The Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted its 13th Annual Expo Belize Market Place at the St. John’s College Campus on Saturday and Sunday, September 12th and 13th. It all started at 9 a.m. on Saturday with a brief ceremony in which Amparo Masson, President of the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, gave the official opening address. She spoke about the history of the Expo and said that its purpose is to bring producers and consumers together.
After the ceremony, the Youth Connection Band hit the stage and entertained the huge crowd with a wide range of musical selections. They have been dubbed the most versatile band in the country and they did their part to back it up. They played punta, soca, reggae, reggaeton, R&B and some mixes for everyone to enjoy. Belizeans sat and watched with smiles on their faces but one middle aged foreigner was not satisfied with being a spectator. After he had a couple beers out of his thermos cup, he got on the stage and danced to the ground. The funny part of that ordeal was not that he was badly out of rhythm; it was that every time he would wave at his wife to encourage her to join him she would act like she didn’t know him.
Horrible dancing was not the only thing being displayed at the entertainment center of the Expo 2009. There were also great dance performances from the New Generation Dancers. All were thrilled as the group of young dancers pulled off the latest and most difficult dance moves. The entertainment was interrupted on Saturday by a BEL power outage, but there was no interruption in sales at the Expo.
The Expo is famous for special promotional deals on all Belizean products. One woman said, “You can get anything at the Expo!” A newlywed couple could take a trip to the expo, stop at one of the booths of the banks and take advantage of the special offers on loans available. Then they could walk inside the gymnasium and sign up for a piece of lot on the north side of San Pedro Town, which was being sold for about half the value. There were more than one houses being raffled as well, so if the couple did not wish to tap into the loan they applied for at the bank, they could pay five dollars for a chance to win their own house. Then as they walked out of the gym and to the left of the entertainment center, there were multiple automobile dealers from where they could sign a payment plan to purchase their brand new vehicle of choice. After all that is done, the focus turns to immediate needs like topping up to get double or triple the credit from Digicell. Several food and beverage agents were also present at the Expo and there were great deals on all grocery products. After a very productive day of shopping, there were many different local and imported recreational beverages to choose from.
It is no mystery why Belizeans flock to the Expo in large numbers. The Expo Belize Market Place is an event where dreams come true!
