There was a serious tourism zone in Belize - the port area was fenced off and had security personnel posted at the exit. They didn't stop us as we did our usual beeline out of there though... it seemed that the purpose of the tourist zone was more to keep locals out than to keep tourists in!
Outside the touristy complex of generic souvenir, jewellery and t-shirt outlets, there were locals manning makeshift stalls along the streets near the port, selling souvenirs, offering to braid hair, etc. One man followed us for a while, trying to sell us hip hop CDs and then circular Belizean number plates.
There was a school where all the children playing in the yard were wearing school uniforms (a sight that stands out to us now, as it's not the norm in Canada). There were horses and carts taking cruise ship passengers on tours of the area. Mostly, I remember it being very hot, and fairly run down in the residential streets.
We stopped for a cool drink and dessert at a restaurant, and then headed back to the port to line up for a tender to take us back to the ship. I don't feel like I learnt much about Belize!
To be continued...
