Despite my COVID scare in San Ignacio, I had no other reason to believe I may have contracted it. I was feeling fine and healthy but made a mental promise to be safe, sanitize, and wear a mask. I said goodbye to all the new friends I had made and headed down to the bus stop. A few days prior, found out that the Belize Zoo had an education facility next door to it called the Tropical Education Center, which rents rooms and offers a unique experience. I adjusted my plans and booked my last two nights at the center and arranged to take my travel COVID test there. Although I didn’t think I would be positive, it felt like this would be a good, remote place to be stuck for a while, just in case.
The Belize Zoo happened to be about halfway down the bus line to Belize City. So, I checked the bus times and planned to leave around noon. Although not indicated on my timetable, the buses had a reduced schedule on Sundays and it arrived an hour later than was scheduled. The bus was completely packed. Like packed, packed! Like sardine packed! Not only was there no room to sit, but there was also no room to stand. I felt bad for the pregnant woman that got on the bus behind me, handing her other young child to a complete stranger to sit on their lap. I did my best to take up as little space as possible, despite having a backpack and duffel bag with me. Eventually, space became available as some people got off along the way and I finally found a place to sit.
I got off at the zoo entrance and was escorted to the center by a man called Juan Carlos. He used to be the fair collector on the bus and was amazed that I even tried to take the bus on a Sunday. I got all checked in and Juan Carlos gave me a quick tour of the property and showed me to my accommodation. I saw all kinds of reptiles along the way including iguanas, snakes, and even a crocodile in the lagoon next to my room. The accommodations were lovely and Juan Carlos even installed a hammock for me to enjoy in the enclosed porch area.
That night, I signed up for the nocturnal animal tour at the zoo, something only offered to guests staying at the education center. I ended up being the only one on the tour, which was guided by one of the zookeepers. We walked around and he handed treats to some of the animals still awake in their enclosures. My favorites were the cats and I loved seeing the jaguars, margay, ocelot, and cougars as they jumped up to catch the raw chicken from the zookeeper. I also got to feed the less carnivorous animals, like the gibnut, tapir, and deer. I thought being at the zoo at night was a very memorable, unique, and intimate experience.
The next day I woke up and decided to check out the zoo during their normal opening hours. Based on the visitor log, I could see I was only the third guest there that day and didn’t see a single person for the first few hours. I retraced my steps from the night before and spent time revisiting the jaguars that I had met earlier. My favorite was Sylvie, a wild jaguar that had become a nuisance when she began targeting domestic animals due to a lack of natural prey. She was relocated to the zoo where she seems to lead a happy life. All the animals in the zoo had some kind of similar story where they had been rescued and were unable to be released back into the wild. The zoo didn’t feel much like a zoo at all, since they only house native animals and all of the enclosures were the natural vegetation that grew in the area.
I sat with Sylvie for a while and watched as she rolled over and over again, a trick she learned would earn her treats from the zookeepers. She seemed to enjoy chasing me back and forth along the fence and I hope I wasn’t teasing or stressing her too much. Finally, other guests started to show up and I left her to interact with someone else. I enjoyed spending my morning peacefully walking amongst all the animals but it was time for me to head back to the education center to take my COVID test.
In Belize, the rapid antigen tests are $75 and you can even order them to your hotel for no additional cost. I had scheduled mine at 3:00 pm and the nurse arrived right on time. I was relieved to find out I tested negative and my plans I could continue as scheduled. My only worry now was that my flight might be rescheduled, having heard that the last flight to Los Angeles was canceled a few days ago.
The morning of my final day in Belize, Juan Carlos packed up a to-go breakfast for me and drove me to the airport. During our ride, it warmed my heart to hear the things he had done to educate his friends and family about the animals native to Belize. When people see a snake, he said it’s normal for them to try and kill it, as is the same with any other animals that can become a nuisance. He told me of the time he spent with his nieces and nephews, teaching them how to identify snakes so that when they see one, they can call him and he can tell them if it’s potentially dangerous or to let it be. Juan Carlos has also spent some of his own money buying extra pairs of binoculars and taking his friends birding to show them that they are more valuable alive and an important part of the ecosystem. This man certainly has a heart of gold and would be an inspiration to animal stewards everywhere. Juan Carlos dropped me at the airport and I was relieved to find that my flight appeared to still be scheduled and on time.
Although I was sad that my trip through the Yucatan Peninsula and Belize was coming to an end, I was excited to go home for a few weeks to spend my birthday with friends and family. I made it back to California and a couple of days after my arrival, I developed some very COVID-like symptoms. One PCR test later showed I had somehow caught it, either during my final hours in Belize or shortly after arriving in California. After traveling extensively over last year, I thought it a bit funny that I would finally catch COVID traveling home. Luckily, having been fully vaccinated, my symptoms only lasted a couple of days and I had a nice, comfortable, familiar place to recover. It may sound cliché, but there is truly no place like home, especially when you are not feeling well and have a parent there to take care of you!
