Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
BARON BLISS
One of Belize's most famous benefactors never actually set foot on Belizean soil.
Baron Henry
Ernest Edward Victor Bliss
was an eccentric Englishman with a Portuguese title and
considerable wealth, the origins of which remain a mystery. Bliss arrived off the coast of Belize
in his yacht
Sea King
in 1926 after hearing about the tremendous amount of game fish in local
waters. Unfortunately, he became ill soon after and died without ever having been ashore, but
he must have been impressed by whatever fish he did catch, as he left most of his estate to
the colony - meticulously stipulating how the money was to be spent. This became the
Bliss Trust
, which has been used to help build markets and libraries, contribute to the
country's artistic and cultural programmes, improve roads and water supplies and create the
Bliss School of Nursing. In gratitude, March 9 (the date of his death) was declared an of
cial
public holiday -
Baron Bliss Day
- commemorated by boat races and the La Ruta Maya
canoe race (see p.137) from San Ignacio to Belize City.
anniversary of Belize's independence. Today, the elegantly proportioned, two-storey
structure of sand-coloured brickwork, set in lawns and gardens, looks more like a
country mansion than its former incarnation.
The lower floor, with plenty of exposed, original brick and bars on the
windows, displays photographs and artefacts celebrating the history and the
people of the city as it grew over the last 370 years. Here you can also peruse a
complete collection of the country's stamps; the earliest one, depicting Queen
Victoria, dates to 1837. The building's original role is not glossed over, either;
there's an old jail door and small exhibit of before-and-after photos chronicling
the structure's evolution.
The star attractions are upstairs, however, in the
Maya Masterpieces
gallery; a
permanent, world-class collection of some of the best artefacts recovered from Belize's
Maya sites. Well-lit glass cases display fine painted ceramics, including the striking
Buenavista Vase discovered in Buenavista in Cayo, which depicts the mythical Hero
Twins dancing in the costume of the young Maize Gods after having defeated the
Lords of Death - the central theme of the Maya creation story, the Popol Vuh
(see p.259). Other treasures include painstakingly formed
eccentric flints
, carved
from a single piece of stone, and an exceptionally well-preserved wooden figurine,
probably of a ruler, from a cave in Toledo District. Upstairs are the splendid
Jades of
Belize
, the country's trove of jade discoveries including a replica of the famous jade
head from Altun Ha, stunning mosaic masks, pendants, ear flares and necklaces. The
museum also features one of the best-displayed collections of insects in Belize;
bug-lovers won't want to miss it.
The south side
he
south side
is the older section of Belize City; in the early days, the elite lived in the
seafront houses while the backstreets were home to their slaves and labourers. These
days it's the city's commercial centre, with shops, banks and travel agencies.
Albert
Street
, running south from the Swing Bridge, is the main retail thoroughfare, with
banks, supermarkets and T-shirt and souvenir shops.
Regent Street
Parallel to Albert Street and a block closer to the sea,
Regent Street
also has multiple
shops and vendors, as well as the former colonial administration and court buildings,
known together as the
Courthouse
. These well-preserved examples of colonial
architecture, with their columns and finely wrought iron, were completed in 1926 after
