Palencia

 Palencia is a coastal city in Belize District, Belize.

Description
Palencia is sharply divided between low-income and high, the former organized around the fishing industry towards the north, the latter the tourist industry based in the condos and historic district in the south. Most of the streets are too narrow for cars, and the fully-mapped road system looks more like a toddler scribbling than a map. Most of the inhabitants are multilingual, speaking some combination of English, Spanish and Maya.

History
Palencia was settled, with other cities in its district, by Europeans in the 17th century, and named after a Spanish city. It grew slowly over the centuries, experiencing something of a boom in the 1970's with the founding of the Earthlight Academy and the arrival of many refugees connected to it.