Hopkins Village, Belize

Belize was not a destination on my bucket list of places to visit.  From the couple of people I had known to have visited there, it sounded a little too resorty kind of place, crowded, and touristy.  This is not that appealing to me. When my husband mentioned he would like to go to Belize on vacation, I was reluctant.  Even a little more reluctant when he said he would plan everything.  I always plan the trips.  For me, planning is just as fun as taking the trip. However, I went along with uncertainty of not knowing what was in store.

One evening after dinner, he places his laptop in front of me, and says I think I found where we should go in Belize. He says it is right on the beach, it is affordable, and it has a good restaurant.  He knows I will approve, if my appetite is happy. I looked at the website for the hotel he chose. It was called Beaches and Dreams in Hopkins Village. It is classifies as a boutique hotel.  I will admit my first impression was not a favorable one. It wasn’t what I think of when I think of a boutique hotel. It looked a little more basic than what I sometimes like. I was not convinced this was the right place.  The rooms were reasonably priced (starting around $160), especially for being right on the beach.  I took to the internet to see what it had to say. My first place I go is TripAdvisor.  TripAdvisor had it listed as the number one hotel for the area. Not that there a lot of hotels in this area, but it made me feel a little better about his selection.  Then I began reading the reviews, which were all positive about the hotel, from the food, the service, and overall experience.  Now I was getting a little excited about the idea of this trip.  Perhaps not one I would have planned, but one I think I might enjoy.  We booked our room for a week trip in February.

Hopkins Village is a coastal village in Eastern Belize. In order to travel to the village, we flew to Belize City. From there caught a local airline (which is basically a Cessna plane) to Dangriga. Where we were picked up by a driver sent by Beaches and Dreams to drive us about an hour south to Hopkins Village.  At this point in time I pretty much felt I was off the grid.

We were greeted by Angela, one of the owners.  We were escorted to our room, provided water and beer, and told to make ourselves at home. Happy Hour began at 4 and dinner at 5. She had reserved us a table.  We opened our bags, changed into our swim suits, and literally took about 10 steps to the beach and plopped ourselves into a beach chair.  The beach white and sandy, the sound of waves crashing, and the palm trees swaying.  We were the only ones on the beach. This was my little piece of paradise. The location of Beaches and Dreams is excellent, because they are at the end of the beach.  Beachgoers cannot walk further because of trees that block access.  So there is very little foot traffic or crowds of people walking by. Also because the hotel is so small, you are not having to beat the other guests to get access to the hotel beach chairs. For me it just added to my relaxed beach experience, and felt like I had my own private beach.

 





Our beach cabana was not directly on the beach (these were already booked). The room was very spacious with a nice size shower. There were no extra frills with the room (bring your hairdryer), but it was clean, comfortable and quiet.  To be honest with the beach just steps away how much time would we really be spending in our room?

Tony, Angela's husband and owner, is the chef of their onsite restaurant Barracuda Grill. Tony and Angela owned a restaurant in Alaska, where Tony was the chef and Angela the pastry chef.  They sold this and moved to Belize. Who wouldn't trade snow for sun?  You would think that Tony is a native. His use of spices and way of cooking tastedso local. Fresh fish that was caught that day and amazing smoked meats. We only dined out once for dinner during the stay, and this was because the Barracuda Grill was closed that day.  The restaurant we dined at was a French restaurant, was upscale for the area, but nothing compared to The Barracuda Grill.  Barracuda Grill seriously has some of the best food in the village, and every dish was amazing.  You have to save room for Angela’s dessert. These are amazing as well.

As for activities, there are plenty of stuff for every type of traveler, from explorer, thrill seeker, and those who just want to relax. (This last one is me). Angela and Tony provide you personal service and pretty much will plan any activity you want to do. If you are a planner like me, then you are just going you have to leave that trait back home. This is Belize. There is no schedule. You provide them with what activities you want to do when you check in. Based on weather, who is available to drive, who else wants to go where you want depends on when you go. We were fortunate enough go to the Mayan ruins (couple hour drive) and diving on the barrier reef with our own guide.  The cost of our activities is just added to the bill and honestly not overly expensive.  In a lot of other countries where you would have a personal guide you would be looking at spending well over $500. Not the case here.

Outside of Beaches and Dreams is Hopkins Village.  The village is small and does not offer a lot of activities and amenities, but definitely worth checking out. The village is about a 10 -15 minute walk from the hotel.  Just up the road from the hotel you can rent golf carts for around $25, and drive around for a couple of hours.  Be warned, if you drive through the village when the local kids are on their way to school then be prepared for all of them to jump on your cart and go for a ride.  Quite a fun time!  

When in the village if you are looking for a breakfast or lunch spot, I highly recommend you stop by Tina’s Kitchen in the village.  You might miss it, when you go by. The building is probably about 300 sq feet. As I began to learn in Belize do not judge anything by its cover.  A place may look like a runned down shack, but sometimes this is where you find your diamond in the rough. When you walk in you feel like you are literally walking into Tina’s actual kitchen.  The menu is up on the wall on the left, and Tina is cooking up some really good food on the right.  You tell her what you want, and then proceed out the back door to the tables outside. The local chickens will entertain you while you wait for your meal.  When you do receive your, you are provided with fresh local seafood this is where I had Barracuda for the first time, and very fresh produce. Lunch was so good we told Tina we would be back for breakfast before we left.  When we did return back for breakfast, Tina looked surprised, and said you came back!  I am glad we did.  I had the best veggie omelet.  The eggs and the veggies were some of the freshest I have ever had.  I just could not believe just how fresh tasting the meal was.  As we were sitting at the Tina’s, gave it an up and down glance, shook their head a bit of disgust, and road off.  Suckers..you do not know what you are missing.

So if you are looking for an affordable, relaxing, beautiful, amazing food, a destination full of culture and great people, I highly recommend you visit Hopkins Village and stay at Beaches and Dreams.  We recommended this to one of our friends for their honeymoon.  They loved it has much as we did.

A follow-up since we visited Beaches and Dreams have added few new “luxury” rooms and swimming pool.

International Travel: The people that make an impact and make you wonder

One of the things I enjoy most about traveling is taking in the surroundings, observing the culture, and people watching. I enjoy watching people move around in their own surroundings, watching how they move about in their daily lives. . I am a very curious person by nature. While I sit at a café or at a park bench watching the people go by, I am always wondering about the people I watch. What do they do? Do they live in the here or nearby? What do they do? Do they like living here, because I think I would?

 We start our second day in LaGuardia, we head to the town square to a local café. We sit at an outside table sipping our cappuccinos watching the villagers move about through the square. The evening before we had seen a group of older gentleman in the sweater cardigans looking all dapper roaming around the village, moving from bar to bar. It seemed they have been doing this since they were in their 20’s. You wonder if their wives were on the other side of the village participating in a similar ritual, or rather sitting around a dining room table with a bottle of wine gossiping about.

 There was also another older gentleman also dressed in a nice cardigan and looking very dapper, out walking alone in the village that night. He walked by us several times while we ate our dinner. He didn’t make any eye contact with us and his leisurely walks by. I did wonder what he was doing or thinking while out walking around. Why he wasn’t walking around with other group of gentlemen we saw earlier. It was as though he was out for an evening survey of his village to ensure all was good before he heads in for the evening. I wonder how long he has been walking the cobble stones paths of the village. Has the village changed or is it the same?

Throughout the inside walls of LaGuardia are religious icons scattered throughout the walls of the villages. The icons are situated in enclaves within the walls of the village. Nestled away to be secure from the elements, but visible to those who want to admire and perhaps pray. It seems like every corner you turn there is a different religious icon. In the town square, there is a clock at the entrance of the square. Above the clock is another religious icon. I wondered if this icon had more sentimental or religious meaning because of the location in the center of the village. I never really was able to see it, and never got my question answered. Well not truly answered.

That morning, while we were sitting in the square, I see the same man walking alone in the town square. It seemed now he was taking his afternoon survey of the village. He strolled through the square and then disappeared into one of the pathways off the square. I continue to sip my coffee, and with about 15 minutes he strolls back into the square. He never walks close enough to make eye contact. As he gets to the center of the square the church bells began to ring. The man walks closer to the archway where the clock and religious icon are located. He stopped a few feet away from the archway, where he can still look up and see the clock and the icon. He stands takes off his hat, looks up at the archway. He then bows his head. Once the church bells stop, he raises his head, places his hat on top of his head, and begins his walk about the village. As he went through these motions in this very public place, I felt in a way was I was intruding on his personal and intimate space. What was he praying about? Who was he praying for? Was he praying at all?

 In Under the Tuscan Sun, Frances Mayes witness an older gentleman that walks by her house and stops to leave flowers and some type of memorial. As he is doing this she is always wondering what is that he is doing? Who is he leaving the flowers for? At the same time trying to get him to acknowledge her with a wave or a smile. The man at LaGuardia is this to me. Although I never found out anything about him, I did not get any of my questions answered, or a wave, I still wonder. Some days when I am lost in thought, the man enters my thoughts. I wonder if he doing his nightly survey of the village, praying in the town square, or if he is still with us? I will always wonder.