Albany State University Global Programs

Today as a group we toured the San Ignacio Iguana exhibit at the San Ignacio Hotel. I never thought in a million years I would have ever been brave enough to do something of that nature. Everyone for the most part took part in holding and enjoying the Iguanas, so much so they took pictures with them. Overall it was a great experience for me simply because I would have never guessed I would have done anything like that. I can’t wait to further explore and see what’s on our agenda for the rest of our time here in San Ignacio.

-Raven Burden

Today we walked to the San Ignacio Resort Hotel to the iguana exhibit. It was something new. The walk was long and draining, but was worth it. At the iguana exhibit I was a little afraid to hold one of the iguanas, but I faced my fears and let him crawl up my arm. This experience is something I would love to do again, it was very enjoyable and adventurous. 

Today after we arrived and got all settled in we had our welcome dinner at the Guava Limb Café. We had a small meeting with Dr. Monds regarding an overview of what’s in store for this trip. We had the opportunity to order whatever we wanted on the menu. I ordered a fish, shrimp, and chicken basket served with a side of French fries. The food was interesting. It had a bit of an acquired taste compared to the way fish, shrimp, and chicken are served back home, but all in all it was a pretty good dinner.

I woke up from a good night’s sleep, but it was raining so I thought that the plans for the day would be canceled. At this point I felt a little disappointed, but around 1 pm I found out that we are still going to the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins. We hiked a full mile up to the ruins. Luckily, it wasn’t as hot as the past few days and there was a slight breeze with many tall trees. To get to the other side of the ruin we had to take a ferry. This was the first time I’ve been on a ferry! In the picture you can see that the Mayan ruin I climbed to the top of is a little more than 15 stories tall. Today was lots of fun and I enjoyed the view from the top of ruins. I felt like Simba in the first Lion King Movie when the monkey held him to the sky. I find it very fascinating that these structures have lasted this long. 

I had to wake up very early this morning. Being that there is a 2 hour difference between the time back home and here it wasn't as bad as waking up early back home. I usually either skip breakfast or just eat light in the mornings because I’m usually not that hungry. In the bottom middle picture is what i ate and its called a Dostatas its really good and healthy in some aspects. This was also my first day of my internship. I interned at Hot Mama’s, which is a small developing hot sauce company. My supervisor is really calm and laid back. My supervisor’s name was Caesar. Today I made their business more efficient by creating an Excel spreadsheet with multiple formulas to make keeping track of supplies within the facility very simple. 

Today we had a business meeting with the Belize Natural Energy company. We rode around on a bus and were able to tour the facility. We were able to see the first oil well that was drilled in the summer of 2005 named Mike Usher #1 as well as learn a bit of its history. We were able to listen to two great presentations, one pertaining to the overall history and development of BNE, the other pertaining to how everything is tracked and controlled via computer systems/manually, referring to the trucks, water tanks, and things of that sort. We were also able to see a bit of the lifestyle some of the Mennonite community live within the Spanish Lookout district. Overall today was very “educational” yet informative.   

-Raven Burden

Today was a pretty chill day. We woke up early to attend a business meeting with Belize Natural Energy. Our tour guide did a great job with explaining the history behind the Mike Usher oil well and giving us a tour of the Spanish Lookout. After our tour, we headed back to San Ignacio to have lunch and catch up on homework.

Today was another internship day, a rainy day. Jovin and I started working on property management for Hot Mama’s, Ham’s (a business owned by Hot Mama’s), and Soluna. There were a few computer complications, so Jovin and I talked a little about the business and what he does at Hot Mama’s. He just recently started working a week before we arrived, so as a team we are learning together. This internship is really preparing me for the future of what to do and what not to do when it comes to a business. 

Today I was assigned my internship duties with the company Beltraide. I had a brief company orientation when I arrived with Ms. Freda Ramirez, Ms. Shari Williams (pictured), and Mr. Tomas Gongora. For the course of my internship Ms. Shari Williams will be my supervisor. After we had our brief orientation we took a tour of the facility. I received my own little work station that I’ll be able to use for my time at the company. Today I worked on two different tasks: writing a script for a video and working on some behind the scenes details for the company website. I was able to complete one in full. I really enjoyed learning about the company and getting started today. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the next 3 weeks!

-Raven Burden

Today Shiah and I worked on the fire policy for Western Regional Hospital. We’re waiting for the health administrator to send us the floor plan, so that we can complete the fire escape plan. Aside from that, I got a lot of work done. I completed the first part of my research paper, started on my exam, completed my quiz, and studied for Microeconomics.

Today was another day at my internship site. I learned a lot today about effectively organizing a supply chain within a small business. I taught the employee’s how to USB tether the WiFi to there CPU, which allows the internet to run faster because of less devices connected to the WiFi. I also got to try passion fruit in its ice form with no additives and it was really sour but tangy. I got to see the passion fruit being melted down and stirred. I also ate my first tamalita today. Mrs.Walana recommended i try it with some of Hot Mama’s sweet pepper sauce. This sauce was the best hot sauce I’ve ever had. The packaging for the gift sets are done manually and not by machine.

My classmate and I started our fire policy for the Western Regional Hospital. I completed a lot of work today and also finished the first draft of my research paper that is due at the end of the trip. It is always nice to complete assignments ahead of time. I am currently waiting on more assignments from my internship. 

The staple breakfast item in Belize is a fry jack or journey cake. Both use a flour base tortilla or bread topped with beans and cheese. The food is very cheap in Belize and having a 2:1 exchange rate in favor of USD helps. A usual fry jack costs about $2 Belizean or $1 USD. Street vendors that sell fry jacks, journey cakes, and other breakfast food can be seen out during the early morning hours.

The group visited the San Ignacio Iguana Preserve and were able to learn and interact with the reptiles. The guide was very knowledgeable and informed us that over the years hundreds of Iguanas had been safely released into the wild. Interacting with the Iguanas was fun. Handling and feeding them was a great leaning experience with the very docile creatures. Words of wisdom: iguana meat is called Bamboo chicken if you’re ever in the area.

Today we had a business meeting with the Belize Tourism Board (BTB). The meeting was from 2:00pm-5:00pm. We listened to 6 different presentations. All of the presentations were well put together and very informative. We were able to see what the BTB has to offer as well as the different departments within the BTB. They served us a small little lunch in the midst of the presentations. After all of the presentations were over they gave us little goody bags with small tokens of appreciation inside. Even though the bus ride to get to the BTB was about two and a half hours long, today turned out to be a really productive day.

-Raven Burden

Today was a very long day. We woke up early to catch a bus to Belize City to attend a business meeting with Belize Tourism Board. This was the most entertaining and interesting business meeting so far. I learned a lot about how they develop tourism programs and initiatives, implement tourism policies, and address the changes that visitors need to see. After the meeting, we headed back to San Ignacio to have dinner and do homework.