Belize is often called the Adventure
Coast
It is near by, it has spectacular scenery
and has not been spoiled by mass tourism and man-made alterations.
There are over 170 cayes or islands off
the coast; most uninhabited, with pristine beaches and dotted
with coconut palms. They are nestled along the largest living
coral reef in the Western Hemisphere and second only to
the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. There is deep sea fishing
and fly-fishing in the flats in barely exploited waters.
Inland there are fresh water rivers rushing
through caves with ancient Mayan artifacts still intact
after 2,000 years or more.
There are tropical hardwood forests for
hiking with orchids, bromeliads, ferns in rich lushness
and numerous waterfalls to swim in. There are countless
Maya ruins to explore.
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The
country of Belize has an area of only 8,866 square miles that
is slightly larger than Massachusetts. There is never a distance
of more than 75 miles from the western border with Guatemala
to the Caribbean coast. From the Mexican border to the southern
Guatemalan border is a total of 180 miles, yet Belize is a
land of great diversity.
From coastal beaches to the
blue-green Mayan mountains with the tallest peak at 3800 feet,
to the tropical rain forest, to pleasant upland plateaus,
to the offshore cayes and reef. You will find friendly people
of Creole, Mestizo, American Indians, Mayan, Garifunas, and
Caucasians
Who are all Belizeans.
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As Aldous Huxley once observed about
Belize, “ It is not on the way from anywhere else. It
has no strategic value. It is uninhabited.” The total
is a little over 250,000 people. It is one of the first steps
in the world for people who want to find assurance that everywhere
is not like everywhere else. Don’t look for the tourist
traps of Cancun or Cozumel here.
In September 2003, MSN Money Newsletter
listed Belize as one of the four great places to retire,
stating that retirees do not have to pay on the first US$75,000.00
of income, where property taxes on a US$ 500,000.00 home
run about US$90.00 per year. Belize is an easy country to
communicate in since the official language in English.
In a sense, the entire country is a preserve
of virgin forest and marine wonders. Belize has something
that much of the world has lost, an unspoiled profusion
of nature’s bounty.
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