Visiting the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins in San Ignacio
Author: Lauren Gwaltney | Major: Environmental, Soil, and Water Science
This summer I had the privilege of attending the faculty-led study abroad program in Dangriga, Belize, where 15 other students and I worked to meet the needs of several community partners over the span of a month. Unlike traditional study abroad programs, our learning did not take place within a classroom, and our effort was physically and emotionally demanding, not just academically demanding. I chose to attend this program partly because I knew that it was a rare opportunity to gain credit hours doing work that provides real benefits to people in need, and I ended up learning just as much about myself as I did about the people and cultures of Belize. I learned to put myself in uncomfortable situations in order to grow and that I don’t need as many instructions as I may think in order to succeed.
Our service goals included constructing poultry houses, raised garden beds, and a high tunnel greenhouse for St. Matthews, a local primary school, developing and teaching health lessons focused on hygiene, bullying, mental health, and abuse, engaging in one-on-one reading with struggling primary school readers, creating a mural for the local hospital, working with Mayflower Bocawina National Park to organize the seedling nursey and redesign the visitors center, making home visits with Palliative Care, an end-of life care organization, and volunteering for the Belize Family Life Association (BFLA), a family planning organization that provides information and resources to the community. Each project offered a unique perspective of life in Belize, and we were given the opportunity to engage with a wide range of people, from 6 year old students at St. Matthews to young adults volunteering with BFLA and elderly and disabled individuals confined to their homes through Palliative Care. Getting to interact with so many different groups in the community allowed us to have a truly immersive study abroad experience and gain insight into what it’s like living in a developing country at every stage of life.
Both working on our various projects and in our free time, we learned so much about the people of Belize and their way of life, and there couldn’t have been a more perfect location to do so: Dangriga, the culture capital. In Dangriga we met people of the Garifuna culture, bold, sociable people descendent from enslaved Africans who escaped their fate by surviving a shipwreck, Creole people descendent from the intermingling of the Spanish and local Caribbean people, the descendants of ancient Mayan peoples who still keep the ancient languages alive, as well as the apparent deep respect of nature, and so many more. We learned about the Garifuna cultural music firsthand through a drum-making workshop with the first female Garifuna drum maker and a Garifuna dance lesson on the roof of our hotel, experienced Creole food made by the hotel owner herself, and learned about ancient human history and Belizean ecology from Mayan guides in the rainforest.
Of course, the entire program wasn’t manual labor and reflection time; some of the program was downright fun. Free time could be spent walking gravel roads in Dangriga to find the best $2 burrito imaginable, browsing markets with handmade goods and freshly picked mangoes, sunbathing at the beach, or even doing a hike to a swimming hole that requires rope handrails on both sides to hoist yourself over two foot rocks in the jungle. The included weekend adventures were amazing as well- time inland in San Ignacio was spent exploring ancient Mayan ruins above ground and in an incredible cave system, tours at a nearby cacao farm and hot sauce factory provided delicious local food experiences, and the program ended with some much-needed relaxation time on the island of Caye Caulker. I never could have imagined that I would have so many unforgettable experiences in such a short amount of time, and the scenery along the way couldn’t have been more perfect.
If I could sum up my advice for other students considering doing this program or a similar study abroad experience, it would be to not be afraid to leave home, since you may be surprised how easily another country can become a second home. Not only did I have the honor of becoming friends with countless Belizeans during my time in Belize, but I made 15 new friends in the other students there with me. With friends like the ones I made, somehow working in 90% humidity and clouds of mosquitoes was still a blast. However, if I were to go back and do it all again, I would definitely pack more bug spray!