Banana Boat Ranch Bed & Breakfast (Belize)

Author: Marie Abrams
Date of Trip: September 2001

The Banana Bank Ranch Bed and Breakfast in Belize was most magical for us. We drove a rental car after having taken a puddle jumper plane from Ambergis Caye where we had stayed for a few days prior. We stopped at Ceasar’s for a drink of watermelon juice and bought some black coral there while Ceasar,an American continued to run his place without ever lifting his head from his hammock. We also purchased a similar wood easy chair there in keeping with Ceasar’s relaxed style.

After hitting the one lane dirt road, which is the country’s major super highway(lol),we passed the sign and made an about face to go to stay there. When we drove into the ranch,another expatriot who moved from a ranch in Montana and his wife who ran the Banana Bank Ranch greeted us. This inn was on the Belize river bank,run with the power of a generator for the cooking and refrigerator and candles for light with the evening meals and for the rooms,quite Victorian in atmosphere.

After rowing on the Belizian River to view the rare birds and rope swinging people traversing the river and coming home from Nicaragua from seeing the ancient Mayan pyramids on a single lane dirt road which is the country’s superhighway (lol)in torrential rain, I thought I would just use my hairdryer to dry my hair. Then I remembered that there was no electricity so my hair just dried in the tropical breeze. When I had to go to the bathroom, which was often at night being 8 months pregnant, I also was reminded of only candles that had to be carried to the toilet in our room. The was the custom of the locals which also included drinking rain water stored in tanks on the roof. This was quite natural without preservatives and refreshingly tasty.

Our first child was born 3 weeks later which brought us to Belize believing we had plenty of time to have a last fling vacation alone as newly weds before we would have our child born in Belize which almost happened after the rowing,snokeling and pyramid climbing. Instead, she was born 4 wks early in the USA. My husband enjoyed comparing farming stories with the owner and watching him feed the live jaguar a half a cow for every breakfast. That is the carnivorous animal,not the sports car. The family that ran the establishment,adjusted to life in Belize with their children attending the local grade school while living themselves altogether at this bed and breakfast.