Woofing in Toledo

We touched down in Belize city after a very long exciting plane ride (it was my first). Jess and I (my gf) planned to WWOOF in the toledo district for two weeks prior to my class. I didnt know what to expect. Once we touched down and exited I immediately felt the lax and loving atmosphere in Belize. We took a cab that would speed up and pass other cars on the other side of the road as I soon would realize everyone does it. We hit the bus terminal in BC. We waited for the bus as beggars and peddlers hassled us. It was the first of many times I bought a bag of plantain chips. I remember being super excited about the currency exchange rate 2:1. I felt wealthy for once. We took the bus in to Punta Gorda without knowing how long the ride actually was. The bus was an express bus with only four stops in major cities but I never felt so sore in my life from a long bumpy bus ride. Luckily Jess was able to fall asleep on my shoulder. We enjoyed the stops and got to see a lot of the country. Bu the most enjoyment was when we finally hit Punta Gorda. We jumped out of the bus fully loaded with luggage and crawled over to the closest restaurant which happened to be an amazing italian restaurant. From there I borrowed a locals phone and called our lodge at where we were "booked" to camp on their cooking grounds and receive 3 square meals a day in exchange for five hour work days five days a week. The van met us at the PG bus terminal in the middle of the night almost by luck, we had no clue where we were going in the darkness and no one was rally about. But the van found us and took us to Cottontree our remote jungle lodge we were wwoofing at. We arrived late and the owner generously gave us a room free of charge for the first night. From there on we had a blast building bonds with the mayan staff, meeting an amazing interesting chef from the states, going on discounted tours all over toledo, befriending many of the American guests, exploring, camping, snorkeling, witnessing a renewal of vows, kayaking, living in the jungle, working on the farm and so on. The experience was amazing. At midweek Wednesday of the second week Jess and I decided to leave a bit early with  guest we grown close to to explore Placencia a beautiful beach town along the coast. We stayed there until I had to leave for class the saturday morning. Placencia was gorgeous and a blast. I loved every second spent there. It was less culturally immersed then Punta Gorda but a ton of fun nonetheless. When saturday morning came I had to say me goodbyes to Jess as I hopped on the bus over to Belmopan and eventually to San Ignacio where my class was. I have been in my resort at San Ignacio for two days now and have loved it here as well. Its a welcme change with all the new students to befriend, I await my first day of class tomorrow. I am very excited!!!

- Andrew