2021 Travel the World - Week 12

I started a 50-week series in 2019 that I called Travel the World. Each week of the series I visited a randomly-selected country, sharing bits of information about that country. I then chose one tidbit of information about that week's country as inspiration for a card. As I explored those 50 countries in 2019, I knew I would continue on until I've visited every one of the 195 countries in the world, so I continued the series in 2020 and here I am in 2021, the third year of traveling the world. 

This week's country is...

Belize

Belize is located on the northeast coast of Central America. Until 1973, it was known as Honduras.

Belize is also known as the “Jewel in the heart of the Caribbean basin”. 

The total land area of Belize is 8,867 square miles. The country’s greatest length, north to south, is 170 miles and its greatest width, east to west, is 68 miles. 

Belize is the only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean.

Belize is among the top 5 least populated countries. With only 355,000 people living in an area the size of Massachusetts, Belize has the lowest population density in Central America, an average of 6 per square miles. 

Belize is the only Central American Country where English is the official language. Apart from English, there are many recognized regional languages: Kriol, Spanish, Garifuna, and Mayan.

Belize is filled with 450 cayes (pronounced keys), which are small islands. The islands may have remained uninhabited for years, but each Caye has a watchman which is appointed by the government.

Belize is subtropical, with a mean annual temperature of 80 degrees F.

Close to 1 million tourists’ visit Belize annually of which 70% of are Americans.

There is only one international airport in Belize. It is located in Belize City.

The entire country has only 4 highways.

Those who like to eat at fast food centers like McDonalds, Burger King, Starbucks or KFC should not travel to Belize. There are none of these in Belize. 

Belize’s Black Howler Monkeys are one of the top 10 loudest animals in the world.

More than 400 species of fish live in the waters of Belize’s 185-mile long Barrier Reef.

The forests in Belize yield an amazing variety of cashew trees. Some are deliciously edible while some are actually poisonous.

The country’s economy is largely dependent on agriculture, agro-based industry, tourism, construction and merchandising.

These are the top three revenue earners of Belize: tourism, agriculture, and cocaine. The first two are government controlled and the third is controlled by the South-American mafia cartel.

Many Belizeans travel to the US for work but they return back to their tropical paradise to retire.

Half a dozen great cats, including jaguars and pumas, are indigenous to Belize and Central America. Belize is the only country in the world with a nature sanctuary dedicated to preserving these magnificent animals, a protected area called the Cockscomb Wildlife Sanctuary and Jaguar Preserve.

As part of the second-largest barrier reef system in the world (only Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is bigger), the Belize Barrier Reef is an incredibly diverse marine ecosystem stretching for more than 180 miles off the coast of Belize. The reef is an ideal place for fishing, snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking, and sailing.

The Great Blue Hole is the world’s largest sea sinkhole and a paradise for deep sea divers. It’s a huge 984 feet across and 407 feet deep depression in the middle of the sea. It is said that the deeper one goes, the water becomes more clear and the formations, more complex.  It is also a part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System.

Superstition fact: it’s bad luck to swim on Good Friday in Belize.

The Belize Rainforest is home to the “jabiru stork”, which is the largest flying bird in all of North, Central and South America.

Most of Belize is unspoiled tracts of jungle, rainforest, and verdant hills. In order to enforce speed limits inside towns and villages and near schools, Belize uses speed bumps instead of traffic lights.

High-quality food is cheap in Belize, including fruit, grains and nuts, fresh coconut water, free range chicken and eggs, natural grass fed beef.

The Belize Rainforest is home to over 500 species of orchid.

The national flower of Belize is the black orchid, a true black beauty indeed.

Belizeans are laid-back people with a go-slow attitude. Most of the country live in small towns and villages and socialize a lot.

Thumb locking is a sign of greeting in Belize.

It is considered rude to greet Belizeans by their first name.

The national animal of Belize is a biological mix of a horse and a rhinoceros but is named Mountain Cow. Locally, it’s known as tapir and looks like a giant Guiana pig, weighing over 500 pounds.

The worst enemy of Belize is also Mother Nature. Hurricanes and storms destroy a large portion of coastal infrastructure each year.

My inspiration for this week's card is based on this fact about Belize... The canopy of the forests has inspired the national motto of Belize which is “Under the Shade I flourish”. It can be found everywhere and everything which is official.

I attempted a technique that I heard about at the Crop on the Cape virtual event last weekend, but I think I did something wrong. The idea is to take an acrylic block and lay down color on it using dye-ink markers (I used Stampin' UP! markers), then spritz it with water and place it on a piece of white CS to absorb the pooled water. I tried numerous times with more and then less water and none of my end results looked like what I thought they should. I finally chose the best of them and went ahead and finished the card.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Stamp Set: Unity No Better Words stamped with Gina K Amalgum Ink

Markers (for background): SU Dapper Denim and Tranquil Tide

Paper: Cougar 110# White and SU Dapper Denim and Tranquil Tide CS

Dies: MFT Stitched Rectangles and MFT Stitched Rounded Rectangles

Embellishments: Recollections Rhinestones