Farewell La Isla Bonita*

 The saying is that even all good things must eventually end (or something along that line, anyway).  While that is probably true, it is sad.  It's also sad that today was our last full day on Caye Caulker.  We've had the most relaxing holiday I can remember on our beloved little island, and we honored that today with one last lazy day.  We said goodbye to people we know here and visited favorite places one last time.  It's harder to say goodbye this time, as we not sure when we'll make it back to Caye Caulker.   We have our travel schedule fairly firmed up between now and 2014 and, sadly, Belize is not on the list.  There are so many more places in this world that we want to see, it seems almost a shame to repeat a destination twice.  Almost, but not completely... 

 

(*Ok, technically that song was written about Ambergris Caye, which is the next island over from Caye Caulker.  However, we are convinced that Madonna would have also loved Caye Caulker, had she stopped here instead.)

 

...and the planets align!

As you know if you've been reading along, we have had a hard time this trip and last getting out to the manatee sanctuary.  A few problems are working against us.  First, it's quite a long ways from Caye Caulker to Swallow Caye - almost 20 miles (which takes nearly 90 minutes by boat).   Because it's so far away, most tour companies require at least 4 or even 6 passengers to make the trip financially feasible for them.  Last - in a place where the reef is king, most people want to dive or snorkel, not go look at big sea cows.  I had pretty much given up hope for a manatee tour on this visit.  At about 8 pm last night I was in the shower and Andrew was in bed reading.  Suddenly there was a very loud banging on our front door.  Strange, since we don't really know anyone here in Caye Caulker.  It's true that we're friendly with some of the local people we see all the time, but it would be unusual for anyone to come visiting.   Andrew looked out the window upstairs to see who it was, and recognized Zach from Scuba Sensations.  He had remembered where we were staying so stopped by to say that they had found 4 other people who wanted to see the manatees tomorrow.  Were we it?  YES, WE ARE IN!  He gave us the lowdown on the cost, the meeting time, and asked us for our lunch order before leaving.  

This morning dawned clear and hot.  A perfect day to spend on a boat!  We met at the dive shop at 9 am, and were loaded in the boat and on our way by 9:30.  Joining us were four kids (early 20's) from the UK and the Netherlands who were traveling together through Mexico, Central and South America.  We weren't 5 minutes off the tip of the island when Zach spotted a trio of dolphins stealing lobster from traps.  He stopped the boat and told us we could snorkel with them, if we wanted.  So fun!  

Quick video of the dolphins

After playing with the dolphins for about 20 minutes, we loaded back in to the boat and were on our way to Swallow Caye.  As I said, it was a gorgeous day with little wind, so the ride was lovely.  Along the way, we met up with a couple of fishermen that Zach knew.  We stopped to see how their traps were doing, and they showed us how the pulled one up.  They told us about lobster fishing, which was fascinating.  They have about 1000 traps down at any given time, and they pull them up every 15-20 days to empty them.  Each fisherman has defined territory that they protect quite fiercely.  Then also showed off their catch. 

This guy's name was Rambo.  Fitting. 

Rambo and his partner open a trap.  It had about 4 keepers and about a half-dozen that were too small.  They are not permitted to keep anything with a tail under 4 ounces. 

 When we finished chatting with the fishermen, we were only about 10 minutes from the sanctuary.  We were met by the ranger (Carl), who followed us over to the "holes" (where the manatees feed & rest) to help us find the manatees.  As it turns out, manatees are elusive creatures.  In about an hour of bobbing around on the water, we only saw noses and a couple of tails.  Still, pretty cool.  

Manatee nose (and back, under the water)

Manatee holding my camera just under the water (we weren't allowed to get in to the water with them)

Manatee back

Jellyfish - there were a lot of these little guys around.  Incentive to stay on the boat!

When it was time to leave the sanctuary, Zach took us back through the mangroves to look for crocodiles.  We didn't see any, but the mangroves themselves are very interesting - trees growing in the middle of the ocean are quite an odd concept to me.  We passed Rambo's house, which is just a shack on a very small island in the middle of nowhere.  He lives there with several members of his extended family.  The kids we were with asked Zach if he knew if Rambo would sell some of his lobsters, so we stopped to ask.  They piled off the boat and soon they were back with 4 large lobsters (probably about 1.5 pounds apiece) that they paid $20 US for (total).  Deal!  

Andrew holding one of the lobster.

Rambo's house.  As raggedy as it was, it struck me as being quite beautiful standing alone in the ocean.  

Last stop (after a quick break to eat a sandwich) was a snorkel stop.  Zach took us to an area of the reef about 10 minutes off of Caye Caulker.  We had the place completely to ourselves and swam and snorkeled for about 90 minutes.  Andrew was in heaven, as he could snorkel all day long.  As usual, he was the last one to the boat.  

By about 3:30 pm we were back on Caye Caulker.  We headed home to shower and then went out in search of food - we were starving!  We ended up at Enjoy, another place on The List.  Andrew had shrimp kebabs and I had seafood coconut curry. AMAZING!  The meals came with coconut rice and some sauteed cabbage.  We also each had two drinks (Andrew - strawberry colodas; me - salted margaritas on the rocks).  Total was $41 US, including tip.  

Now we're back home, tired and extra crispy form a full day on the ocean.  Sadly, tomorrow is our last day on Caye Caulker.  We don't have anything planned - we'll likely just do the Caye Caulker thing and "go slow". 

The quest for sleep and a midnight adventure!

As we head in to the home stretch of this trip, I'm really struggling with two competing emotions.  

Emotion 1:  I love it here.  I love being on holidays.  I love being able to spend days at a time time with Andrew (most of the time, anyway).  I love that I haven't had a stitch of make up on or done anything with my hair in in more than 10 days.  I love that the stress of work seems a million miles away.   I love that we have the good fortune and luxury to travel the world, see new sights and learn about other cultures. 

 

Emotion 2:  I'm am tired!  I know we're on holidays but, seriously people, I'm exhausted.   Not because we've been busy on this trip.  In fact, this is the least scheduled and most low-key trip we've been on that I can recall.  We have had so much down time, in fact, that I've actually had the audacity to be bored a time a two.  I'm tired because we haven't had a full-nights sleep since we got here! 

Let's recap, shall we? 

• Nights one, two, three and nine - torrential rain in the middle of the night necessitating leaping from bed to close windows
• Nights two through nine - sand flea bites itching, preventing any type of meaningful rest
• Nights one through nine -  a bed custom-made for Fred Flintstone with matching pillows, each boating approximately one inch of loft 
• Night seven - midnight sheet changing episode
• Also night seven - Saturday night parties about the neighborhood
• Night nine - large animal having a take-away meal in our yard (more on that to follow)
• Morning two - mosquito fogging truck pulls through town at 5 am
• Mornings two through seven, and ten - construction workers building a house next door starting at 6:30 am
• Mornings one through ten - aviary in the tree 3 feet from our window opens for business about 5:15

Now, for those of you who know me well, you probably already know a couple of things about me.  First, I am a terrible sleeper even under the most ideal conditions.  Second, my ideal conditions are pretty much limited to my own bedroom.  Simply put, I love my bed.  We have a king-sized sleep number bed and my sleep number is barely out of the single digits.  I have heaps of lovely down pillows and 1200 thread count sheets.  I have a fan that cools me off when I am too hot, and a heating pad that warms me up when I am too cold.  Yet even in this carefully controlled environment, I don't sleep.  So, re-read the list above and imagine, if you will, what's happening here.  

Ok, so enough whining about my lack of sleep - it's annoying, I know.  Even to me.  Let me tell you about the large animal...

We went to bed about 9 pm last night.  Andrew having had a giant nap, was playing on his iPad and I was up and down working on various solutions to my itching.  The last time I looked at the clock it was about 11 pm.  Around midnight, I feel Andrew leap out of the bed.  I open my eyes to see him moving quickly back and forth between two windows in the bedroom.  

Me:  What's going on? 

Andrew:  The yard light just came on and someone went up the steps next door.  

A few things you should know about the house next door that will add interest to this story:  the owners are not currently here, so it's vacant; it was just broken in to about a week ago and there is plywood where the door used to be; it's right next door to "the crack house" Kim warned us to be very afraid of; and there is approximately 15 feet between it and the house we're staying in. 

Instantly awake, I join Andrew at the window and we try to sleuth out what's going on just a few feet away.  As luck would have it, we can't see a damn thing, because the house is vacant.  This means no porch lights are lighting up that area.  We do, however, hear some scuffling sounds, a bottle lightly hitting the wooden deck and general moving about noises.  It only takes a few minutes for us to hear what we think are the sounds of the husk of a coconut being ripped off.  Based on this, we're no longer concerned it's a deranged crack fiend.  We're now sure it's some sort of animal.  Based on the amount of noise it's making and the fact that it set off the motion-sensored yard light, we also deduce must be a pretty good size.  

What big animal rips open coconuts, we wonder aloud?   Are there monkeys on Caye Caulker?  I know there are Howler monkeys on the mainland, but we've never heard one on Caye Caulker (and we would have - they are loud!).  We start running through the other animals we saw at the zoo in February.  Panther?  Probably (hopefully!) not eating a coconut.  A tapir?  No, they are like small cows and have hooves, which would have sounded very different on the stairs.  That raccoon-monkey thing we can't remember the name of?  Possibly!  

We spend the better part of 30 minutes peering wide-eyed in to the dark and discussing the various things it could be.  We eventually hear it pad down the steps and vanish in to the night, unseen.  We are now completely keyed up, so we are still mostly awake when the torrential downpour starts at 2:15.  We jump up to close windows and opt to fore go saving the swimming suits & towels we hung up outside to dry.

By 5 am, we're awake (thanks birds) and anxious to see what clues were left by the night beast.  We run outside to find this...

Wow, detectives we are not - we were way off.  The "ripping" noise that sounded to us like coconut husk was actually the shredding of a plastic bag full of trash.  There is a wine bottle, so we were right on that.  High-five!  There's also lobster tails and lots of foil.  What we still don't know, however, is what type of rare and exotic creature might do such a thing.  Imagine our disappointment to learn from Kim that it's the neighbor's dog, and that this is not a rare thing.  In fact, it happens all the time.  What a let down and waste of precious sleep time!  Oh well, it was fun while it lasted. 

  

Busted!

We were up by 6 am today and, as is our usual routine, went to open the door to see if Freaky wants to come in to say hi.  She was there, as she usually is, but today she was wearing a note on her collar that says "DO NOT FEED ME".  Rats - busted by the Freaky police! Ok, fine, we won't feed her...as often.  

Since we were up so early, we decided to check out Glenda's; another place on The List.  Glenda's is famous for her homemade cinnamon buns and fresh squeezed orange juice and you have to get there soon after opening or the buns are gone.  We arrived at precisely 7 am, which is the scheduled opening time.  There were already people waiting.  

Not much to look at, but what's inside is impressive.

The actual opening time was 7:18, which is better than the laundromat, but still not great.  Glenda's is actually a woman's home, and she cooks/serves out of her kitchen.  She has added on a screened porch for seating if you want to eat in.  Most of the others in line were not eating in.  In fact, they were carrying away large bags of cinnamon rolls.  No wonder they don't last past 9 am!  When it was our turn we ordered three rolls and two OJ to eat in.  She asked us to have a seat and, within a minute or two, brought us out our order.

Glenda's cinnamon buns and fresh OJ - a great reason to get up early!

 The buns were still quite hot from the oven and the OJ was lovely and pulpy and cold (and big - they were about 20 oz glasses).  Total for this carb-fest, including tip, was $5 US.  She also sells other breakfast fare such as omelets and breakfast sandwiches, and she also sells home made bread and regular rolls. 

After breakfast, we went for a little bike ride along the beach.  It was quite windy and overcast this morning, as you can see.  

We spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon reading, sunning on the decks, and playing on the computers.  Mid-afternoon, I suggested to Andrew for the 20th time since we've arrived that we should go and rent paddle boards.  He very unhappily acquiesced, so we put on swimming suits and headed off.  The guy working at the shop charged us $10 US for an hour with both boards, and assured us that it was "super easy".  To prove that point, he took us and our boards to the shallow water, leaped on to a board and demonstrated.  His "teaching" consisted of the following points: 

1.  Keep you feet facing the front of the board.  We are not surfing.

2.  Bend your knees.

3. Don't reach too far forward with the paddle or you'll lose your balance.

I was not nearly as graceful getting to my feet as he was, but I was up and paddling surprisingly quickly.  Andrew who is "bad at balance things" (his words), had a more difficult time standing up, so ended up paddling his board kneeling instead.  We actually saw a lot of other people employing this same strategy.  We paddled around through The Split and in to the lagoon area and then back, which took us the better part of an hour.  It was actually quite fun, and not as hard as I had imagined.  Andrew declared it "one degree worse than kayaking", which is pretty bad if you read about our kayaking adventure in Hawaii.  To refresh your memory, I ended up screaming "For God's sake, just put down your paddle and sit there before I push you out!", only moments in to the 2 mile trip.  

We decided that, next time, I'll paddle board and he'll snorkel along side me - win, win!  I'll take the camera next time, also.  Wasn't sure I could balance with the camera my first time out.

After paddle boarding we were starting to get pretty hungry so we ran home to shower and then went back out for an early dinner.  I was craving a burger, so we went to our old standby Paradise, who we know serves burgers all day long.  The burgers were great, especially washed down with rum & pineapple punch! 

After dinner, we went to check in with the French Angel guys.  Still no-go on the manatees, but they'll keep trying.  Next we stopped by Bert's to see if he was planning a trip, but they don't have anything on the books for this week.  He'll let us know if they get anyone else interested in going.  Bert also suggested that I might try Chocolate.  Ha!  Looks like manatees will have to wait for the next trip.

Sunday

Another short night for us - we were both up a couple of times.  It was a little noisy last night, likely because it was Saturday night.  Lots of dogs barking and more traffic on our street than usual. Let me clarify that when I say "traffic" I mean people on bikes or foot.  No cars, obnoxiously loud motorbikes, or sirens.  You may also remember that I mentioned yesterday that the housekeepers changed the sheets on the bed.  Lovely to have clean sheet day on holidays, isn't it?  Sadly, the sheets must have been dried on a clothes line in a sandy area, because they came with a colony of sand fleas.  Within about 30 minutes of being in bed, I suspected that this might be the case. Sand fleas are a crafty gang, however, and it's often hard to tell if you are actually getting bitten or are just imagining that you are.  You know the feeling - when you hear someone you've just spent time with has lice or scabies and you suddenly feel your skin crawling even though you aren't actually afflicted?  Sand fleas are just like that.  Also, you can't really see the little guys - thus the name "no see ums".  We spent a few minutes trying to determine if they were actually there or not and, deciding we were just imagining them, we went to sleep.  By midnight I was up and out of bed knowing that the sand fleas were there from the many new bites itching like crazy.  Luckily, we had taken our previous sheets to the laundromat yesterday!  Poor Andrew - roused out of bed in the middle of the night to help me rip off the biting sheets and replace them with the sheets dried in the dryer!  Ahhhhh!

Awake for the day before 7 am, we were on our bikes early and headed up to Front Street to find the taco lady again.  She had a surprisingly sizable crowd for so early on a Sunday!  We ordered four flour tortillas (two chicken, two pork) for Andrew, and a johnny cake with pork for me.  Hot sauce on everything, please and thank you.  Within a few minutes we traded $6.50 BZ ($3.25 US) for a warm, fragrant bundle and hurried home to unwrap it. 

Johnny Cake - Belize's decidedly more delicious version of a McMuffin.

 The johnny cake was delicious!  The dense little "cake" about the size of a hamburger bun.   As I mentioned in yesterday's post, It's made with coconut milk so it's slightly sweet (but not in a doughnut kind of way).  The stewed pork is everything good all at once - tangy, salty, and spicy and it's topped with a combo of onion and cilantro.  Finished off with a healthy dose of habanaro  sauce, and it's perfection you can hold in your hand!  We're not exactly sure, because we paid for everything together, but we think it cost 75 cents, USD.  

After breakfast, we headed out for a walk.  We again tried to get over to the northeast side of the island, but it's still very mucky over there from the rain last week, so not passable in some places.  We did manage to wander around for a pleasant, albeit sticky, hour before heading back home to shower.

Lagoon side of the island

The sign may not be fulfilling it's intended purpose.

The remainder of the morning and bulk of the afternoon we just lazed around the house - moving from inside to outside and various decks (the house has three, if you'll recall), just to mix things up a little.  The weather was a bit strange - it would cloud up and sprinkle for about 15 minutes, then they sun would come back out.  Lather, rinse & repeat for most of the day.  Instead of lunch, we ran in to town about 1 pm to get a banana milkshake ($1.50 US).  So good in the heat!   We also ran in to John who told us that the manatees wouldn't be a go tomorrow, but he was still trying for Tuesday.   I am beginning to fear that this may be a repeat of the Chocolate fiasco from February.  How can I be the only tourist on this island who is interested in the manatees?  For hell's sake, how can you not love a big, bulbous manatee!?  They eat lettuce and sea grass and are all-too-commonly injured by boat motors because they are just too damn dumb to move out of the way.  Come on, people!  Sigh.

 In addition to seeing the manatees, I am also quite committed to crossing off more foods from The List (see yesterday's post).  I am also happy to report that this is proving a more successful venture than encountering a manatee.  To that end, we headed off for an early dinner at Chan's Fast Food, which the locals refer to as "Auntie's".  As you can see from the photo below, it's less of a restaurant, and more of a window cut in to the side of the building.  If you want to "eat in", you are welcome to use one of the rickety picnic tables you see.  Otherwise, it's take-away only. 

Don't let appearance fool you - some amazing food comes out of this place!

 I have read on various sites that the fried rice at Auntie's was not to be missed, so an order of that was top of the list.  I also ordered fried chicken wings (another reported specialty) and Andrew ordered the fried lobster meal (which came with fries and some slaw).  A young Belezian woman took our order, which threw me off at first.  Soon, however, a rather elderly Asian woman, talking non-stop in a language I couldn't understand, came in to view.  She scooped a mountain of white rice out of an enormous rice cooker, and quickly slid out of sight again.  Within about 10 minutes, we were handed three large Styrofoam clamshell containers, and presented a bill for $36BZ ($18 US).  We paid, said thank you, and quickly high-tailed it home!   What we revealed when we opened the lids was just as good as I had hoped!  The fried rice (shrimp, Shelby!) was so good!  A tiny bit salty & greasy, just like it ought to be, with lovely pink shrimp and crispy cabbage, celery and carrots confettied throughout.  The chicken wings were super crispy and still screaming hot even after the ride home.  Andrew shared the wings with me, and was very happy with his breaded & fried lobster.  I didn't try it - I don't like breaded things, as a general rule.  Also, fried lobster seems a bit blasphemous, no?  He didn't like the rice very much, so I'm also happy to report that there is about three-quarters of it left-over!

From L to R:  shrimp fried rice, chicken wings, & fried lobster dinner.

The rest of the evening was spent watching TV (we brought some of our Tivo shows on a external hard drive), and playing on the computers.  Not sure what is on the agenda tomorrow...stay tuned!

Laundry day

Since we aren't able to go and see the manatees today, it will be laundry day instead.  There are a couple of laundromats in town, but this is the one closest to us.  It's also the only one that you don't need coins to operate - you just pay the woman who owns the shop.  If you can find it open, that is.  

Laundromat/beauty salon - a giant step back to 1952 for the women's lib movement.

We arrived with two bags of laundry in tow (one of our clothes, one with sheets/towels) about 7:25.  Sign says it will open at 7:30, so we wait.  We should have known better; this is Caye Caulker, after all.  By 7:35, we have grown tired of waiting, so we decide to pedal down to Front Street to get some breakfast.  I've been dying to eat whatever the heck it is that comes out of this plywood box (it smells delicious when we go by) and today is the day!  We queued up behind several hungry locals who are being served gigantic plates of little rolled tortilla cigars that smell heavenly.  When it's our turn to order we ask for four tacos.  "Corn or flour?"  Two of each, please.  "Chicken or pork?"  Two of each, please.  "Hot sauce?"  Definitely!  In just a few minutes, we're handed two bundles wrapped in waxed paper.  Apparently tourists are not trustworthy with the plates.  Undaunted by the fact that we appear sketchy, we unwrap the packages and dive in.   They are perfection!  Shredded meat stewed in a red, vinegary & spicy sauce, wrapped in fresh tortillas and topped with habanero sauce - what could be better than that?  Oh, the price, that's what - $5 BZ ($2.50 US) for 2 large flour tacos & about 6 smaller corn ones.

Breakfast from a plywood box?  Yes, please!

After polishing off all the tacos, we thanked the senora who made them and she told us we should come back tomorrow for the "Johnny Cake".  I guess the "r" on the sign is silent?  I asked her what that was and she told me that it is a flat sort-of biscuit made from coconut milk.  It is then split in two and filled with the stewed pork.  She had me at "coconut milk" but the stewed pork is a definite bonus!  Guess we'll be checking that out tomorrow.  

Now 8:05 am, we try again at the laundromat - nope, still not open.  Caye Caulker time is very hard to gauge.  Ok, we'll eat some more.  Next door to the laundry/beauty salon is "Buddy's".  Buddy's is also a combined business - golf cart repair & take-out restaurant.  Makes sense.  In the mornings they have "meat pies", which I've also been anxious to try.  They have even made The List I have made of the food/places I want to eat, that we didn't get to last time we were here.  I ask the woman in the kitchen if she has any meat pies.  "They aren't ready quite yet," she tells me.  "What time will they be ready?" I ask.  "Eight o'clock."  I look at my watch and point out to her that it's actually 8:05, which seems to surprise her.  She tells me to come back in 20 minutes.  I wonder if how long that really means, but don't ask.  

We head back to the house, for lack of anything else to do with two bags of laundry in our bike baskets.  We kill time there until 8:30 and head back to town.  I can see as we turn the corner that the laundromat is still not open.  As we pull up on our bikes, however, the owner sees us from her house (in the same yard) and comes over to unlock the door.  Caye Caulker time!  I pay the woman $20 BZ to wash and dry both loads and we wander next door to Buddy's.  Score - the meat pies are fresh from the oven and screaming hot!   For 50 cents (US), I get a tiny little pie filled with ground meat and a more of that spicy red sauce that's so popular here.   Yum!  

While we wait for our laundry to finish, we head back to the house.  Victor swings by to tell us that there is a maid service coming this morning, which we already knew because we also ran in to Kim while we were waiting for the laundromat to open.   Very shortly thereafter, two women arrived with cleaning supplies and went to work on our casita.  They were here about an hour and did an amazing job.  Dusted everything, gave us clean linens & bath mats, swept & mopped all the floors, cleaned the bathrooms, did the dishes leftover from last night, and even fixed the faucet that was spraying water all over.  Then they went out to the yard and cut us a vase of flowers!  We tipped them $20 US, which seemed to confuse and delight them, simultaneously.   

Can you imagine that all of this is just growing wild in the yard?

After the women left, we headed up to the roof deck for some sun.  To maintain my sanity and stave off my Benadryl dependency, we're avoiding the beach for a few days so that I can stop itching.  It was overcast with a breeze, so we could stand to be up there for a little while.  Hunger finally drove us down to shower and head in to town about 2 pm.  We opted for Paradise, the restaurant that overlooks the little cemetery and the ocean, because we know the food is good there and happy hour is all day!  We shared an order of conch fritters, which were some of the best we've had here.  I ordered stewed chicken (more of that yummy red sauce - one day I'll find out what it is) with rice & beans.  Andrew had a lobster burrito & fries, which was so big he had to get 1/2 of it to go.  Two beers for Andrew and two rum & pineapple juices for me, and our total (with tip) was $34 US.  

Tomorrow is Sunday, which means that many shops/restaurants will be closed, especially for breakfast/dinner.  This is not a big deal, but it does mean that we need to think a little in advance about what we'll eat.  We know the "Johrny" Cake stand will be open (we confirmed that with her in advance), so breakfast is covered.   We decide to pick up some mayonnaise at the store, and make egg salad bunwiches for lunch along with some of the fruit we still have left.  For dinner we have the fixings for grilled cheese, if we can't find anything else open (I'm hoping for Syd's fried chicken at least once more before we leave!).  

Outside of the store, we met a gentleman who said he was raising money for a youth HIV prevention program.  Boy, did he know who to approach!   I told him what I do for a living and he seemed pleased that I understood what he was talking about.  We talked for a bit about how he is working to spread information to the youth here about how to protect themselves from HIV, and he disclosed to us that he has been living with HIV for 12 years.  He said that he is able to get medication here, and that his health is good, overall.  He then asked me about the man in Berlin who was cured of HIV by a bone marrow transplant (see this link if you're interested:  http://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/news/20120724/man-cured-of-aids-virus-news-conference), and if I thought that was going to be possible for other people.  I told him that, unfortunately, that it is unlikely that will be available for others due to the risks involved and the cost of the treatment.  We talked a little bit about hope for a cure, and I congratulated him on how well he was doing with his own health.  We gave him a donation for his program (regardless of whether or not it really exists), and were on our way.  

  

Now we're back at home.  Andrew is napping.  Or, as he tells it, "just stretching out on the bed for a minute."  He has apparently adopted Caye Caulker time, as his "minute" is now going in to hour number two.  I'm on the couch with Freaky, working on reading book #4.  We are likely in for the night, as I don't think we'll need dinner after such a large & late lunch.

We have yet to get over to the north-west side of the island, so we'll try to get to that tomorrow if it's not too hot or raining.  We'll then try and check in with John & Ash to see if manatees are on for Monday.  Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Another lazy day in paradise

That title about sums it up.  Lovely day, though didn't accomplish very much. We had breakfast at home, then ran a few errands (bank & the fruit stand).  Back home for a couple of hours to sit up on the roof deck and read before it got too hot.  Back out for a late lunch (lobster clubhouse sandwiches & iced tea) at a little bar on the beach, and then back home where Andrew napped & I read.  

On our way back out to forage for dinner, we encountered this little guy in the driveway.  If he would have had a couple of friends with him, we could have had crab legs for dinner!

We swung by French Angel to see if we're able to go on the manatee tour tomorrow - nope, only three people signed up (they need at least 4).  John told us that he's working with some of the other tour operators to see if they can get a group together for Monday.  If not, we may see if Bert can take us.  He mentioned that he does manatee tours, too.  Speaking of Bert, we also went by his place to get our dive books stamped from yesterday's dives.  He told us that he does single tank night dives, and that he would take just the two of us out if we were interested.  We are definitely interested, but Andrew's right ear is plugged from the two dives yesterday (which always happens), so we'll have to see if that unplugs by Monday.  If it does, we'll try to go out on Tuesday night.  

Dinner was found at the bakery - they have the most lovely fresh buns there.  Andrew just had his with butter; I had mine with peanut butter.  A side of fresh pineapple and it was perfect!  I am, however, going to need a serious carb detox when we get home - ugh! 

Now we're in for the night.  Since we're not going to see the manatees tomorrow, we may take a hike out to Back Back street and see where we end up.  Hopefully that will make for a more interesting post than this one!

Dive Day!

Hooray, the planets aligned and we were able to dive today!  We were up early and had a leisurely breakfast at home before gathering up our dive gear and heading out on foot to the dive shop.  Bert, the Dive Master, greeted us there and said it was a go!  Also joining us were Javier, the captain for the day, Rod from New Zealand, and Elaine from Oklahoma. 

 

By 10 am we were on the boat and heading over to San Pedro (Ambergris Caye), which is about 20 minutes from Caye Caulker.  Our destination was Esmeralda, a marine park just outside of the reef.  The boat trip over was rough, as it was a bit windy today, but the sun was shining and the water was the color of a perfect emerald.  

 

With a nice small group we were briefed and in the water by 10:45 am.  Bert was a great Dive Master - attentive and kept a close eye on us, but also gave us some freedom to meander about on our own.   Andrew always has trouble equalizing his ears, so it took him about 10 minutes to get down to our starting depth of 50 feet.  I, on the other hand, can equalize like a fish, and had plummeted comfortably down to the ocean floor in a minute or two.  The first thing to see were a dozen nurse sharks circling around.  They were clearly very used to the divers, and come right up to you.  Most of them were around 6 feet long, but a couple of them were more than 8 feet which is a little intimidating when it's coming directly at you. 

One of the bigger ones.  A couple were a good 8 feet long.  No zoom used here - I could have easily touched him as he went by.  They swam right along with us like they were part of our "school". 

When everyone was down and equalized properly, Bert showed us how used to people the sharks actually are.  They obviously recognize him, as they would swim head first right in to his chest and he would rub them on the head.  Kinda cute, actually.  Next we got to take turns holding one of the smaller ones.  You have to gently flip them over and then they just lay there, very calmly.  Their skin feels like very fine grit sandpaper, or my skin towards the end of a Minnesota winter.  They didn't seem to have any fat on them and you could very easily feel the ribs on their underside, and the spine on the back side.  This was definitely a highlight for me! 

Nurse shark at Esmeralda.  They are so docile they let you flip them over and hold them.  Our Dive Master (Bert) was pretending to waltz with one at one point. 

Andrew

 After mauling the sharks for way too little time, we moved on.  The next thing we came across was a big Moray eel.  These guys freak me out a little bit because their teeth look like they could shred you to ribbons in a matter of seconds.  Also, they're just plain ugly.  However, this one also seemed used to the divers, so I crawled down on the floor to take his picture. 

Big Moray eel.  Again, no zoom used here - he was close, but I didn't try to pet this one.   

Another cool thing about this dive were the various channels we were able to swim through.  They are quite narrow in spots, and you sometimes have to time your breathing correctly to not bang your tank on the coral (you rise up in the water when you breathe in, sink when you breathe out).   Along the way we saw a lion fish, a green turtle, a huge eagle ray (seriously, his wing span was easily 10 feet across), a blue & yellow angel fish, parrot fish, and lots of sea anemones.  All the while, our shark friends kept us company.  

 

Several cool coral channels to swim through.  This is Andrew going through one. 

Green turtle hanging out on the floor.

Lion fish

Look closely - a huge eagle ray

Our first tank was finished in about 45 minutes, so we loaded back on to the boat, had a snack and sat in the sun for a little while.  Our second dive was in a similar area, so much of the same scenery. 

Bert with one of his buddies.  They loved him.

Back on Caye Caulker, we stopped on our way home to get hamburger buns for dinner.  Big excitement was ensuing as there was a fire at a building on Back Street.  We didn't go look but the smoke was thick and we did see the fire truck head out.  Based on it's speed, it's a good thing that nothing on this island is more than a minute or two away!  We cooked burgers at home and are now ready to turn in for the night.  Tomorrow will not be nearly so exciting, folks.  However, the French Angel guys are trying to put together a group to go to the manatee sanctuary on Saturday.  Keep your fingers crossed for us that they can find a couple of other people so we can go!

Another do-nothing kind of day

Yep - there's a lot of those on Caye Caulker.  The sum extent of our activities today (excluding meals) included spending a couple of hours at The Split swimming/sunning, and a trip to see Bert at the dive shop.  I didn't take one picture.  I did finish book #3 today.  We had great lobster ceviche for lunch, and tried Anna's new menu item (beef tacos) for dinner.  (Delicious, in case you were wondering!)  Andrew had a big fat nap.  I laid on the couch with Freaky & read.  Oh - that reminds me, I did take a picture of Freaky lounging on the couch with me. It's a hard life for a cat shared by an entire neighborhood here in Caye Caulker.  

Oh, and I itched.  It's day 4 and I am, once again, covered in sand flea bites.  They are particularly bad right now - worse than they were in February.   They are even in the house this time, which they weren't before.  I brought a supply of Benadryl tablets with me, but had to run to the pharmacia to get a histergan cream, too.  Can someone go insane from itching?  How many Benadryl tablets can an adult take in a 24-hour period and still sustain adequate liver health?  Several times today, I thought that insanity or overdose was imminent.  Sadly, neither happened.  Andrew is also covered in bites, but they don't seem to bother him.  In fact, when I point them out to him he seems surprised that they are there and says he doesn't notice them at all.  I hate him. I will not feel badly when the anaconda eats him while I flee. 

The good news is that Bert is going out for a 2-tank dive to Esmeralda tomorrow, and he's got room for us!  Everyone says Esmeralda is one of the best dives.  Lots of nurse sharks and other fish to look at.  We haven't been there, so we're looking forward to it.  Here's a clip, for those interested.  Carter, I will try to get pics of us touching a shark, if we're allowed.  If we're really lucky and one eats Uncle Andrew I will definitely get photos of that, too! :)  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaF2heEa-V0

 

A lazy day that ends in fried chicken is a good thing

We did very little today.  In fact, that could be stretching the truth somewhat.  We actually did almost nothing.  

It was another rough night for sleeping here.  For some reason, a dog showed up on the porch of the house next door (currently vacant as the owners won't be here until later this month).  It then proceeded to bark 4 or 5 times with the exact frequency to prevent one from falling completely asleep.  I don't know where the dog lives.  It doesn't live in the house next door.  I know this because those owners were here in February and we talked with them a lot.  They don't have any pets.  They only feed Freaky, as does everyone in the neighborhood.  The dog finally moved on about 2 pm, so we got a solid 2.5 hours before the birds started right outside the window.  Oh well, we have coffee!  

We ate breakfast at home - lovely fresh tortillas filled with beans, eggs, cheese & hot sauce.  Accompanied by coffee and grapefruit - heaven!  By 7:45 am we were finished our "chores" which consist of doing up the breakfast dishes, sweeping the floor & taking out the trash.  Why isn't it like this at home?   We headed out on foot in to town in search of a pineapple, which we found at the fruit stand.   I also bought a jar of peanut butter from the grocery store.  I can't exist more than a few days without peanut butter.   We swung by to say hello to John at the French Angel (snorkel shop).  We want to go to see the manatees while we're here.  However, most places won't go out with less than 4 people (too expensive to take the boat out) so we have to check back every day to see if anyone else wants to go.   No luck today, but we'll try again tomorrow.  John is a friendly guy and remembered us from last time, so it's pleasant to check in with him every day. 

We decided to do a little hike while around the southeast perimeter of the island.  It's not very populated over there and, at the tail end of the rainy season, it was a little mucky.  We slopped around in the quicksand & swamp for about an hour before we realized we'd come to an impasse.  Either swim out to sea, or return the way we'd come.  We chose the latter and, 30 minutes later, we were back to civilization.  A little crispy, but otherwise no worse for wear.  

An iguana on someone's front step.

The "trail".  Lots of little lizards scurrying here and there, but no snakes!

A cemetery we happened upon. 

We opted to eat lunch at home.  Andrew had his leftover pizza.  I had a lovely roll from the bakery toasted and covered in peanut butter & banana.  Ahhh!   We managed to get in an hour nap amongst bouts of moving about the house to various reading/computer locations.  We talked about going up to The Split to swim today, but we got a lot of sun this morning so will do that tomorrow (perhaps). 

By 5 pm we were ready for dinner, and looking forward to trying Syd's.  We tried to go there a couple of times in February, but weren't able to find it open any of the times we went by (that is not as uncommon as you would think here).  We were happy to find it open when we arrived, and sat ourselves in the adorable little garden in the back.  We were quickly joined by a cat, which a note on the menu warned us not to feed.  Syd's is famous for their fried chicken, so Andrew ordered conch (??).  He just doesn't quite get the concept of ordering the house specialty.  He says he doesn't like chicken on the bone because it's "too hard to eat".  I ordered the fried chicken and it did not disappoint!  Especially when you consider that the chicken plate costs $4.50 US.  Huge portions & everything was delicious.  We both had sweet teas & our total bill was $32.50 BZ ($16.25 US) - Andrew being an expensive date.  We left full, but still swung by Anna's for Andrew's breakfast - 2 mixed pupusas & a horchata.  

Andrew's meal - fried conch, mashed potatoes & coleslaw.  $9 US.

My perfect plate - fried chicken, rice & beans & coleslaw. $4.50 US.  Obviously, I made the better choice!

Freaky was waiting for us when we got home.  She came in and had some food & some milk, and is now laying on the floor trying to convince one of us it's ok to pet her stomach.  We won't fall for that one again.  Andrew still has scars on his arm from that little trick in February!   We're trying to follow some election coverage, but it looks like we're in for the long haul on this one.  Won't be decided early, that's for sure but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. 

 

The Things that go Bump in the Night

At the end of our lane, there is an overgrown, vacant lot.  It's quite thick with various foliage, and hemmed in by a chain-link fence.  During our dozens of trips to and from "town" each day, I don't actually give it much thought.  At night, however, it cannot be ignored.  Things live in there.  Things that are big and move quickly.  Things that cause branches to bend and snap.  

Last night, we saw a medium-sized crab maneuvering his way through the fence in to the jungle abyss.  Startled by us, he tried to hustle through head first, but his long (and delicious, I'm sure) legs got caught in the metal of the fence.  This necessitated that he turn around and back in, pulling his legs behind him before he could scuttle in to the tangle.  At the same time, something larger was moving the leaves near to the ground, leaving us to assume that the crab was the Belizian version of a home-delivered meal.  

The irrational part of my brain has effectively convinced the rest of me that what lives in there moving all the trees without being seen is a snake the size of an anaconda.  Maybe it IS an anaconda - are they indigenous to Belize?  I don't think so, but I'm not sure.  Could they travel here as a stowaway on a boat from an Amazonian location?  Why not?  I am intriuged, but terrified at the same time, so I continue to peer in to the dark thicket when we walk by.  Much in the same way that, when I hear a noise in the house at night, I'm compelled to get up and investigate instead of closing & locking the bedroom door.  Knowing is better, even if your worst fear is about to come true, no?  Besides, I just have to get ahead of Andrew to be safe. 

 

 

 

 

Caye Caulker Take 2 - Day 2

So much for sleeping in - we were both up by 6 am after a short night.  We were able to fall asleep by 10, but it started raining about 1 am so we had to jump up to close windows.  Once the rain quit, we had to get up to open them again to let the cool air in.  Oh well, we don't have much else to do so a nap this afternoon won't cut in to anything important!  

It was a lovely morning, overcast and about 70 degees.  I made coffee (I was delighted to find the French press was still here) and sat out on the deck to read.  Ms. Freaky was here to greet us this morning in her loud & persistent voice.  Good thing we bought some cat food last night!  

Freaky having her morning snack.  She won't stop yelling until you give her something, so it's best to be prepared!

By 8 am we were showered and on our way to find some breakfast.  We ended up at Cafe Y Amore, a favorite spot from our last trip, and filled up on iced coffees and their famous grilled cheese sandwiches.  Andrew had his with scrambled eggs inside, I had mine with ham & pineapple.  After I doused it in habanero sauce, it was heaven!  $15 US for everything, including tip.

Andrew with his iced coffee at Cafe Y Amore.  We love that they make their ice cubes out of coffee, too!

My grilled ham, cheese & pineapple.  So good with habanero sauce!

  During breakfast, I noticed my first sand flea bite.  Aaargh!  We jumped on the bikes and headed back to the house to lather up with spray.  We brought the big guns this time - DEET!  I also brought enough Benadry tablets that I could possibly risk a trafficking charge.  I certainly don't want a repeat of the itching torture from February!  

Sufficiently coated in carcinogenic chemicals, we rode back in to town to pick up a few things.  We like to be able to have breakfast here at the house in the mornings, because we are up earlier than most of the restaurants are open.  Also, it's a shame to waste all these beautiful decks!  Getting groceries is no small ordeal on the island, as you have to go to several different stores to get what you need.  First stop was the fruit stand where we bought four bananas and two grapefruit for a whopping $2 BZ ($1 US).   From there, it was on to the bakery for a loaf of freshly made whole wheat bread and two yeast rolls with sugared tops.  Grand total $1.80 US.   Final stop was Chan's Grocery Store where we bought staples:  cereal, milk, eggs, beans, hot sauce, pepper, butter, coffee cream, more cat food, and some sodas.  We'll have to hit the tortilla stand early tomorrow morning, as she was closed by the time we happened by there today.  It was just starting to rain when we left Chan's, so had a bit of a soggy ride home and we both had nice white sand "tails" up our backs from the rear tires.  If this rain keeps up we'll be doing more laundry than we anticipated!  

After hanging out at home for a few hours, we headed back in to town on foot (big rain about 11 am, so the roads are sloppy) to hit the bank machine and find some lunch.  We've learned that you have a relatively narrow window for lunch here, and if you don't eat by about 1:30, you're out of luck until dinner.  Siesta is taken very seriously.  Also, we like to eat a bigger meal at lunch, and then find street food or a sandwich at dinner.  We ended up at one of our favorites, Paradise Restaurant, which overlooks the cemetery and beach.   It's lobster season this time around, so we shared lobster nachos and had some rum punch - 2 drinks for $3.50 US, how can you say no to that!?  The rain had stopped, so we took a long walk around the island after lunch and shot a few pics.

Overcast, but still beautiful.

Road along the sea side of the island.

Conch graveyard.  Ceviche anyone?

Breath taking.

A lot of puddles from the rain.

Happy hour all day?  Don't mind if I do!

Kim's (property manager) ferocious rottie, Xena getting some loves from Andrew.

Spent most of the afternoon at the house.  We lost power for a couple of hours while they worked on the lines outside the house, so a nap was out of the question (too hot with no fans).  Went for a bike ride instead, which was better for us anyway. 

Dinner was going to be take-away, we had decided.  Andrew wanted Pizza Caulker, and I wanted a Cuban sandwich from a little stand on Front Street.  On our way home I shrieked with glee to see Anna in front of her griddle cooking pupusas.  Hooray!  "You're back," she said.  I was surprised that she remembered me, but Andrew pointed out that I basically stalked her like a serial killer the entire 12 days we were here in February.  We ordered a couple of pupusas to go (chicharon & cheese for me, mixed pork for Andrew) and chatted with Anna while she cooked them.  She said she was happy that we were moving in to the tourist season, as business on Caye Caulker had been very slow this summer.  Despite that, she's made some improvements to her business.  She showed off her new awning for the rainy evenings,  and a little table and a few chairs for "dine in" service!  She said that if we wanted horchata (a cold, sweet rice milk drink with cinnamon that Andrew loves), we'd have to come back tomorrow.  Like we wouldn't be back anyway.