The Belizean culture is made up of influences and people from Kriol, Maya, Garinagu (also known as Garifuna), Mestizo (a mixture of Spanish and Native Americans), Mennonites who are of German descent, with a blend of many other cultures from Chinese to Lebanese. It is a unique blend that emerged through the country’s long and occasionally violent history.

Courtesy is important to most Belizeans. It is not uncommon for Belizeans to greet each other on the street even if they have never seen each other before, or for acquaintances to spend minutes at a time chatting, oblivious to what is happening around them.

Another aspect of the culture is the idea of the mystical healing and Obeah. However, there is still talk of evil shaman practices like putting “Obeah” on certain houses. This is known to be done by burying a bottle with the ‘evil’ under a tree close by the house.

Cuisine

Belizean cuisine is inspired by British, Mexican and Western Caribbean cooking. The basic ingredients are rice and beans, which are often eaten with chicken, pork, veal, fish or vegetables. Coconut milk and fried plantains are added to the dishes to create a truly tropical taste.

Exotic ingredients include armadillo meat, venison and fried paca (called Gibnut in Kriol). Conch soup is a traditional dish which has a characteristic taste and thick consistency due to added okra, potatoes, yams, cassava flour and a touch of toasted habanero.

Immigration has brought Garifuna dishes based on fish and plantains, and among the best known are Hudut, Darasa, Ereba, Bundiga, and so on. Belizean food is almost always accompanied by white rice in coconut milk.

Belizeans of all ethnicities eat a wide variety of foods. Breakfast consists of bread, flour tortillas, johnny cakes, or fry jacks that are often homemade. It is eaten with various cheeses (Dutch cheese, band back cheese, craft cheese, etc.) refried beans, various forms of eggs or cereal (corn flakes, oatmeal) sweetened with condensed milk. Morning beverages include milk, coffee, tea, Milo, Ovaltine, Cocoa, orange juice (fresh or concentrated). Eating breakfast is called “drinking tea.”

Midday meals vary, from lighter foods like beans and rice with or without coconut milk, tamales, panades, (fried maize (corn) shells with beans or fish) and meat pies, escabeche (onion soup), chilmole (black soup made with black recardo), stew chicken and garnaches (fried tortillas with beans, cheese, and cabbage sauce) to various constituted dinners featuring some type of rice and beans, meat and salad or coleslaw.

In the rural areas meals may be more simplified than in the cities; the Maya use recardo, corn or maize for most of their meals, and the Garifuna are fond of fish and other seafood, cassava (particularly made into hudut) and vegetables. Local fruits and certain vegetables are quite common.

Mealtime is a communion for families and schools and some businesses close at midday for lunch, reopening later in the afternoon.

Sports

The major sports in Belize are football, basketball, volleyball and cycling, with smaller followings of boat racing, track & field, softball and cricket. Fishing is also popular in areas of Belize.

The Cross Country Cycling Classic, also known as the “cross country” race or the Holy Saturday Cross Country Cycling Classic, is considered to be one of the most important Belize sports events. This one-day sports event is meant for amateur cyclists but has also gained a worldwide popularity.

This cycling event in Belize has seven rider categories based on rider rating, age, and gender. Action-packed and thrilling, this most interesting sporting event allows for the participation of tourists and visitors alike from all over the world.

The cycling routes offer enchanting and mesmerizing views across the resplendent greenery of the forest areas and the meandering rivers. This makes the event even more popular among the tourists.

The history of Cross Country Cycling Classic in Belize dates back to the period when Monrad Metzgen picked up the idea from a small village on the Northern highway. The people from this village used to cover long distances on their bicycles to attend the weekly game of cricket.

He improvised on this observation and added thrill by sowing the idea of a sporting event in the difficult terrain of western highways, which were then poorly built.

On Easter day, citizens of Dangriga participate in a yearly fishing tournament. First, second, and third prize are awarded based on a scoring combination of size, species, and number. The tournament is broadcast over local radio stations, and prize money is awarded to the winners.

Belize’s National Basketball Team is the only National Team that has achieved major victories internationally. During the 1998 Caricom Men’s Basketball Championship, held at the Civic Center in Belize City. Belize went on to win the championship and proceeded to participate in the 1999 Centrobasquet Tournament in Havana.

The National Team finished seventh of eight teams after winning only 1 game despite playing close all the way. In a return engagement at the 2000 CARICOM championship in Barbados, Belize placed fourth. Shortly thereafter, Belize moved to the Central American region and won the Central American Games championship in 2001.

The team has failed to duplicate this success, most recently finishing with a 2 and 4 record in the 2006 COCABA championship. The team finished second in the 2009 COCABA tournament in Cancun, Mexico where it went 3–0 in group play.

Belize won its opening match in the Centrobasquet Tournament, 2010, defeating Trinidad and Tobago, but lost badly to Mexico in a rematch of the COCABA final. A tough win over Cuba set Belize in position to advance, but they fell to Puerto Rico in their final match and failed to qualify.

Folklore

In their folklore, we find the legends of Lang Bobi Suzi, La Llorona, Cadejo, La Sucia, Luguchu Ellis, Tata Duende, Chatona, X’tabai, and Anansi.