We stayed a week and loved it. The people of Burrell Boom made our visit special. Rudy Dawson is a remarkable man – he lives in the untamed jungle across the river and was so helpful and entertaining. Miss Val, next door neighbour, was very kind and welcoming. Erika is a dynamo – in fact, we were amazed at the energy levels of everyone we met. We immersed ourselves in the culture by talking to everyone who was willing and by eating at various places, including the Friday night traditional dinner cooked by a family across the street from the Chinese restaurant, and some of Miss Erlean's feast prepared for spectators who came to cheer on the canoes racing in La Ruta Maya.
It was fantastic to have the bikes and the canoe at the house. I went swimming twice in the warm waters of the Belize River, heavenly. The only thing we wish is that the monkeys had hung out in the trees next to the house. They apparently favour different trees at different times of the year. We saw them swing through every day on their way to Miss Val's and went over there to watch them, endlessly entertaining. Lots of iguanas of various colours and other lizards, a green-headed tree snake wrapped around my bicycle seat, a tree frog jumped onto my arm when I was taking pictures of it on the deck railing, an amazing array of birds and of course Shakira, the sweet little crocodile in the pond.
If you're on a budget, you can get the bus from Belize City for $1 US instead of paying Andrew $85 US for the same trip. (He charges $60 one way from the airport, which is a bit closer to Boom.) We enjoyed his company and insider knowledge, however.