Belize Island Life

Taxi cab driver in Belize City
Friend, courier and taxi driver, (Nick Name)Spanish.
Here in Belize most every Belizean has a nick name. Just ask around, some names stick for a lifetime !

Spanish was born in San Pedro in 1948.
When Spanish was ten years old his father was offered a job in Belize City to work at the port. It was not long after that, the whole family packed up and moved to the city. He has been living in Belize City ever since.photo courtesy of Neil Fraser 1959

” When we left San Pedro in 1958 there were only about 350 people living on the island. It was a small fishing village and there was not many jobs, so the family left the island for better opportunities,” Spanish said.

Photo from Ambergris Today, Special Thanks

Spanish went on to say, “At the time, the only transportation was by boat. We left on the only cargo boat called The “Elsa P”. It took us a little over a half day to get to Belize City.”
The boat was owned by

Tio Pil (Felipe Paz)and the cost was 50 cents per passenger. The sailboat took 4-5 hours on a good windy day and 8-10 when there was little, to no wind. The Elsa P relied on the wind since it had no motors. Normally Felipe would leave at around 2 am in the morning, so that he would arrive during business hours to unload and load the boat. Mrs. Elvia Staines, Gloria Staines and Ivan Staines as well as Patricia Marin: Photo courtesy of Ambergris Today, Special Thanks.
There were no seats on the boat so the passengers had to find a comfortable spot on top of the 3,000 coconuts going to the city or lumber being delivered back for building.

Spanish is well known throughout San Pedro. Many people on the island use him for his services. He will pick up and make deliveries for you, without you even having to leave the island. He has been driving a taxi for as long as I can remember.
I send my documents and /or packages by Tropic Air and he picks them up and delivers them for me.

He drives a taxi and you can always find him at the municipal airport. The cost is US$5.00 from the airport to most destinations within the city (waiting at a stop is extra) .
When we are in the city for the day, we always try to hire him. He keeps busy, so; call ahead of time !
You can reach Spanish at 622-5618
Spanish knows most of the people and places in Belize City and speaks English very well, don’t let the name fool ya.