Initial Evaluation and Assessment Report (cont.)

Food; There's plenty of food in Belize, no-one has a problem feeding their family, but for a person used to the choices in our supermarkets back home it can be a challenge to work with what's on offer here. Because not as much food is imported there's less of a selection of fresh fruit and veg, and the packaged food is limited, but all it takes is a little bit of planning to make good meals. Because we are only here a short while, there's no point spending money on kitchen equipment so we are just making do with basic stuff which is adequate really. We have a proper bottled gas cooker and a fridge with a small freezer so it's not too much of a hardship.

What fruit and veg is available is by nature local and in season so it's mostly excellent. We arived at the beginning of mango season so there is an abundance of that quite literally lying around in places. There can't be many things nicer than a perfectly ripe mango picked from a tree that day! And the Mennonites (of whom more later) go around selling watermelon which is a particular favourite of mine. Half of a large one in an evening is the most I've managed so far. I tell myself it's as much a drink as a food! Plantain sliced and fried in coconut oil is a really good breakfast, too. So you can see that we are hardly starving here, although Tana would like some British crisps shipped over if any of you are feeling particularly generous.

Transport; We are right on the main Southern Highway which runs almost to the border with Guatemala. So we do get traffic going past, but at the rate of about a dozen cars an hour, so it's quite a lot quieter than the Bonnygate! Fuel here is shockingly expensive by North American standards but still cheaper than home, but because our truck is older and has a bigger engine we are probably spending about the same as we do in Scotland. Add that to the fact that as in many poorer countries the cost of buying a car is much higher than in wealthier ones, and you can see that car costs are by far the biggest expense for brothers serving here. The locals mostly make do with the only slightly dangerous local buses or catching a ride on the back of a passing pickup, ours included. If they happen to do this while Ashley or Emily are driving I wonder if they regret it!

I almost forgot speed bumps! The main method of speed control is to have one or two massive speed bumps in a village. They are almost all signposted but I have been caught unawares once so far and it was quite an unpleasant encounter for all concerned, not least the truck. No real damage done, though. Once you are off the highway then you are on rough roads, which are prone to flooding and damage in stormy conditions. After last week's storm the rivers rose very quickly blocking several bridges in the rural areas but they have since settled down.
 
Mark and Sarah are arriving tomorrow for several days with us so it'll be nice not to have to speak slowly for a while. We're not sure how they'll cope with things down here but it'll be fun being the experts for a change!