Thanks for the input Mildred. We can expect that you will be one less person on the Island that many of us love so much.

I was there a few days at the same time as you were, and for the life of me, I remember, NO rain each night. Be that as it may, the people I met and spent time with there did not give me impression that they were downtrodden,unhappy,or destitude enough to not be able to have shoes unlike the perception you tried to put over. I walked around without shoes, many a day while there. So if I gave you the impression that ( if you saw me) I was too poor to have shoes thats your prejudicial perception and not the case in reality.

I am truely sorry that you money was stolen from you. I would like to ask you what kind of precautions you put in place to avoid this, but I'm not at all sure you would respond. Having your money lifted from you is not a San Pedro problem. It's your problem. you were not accosted by anyone, you were not injured by anyone in the removal of you wallet from your backpack. So you must have been careless in safeguarding your valuables. You would have encountered the same problem in 99% of any city you were in. So, please don't judge an entire city by the unfortunate incident that you, in the main, could have prevented by a little common sense.

San pedro is going though a transformation, largely in part to the large buildup that is going on ( both North and South ) of the town. With this build up comes the usual problems of a expanding metropolis. Electricity, water, sewage, roads, ad infinitum.This has been brought on by the tourist industry that the GOB has come to depend upon for it's very exsistance. Is it wrong? you better belive it is! Is it inevitable? sure thing! As you travel about the world you will find ( even in your "I know a place, you dont")it will eventually happen. Sad as it may seem to you and "We" who love Belize it's a fact of life and economics.

However, at the moment, the lifestyle, the atmosphere, the friendship, the "Isle of Bonita" that is so loved by countless of people, both residents and Tourists, persists.

Your chosing to not return can be looked upon as a good thing. I for one will return however and enjoy what is available away from the " Maddening Crowd" of the congested cities , the UP-Scale, over priced, resorts and enjoy the lovely San perdranos and thier paradise.

BTW: I'm not sure where you are from.. But you paid an Exit fee when you left for Belize. If it's the U. S. it is around $9. It may be higher by now. But Thats what it was a few years ago.

Never Use money to measure wealth