My husband & I are retired, we belong to the Belize Qualified Retired Person's Program. We are enjoying our first year, in Cayo district. LOVE the "chicken" bus, by the way, no chickens. It's $1.50 BZ (.75 cents US) per person, one way to San Ignacio. There are a lot of buses, that pass our home, & we just flag one down. They'll stop. If you get passed by an Express bus, no worries. There will be several more behind it, that WILL stop. The bus is the least expensive means to get anywhere. Just need to be really patient. You WILL get to your destination. Just may take a little longer than you expect. We have been here for 9 months, now & LOVE all the people we've talked to. Both foreigners, & locals. Locals are all about the tourists, but once they see that you ignore them or tell them no, they'll learn to leave you alone. We have met the most amazing people, living here. We've seen the most amazing sights. Try to go to all the Mayan ruins, cave tubing, canoeing, zoo, anything such as this. YOU just need to relax to get anything done. Nothing is done in ANY sort of time schedule OR hurry. Today, may turn into next month. ha What to bring. Bring, LOTS of bug juice. The sand fleas, at the Zoo, were the worst. And, there are ANTS. All sizes & shapes. We've only had one bad experience, with the fire ants. NOTHING prevents their bites. & they don't just go away. They will itch, until you go mad. Leaf cutter ants, are the coolest. Everyone has black ants, in their homes. They will clean up your house for you. Let them be. They get annoying after a while, but will not hurt you. Spiders are everywhere. All sizes & types. We've had 3 teranchulas in our little cottage, so far. They will ride a flyswatter, back outside. No problems. We have quite a few iguanas at our cottage. They are fun to watch, if you can be still & watch them, when they are traveling from one side of the house to the other. Bird watching has become an obsession. We saw just about any & all migrating birds, we could imagine. We've seen toucans. Parrots. Parakeets. All sorts of birds. Hummingbirds were plentiful, over the winter time. Awesome to see so many different types & sizes. Just be prepared for the heat. WATER is your friend. Take it with you & a "mop" for your sweat. It is wise to use an umbrella or wide brim hat, for the sun. It's hot. WILL burn your skin, even when you think it's not. Just enjoy, all your days & nights!!
