Belize Mission 2009: Caye Caulker

I made it to Caye Caulker, an island paradise. I woke up early hoping to catch a bus travelling by the hospital. I wasn’t sure on the schedule, but wanted to make sure I was there by 7 am. The bus came right at 7 am and it was headed to Belize City. Belize City is only about 60-70 miles away, but it took 2 ½ hours to get there. The buses here stop wherever there are people that want to get on. We stopped over and over so our average speed was pretty slow. The bus was crammed and hot. People had to stand in the aisles it was so packed. I walked directly to the marine terminal after I arrived and took a taxi out to Caye caulker. It’s like 15 miles away from Belize City.
Stepping out of the boat onto the dock I knew I had arrived in paradise. Just like any tropical island there were palm trees, beaches, and crystal clear water. There was a sand street lining the entire beach up and down the shore and the only vehicles here are golf carts. In fact, all the streets on the island are sand and since this is such a small place the whole ambiance is just great. It is a place to chill and relax.
My place I had reserved was not too far down the shore road. This place looked great from the outside. It was right on the shore with its own dock. One good thing about Belize is that for the most part things are cheap. Also, because it’s slow season and there has been a recent swine flu outbreak keeping tourists at bay the clerk gave me any room of my choice for the price of their cheapest cabana. He mentioned the 3rd floor suite with a sea facing view so I went for that one. It wasn’t really much of a suite though even if the view was amazing. It didn’t have a TV or A/C, which I can live with, but when the toilet stopped working I had to put my foot down. They let me go to a different room in back without the view, but with a TV, A/C, and most important a toilet that would flush. Am I not such a pretty boy? I can deal with a lot, but I must at least have a place to go to the bathroom, so I thought I was justified in asking for a new room.
I felt like I was the only tourist on the island until the evening. I was trying to go on a snorkel tour, but not one tour guide had other people going. It’s impossible to get a tour guide to take a boat out for only one person so I was in a tough situation. I didn’t want to go tomorrow because I have plans for the Sabbath and I wasn’t sure if I would have time on Monday since I have to head back to Santa Elena. The guy finally offered to take me for the price of two people. It would have been nice if I could have just rented the equipment and gone by myself, but the coral reef is like a mile from the island. I finally caved in. It was only like 40 bucks to have my own personal guide, the boat ride, equipment, and all the water I could drink. I’m glad I went because it was sweet!!!
First, we headed to sting ray ally. I was a little hesitant to jump in the water as all I could think of was the crock hunter meeting his death by getting stabbed in the chest by a sting ray. It was a sting ray, right? The guide said they were safe as long as I didn’t step on one. What happens if I step on one, I thought? Do they eat me for lunch or spear me to death? Another reason I was stalling is because I have an irrational fear of open water. I think my fear mainly stems from being terrified of sharks, but being underwater and looking out into an unknown abyss is kind of unsettling. Even if I know things are safe I just have a problem with that, like I said, “irrational fear”. I think I watched too much Jaws as a kid too, because sharks scare the bajeebees out of me. If I saw a shark in the water while snorkeling I would probably just die right there from the shock. I couldn’t let Mario think I was a wimp though so I finally jumped in. Once I got comfortable it was great and lots of fun. There were quite a few sting rays and they would swim all around me. I could reach out and touch them. I also saw a barracuda and a few other fish. We then headed to two more places on the reef where the coral is. This was a blast. I saw so many diverse kinds of fish and luckily I had an underwater camera so I got some good pics. At one point I came across this huge school of fish that were hiding behind a rock. I scared them out and about 200 fish came zooming out. I also saw a humungous fish about the size of my upper body. Mario said it was a Parrot fish. Unfortunately I had used all my film by then so I couldn’t get a pic. Overall, it was way cool seeing all the fish and fun to have a personal guide although he didn’t really do much. He told me the names of like three fish and he didn’t even get in the water at the last place. Sheesh!
Dinner was great and I love how cheap food is here in Belize. This dude on the street guided me to a restaurant that had an outdoor barbeque. They had a fresh catch of fish, lobster, and shrimp that they were grilling up. The menu is according to what they were able to catch that day. Unfortunately, I don’t really like sea food, but I do enjoy shrimp so I got the shrimp kabob. I got a side of spaghetti, cole slaw, watermelon and this big kabob for $7.50. In the US, I’m sure it would have costed at least $20. It was soooo good and the restaurant was right on the street so I could watch all the locals pass. I had a great time, but I kept thinking I wish I had someone here with me. I mainly wish Jessica was here obviously, but any company would be nice. I meet a few of the locals when I go places, but it can get pretty lonely when there’s no one around I know. Oh well, I’m trying to have as much fun as I can even though I’m wishing Jess was here all the time.
So that was my pretty cool unexciting day. Tomorrow I’m going to Ambergis Caye to go to church and explore that island a bit. I don’t think they have any Sunday activities here, but I think I may rent a sea kayak and explore a bit. I did that once in Italy and had a great time. Until next time. . .