New Book Tags Belize as Heavenly
“Heavenly Belize” This is the name pilot-photographer Marius Jovaisa chose for his book of photographs about Belize. A couple weeks back Ambergris Today told you about this book’s launch on Wednesday, December 9, where Marius released the first copy, presenting it to Tourism Minister Manuel Heredia, at a ceremony at the Radisson Fort George Hotel. This week, on Monday, January 12, 2010, Marius was again accompanied by Minister Heredia in San Pedro for his book launch and signing at The Holiday Hotel in La Isla Bonita.
The book is full of beautiful glossy pictures of the Barrier Reef, the Blue Hole, the Chalillo reservoir, various lagoons, and rivers and other “heavenly” areas of the country including, Ambergris Caye, Caye Caulker, Placencia and Cayo.
“I hope that in this book I have successfully conveyed the country’s special attractions. Have an inspiring flight above Heavenly Belize! ”Jovaisa said. “After viewing the beauty of Belize from the cockpit of a soaring ultra light aircraft, I could not help but share this spectacular vision with the world. I fell in love with Belize against my will.”
Jovaisa said that the book is a compilation out of about 10,000 pictures that he took during a span of three separate trips to Belize. Heavenly Belize is his second big album of aerial pictures that were taken from an experimental ultra-light aircraft designed for aerial photography. The aircraft is owned by Amin Bedran of Maya Flats Limited Belize who is a distributor for the book.
“I would like to extend a very special welcome to Mr. Marius Jovaisa, the talented photographer who flew around Belize in an ultra-light plane capturing the images and taking the pictures in order to bring us these wonderful photographs that are laid out before us in the pages of this remarkable book,” stated Hon. Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation and Culture during the book launch in San Pedro.
Marius Jovaisa was born in Vilnius, Lithuania in 1973. His skills as a pilot and as a photographer have taken him around the world and assured his place in the art world. His book, Heavenly Belize, is being sold for $125 at the Belize Tourism Board and will be available in stores shortly. To buy a copy of the book, please contact Amin Bedran at 824-3255.
“The foreword, written by Mr. Jovaisa is a stirring account of his relationship with Belize and I firmly believe that because of his breathtaking pictorial, Belizeans now have a new catch phrase with which to describe our home, ‘Heavenly Belize’.”
Foreword (from Book) by Marius Jovaisa
Many things in life happen unexpectedly. Such has been my intense love affair with Belize…The photos in this book embody this inspiration and seek to describe a land that is at once both Caribbean and Central American…with dashes of Europe and Asia thrown into the mix. With pine forests resembling those of Canada, limestone hills reminiscent of Thailand and green lakes evoking memories of my father’s Lithuania, Belize puts forward many different faces. With its undisturbed rainforests, enormous cave systems and the hemisphere’s longest barrier reef, Belize offers visitors a mind-boggling variety of worlds to endlessly explore.
I have been fortunate enough to visit many countries in the world. While each has its distinctive charms, I have to confess that Belize is as unique a place as I’ve ever seen. I hope that in this book I have successfully conveyed the country’s special attraction. Have an inspiring flight above Heavenly Belize!
