(High School Inland Trip: Day 1)
The trip began early at 6am when the boat that took us to the mainland left the dock. Once we arrived in Belize City we waited for a bus and then the lead teacher, Ms. Michelle said a prayer for our safety during the travel, and read a poem about perspectives. I found the poem really interesting because it talked about how important opening your perspective and trying to see each day with open eyes. I’ve loved this trip because it has really changed the way I look at the world.
After the prayer we rode on the bus on the hummingbird highway and drove through the Belize landfill, so the students could visually see where their trash goes, and the impact that it has on the environment. We also drove through the capital of Belmopan, and then into the lush green countryside.
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| Hummingbird Highway |
After the prayer we rode on the bus on the hummingbird highway and drove through the Belize landfill, so the students could visually see where their trash goes, and the impact that it has on the environment. We also drove through the capital of Belmopan, and then into the lush green countryside.
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| Landfill |
Then we arrived at the Petters Research Institute. This organization was started by Dr. Arlie Petters (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlie_Petters) who is a native Belizean, but attended college at Duke University. We talked about a variety of Science and Math topics and were joined by volunteers from the Peace Corps who talked about conflict management, sexual awareness and opportunity. Then, Dr. Petters gave a talk about mathematics and physics. My favorite part was when we talked about stars. Did you know that there are over 7.5e18 grains of sands covering all of the beaches in the world? But, there are about 1.6e22 stars in the universe!
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| Check out the Ingredients! |
We also went to the plant for the Citrus Products of Belize, in Dangriga, Belize, where they make fruit juice. We learned how they weigh the fruit, sort it and process it into juice that is proper for drinking. They even let us taste the orange juice before it was fully processed! It tasted very sour! Once the juice is processed, it is packaged into large containers where it is frozen to be shipped out to bottling plants. This was by far my favorite part of the tour. They took us into the freezer room, and the students and teachers that we are all with got VERY excited about being in the freezer room! They said that it was the coldest place that they had ever been, and asked me if I had ever been somewhere so cold. (It felt like at home during the winter!) I really never thought I would get the opportunity to tour a citrus plant in Belize!
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| Bus ride! |
After the citrus plant we went back to the Petters Institute for ice-cream and the went to see the beach. There are more waves here than in San Pedro, because the reef does not slow down the waves as much. However, the waves here are nothing compared to the ones at home. We had dinner at our hotel, and then went to the local super market. I was surprised at how much food the students got just for one day! I'm sharing a room with four high school girls!
We have another early morning tomorrow!
Until next time,
AAA
The Freezer Room, I know everyone truly enjoyed that part, i know i would have.
ReplyDeleteIt is great that the kids get an opportunity to see where everything goes and can give that visual impact that people need to really understand the effects it has on the environment.
But, I think my favorite part of your trip would have to be the SURF! It is nice to hear that they have some surf on the Main Island. This means there could be surf on the other islands.