MAYAN BUSH VILLAGE KITCHEN IN BELIZE

Typical Mayan farm kitchen in the bush communities of the Toledo District

- On the left you can see a raised fire heart for cooking. Usually the fire is at ground level and you have to stoop down to cook over a wood fire. This one in this photo is an improvement. It is raised to waist level. The inside has a floor of sand and usually there is a metal grill, made of re-bar iron rods. You can see the wood sticks pointing to the center that burn. The lady is making corn tortillas. There are several types of foods made with tortillas. Corn is the mainstay of Mayan farm life. The walls are built with wood bush sticks. You can see between them to the outside. The kitchen in this case is a seperate building, in case it catchs fire, so it does not destroy the main house. Most Mayan houses the kitchen fire is in the center of the floor and people live around the edges. Most Mayan homes have three rooms. The climate is tropical.