Culture Shock

My head is swirling with various impressions of these last two days of travel. We are seasoned travellers, but I'm culture shocked once again. After months in the comfort of our own home, we are serving once more. Not On Wheels this time, but at the YWAM base in Belize, on the Yucatan peninsula. The base itself is on the Ambergris Caye (read 'key') in the middle of nowhere. Our trip entailed two flights, punctuated by an overnight stay in Houston, TX, then a twenty minute flight in a 14 seater Cessna to get to the island.

Aerial view of Ambergris Caye

My pillow and I

Our wheeled suitcases bumped along rough cobbled streets to get to the water taxi dock. It must have been at least 30° C in the midday heat; “feels like 35°”. Why did we not get a taxi to this spot? Walking “across town” had been recommended to us. Four blocks, or half a mile, didn't seem like too far. I thought my head would split with the heat and exertion.

So far we've been mostly left alone to get settled in our little casita with a view of the beach.

Our Casita

We haven't had The Tour yet, so all we've seen are clusters of these little cabins, a swimming pool, a rustic kitchen, the outside eating area, and the small beach. We don't yet know what we'll be doing, although it looks as though the physical needs are great at this ancient, peeling, rusting resort. Getting settled involves trying to decide where to put stuff with no hooks, hangers (there were only five) or towel bars. We were instructed to bring sheets, pillows and sleeping bags. One of us brought a pillow. It seemed inconvenient to lug it on and off all those flights, when you're supposed to have only one personal item along with your carry-on. I'm glad to have mine, though. Our 'sleeping bags' are actually mere fleece liners we had bought to use in Slovakia one summer, where the nights were also hot and humid. I wish we had brought a top sheet, but the thin blanket felt good, while Terry used no blanket. It was more useful to him under his head.

The bed is comfortable and the bathroom, rustic. The toilet goes through its burbling cycle eventually, however, as long as you are “gentle and kind” to it, as the sign says. There is water that comes from our very own shower. How it heats up has yet to be determined.

“The quicker you embrace your new situation, the easier it will be,” said one wise staff member.

“Excellent advice,” I think to myself as I try to find my way in this new space.