ. The Blog's purpose is to expound upon New Things In Belize, but I still haven't had any revelations on anything of note. If I put some effort into it... let's see.. I mean, the lack of windows in the schools means that it's really easy to listen to anything that's going on. Also it's strange to me, the half-outdoors nature of the schools, although it makes sense to save on building costs.

Day Thirteen in Belize:

     This was probably the worst day I've had all this time in Belize. I was up half of the night with stomach pains and very gassy. I had to get up a couple of times to go to the bathroom because of it. This happened between 4-5 times during the whole day.
     I went to breakfast and came back right after. We were going to go to some of the schools to sit in on some classes that had computers in them and teach the children a thing or two and help them with any problems they may have had with the computers as far as fixing them. I would have loved to have went, but it would not have been a good idea since I spent most of the day in the restroom. So I had decided to stay at the log cabins and rest as much as possible to see if that would help.
     I ended up going back to bed at around 10am and not waking up until about 1:30pm. That helped out some since I have not been sleeping well, but did not help with the stomach pains. So I spent the day relaxing, using the bathroom, and catching Pokémon. I think I would have felt better if I was home, but since I am kind of on my own so I do not have my parents helping me. When they came back, we headed over to dinner and of course I got made fun of for the first few minutes of dinner, but I do not care because I did not feel well so I ignored most of the comments. Dinner was good, but desert would not be served for another hour an a half after we had finished eating so we had class back at the log cabin. We had some really interesting topics and conversations.
     After we were done, desert was ready so we rushed over back to the restaurant. They had some kind of banana brownie that was delicious and so sweet that I almost could not finish it all. We then went our separate ways. The guys in the other cabin was watching a movie while I was getting ready for bed. By that time, it was going on 9pm so I was already dead tired from my long day. I really hope this goes away within the next couple of days so I can enjoy my time here while I can and enjoy going tubing this weekend finally.

A Period Devoid of Van Travel

Yesterday, I did not have to travel in the van. Ah, I love days where I can just chill all day. That being said, I did do some things I had yet to do on the trip, which was nice. To be more specific, I had some more work of a different nature and I went swimming. We got off to a late start on the swimming due to the fact that I packed no swimming trousers- but I did pack every other kind of swimming gear I needed. Good ol' "Doctor Dad" went to the store and picked up some soccer shorts for me to wear. While he was gone, housekeeping absconded with our laundry before I had changed out of my clothes, so he felt obligated to deliver those clothes to the laundry as well, delaying us further. When we got to the pool, he had to go do something else, so I just kinda splashed around a little until he got back, then we GOT TO EXERCISING*. The pool is actually kinda crappy for exercising because it's really small, but at least there was nobody else in it. The pool's shape meant I was basically always turning. Annoyingly enough, the edges of the pool are really high, and I like to grab the edge every so often, so whenever I wanted to do that I had to return to the entrance. But hey, that's a positive for the tininess of the pool, I guess.

*sorry about the random caps, I hit caps lock right before typing it, then didn't delete it because it was too funny

Day Twelve in Belize:

     I slept so great last night finally! Even though I went to bed late and I woke up at 6am this morning. It was the earliest I have woken up for the whole time that I have been here. I was alone getting ready because our mentor went to pick up a professor at the airport that went home for a long weekend because his grandfather past away and he was the pallbearer for the funeral. Went to breakfast at 7:15 when it usually begins and waited for about an half an hour until everyone else came up and the food was served. We had banana flavored pancakes that was outstanding and some kind of orange juice mixed with something.
     After breakfast, we had a meting at 9. We discussed what our paper consists of and went over a paper that our professor and mentor wrote a few years ago that was well-written about their travels to other countries and helping them. It was interesting to see how it was like twenty years ago in Belize and other places. In one part of the story, our professor broke his foot while trying to kill mosquitoes which I found hysterical because it sounds like something that would happen to me. And how one time they forgot a power cord for a desktop computer that they had brought down to Belize. We worked on the paper that is due this week as a rough draft that has to be 5-10 pages which is not that bad considering we have at least three people to a team so it is easy to divide up the work among each other.
     After working on that for a couple of hours, I finally got to go swimming for the first time while on this trip and it was extremely cold but the hot weather today helped dry me off when I was done swimming. But I was not wet from the water, I was wet because of the sweat that was coming from my head after it was dry. It was not a cloudy day so the sun was shinning bright.
     After swimming, we had our class meeting for the day then headed on over to dinner. We had fish, rice, and a salad. I was afraid to try fish down here but it was pretty good even though I am not huge on fish but it was not bad nor am I feeling anything from the fish yet and hopefully I will not. We took a few group pictures that our professor took that will be remembered for generations. After we ate dinner, we came back to the room and started doing computer work on the computers that we brought up and hopefully will be operational for the people in Belize to use. Not sure what we are doing tomorrow, but I will be ready for whatever comes my way.

Momentary lapse in bloggery

I put off blogging anything for a while because not much was really happening. At least, nothing I felt compelled to write about. A few things I noticed:

School uniforms:
I'll admit, I like the idea of a school uniform, as long as it's not super strict. It gives order, and it kinda feels more professional. Americans love their individuality though, so I haven't been to any colleges up here that have uniforms. It doesn't look like we're required to conform, maybe it's only the high school students that have to?

Big bugs:
There are big bugs and they draw the eyes. Not super scary, but I mean, come on, they're insects. I just have to look at them. Not in disgust or fascination. Just... I always think they're up to something.

Our Van:
We still don't have the new van. What gives? Apparently the shipping company "lost it". Well, they probably also lost their marbles because how do you misplace a van? Supposeably, we'll get it soon.

Day Eleven in Belize:

     I had the worst night sleep last night. I had bug bites itching, my body could not make up its mind on whether it was hot or cold, loud noises throughout the night. Let's just say I was not a happy camper this morning. The hot shower this morning definitely helped though. We ate at our resort this morning for breakfast. We had grilled cheese, eggs, and sausage that was super great. We also had this freshly made orange juice that was to die for and I usually cannot stand it but a fresh glass changes it.
     After breakfast, we packed up and headed on over to the high school for a meeting with the leaders there about computers. After about an hour there, we went over to another high school nearby. When we got there, we got everything set up and ready for our first class session to begin. We learned a lot about how the money worked in Belize. We learned about how the school budget pays so much for just the electricity alone which consists of; laptop and desktop computers, lights, refrigerators, etc.. We also learned how having a laptop computer has it's pros and cons to it. For instance, a laptop is not heavy but can break easily when it is dropped and how small it is but can be easily stolen. Desktop computers also has it's pros and cons but I believe laptops are the way to go for our future because of how much they are evolving and changing for the better for our every day life. After we were done around four o clock, we headed out to go shopping for supplies that we needed. I had to get some anti-itch cream, another guy had to go to the bank, another wanted to get jerseys, and one wanted to go to the hardware store. So we left there around 4:20. Our professor was in a huge rush because he thought it was 5:30 and that is when our dinner is so we had to hurry. When we pulled in, someone said that it was only 4:30 when we got back and made a big joke out of it.
     So after we got back, we relaxed until dinner. For dinner we had chicken, salad, and rice. The chicken was covered in some kind of spicy sauce that was really good but did not look like it. I guess you really cannot judge a book by its cover.
     After dinner, we had our daily class for the night to wrap things up for the day. We talked about how a farmer made his own equipment like tractors and made millions off of it that was really cool to see how he did it.
     When class was finished, I went to the pool to relax finally. It was too cold to get in it all the way so I just stuck my feet in it and looked up to the beautiful clear sky to see all of the stars and a full moon. I took that time to reflect on all that I have done here and realized how happy I am to be here and to be a part of this group that is helping all kinds of people with what we do best. It is truly an experience and a blessing for me to whiteness and to be involved in this ministry.

College in Belize

Sorry I didn't post a blog yesterday. It being a Sunday we went to another local Nazarene church. We then spent most of the day lounging around and relaxing. It was nice to catch up on some sleep and not have to worry about anything for the the rest of the night. Sorry my bligs have been getting shorter and even for this one combining two day. The group from Kenyon College is back in Ohio and so most of our "service" part of the trip is done. That doesn't mean we are done serving however. We are now moving more in to our class which is Seminar in International Development.  Even thought we are not out in villages working as much as we were the first week we are still her to help improve things here. Today we spend most of the day at Sacred Heat College ( part of our group will be staying through May and studying abroad here ). While there we listened to a presentation about how technology has an effect on Belize. We talked about all the factors that have to be considered when deciding the best way to help. We don't want to just send them our junk and them think they are getting something very nice and then it not work within a year. There are alos thing to think about like how well a device will hold up in yhe heat and humidity here. Other things to take into consideration is the electricity here. Weekly power outages are common and the overall cost of electricity is around 5 to 6 time more expensive here. All these taken in to consideration is why our group has been bring laptops instead of desktops for the labs. Not only do we have to think about these things just when deciding laptop or desktop but also when planning on how to set up the networks. Right now we are in the starting stages of planning for a few different server ideas to help schools that already have labs and are now expanding to meet their needs.  We will be talking to the principals and teachers to find out what will work best and most efficient for their needs. Sometimes and really most times what they think they need to solve a problem is not really the best way and often times they really need something else. Its our job totalk to them and narrow it down to give them the best most reliable and easiest to use solution to what they need. It's been near learning more and more about all the different challenges and obstacles that come across for developing countries. We split up in groups and will be writing a paper to discuss these challenges in more detail. Later we will have another class to continue discuss even more aspects that we have just scraped the surface talking about.

It's crazy to think that we're halfway through our trip. Part of me feels like we've only been here a day or two and the other part of me feels like we've been here for a while. The newness has kind of wore off and I do miss home some but it's really nice and weare having a lot of fun with our group. Some of the guys have had some stomach problems just getting used to the different foods here so keep them in your prayers if you would.

Thanks for the continued support!
Josh Aleshire

Day Ten in Belize:

     I went to bed last night with my roommate snoring and the dogs barking at him. Let's just say that it was a musical night for me. But I ended up sleeping well in this big bed by myself. Woke up this morning to get some breakfast that our professor brought from the store. We had cereal and oatmeal with honey and sugar. It was filling despite on how much we had between our entire group.
     After breakfast, we went to church in a nearby village. It was somewhat different from the church last week, some good and some not so good ways but not terrible. The people there were very friendly which every church should have those kind of people. They sang songs in English and then they would sing the same song in Spanish so it was kind of confusing at times to understand and keep up. Then for reading the Scriptures, they would first read it in English and then read it in Spanish. That may seem annoying, but it is nice so that everyone can understand and get something out of it.
     After church, we went to a restaurant that looks like it used to be a hanger for something big. It was a ginormous place. I had a chicken burger and two bean and cheese burritos that was under twelve dollars, you cannot beat that! And it was delicious as well. Finishing up lunch, we headed back to the cabins. We relaxed for most of the day. Some of us watched a movie, and some took a nap. I was one of those that took a nap for the first time on this trip and it was much needed. I woke up and it was about time for dinner. We had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and tortillas which is always a great and delicious meal.
     While eating dinner, we talked about what we were going to be doing tomorrow and see what all we wanted to do. It sounds like our plans are going to require some work, but at the same time, it will be a lot of fun I believe. After dinner, it was more relaxing time which we have not had in quite some time. It is really nice to have some free time every once and a while so it feels like we are on a somewhat vacation here. But I feel like tomorrow is to be a whole new different experience since that is when our class officially starts. I am kind of excited and somewhat nervous about it because we have so much to do every day and the final paper is going to probably be the end of me. But oh well, at least I have enjoyed my time in Belize.

Our New Home

I guess for those of our group staying down here until May its a little bigger of a deal  but still this place is pretty nice! Today we moved from the Nazarene camp groud that we were staying at to a house on a outdoor restort type of place. It's very nice and relaxing. It's great for us now and will be perfect for those staying more long term. They had wifi in one building and part of our stay will be improving their network for them so we started right away working on that as it will benifit both us ( needed internet to classes and to stay and touch with everyone) as well as everyone else staying here having access to the same thing.Oh did I mention there is a pool here!

We had most of the day to explore the place a bit, relax, swim, and even get a nap it. It's been a while since I was able to do that. We alsoIn the evening they had prepared us a very good welcome meal. We had chicken fajitas with beans and rice. It tasted amazing. After dinner we had a class session and talked about the impact that smart phones has on developing nations. It raised a good question that we've all been talking about while being here. Allot of the people have T.V.s and cell phones, yet so many of them are living on dirt floors or don't have reall bathrooms. There are many different questions that this raises as well. Are we helping them in the right way by trying to help them become computer literate? Are there other things we should be doing instead? I think that in keeping them up with technology this gives them resources to fix some of those thing on their own. It give them a learning tool to find out what other peopl and othet countries are doing to solve similar issues.  With the Internet they can get information about anything they need. From construction issues to medical issues there are ideas and solutions to problems out there ever where on the internet. As we continue out time here I hope to see my thought supported by how people use their technology and in the reasons why they have it. If you have any thoughts or comments just leave them below as I would love to hear what other people think about this.

Peace out,
Josh Aleshire

The Squad

     Well, the group is finally settled into our home for rest of the trip, and without any major       setbacks. The van survived a trip to and from Belize miraculously and the Kenyon group got to the hotel in one piece. It was awesome having them on the beginning of this trip, and I am glad there was a great seam between Kenyon and the Naz on this trip. 

It was great to see one of my friends who lives in Belmopan, and be able to connect and relate on some things we have experienced so far. I hooked him up with Dwight Tillet’s son in law Paul in case they wanted to collaborate on any music productions. In a small country such as this I have seen how having mutual contacts can be very beneficial.

Seeing the classroom we will occupy at Sacred Hearts College was great as well. I am excited for us to interact with the Belizean students we will take the classes with. It will be interesting to share perspectives with them in class and broaden my learning experience through that as well. I hope there are no major issues in dealing with the where the students are coming from education-wise. In our discussion yesterday Q mentioned the concept of being a part of something bigger than yourself. That's a simple phrase I always heard growing up and thought about, but I am realizing what that's really like in this sort of context. I am excited to see where this experience will lead and how we'll mature as a group.