It is hard to remember how things change in the way you think, after a few years here…but here are 13 ways that I guarantee you will change if you stick around!1.) Continuously lowering your expectations about what hair products (and makeup, etc) you’ll be OK with using.–unless you are going back to the US a lot, you have to be ok with whatever stock is here. I have been unable to buy hairspray for a couple weeks at a time, and while in the US my preferred brand is certainly not V05 or Suave, I am happy to have it here! (because it is only a few bucks, the occasional random good stuff is 10x the US price!)
Get comfy with this brand. (frugalchick.com)
2.) Although you lose the materialism mentality in the US, the scarcity mentality will hit you hard….–when you DO find a beloved import product in the stores, you will find yourself buying all the things, because you may never see it again.3.) Finding yourself saying – “Its just a cockroach…. It’s just some termites…. Scorpion stings/tarantula bites don’t actually kill you….Oh the bees here are all Africanized bees? Sweet.”
—Your peripheral vision will pick up dark shadows in the corners pretty frequently. For my first year here that would set off my central nervous system every time…coming from NE US, we are taught to be pretty terrified of all the creatures. I have now become completely desensitized. Oh a little gecko poop on my pillow? Well at least it is here eating the mosquitoes. Oh there was a boa constrictor sighting in my front yard? *yawn.* Oh there is a scorpion by my foot? Well I should move. Oh look at that 6 inch beetle with pinchers. Cool. Shoot that 4 inch cockroach went under the fridge. And so on.
—Your peripheral vision will pick up dark shadows in the corners pretty frequently. For my first year here that would set off my central nervous system every time…coming from NE US, we are taught to be pretty terrified of all the creatures. I have now become completely desensitized. Oh a little gecko poop on my pillow? Well at least it is here eating the mosquitoes. Oh there was a boa constrictor sighting in my front yard? *yawn.* Oh there is a scorpion by my foot? Well I should move. Oh look at that 6 inch beetle with pinchers. Cool. Shoot that 4 inch cockroach went under the fridge. And so on.
Don’t believe me? Check out this Facebook page…https://www.facebook.com/groups/1425989061003132/
Actual pic from the page. Cute!
4.) I guess it is ok to start drinking at 11(am)…—Belize is FUN and you can find yourself finding a lot of excuses why it is a good happy hour day. Every day. Tourists are having fun every day of their vacations. It is a struggle because no one is going to judge you if you do!
Because THIS is a 2 minute walk away.
5.) No, really, I don’t miss having a large selection of beer. —For some reason, you just don’t! You can only get Belikin and its cousins here, plus a few other Caribbean beers, but because you are always drinking it while at the beach bars of your dreams, it doesn’t occur to you that it matters.
6.) Having your soul die a little every time you throw away very recyclable plastic.—Placencia is quite clean, and does a great job with its resources, but the amount of plastic garbage you will see….will make you immediately want to open a recycling facility.
7.) Forgetting how to look at a bill and not ask yourself if it is Belize dollars or USD. —Even when you go home. It is a switch I can’t turn off. And you will still probably question your math 100x every time you pay a bill with mixed Belize and USD.8.) Feeling guilty if you put any toilet paper in the toilet.—Even when I’m in the US, I am programmed to throw toilet paper in the wastebasket….it is ingrained due to the septic systems here.
9.) Being OK with almost getting hit by a golf cart, bike, bus, or truck….every day.—Just head to Main Street during a busy hour for this fun time!
10.) You stop wondering if the Pit Bull-looking stray dog walking towards you is going to rip your throat out. –In the US, if I see a huge, mangy stray coming at me I am accustomed to thinking it is Cujo. Here, he probably just wants you to pet him. The dogs here are unnaturally nice.
11.) You stop wondering where all the tourists are….the hotels are all full….yet you are still the only one on the beach. Every time.
— This is one of Placencia’s mysteries. No one has solved it. But it is why many people come back again and again!
12.) Burglar bars don’t mean you are in a “bad” part of town.
—Belize is a DIY country. Also, it is known that if you leave your stuff out, it means it must not mean a whole lot to you. Burglar bars just mean that the person building the house had a bit of extra money to add in this bit of security – there aren’t alarm companies down here yet and it is just a little extra peace of mind.
13.) If you are on the internet, as Placencia runs on facebook….you will write this infinity times to messages you will get – “No, sorry, I don’t know of any good long term rentals right now.”
—Yes, there is a shortage of these. But here is a good resource!
—Yes, there is a shortage of these. But here is a good resource!