(1/640s, f/5, ISO100, 200mm)

Formerly known as British Honduras, the small country of Belize is a real melting pot of different cultures and ethnic groups. Apart from the better known European, African and North American immigrants, there is a considerable number of Asians, amongst whom the Chinese and Filipinos are the predominant ethnic group. On the photo Filipino children play carelessly while their parents hold their annual family gathering.

(1/160s, f/4, ISO100, 70mm)

It is dry season in Belize, but the central regions still get hot and humid daybreaks. It is a perfect climate for the banana, citrus and papaya groves, where ripe fruit is abundant whole year round.

(1/250s, f/4, ISO100, 95mm)

In Guatemala half the family fits on a small motorbike – with ample space for further people. The interpretation (and breaching) of local traffic laws is an appealing (for some appalling) aspect of Latin America.

(1/500s, f/8, ISO100, 70mm)

Temperatures in the nineties, a bit of fresh sea breeze and warm sun: this is the Caribbean in March, where the sea is calm and shallow between the shore and the coral reef further out. In these waters time flies by at a rapid pace even if all we do is sunbathe and drink freshly squeezed fruit juices.

(1/500s, f/8, ISO100, 70mm)

The ancient school buses from the US almost always end up in the countries of Central or South America as public transportation devices. Called camioneta in Spanish, they have been dubbed chicken buses by English-speaking tourists because of the prevalence of domestic animals, mainly poultry transported by locals on these machines. The child-sized seats, Latino colors and the panicky speeding of drivers are all part of the legend, into which the Belizean wooden bridge reconstructed after every annual flood fits in just perfectly.

(1/200s, f/2.8, ISO100, 200mm)

The torch lily (Etlingera elatior) is a reed like ornamental plant that grows up to 7 meters high and is a popular species of Central American horticulture. The fruit can weigh up to two pounds, and is used as compost locally, while in Florida the seeds are sold at high prices after cleaning and drying.

(1/30s, f/2.8, ISO400, 70mm)

Bedouin Blog is back again, this time from the American continent! The winter break was long, due to dozens of theoretical and practical obstacles, among them a technical malfunction of the SLR mirror of the Canon 5D. The result, as seen on the photo above, is a bit weird. The unorthodox solution turned out to be a few drops of Chinese super glue. In the next months we will regularly update our blog with photos from Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.