The most interesting country for tourists, Belize, located in Central America, has retained a huge number of attractions on its territory. Among them, the first place is undoubtedly occupied by the monuments of architecture of the great Mayan civilization that have survived to this day.
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List of Belize attractions
It should be noted that this the state covers an area of only 23,000 square kilometers, and its population is only approaching 316,000... Despite this, travelers from all over the world constantly come to Belize: often the number of tourists visiting the country per year is twice the entire population of this amazing state.
Shunantunich Palace
Can you deny yourself a wonderful holiday, which combines the amazing "discoveries" of the Mayan step pyramids, lost in pristine rainforests, and an acquaintance with the second largest barrier reef on our planet? Naturally, any, even the most demanding tourist, with great interest will go on an exciting adventure to a small, unfortunately poor, but hospitable country.
A bit of history
Those who are even slightly familiar with history know that Central America was discovered and colonized by the Spaniards. True, Spain, which every year "received more and more lands under its flag", simply did not have time to establish its own regime in many of them. On the territory of modern Belize, the remnants of the Mayan tribes gave a serious rebuff to the colonists, so the Spaniards did not particularly bother themselves and practically abandoned this "deserted, remote and unnecessary area." Which, by the way, was immediately taken advantage of by the British: in 1638, by the river called Belize, the authorities of Foggy Albion decided to establish an English colony. Without postponing everything "for later", the British very quickly studied the area and realized how much profit could be derived from "their" new territory. Thousands of slaves from long-suffering Africa were brought in to harvest timber. The Spaniards decided that Belize had to be brought back under their control by all means, but their navy was defeated by the British, and the territory of modern Belize continued to give Great Britain sandalwood, which is so valuable in Europe.
Belize Barrier Reef
Only in In 1964, the British decided to return independence to the state, which at that time was called British Honduras... True, the country received complete freedom and the name Belize only 9 years later. This was due to the claims of Guatemala, which wanted to "regain" Belize and make it one of its departments.
Modern Belize
Today the small state of Belize is one of the poorest countries in the world, which manages to survive mainly thanks to tourism. In addition, shrimps are bred in the country, which are in high demand in the seafood market. Here you can find plantations of bananas and citrus fruits, but agriculture is poorly developed in Belize: it gives only 10% of the total GDP of the state. As mentioned above, tourism brings the lion's share of revenues to the budget: almost 80% of the country's working population is employed in the service sector. This indicator suggests that in Belize you can really get a quality break from the hustle and bustle and get acquainted with the culture and traditions of the Maya, whose descendants still live in a country whose name is translated from the Indian dialect as "muddy water" to this day.
A traveler who speaks English does not have to spend a lot of time explaining to the hotel staff or shop assistants what exactly he would like to receive or purchase. Given the colonial past of Belize, it is easy to guess that almost the entire population of a small state is fluent in English, which, by the way, is recognized as the state language.
Altun-Ha
This is also surprising, a proud people who, despite a long time spent under the control of foreigners, do not consider English to be their native language. The closest of all the indigenous people of Belize perceive their language - Creole, which is often called Belize Creole due to its special dialect. In addition, for scientists studying the languages of the peoples of the world, this country is a real find: 9% of the population can speak the Mayan language fluently. It is this part of the population who are ardent opponents of the fact that English is recognized in a free and independent country with the capital in Belmopan, the state language.
Belize landmarks and culture
The capital of the country, which is dominated by a tropical climate, and most of its territory is still covered by virgin, unexplored forests, undoubtedly has something to see for the traveler interested in sightseeing. Architectural monuments of the colonial era, which today house bank branches, the City Museum, the famous Art Box exhibition ... However, these naturally noteworthy buildings cannot be compared with what can be seen by going on an excursion to tropical rainforests.
Big blue hole
There, as if out of nowhere, before the gaze appear the majestic pyramids of the ancient, and, perhaps, the most mysterious Mayan civilization on the planet. Lubaantun, Karakol, Lamanai, Kueyo and, of course, Altun-Ha... All these are ancient monuments, among which the main place is occupied by the stepped pyramids, on the top of which the Mayans performed their bloody rituals. Tearing out the hearts of living people, they threw them down the steps, and thus asked for help from their gods.
Especially impressionable people say that near these monuments of Mayan history and culture, nervous tremors begin to break through them. This is not surprising, especially if the guide tells at this time that more than 1,000 captives could have been killed on one of the pyramids in a day. When there were not enough captives, the Maya voluntarily gave their daughters and sons as sacrifices to the gods.
However, this cruelty has long been in the past: scientists are unlikely to ever be able to unravel all the mysteries that the Maya left behind, as well as find the places where their priceless treasures are hidden. Also, until now, the origin of the name of the state of Belize is unknown: there are many options, but each of them has not been officially confirmed.
After traveling to the attractions, snorkeling and diving enthusiasts will be able to enjoy the beauty of the underwater world at the Belize Barrier Reef, which, as mentioned above, is considered the second largest on our planet.
Kahal-Pech
Despite the fact that the small country is popular with tourists, it cannot be called "hackneyed". Indeed, in order to see and enjoy the beauty of Belize, you need to know about the existence of this state and be interested in those unforgettable landscapes that will open to the eyes of the traveler. Alas, domestic travel agencies pay too little attention to Belize, and in the prospectuses, already in the first paragraph, the emphasis is placed on the fact that almost half of the population of this state lives below the poverty line, which, of course, scares off clients who lose too much without seeing in all its glory the amazing country of Belize and the legendary Belize Barrier Reef.
