You probably know about the Great Blue Hole of Belize from your Geography classes. You even know that Belize is one of the most popular holiday destinations in the Americas from the travel magazines. But if you are a planning a trip down there, you need to know a little bit more. Below is a list to get you on your way.

1. Belize is the only Central American country whose official language is English. Belizean Creole and Spanish are also widely spoken.

2. Belize has the lowest population density in Central America. It has a surface area of 22,800 square kilometers for a population of 340,844.

3. Belize is one of the most important Mesoamerican Biological Corridor countries. It has a big reef system that is rivaled only by the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. Its terrestrial biodiversity is rivaled only by Costa Rica.

4. Belize was formerly known as 1862 to 1973. This was the name given to it as part of the British territory.

5. The country practices a unitary parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarchy. The country's head of state is Queen Elizabeth II.

6. Belize's demographic spread is as follows; Mestizo (50%), Kriol (21%), Mayan (10%), Multiethnic (6%), Garinagu (4.5%), German (3.6%), East Indian (2.1%), Other White (1%), East Asia (0.9%).

7. Before the arrival of Europeans, Belize was the home of Mayans. The Mayan civilization appeared here about 3 millennia ago.

8. The capital city of Belize is known as Belmopan. This is not to be confused with Belize City, which is the largest city in the country.

9.In December 2010, Belize became the first city to completely ban bottom trawling to conserve its ecosystem.

10. Popular holiday activities in the country include; hiking, bird watching, rafting, kayaking, snorkeling, scuba diving, boating, heli-tours and many more.

Go to Belize, explore the Big Blue Hole and its wonders and before you know it, you will have become an environmentalist.

By Kennedy Runo on 12/21/2014 in San Pedro Town