On the water
Charlie Leslie: A Life on Belize’s Waters
Learning from his father Liston, making a living at sea, and passing on a working knowledge of Belize’s waters. Charlie Leslie’s story reaches far beyond a day of fishing.
Read the storyStories from the peninsula
Behind the Beach
Placencia’s people, history, and everyday life, told through the stories behind the place.
Placencia originals
Doris, Liston and the Early Days of Sea Spray
Four rooms, a family, and the beginnings of a village hotel. The story of Doris and Liston Leslie opens onto the everyday work and shared effort that shaped Placencia.
Read the story
Village history
Placencia: The Village That Learned to Survive Together
Before the road, cooperation was part of surviving in an isolated fishing village. How the cooperative, family livelihoods and tourism reshaped Placencia.
Read the storyCharlie’s photograph supplied by the Leslie family. Doris and Liston’s portraits from Sea Spray Hotel’s family history. The village history story uses an image based on a boat photograph shared in the Placencia in the Old Days Facebook group; original photographer and date unverified.
About the series
The story behind the place.
Behind the Beach introduces the people, families, traditions, and small businesses that give Placencia its character. Each story begins with local knowledge and careful listening, with sources and uncertainties made clear.
The Leslie story is part of the foundation. The wider story belongs to the community.