Caye Caulker was beautiful when we arrived on Friday after spending 3 days with our friends in El Placer, a little town north of Mahahuel, Mexico on what is called the Mayan Riviera. There we snorkeled, walked on the beach, ate some delicious home cooking and had a chance to catch up with friends we met in Chile. They then delivered us to the bus terminal early in the morning on Friday, and we got on our way to Belize.
As we rode in the bus, we could tell we were getting to a different landform, as the rocky limestone soil gave way to a lush, more tropical area with sugarcane, papaya, orange trees and other agricultural crops.
Crossing the border wasn't the problem we thought we might run into, but it went smoothly and quickly (nothing like crossing from Chile to Argentina). After going through some small outlying villages, we got into the town of Belize City, jumped out of the bus, grabbed a taxi, and caught the very next water taxi for Caye Caulker.
Caye Caulker is a pretty laid=back town on an island about 1 hour's boat ride from Belize City. It has sand streets, lined with little wooden, very colorful houses and stores. Many are on stilts to withstand the high tides in bad weather. Vendors sit behind makeshift stalls, barbequing lobsters and fish, or selling handmade jewelry, shirts, dresses, or bathing suits. Everybody speaks to you as you walk by. They may ask you to see their wares, but they don't pursue you if you say, "No, thanks." If you don't want to walk, you can flag down a golf cart taxi or rent a bike. We walked almost every street, just peering into doorways or back yards, admiring the flowers, or looking for a place to eat. It seems that so many people decided they would earn a little extra money by turning their front porches into a restaurant or cafe, So, there are plenty of places to have a snack, a drink or a whole meal, some with one or two tables, others with 10 or 20. The Caribbean is an amazing blue, and we were very eager to get in it, but the day after we arrived, we had a very long and hard rainstorm. We grumbled but it did no good.
The next day, the wind was still whipping up white caps, but we decided we'd take a water taxi to the next island Ambergris Caye about half an hour away. It was a cute place, too, but much more built up than Caye Caulker, so we stay only long enough for lunch and a latte.
Today was beautiful, and we were glad we stayed an extra day. We had wanted to snorkle the reef here, and finally got the chance. We went out on a sailboat that took us to the reef in 3 places: Coral Gardens, Shark Alley and Hol Chan Marine Reserve. The coral was interesting, but it was not as colorful as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Shark Alley was pretty incredible. There were sharks around the boat, but by the time we got in the water, the sharks were gone (whew). But we did get to swim with some sting rays, snapper and grouper. When we got to Hol Chan, we got to see tarpon swimming below us and so many very large fish. We saw trigger fish, more grouper, parrot fish, and some brilliantly blue ones. Actually, there were so many that I can't remember all of them. It was a very successful day with an underwater symphony of fish and a very beautiful sailing cruise as well. We ate well, also, with fish sandwiches, fruit and on the way back to port a delicious punch and ceviche which I will make when I get home.
Tomorrow we are on our way to Guatemala. I hope the border crossing goes as smoothly. I think the experiences there will be exciting, too.
As we rode in the bus, we could tell we were getting to a different landform, as the rocky limestone soil gave way to a lush, more tropical area with sugarcane, papaya, orange trees and other agricultural crops.
Crossing the border wasn't the problem we thought we might run into, but it went smoothly and quickly (nothing like crossing from Chile to Argentina). After going through some small outlying villages, we got into the town of Belize City, jumped out of the bus, grabbed a taxi, and caught the very next water taxi for Caye Caulker.
Caye Caulker is a pretty laid=back town on an island about 1 hour's boat ride from Belize City. It has sand streets, lined with little wooden, very colorful houses and stores. Many are on stilts to withstand the high tides in bad weather. Vendors sit behind makeshift stalls, barbequing lobsters and fish, or selling handmade jewelry, shirts, dresses, or bathing suits. Everybody speaks to you as you walk by. They may ask you to see their wares, but they don't pursue you if you say, "No, thanks." If you don't want to walk, you can flag down a golf cart taxi or rent a bike. We walked almost every street, just peering into doorways or back yards, admiring the flowers, or looking for a place to eat. It seems that so many people decided they would earn a little extra money by turning their front porches into a restaurant or cafe, So, there are plenty of places to have a snack, a drink or a whole meal, some with one or two tables, others with 10 or 20. The Caribbean is an amazing blue, and we were very eager to get in it, but the day after we arrived, we had a very long and hard rainstorm. We grumbled but it did no good.
The next day, the wind was still whipping up white caps, but we decided we'd take a water taxi to the next island Ambergris Caye about half an hour away. It was a cute place, too, but much more built up than Caye Caulker, so we stay only long enough for lunch and a latte.
Today was beautiful, and we were glad we stayed an extra day. We had wanted to snorkle the reef here, and finally got the chance. We went out on a sailboat that took us to the reef in 3 places: Coral Gardens, Shark Alley and Hol Chan Marine Reserve. The coral was interesting, but it was not as colorful as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Shark Alley was pretty incredible. There were sharks around the boat, but by the time we got in the water, the sharks were gone (whew). But we did get to swim with some sting rays, snapper and grouper. When we got to Hol Chan, we got to see tarpon swimming below us and so many very large fish. We saw trigger fish, more grouper, parrot fish, and some brilliantly blue ones. Actually, there were so many that I can't remember all of them. It was a very successful day with an underwater symphony of fish and a very beautiful sailing cruise as well. We ate well, also, with fish sandwiches, fruit and on the way back to port a delicious punch and ceviche which I will make when I get home.
Tomorrow we are on our way to Guatemala. I hope the border crossing goes as smoothly. I think the experiences there will be exciting, too.
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