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.