What to expect en route to Belize

WHAT TO EXPECT ON EN ROUTE

Packing
Some things worthy of mention while you are packing and getting ready.
1. If you are going to carry on your toiletries, anything liquid, gel, or paste must be in
a. bottles less than 3 ounces
b. put into a one zip-lock bag
c. that is a quart-size zip-lock
So if you need more lotion/shampoo/conditioner/tooth paste than 3 ounces, it must be packed in your checked luggage.
2. Be sure that your luggage conforms to the size and weight restrictions. (Maximum limits are: Carry-on, 40# and 45” lineal; checked, 50# and 62” lineal. If it is overweight, it is $50 to $100 charge; over size is $150.)
3. You will be issued a “group” piece of luggage that you are responsible for in addition to your one personal suitcase.
4. Besides your personal suitcase, and the “group” suitcase, you are also allowed one carry-on piece of luggage.
5. Be sure that you pack so that you can handle the two checked suitcases as well as your carry-on. If necessary, your carry-on could be a backpack so that it will be easier to manage all 3 going through customs and check-in.
6. It is a long time between DFW and Corozal, with no good opportunity to buy food. Pack some food in your carry-on, or else buy some in Dallas/Ft Worth airport.

Loading the bus
Arrive with your 2 or 3 pieces of luggage in time to have it loaded and ready to roll by 3:45 a.m.
Record will be taken to be sure that everyone is there.

At the airport
1. Check in your luggage
We will meet up with those of our group that have arrived on their own.
Have your passport and flight info handy as you approach the counter
It will take us about an hour+ for each one of us to get our 2 pieces of luggage checked in at the counter. Hang on to your carry-on.
2. Security
Leave the check-in counter and make your way down stairs to the security area and get in line. Present your boarding pass and passport. Proceed to a conveyor belt. There are plastic trays to put your belongings in to run through the X-ray machine. Take off your shoes, hat, jacket and put them in one of those plastic trays. Remove anything that is metal (cell phone, belt buckle, quantity of coins, large hair barrettes, etc.) and put those in a tray as well. Take out of your carry-on the zip lock bag that has any liquids, pastes, gels, and put that zip lock bag in the tray. Run the tray(s) and your carry-on suitcase/backpack down the conveyor and through the X-ray machine. Now you are ready to walk through a big arch to screen YOU. If you have failed to remove something metal, the machine will beep and you will need to remove that something, and go through the arch again. Be sure to gather all your belongings and put yourself back together after you have been screened. No need to wait for the whole group – go ahead to the shuttle train.
3. Shuttle train
Leave the security area and go down the stairs and get on the shuttle train. American Airlines is on concourse “A”. When you get off, go up the escalator and follow signs to the gate number.
4. At the gate
You do not need to go to the counter at the gate, you are already checked in and have your seat assignment. Just hang around the gate area (at least stay on Concourse “A”) until it is time to board your airplane. Boarding will take place 30 minutes prior to take-off, that is 7:50.
5. Boarding
On your ticket is printed the boarding group number that will tell you when to board. There will be clear instructions over the speaker as to when your group should board. You will walk down the bridge and on to the airplane. Place your carry-on luggage in the overhead bin. SIT IN THE SEAT THAT HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO YOU. DO NOT CHANGE SEATS to sit next to someone else, or be by a window. It creates mass confusion and clogs up the aisle, slowing down the boarding process. We don’t want to be on the wrong side of the flight attendants this early in the game.

On the airplane
Be respectful of those around you. Hollering to friends is appropriate in the CA cafeteria, but not in the airplane. Do your best not to jostle the seats of your fellow passengers. Listen to what the flight attendants have to say. The beverages are free.

In Dallas/Ft Worth
We will eat lunch, and change planes in Dallas/Ft Worth. The gate that we arrive at might be on a concourse different than our departing gate. You will NOT claim any luggage in DFW, they automatically transfer your checked luggage to the right airplane (in theory). You will receive money to go buy your own lunch there in the airport. We scheduled to arrive at 11:20. Immediately go to the gate where we will depart to Belize and we will assemble there. Once everything has been accounted for we can scatter and find something to eat. Be sure to arrive back at the gate by 12:20 to board the plane for Belize. That gives you less than an hour to eat. If you did not pack snacks for the trip from Belize City to Corozal, buy some in DFW.

Flight to Belize
The same general observations stated above apply for this flight also. One additional note is that during the flight, the attendants will hand out a “declarations form” that everyone must fill out. This is a questionnaire about who you are, where you are going, why you are visiting, and if you have anything do “declare”. (There are certain things that a country does/does not permit to be brought in under certain circumstances. This form is your opportunity to disclose that info. You will have nothing to declare.) The flight attendants and your sponsors will assist you in filling out that form. Notice that in Belize, they list the date and day backwards to what we are accustomed to: we will be arriving on 10/3/09 (not 3/10/09) and we will be departing on 21/3/09 (not 3/21/09). Same for your birthday, and other dates. (Tip: I like to use the restroom on the airplane late in the flight; that way you don’t have to make a dash for the porcelain as soon as you arrive.)

At Belize airport
The first thing you will notice is the glorious weather: upper 80s with high humidity! It is like Hawaii. When we get off the airplane, the first line you will get in is the “Immigration”. That is where they look at your passport, stamp it, and give them back to you. When you leave the immigration desk, the next thing you will do is to claim your luggage. Get your personal suitcase, and the one issued to you. Next stop is the “customs” inspection. That is where they review that “declarations form” and inspect your belongings to make sure that your stuff conforms to their laws. VERY IMPORTANT: You must keep one copy of that form with your passport as long as you are in the country. When you leave Belize on March 21, you must present that copy along with your passport in order to get out. They will likely inspect us as a group, so you will not have to be subject to individual inspection. Be sure to fold the declaration form and tuck it into your passport. When you leave the customs area, you will enter the public area of the airport. Immediately there will be baggage handlers trying to take your bags and put them on their cart so they can get a tip. We will have some sponsors out there running defense for you, but in case you get separated, hang on to your bags. Head for the sidewalk outside, and we will all gather at the curb and wait for the bus and van to haul us all to Corozal. While we are standing around waiting it is a good time to break out those snacks.

Arrival at Corozal
It is about a 2 hour ride from airport to Corozal. Hopefully we will be all ready to go by about 4:30 or 5. When we arrive at Corozal, the locals are supposed to have supper waiting for us…we’ll see. We will need to unload the bus/truck and go stake out a place to call your own for the next 12 days. We are staying in the same building that we are working on. Thursday night we will eat, get settled, and get ready for bed. Friday we will have an organizational meeting and go to the job sites to “get our feet wet”.