In the land of the mayas

Well, it is not easy always to find topics to write about. I can say that the previous two weeks have been very busy, getting used to my new position and its myriad details and secrets... because this project is not as small as it seemed at first sight. But it is extremely engaging, in any case!

As I have mentioned, the level of occupation has prevented me from taking pictures or doing a lot of things around... so I have decided to, simply, look around to discover what to write about. Or simply, the people I work with, the Kec'chi mayas. The descendants of the once-almighty maya civilization, which ruled in most of Mesoamerica for almost 2000 years.

Even though the causes for the decline of this culture are still uncertain, it is generally assumed not to have been a dominant power after the uprising of the aztec civilization. However, particularly in the most remote areas of the Yucatán peninsula, some cities and groups remained. These were the groups that opposed more fiercely to the Spanish invasion of the area, and actually succeeding in keeping the spanish conquerors away, a circumstance that kept free the territory that eventually became Belice. This favored the settlement of pirates and british loggers in the coast, and the full area became for many years a dark spot in the spanish dossier of conquests, and finally becoming a British colony only in the late 18th century.

Nowadays, the mayas are peaceful and charming people, and they take big slice of the Belizean pie of cultural groups. And even thought they don't combat courageously against the spaniards any longer (for my relief) or sacrifice human beings on the top of the pyramids or in the depths of the sacred caves, like in days gone by, they still maintain a lot of their traditions and their traditional way of life. That means, the ones that live in the villages and have not emigrated to the coast of the big cities.

Well, I think it's enough of cultural and historical pain, and I am going to leave you with a couple of pictures I took yesterday in the mayan ruins of Nim-Li Punit, only a couple of villages down the road from the place I live in. Enjoy them!

The Ya'axché Conservation Trust

As promised, it's time for the weekly post in the Blog. What to say? The first week in a new job is always hectic: meeting your workmates and getting to know them, getting used to the new place, explore it, buy necessary stuff, the Friday volleyball against a generally friendly NGO (not that friendly during the match)... and sinking in the mountain of documents you have to get familiar and proficient week.

So, let's introduce you to the Ya'axché Conservation Trust (don't ask me how to pronounce Ya'axché, I'm still mastering it), the NGO I'm working with. Ya'axché was founded in 1997 by a number of local stakeholders concerned about the excessive demographical growth in the area, that was leading to an unsustainable use of their natural resources and a retreat of the forest. They were committed to the preservation of the Golden Stream Forest, the last remains of forest connecting the vas extensions of forest  in the Maya Mountains and the less extended coastal forests. A migratory route used by jaguars, tapirs, peccaries, birds and other animals to move between this two areas according to the seasons.

With time, a lot of hard work and effort, Ya'axché has growth to own the Goldem Stream Corridor Preserve, to co-manage with the Government the Bladen National Park and collaborate with many other organizations of the area, as well as being one of the leading local NGOs of the country.

Ya'axché works in an area known as the Maya Golden Landscape, which ranges from the Maya Mountains to the Port Honduras Marine Reserve, and works in many different levels: environmental education in the local communities, lobbying in the political level, patrolling of the forest, biodiversity monitoring... interesting? I think so!

The Maya Golden Landscape and surroundings.

On the road... again

Belizean flag.

You land, after a strenuous two-day long trip, and the first thing you notice is a sticky and stifling heat. You have survived the insufferable bureaucracy of the US customs, but the best part is still to arrive: looking for the bus station, getting into a bus and staying awake till you get to the adequate stop, in the middle of the forest, in the middle of the night... yeah, definitely you are on the road again!

You realize you have arrived, for the first time, to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, and more concretely to Central America. My new job is in Belize, a little English-speaking country and member of the Commonwealth for having been a British colony, and renowned for its financial paradise status. But that's other story.

Belize. Important, check Punta Gorda, in the
south: my new town.

Despite its fiscal condition, Belize is still a developing country. But a high-end one, we can say. Good roads, safe drinking water easily available in any top... a country of about the size of the Netherlands, with little more than 300.000 inhabitants, covered a 60% forest cover and enjoying of a enviable 40% of its surface under some kind of official protection. It borders with Mexico and Guatemala and, even if English is the official and most widespread language, even though Spanish is widely spoken, and both of them co-existing with other languages as Garifuna, Creol, Maya, German... even Hindi.

The economy of this country relies mainly on tourism (ever increasing) and agriculture, as well as other forms of exploitation of natural resources (traditionally, timber). Also, its population increases a 3% per year, mainly due to immigration. 

This demographic growth, as well as the increase in size of the tourism in the area and the demands of international markets (which are leading to a rosewood crisis, mainly due to the influence of the Chinese market), have lead to an ever-increasing pressure on natural resources... and that's the reason I'm here (a.k.a., the reason I found a job here). But that's a topic for other entry.

1000 visits!!!

This special entry is to celebrate that the blog has already more than 1000 visits (actually, way more: 1200). I just want to say... thanks to all! Next week I head for my new adventure, and I can promise you that the blog will remain active! However, I am afraid that the rate of an entry every 3 days is way too demanding, and difficult to cope with too often (as you have already guessed in several ocassions). So I will have to drop down to an entry per week...

Thank specially to Asier Solana, for making Brazil (or Peru) the second country with more visits, just after Spain.

See you soon!