I would have to say that my trip to Belize was extremely productive. The seven days that I spent in the country were jam packed full of travel, meetings, sites, and people. We crammed so much into that one week that it honestly felt like we had been there for a month. We were able to squeeze in a little relaxing along the way, but the purpose of the trip was to do everything possible to see if it would be the place that my Family and the place that I will call Home.

I narrowed down my search to a good selection of properties and land that we’d like to purchase…secured a position with a great company….and acquired a whole mess of great new friends. All in all, I would say that the mission to Belize was a success. There is still a lot of sorting out to do, but I wanted to share some of my findings with you as I debrief my trip.

One of my favorite things about Belize is the fact that cycling is a huge part of the culture. Within the cities, bikes are the predominant mode of transportation, and in a place like Belmopan, the city totally set up to accommodate cyclists. On the highways, there is a steady stream of road cyclists out training and riding….a beautiful site to see. I would have loved to have my road bike or mountain bike there with me, but we were able to get out for a great tour of Belmopan on the bike.

As I said…we met so many great people while in Belize. One person that comes to mind is Jim Gulden, a retired professor from the United States who has so much wisdom to share about life, love, and of course….cycling. Thanks to Jim for standing out in the rain to share his pride and joy with me.

We have yet to make an official final opinion….as you can likely appreciate, there are some huge factors involved with this decision. One of course is the struggle of knowing what is best for our Family.

“Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.”

Helen Keller

There will be more to come in my Belize adventures, and my Family’s Quest for the Sun, so please keep tuning in.

Have any of you ever been to Belize or know anyone who lives there? What are your thoughts of the country?

I’ve left Canada and spent last night back in the beautiful State of Texas.  We spent two years living in Austin, but last night was my first time ever in Houston. This morning I am off to Belize….Central America’s only country where English is the official language. I’m not going on a vacation….I’m not going there on business….I am going there to find out if it’s where my family and I will be soon calling home.

Sunset over Placencia, Belize - c/o Bill Swindaman

As I wrote about in my “Take Me To The Promise Land” blog, I am currently in the process of relocating my family. Sure a lot of people talk about it….complain about the things they don’t like in their home town….talk about how they wish they live here or there. But I am doing all that I can to make sure this actually happens. To make sure this dream becomes a reality.

It’s always exciting to travel off to a paradise type location and get away for a few days.  But this morning…..my mind, however, is on other things. Most of all, it is on my Family. My wife and kids are the single most important thing in my world, and I love spending as much time with them as I possibly can. Because I am traveling to Belize without them, my biggest challenge is to focus on why I’m going and to do all that I can not to miss them every second I’m away. I am doing this for my family, and there in lies the other thoughts circling my head. Will this be a good place for us to live? Will they be happy there? Will it bring us all the things we desire? I’m hoping to have these questions answered with a great big smack in the face very soon.

Now, if you don’t know too much about Belize…what I can tell you is that cycling is pretty much the number two National sport. A very close second to Soccer. Their biggest cycling event of the year takes place on Easter weekend. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to schedule my trip to coincide with this, but I have made arrangements to meet with the Belize Cycling Association. I’m going to meet with them because they seem like such great people from the conversations I’ve had with them online, and because I’d like to get more involved with them should we move there.  My research and conversations so far have confirmed that Belize is indeed going to make a beautiful home for me and my bike.

I’ve also talked to Nancy from Family on Bikes, and she’s given the place a thumbs up…so that’s a good sign.  I believe her husband even posted that one area of Belize was the most beautiful spot he has seen during their 20,000 mile biking adventure.

Okay, so going in I feel quite confident that Belize is going to satisfy my biking needs and wants. This trip will hold the answers to whether it is the place to satisfy my family’s needs and wants as well. It’s going to be an intense and busy trip, but I’m looking forward to the information I’m about to discover.  (I’m going to try and send out some messages from Belize while I’m gone….it will depend on the internet connection I receive.)  Here I go….I’ll soon let you know what I find out. Belize That.