The Garifuna Flava (creole for Flavor) restaurant in Chicago, Illinois is one of those Belize-American success stories everyone likes.

The bold black-and-white awning at 63rd Street and Western Avenue points the way to the small bistro that offers traditional Belize style cooking ranging from Amerindian, Creole, Latino and Garifuna gastronomy – the last being the restaurant’s forte as its name suggests.

The menu at Garifuna Flava reflects the cooking of the Garifuna people in Belize and elsewhere in Central America, a delicious and spicy fusion derived from indigenous cuisines. Fish, rice, coconut, corn, and plantains figure prominently in the dishes offered.

The menu includes traditional Belize rice and beans, empanadas, garnachas, tamales, hudut, corn tamalitos, cow foot soup, cassava cake and other Belizean favorites.

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On the road in Belize for the Annual Belize Cross Country Cycle Classic 2011

For the second year in a row a rider from neighboring Guatemala has won the Annual Holy Saturday Belize Cross Country Cycle Race, one of the most grueling cycles races in Central America that is now in its 83rd year.

Luis Santizo won the 145 mile race that started in Belize city at 6 am with a pack of over 130 riders from Belize and six other countries ranging from Guatemala, Mexico, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Cuba and the United States of America.

At the midway point at San Ignacio in western Belize, former two-time champion Chris Harkey of the U.S.A. broke away from the main peloton and briefly led the race all the way on the return journey until he was reeled in just past Belmopan on the way to Belize City. From there the race seesawed back and forth with various teams jostling for the lead as they battled strong heads winds on the descent from the western highlands unto the swamp flatlands that embrace the finish line at Belize city.

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The first Belize FIFA certified football facility was inaugurated in Belmopan on Thursday by visiting FIFA President Sepp Blatter. The football field in the Belize capital is equipped with seating, changing facilities and night lighting and is owned by the FIFA affiliated Football Federation of Belize FFB. During his visit Mr. Blatter took the opportunity to speak with Prime Minister Dean Barrow. The FIFA President said, “I spoke with the prime minister today and he promised that he will help make available some of the football pitches through the government and that they could be reconstructed and we will help them to do so.”

Mr. Blatter also expressed his support for the independence of the Football Federation of Belize and its President Dr. Bertie Chimilio. The FFB has long been the target of Belize politicians trying to get political appointees in positions of power within the organization. The past Peoples United Party government attempted and failed to get control of the FFB. The current United Democratic Party government through local politician John Saldivar who heads the sports ministry, recently lurched into another attempt, this time by signing a a ministerial law giving himself authority to appoint party supporters to review and endorse football association elections in Belize.

This move prompted Mr. Blatter to express his support for the independence of Belize football. In a broadcast interview he said: “Let football be in peace.  Let football work according to the statutes of football and these are statutes according to statutes of the international federation.  We need the support of the government but the government should not and never interfere in the organization of our game and especially not in the statutes.”

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The Belize Tourism Board has done a formal backpedal on its plans for a controversial cruise ship village for Royal Caribbean on the Placencia Peninsula in southern Belize. After months of attempting to foist the development of cruise tourism in the Placencia area, the BTB last night informed area residents that a consultant hired to analyze what most Belizeans already knew, had reported back that “The government of Belize should not approve a new port of call, contract or agreement with cruise lines, developers or their affiliates for operations in the Placencia Peninsula.”

Seatone Consultants, hired by the BTB to do the study, had delivered its report weeks ago and a summary was leaked after being suppressed until yesterday by the Belize Tourism Board.

In a televised interview yesterday, Mr. Rich Wilson, founder and principal of U.S. based Seatone Consultants explained how the report was generated: “We designed it in such a way that it was two part, there were confidential interviews with a balanced set of stakeholders from throughout the region; many in Placencia but also in Punta Gorda, Dangriga and surrounding communities. It was basically people that had a wide range of opinion on the spectrum of the issue. There were some ex pats that were interviewed but by and large it was probably 80 to 90% Belizeans that I had confidential interviews with.”

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Jamal Barrow – AKA Shyne

Belize rapper Jamal Barrow, son of Belize Prime Minister Dean Barrow has announced he will release his new album “King David” on March 26th in Belize.

Mr. Barrow who is claiming Jewish heritage and is now working out of Israel following his release from a Federal Penitentiary in New York State, is currently a diplomat for his dad’s government carrying the title of Music Ambassador.

Jamal is the son of Dean Barrow and the sister of Mr. Barrow’s Minister of Housing Michael Finnegan, formerly Michael Myvett following a legal name-change.

Shyne Barrow was deported to the country of birth Belize in 2010. He has since changed his name to Moshe Levi Ben David and is studying to become a Hassidic Jew. In a self-promotional interview in Israel he claimed that:

“I did a few things I am not proud of. I’m not an angel; I made terrible mistakes as a child and even as a man. [Read more...]