Easter in the 1950’s
Easter is Easter. It is about going to church to commemorate the passion and crucifixion of Jesus Christ and then to celebrate His resurrection on Easter Sunday. Easter is a religious festivity, but was Easter the same in San Pedro twenty five years ago. Of course not. In the 1950, San Pedro was a quaint […]
The Remaining Subdivisions
The once small fishing village of San Pedro, Ambergris Caye is now an extended town with some ten subdivisions. Yes, ten subdivisions. We once thought of Belize City as the large city with its colorful subdivisions like Freetown, Albert, Mesopotamia, Fort George, Pickstock, Landivar, Yarborough, Port Loyola, and Bella Vista. Who would have thought that […]
Area No. 6 – Escalante Subdivision
This is certainly not twenty five years ago, and is one of the few subdivisions that is not named after a Saint. Is there a San Escalante that we can name it after? This area is a full residential area with only a few small businesses operating there. It must have been about 1995 or […]
Area No. 5 – San Pedrito
The fifth area in San Pedro to be developed into a residential development was San Pedrito. It was so called because it was like an immediate extension of San Pedro proper. With the huge success of San Pablo, Glenn Godfrey knew that more land for the residents of San Pedro would please many people and […]
Area No. 4 – San Pablo
The lovely residential area of San Pablo was the fourth area in San Pedro to be developed after the town core, Boca Del Rio, and San Juan. This area was conceived in the minds of Hon. Area Representative, Glenn Godfrey along with the PUP Town Board at the time. It was conceived with the idea […]
Area No. 3 – San Juan
We have seen the first two areas of our town that were developed, the first one being the town core and the second one the Boca Del Rio Area. The next area in chronological order is the San Juan Area. This area comprises the entire area behind Boca Del Rio Area, or the area that […]
The Boca Del Rio Area
The area of Boca del Rio never existed twenty five years ago. From present day Paradise Hotel to Boca del Rio it was all bush. We called the waterway Boca del Rio, but it is not a river. It is a canal believed to have been cut by a hurricane or dug by the Maya […]
Once A Very Small Town
San Pedro Town, as you know it today, was once a very small village. To get an idea of how small it was, you would have to leave out Boca Del Rio Area, San Juan, Airstrip Area, San Pedrito, San Pablo, San Marcos, DFC area, and even Escalante Subdivision and Mosquito Coast area. When you […]
“The Lord Be With You”
I go to masses all the time on Sundays, and now even on Wednesdays along with the entire high school and we fill the church with three hundred students. It is always pleasing to go to church because we go to sing and pray as we worship the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, but how different […]
Turn On The Lights Please
Actually I believe that BEL does a formidable job in lighting up San Pedro. At least in my vicinity, we have great lighting. Yes we have the blackouts, but what the heck. It only makes us appreciate mother-nature a little more. When we were growing back in the 1950’s or twenty five years ago (who […]
The Value of a Penny, Nickle, Dime & Quarter
My good friend, Mr. Emory King, writes in the Belize Times a column called “Once Upon A Time” and he mostly goes into stories of Colonial times with valuable history on Belize and our mother country, England. Last week, however, he had some thoughts about old Belize City and recalled the times when little boys […]
Those Fancy Houses
If you walk around Ambergris Caye today you will find some really nice fancy houses especially in the new and developing subdivisions like San Pablo, Escalante and Mosquito Coast area. The town core remains with the same structures of the past for the most part except for the new spanking business premises, which are modern […]
New Year’s Eve Dance
In the old little village of San Pedro there was no other dance or fiesta that was more long awaited with enthusiasm than the Baile de los Viejos (translated as the Dance of the Old People). This was the party in San Pedro Village that attracted the largest attendance, since every married couple attended this […]
Those Special Christmas Toys
Yes, there are a few more things I miss about Christmas 25 years ago besides the hams, apples, grapes, house parties, the green Christmas tree, the posadas, the bitterly cold days, and the spiritual Christmas songs. I also miss those specially made toys, which our parents did especially for us. First there were the spinning […]
More Things I Miss About X-Mas
Yes, I miss the hams, apples, pears, grapes, live green Christmas tree, and the house parties on December 25. But there are a few other things that we miss about Christmas 25 years ago. The “Posadas” was a big thing in the 1950’s and 60’s. The posadas commemorated Mary and Joseph looking for a room […]
Things I Really Miss About X-Mas
One of the things I really miss about Christmas 25 years ago, first and foremost is the preparation and enjoying of the ham. Today, we eat ham at many other special occasions, so much that when you eat it for Christmas it is no longer special. The salted hams used to arrive at the stores […]
The Useful “Kis Kis”
About nine years ago the author of this column first wrote about the Kis Kis in the San Pedro Sun and Governor Genera,l Sir Colville Young, sent a letter of appreciation to Mr. Nuñez for this story. A few years later he decorated Mr. Nuñez with the medal of the British Empire for community service […]
Our Pupil Teachers
First of all, what is a pupil teacher? A pupil teacher was a person who had just graduated from primary school or Standard Six and entered the teaching profession in the same school. It was the principal of the school who acknowledged that such a person was smart and had the characteristics to become a […]
All Saints Month (Las Animas)
Last week I heard David Marin and Julio Sosa at the morning show at The Reef Radio happily discussing about tales and legends about the month of November, considered in Belize and in Mexico as well as most Latin America, as the month of the Dead. November first is dedicated to the souls of children […]
Only 1 Vehicle in San Pedro. WOW!
In the 1960’s there were no vehicles on the island. Zero! And when one vehicle was finally brought to the island by Caribeña Fishing Cooperative to transport fish and lobster and ice to and fro, the children were so excited that they actually used to run behind the vehicle expressing delight, enthusiasm and happiness to […]
A Pier Full Of Memories
Of course the inauguration of the new marina for Ambergris Caye does ring memories for me. A new marina, Wow! It is actually the first marina, not a new one. We have never had a marina. We have had one main pier from which all our transport and cargo was handled. Of course now we […]
The Lions Clinic Silver Anniversary
Here is an interesting story that came to mind just this weekend as the Lions celebrated their 28th anniversary, and it is a story that perhaps even a few Lions are not aware of. The San Pedro Lions Clinic this year celebrates its 25th anniversary. It was inaugurated under our third president, Lions Betito Marin, […]
Play Ball and Strike Out!
Twenty five years ago there were no Chicago Cub fans in San Pedro, nor did we hear of the Red Sox or the New York Yankees. We had none of that because we did not have television to follow baseball nor the World Series. We did get some news of sports and baseball players made […]
The Big Dances of The 60’s
Dancing has always been a special part of custom and traditions. Even in the years before Christ (B.C.) there were dances to go along with special festivities. Today in modern places like Cancun and even San Pedro, you are able to find entertainment and dancing on a daily basis. What about twenty five years ago […]
As Good As Professionals
Today it costs about $1,500 to have a normal child delivery in Chetumal, Mexico, which is where a lot of locals have their babies. It costs $2,000 if there is surgery. In Belize City, it costs about $2,000 normal and about $5,000 if there is surgery. It only costs about $500 in San Pedro, but […]