Introduction

Belize is a country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, composed of many cultures and speaking many languages. Spanish is spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official language. Belize doesn’t have many foods that they can call their own because most of their foods came from other cultures. After looking and asking around, I found Congri. It is a Spanish dish that has been in my stepmother’s family for many years.

Country Information

·       Geographic Facts

Here are three geographic facts about Belize:

1.               It is bordered by Mexico to the north, Guatemala to the south and west, and  

          the Caribbean Sea to the east.

2.               The population density is the lowest in the Central American region and one

          of the lowest in the world. However, the country’s population growth rate,    

          2.21% is the highest in the region and one of the highest in the western

          hemisphere.

3.               Belize is shaped like a rectangle that extends about 280 kilometers (170 mi)

          north-south and about 100 kilometers (62 mi) east-west, with a total land    

          boundary length of 516 kilometers (321 mi).

·       3 “Serious” Facts

Here are three serious facts about Belize:

1.              The first recorded European settlement was established by shipwrecked

          English seamen in 1638. Over the next 150 years, more English settlements  

          were established.

2.              Great Britain first sent an official representative to the area in the late 18th

          century, but Belize was not formally termed the “Colony of British Honduras“

          until 1840. It became a crown colony in 1862.

3.              The official name of the territory was changed from British Honduras to

          Belize in June 1973, and full independence was granted on September 21,

          1981.

·       3 “Fun” Facts

Here are three fun facts about Belize:

1.         Belize has  excellent fishing, safe waters for boating, scuba diving, and snorkeling,

          numerous rivers for rafting, and kayaking, various jungle and wildlife

                   reserves of fauna and flora, for hiking, bird watching, and helicopter touring, 

                   as well as many Maya ruins.

2.              It also has the largest cave system in Central America.

3.              One of the holidays people in Belize celebrate is Commonwealth Day. This holiday Celebrated

          nationwide as the Queen’s birthday. National Sports Council holds horse

          races in Belize City at the National Stadium and in Orange Walk Town at the

          People’s Stadium. Cycle races are held between Cayo and Belmopan.

·       A “Potpourri” Item

Here is an unusual fact about Belize:

1.              The origin of the name Belize is unclear, but one idea is that the name is from

          the Maya word be’lix, meaning “muddy water”.

Food Information

·      Recipe: Congri

Ingredients:

1.      2 cans Blue Runner “Creole cream style red beans”                                  5. 1 tsp garlic

2.      1 can coconut milk                                                                                   6. 7 cups water

3.      1 small onion (chopped)                                                                          7. 1 ½ Creole seasoning salt

4.      5 strips bacon                                                                                            8. ¼ tsp black pepper

                9. 1 tsp ¼ salt

Directions:

1.      Cook bacon until crisp and has 2 tsp of grease on bottom of pan

2.      Take out Bacon

3.      Put onions and garlic in pan & sauté until soft.

4.      Add 2 cans of beans and stir

5.      Add can of coconut milk

6.      Add water

7.      Bring to a boil  

8.      Add seasonings ( to taste)

9.      Add rice & stir

10.    After mixture comes to boil, reduce heat (low) and cover

11.    Fold mixture after every 10 minutes.

12.    Cook until rice is cooked and not watery

·       My Kitchen Story

I decided to pick Belize because my stepmother is from there, and I thought it would be wise to pick a country that I would have a reference for. I decided to make Congri. It is a dish that I knew I could make, and it is one of the only dishes that I thought people might eat in the morning. The first time I made this dish, I had to have my stepmother there because she never uses measurement or writes any of her recipes down. So, I had to go step-by-step and measure everything she said was in it. The only thing I had trouble with was the rice to water measurement. It is a very easy dish to make, and one can make a lot of it for very little cost.

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Contact Info: To contact the author of “A Taste of Belize: A Recipe for Congri,” please email Nicholas.Thomas@selu.edu.

David C. Wyld (dwyld@selu.edu) is the Robert Maurin Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. He is a management consultant, researcher/writer, and executive educator. His blog, Wyld About Business, can be viewed at http://wyld-business.blogspot.com/.

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Two more landings and twenty minutes later you’re landing in the small village of Punta Gorda, surrounded by spectacular vistas of private and protected rainforest. A secluded resort is nestled among the lightly treaded nature trails, wild bush, hidden caves, tropical waterways and centuries old archeological sites. Your professional guide will pick you up and whisk you to the resort for a fruity, refreshing beverage. At your leisure wander up the stone walkway, amid hummingbirds and tropical flora to your two-story, hand carved and built cabins, replete with verandas and mosquito netted beds.

Enjoy a morning bike ride along the nature trail with your guide and picnic lunches. Visit the Wildlife rehab center, Ballum Na, at Indian Creek where you can see a bright, beautiful toucan, a pair of jaguars and a black howler monkey, who will hold your hand with her soft, petite hands as she hangs by her tail.

Two archeological sites are nearby documented as far back as 790 B.C. Nim Li Punit (Big Hat) was discovered in the 198o’s where 26 Stelas were unearthed. It is believed that these Stelas were monuments depicting their life. A religious quarter is at the top of rock formations. This pyramid style build-up was made without any mortar. A grassy area in the middle appeared to be a popular sport game with two men and a ball.

Later, step into a canoe or kayak then relish a quiet paddle on the Golden Stream river, through one of the world’s few natural rainforests. Your guide will point out various, birds, flora, fauna and any animals you might encounter; the gold and white anteater, sea otters or a few bats sleeping on a tree trunk. Vines hang leisurely, draped over trees and across the narrow waterway, while nocturnal bats sleep on a ceiber tree on the bank. The riverbed is littered with debris of leaves and branches, recycling life. A sea otter suns himself on a rock up ahead as a snake bird dives for fish.

Welcome to Jungle Camp, the Belizean jungle. Tall, arthritic-looking redwood trees reach for the sky offering an ecosystem for some jungle habitants. A clear, unspoiled stream brings visitors from the uncivilized world into remote areas of the bush by canoe and kayak. Beautiful and unusual flowers and plants, as well as a few spiders and snakes quietly make this their home. An easy and rewarding paddle welcomes you into a private sanctuary where tropically colored toucans, dancing butterflies and black howler monkeys peacefully co-habitat.

A canopied labyrinth with about a dozen thatched-roofed cabanas sit 20 feet above ground, quietly tucked away in the jungle.

A damp, green, woodsy aroma wafts under your nostrils. A narrow ribbon of light is barely visible over the canopy of trees; ceiber, palm, and redwoods. Off in the distance morning songs from the kingfisher and hummingbirds are chirped across the river. The beam from your flashlight catches something on the ground. In the soft dirt are tracks. Fresh, after the rain, one after another heading down the trail. Upon closer inspection you can make out the definition of these heavy, but clear paw prints. A jaguar has been prowling near the camp. Other, smaller tracks are that of the Tapir, the national animal.

The jungle, or bush as locals refer to it, is home to almost 600 species of exotic birds, mammals and plants.

Paddle or ride a power boat out of the jungle to Moho Caye. Your private oasis awaits you. Watch the dolphins play nearby as you dock on the sandy beach. A few mangrove and pine trees offer shade to well camouflaged iguanas and visiting humans. Beautiful conch shells line the path to your thatched-roof, tent/cabana. Relax on your private veranda in an adirondack chair or at the handcrafted redwood dining facility. Respite for man and nature. Miles of teal-blue ocean east towards the sunrise and slumbering mountains to the west.

From cave exploring and jungle hiking to snorkeling with porpoises, stingrays and near the largest natural reef, come see the world through emerald colored glasses.