We Always Knew Belize Is Special…
When we heard that “YouTube Researcher” Matthew Patrick announced that he discovered the actual location of the fictional Neverland, we dropped our teddy bears and sat up.
Belize as the home of Peter Pan? That magic place of adventure where time does not exist?
It does make a certain sense.
Mr Patrick said he examined various geographical and historical clues to work out that Neverland was an Atoll in the Caribbean, and then used Captain Hook’s resume to further narrow things down to Turneffe Atoll off the coast of Belize.
And while Peter Pan is, after all, a work of fiction, we still agree with Mr Patrick’s conclusions.
With activities like exploring ancient Maya temples, horseback riding along jungle trails, canoeing down lazy rivers, being surrounded by beautiful giant Blue Morpho butterflies, exploring ceremonial caves, going on jungle and river safaris, zip lining through forest canopies and so much more, Belize has a quality many people associate with that timeless, playful land where you don’t have to grow up.
The Belize Tourism Board also agrees, and is offering anyone named Peter or Wendy a chance to visit Turneffe Atoll as the BTB’s guests.
Now, we think that’s a great idea, but we have our own Neverland theories, and think Mr Patrick got close, but didn’t quite find the exact “X Marks the Spot” in this caper.
Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie’s books, and subsequent Disney films speak of jungles, creeks, caves, crocodiles, pirates and many other things that bring parts of Neverland closer to Chaa Creek.
Crocodile Creek, for instance. Chaa Creek is obviously a creek. And surrounding Chaa Creek are endless tracts of jungles and rivers that contain crocodiles. Belize’s Morelet’s Crocodiles are quite small and harmless, and we’ve yet to come across one named “Tick-Tock” with a ticking clock inside, but that doesn’t rule out its existence.
There are several other features in Neverland that we take as our own clues.
The Neverseas that surround Neverland have hundreds of tiny islands that sound a lot like the nearly 400 cayes, or tiny islands in the Caribbean Sea bordering Belize.
And Neverpeak Mountain sounds a lot like the misty Maya Mountains to us.
Tiki Forest is filled with monkeys, parrots, bees and other critters very similar to the wildlife that abounds in the 400-acre nature reserve surrounding Chaa Creek.
Pixie Hollow is where Tinkerbelle and friends live, and Chaa Creek’s lovely tropical gardens immediately come to mind.
Pirates create many of the challenges Peter Pan and his gang face, and Blackbeard is just one of the many actual buccaneers to be found in Belize’s history.
Caves. Remember how the Lost Boys live underground? Belize has an incredibly large and intricate underground cave network that ancient Maya shamans and others lived under. Perfect for the Lost Boys.
Mermaids. The connection between mermaids and manatees has long been established, and Belize’s manatees are celebrated in stories, songs, and in villages such as Gales Point Manatee.
There are other similarities that we’ll be highlighting in the weeks to come. Chaa Creek’s Vacation Planning Team has hinted that they’re planning a special Family Summer Vacation Adventure with a Neverland theme, and we’ll be following its progress very closely indeed.
Treasure maps, treasure hunts on horseback, canoes, booty hidden near actual ancient Maya temples, and nature hikes that are as educational as they are exciting?
Count Us In!
and stay tuned…