Dangerous waters, the sea!…

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Stingray barb. 

The ocean and its majestic wonder are daunting and uncertain. Many flock to its tempting water freely without reservation. That’s Tom. Others tiptoe at the shore hesitant to partake in its cooling waters, uncertain as the dangers that lurk beneath. That’s me.

Tom is rethinking his position today after yet another guest at LaruBeya was viciously stung by a stingray in her foot yesterday as we lounged in the shade on the veranda. We witnessed the young woman being dragged out of the water by two other swimmers, one on each arm as she writhed in pain.

All the swimmers cleared the water. The word was out. There was nothing we could do to help as she was quickly taken to her villa directly above ours, her husband following behind in an obviously frenzied state. 

Photo of stingray in the Belize coral reef.

Resort staff immediately went into action to come to aid in her care.  There are no urgent care facilities within hours of here.  The medical clinic in the village, five miles from here was closed.  The staff stated that the nurse from the clinic lived above the clinic and someone would go to find her. 

In these cases, the nurse will inject the site of the injury with Lidocaine to relieve the pain while the toxins

The treatment for a stingray “bite” is described here in this article. It’s not actually a bite, more so a puncture/scraping wound.  More information about stingrays, in general, can be found on National Geographic.

The barb of a stingray.  A misconception is that the barb in the actual tail when it fact in it along the tail.

We all recall the heartbreaking story of Steve Irwin‘s untimely death from the piercing of his heart by a stingray. A horrifying story. Yes, he took a risk playing with these and other potentially dangerous creatures. It was his life’s work.  He left a vast legacy of valuable information about our amazing animal world. 

As far as we’ve heard, the swimmer above us is recovering after a frightening experience, albeit with continuing pain in the bloody piercing and scraping from the barb and its toxins.

Last week, our Minnesota friend Nancy received a nasty jellyfish sting on her arm. Jellyfish are common in Belize based on its proximity to the massive coral reef. Having experienced a sting four years ago, Nancy was familiar with the procedures necessary to minimize the pain and risk of systemic illness. 

The last time she was stung, she developed a fever, vomiting, and body aches. With pain at the site and quick treatment, this time, she suffered only pain and redness at the site and a general feeling of malaise for a day. It took a few days for the redness and swelling to dissipate. This is the treatment Nancy used to reduce the discomfort and speed healing.

When we first arrived at our resort, another swimmer received a sting and was rushed away. With the knowledge of these potential risks in the warm water so the Caribbean Sea, we’ve spent little time in the ocean, having walked far out toward the reef only a few times. 

On our frequent walks along the beach, we’ve seen several stingrays swimming less than one foot from us, exercising caution not to disturb them.

With only two weeks left of our time in Belize, I think, for now, we won’t swim in the ocean. The coral reef attracts beautiful aquatic life, but along with it comes many potentially dangerous predators. 

The clear appearance of the jellyfish makes it difficult to see when swimming in the ocean.  Jellyfish don’t purposely sting.  They have no brain.  Stings often result from brushing up against them.

We’ve taken the biggest risk of our lives, leaving everyone and everything we’ve known and loved behind as we travel the world for the next 5-10 years.  In a concerted effort to avoid health risks and injuries, we tend to be more conservative than others may be on a two-week vacation. With a four hour drive to a major emergency facility, we’ve chosen to exercise caution in the areas “that we do know the present risk.” 

After all, it was only a little over two weeks ago, that we fell on the collapsing steps, averting potentially life and limb changing injuries. We had no way to know about that risk. Thus, we choose to steer clear of known risky situations. 

For most swimmers, nothing will occur. No stings, no bites, little risk. The waters of Belize are beautiful and generally safe for swimmers, scuba divers, and snorkelers.

But for us, does exercising such caution diminish our level of enjoyment?  Not at all. We’re engaging in exactly what we choose to do and at the moment, venturing out into the sea, not included. The pool is great.

A revelation with 18 days left in Belize…

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Often we emphasize the view from our veranda overlooking the Caribbean Sea. We’ve neglected to take photos of our “backyard” behind our villa. These gorgeous flowers came into full bloom overnight. There’s no grass or vegetation for a “lawn,” just fine white sand. Early each morning the staff rakes the sand in the gardens as well as along the beach to keep it smooth and free of debris.

Yesterday, as we wandered out to the pool for our daily, vitamin D enhancing, tan deepening, sunburn-free, requisite one hour of sunshine, a thought hit me right between the eyes.  We’re leaving Belize in 18 days as of today and we have no sense of dread, no angst, no feeling of disappointment nor, any sense of longing to go. 

It may sound like ambivalence, but in fact, it’s the opposite, a sense of elation coupled with calm and quiet acceptance.  Oxymoron?  Perhaps.

In other words, we’re looking forward to each and every one of the 18 remaining days in Belize plus, we’re joyfully anticipating the future two months of cruises, the trip across the Atlantic, the visit to the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx, along with the resulting 13 nights in Dubai living in a 95 story residential tower overlooking Palm Jumeirah and the Persian Gulf.

By June 16th, we’ll drive in a rental car from Venice to our 17th century stone villa in Tuscany where we’ll spend the summer. Then on to Africa, and then, on and on…

Tempering enthusiasm takes practice. I’m your basic “jump up and down,” overly enthusiastic spirit. Tom, on the other hand, merely smiles, his eyes twinkling, in a state of reserved contemplation, incorporating a touch of skepticism and caution, all the while hoping it provides him with insurance against disappointment. 

Not I’ll risk disappointment! Come on, excitement! Come on, anticipation! I’m ready to indulge in my whimsical musings of what is yet to come.  We’re a good pair as he tries to tone me down and I strive to “fluff him up.” 

Our compromise? Live in the moment or, if willing to stretch ourselves, live in the next 24 hours. How do we see the next 24 hours?  Tonight is our Minnesota friend’s final night in Belize (they own their villa and will be back). They’re returning to their home and business in Minnesota.

They’re hosting a cocktail party tonight at 5:00 PM, atop the fabulous home they’re building which we highlighted in a post on March 7, 2013, the day of our anniversary, the night we fell on the collapsed steps.  Of course, we’ll attend.  We’re sad to see them go.  We’ll miss the day to day interaction, the commonalities we share, the laughter, and the endless stories.

For now, for the next 24 hours, we live our lives consisting of a series of pleasant, uneventful days spent engaging in mindless drivel or days of what we find to be extraordinary experiences that we will always remember. What if we don’t remember?  We can always bring up this blog to jog our memories, if, hopefully, we can remember how to find it.

What do I do about my phone?…

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Ugh!!  My cracked Droid Razr Maxx HD smartphone cracked in the upper left corner.

The day after our anniversary and subsequent injuries from the fall on the collapsed steps, I dropped my Droid Razor HD Maxx on the cement walkway.  More concerned about my injuries at the time, I dismissed it with a plan to deal with it later.

Later has arrived.  I’m almost fully recovered, working out again today for the first time since the fall, and ready to resolve the phone issue.

If we were in the US, I’d drive to the Verizon store or a cell phone repair shop, drop it off for the day to pick it up later in the day.  Most likely the cost for the digitized touch screen replacement would have been in the $200-$289 range.

Not the case now.  On a whim, when we stopped at the local office supply store in Placencia Village on Wednesday for a squishy envelope, there was a cell repair station in the back of the store.  My hopes soared.  The enthusiastic repair guy looked at the cracked screen shaking his head, “no.” 

The office supply store in Placencia, Belize has a cell repair shop.

“It will take at least a month for the repair parts to get here,” he explains, handing the phone back to me. “But I can’t even guarantee that it’d get here in a month.  You, know, the mail…” he trailed, looking sadly disappointed.

“Yes, we understand,” I said equally disappointed. 

Decided not to give it another thought at the time, we continued on with our shopping.  Later, at my computer, I started researching my options which include:

Plan A

  1. Wrap the phone in the padded envelope with a prepaid UPS label (using our UPS account, our trusty portable printer, and our roll of clear shipping tape) and giving it to our kind Minnesota friends who are returning to the US on March 22nd. 
  2. UPS will pick it up at their office on March 25th. Within four days (roughly arriving on March 29th), it arrives at the Motorola Repair facility, where it takes five days to repair (roughly arriving on April 3rd).  Motorola ships it to our mailing service in Nevada (roughly arriving on April 7 and is placed in the box with our other items being shipped to us on April 8th to a UPS store in Miami Beach. We’ll be there for only eight hours on April 13th.  That’s a tight time frame.
  3. This plan leaves me without my Android phone for 22 days, which I use as my reading device. I pick it up to read at night when we go to bed, during the night if I can’t sleep, during the day on the veranda and out by the pool.  To be without it for 22 days is challenging. My laptop is too bulky for such reading.  Yes, I know a tablet would have been handy, but we were trying to keep the digital equipment at a minimum (kind of).

Plan B

  1. Find a location in Miami Beach to repair the phone while we wait during our eight-hour layover between cruises.
  2. Upon researching cell phone locations somewhat near the pier in Miami, most indicated either an exorbitant cost of upwards of $300 or they wouldn’t fix it in a few hours.  I contacted several repair shops by email and chat to become further frustrated with their responses.  All asked to be paid upfront so they could order the parts. 

Plan C

  1. Keep the phone in my possession since I still can read on it. We’ll arrive in Dubai on May 21st after our cruise through the Suez Canal and to visit to the Pyramids.  With a 13 day stay, we’ll have time to take it to a nearby repair shop for a replacement screen.  If it takes a few days, no problem. With our 95-story high rise close to the downtown area, there appear to be multiple options within walking distance.
  2. Keep the phone in my possession since I still can read on it.  We’ll arrive in Italy, staying in Tuscany for 2 1/2 months with a rental car.  We’ll have plenty of time to get it repaired.

In reviewing these options, we have to recall our motto, “Wafting Through Our World Wide Travels with Ease, Joy and Simplicity.”  In other words, which of these options produces the least amount of stress?  It’s clear to us, Plan C.

A possible obstacle to Plan C?  The phone continues to crack (highly likely) and becomes unreadable. Solution: Bite the bullet and purchase a new unlocked smartphone at one of the many ports of call along the way. Also, we’ll be back in Miami for one day again on April 20th, the day we leave to travel across the ocean to Barcelona.  At that time, decide on the repair or the new phone.

For now, we’ll put aside the cracked screen issue and go about enjoying our remaining 24 days in Placencia Belize.  Our big concern for today is, when will the sun come out? Nice.

Walking for Jell-O…We’re having a party…Photos and recipes below..

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Tom’s big decision of the day: Should we get the cauliflower now and carry it, or shall we get it on the way back.  I said now.  He said later.  He won.  He was the “carrier” of the bag. Luckily, it was there when we returned.

Friday night is fast approaching and we’ve invited our Minnesota friends on either side of us for dinner.  Granted, we don’t have a dining table and chairs other than the small two-person set on the veranda, plus three bar stools indoors.  But, we’ll figure it out.  Improvise is the name of the game.

Another small concern, we only have three dinner plates.  Most certainly, we can borrow plates from the neighbors.  The restaurant staff here at Laru Beya loaned us two placemats and two linen napkins for our personal use.  I supposed we could ask for more. 

Entering the small village of Seine Bight

The menu is challenging. We’d suggested a homemade pizza with our GF cheese crust (a staple we frequently prepare). They loved the idea, curious as to how a pizza would taste without a traditional crust.  All of the ingredients are readily available in the local grocers.

As for the side dishes (of which I always make several), I was in a quandary. When shopping in Placencia it makes sense to plan the menu based on what is available in the stores, rather than pre-plan a menu, trying to find the ingredients. 

Yesterday, feeling rushed as we shopped with Estevan patiently waiting outside the grocery store, it wasn’t easy to plan the side dishes.  In my “old life” I’d plan a menu for dinner guests over a number of days, contemplating a well-balanced menu with a wide array of delectable options.  No longer do I have that luxury (among others).

Restaurant along the road as we walked into town.

Flustered as we scurried about the store, we hurriedly decided on the following menu:

  • Carrot and zucchini sticks with homemade salmon, cream cheese dip
  • Our favorite Cauliflower, Bacon, and Almond Salad with homemade sweet (Splenda) and sour dressing (recipe follows at the end of this post)
  • Traditional Cucumber and Onion Salad
  • Homemade Pizza with locally made hot Italian sausage, onion, mushrooms, and sliced green olives with sharp cheddar cheese crust, tons of mozzarella cheese, and hand-grated (no grater on hand) fresh Parmesan cheese we purchased this morning from Mathieu’s Deli.
  • Homemade grilled garlic bread made with raw garlic, more Parmesan cheese atop a fresh-baked loaf of Italian bread made by Gunter early this morning at Mathieu’s Deli. (I will be a “voyeur” this item.  No tasting!  Tom’s on a bit of a splurge right now for another few days, but back to GF, low carb soon).
  • Dessert:  my favorite Strawberry Oreo Dessert (recipe follows at the end of this post. Another item suitable for the “voyeur”).

After the shopping expedition yesterday and unable to find fresh cauliflower after visiting four vegetable stands, I was ready to forfeit the recipe.  Yesterday afternoon as we unpacked the groceries it dawned on me that I had forgotten the required strawberry Jell-O.  With the other ingredients on hand, we had to figure out a way to get to a grocery store without wheels. 

It made no sense to call Estevan back to pick us up to buy a box of Jell-O or, for that matter, to rent a golf cart for $35 for a half-day. Our budgets offered no room for such frivolity. Thinking about the Jell-O into the evening, I suggested to Tom that we walk to the grocery store in the next town in the morning, north of us in Seine Bight. He agreed. 

Cloudy today, the temperature was ideal for walking.  At 9:00 am we were on the road, re-usable grocery bag in hand with a bottle of frozen water in tow just in case.  The walk along the busy highway to Seine Bight was pleasant with an occasional local warmly greeting us with a cheerful, “good morning!”  The narrow shoulder required, we walk in single file, stopping from time to time to take a few photos.

The square water tower in Seine Bight!

Alas, the first store we encounter had fresh cauliflower, one medium head, and one half of a smaller head but no Jell-O. Tom suggested we purchase the cauliflower on the way back rather than haul it for whatever distance may be required to find Jell-O.  Walking out the door empty-handed, I groaned, fearful it would be gone when we returned. It wasn’t.

An abandoned cement building that may have been damaged in a past hurricane.

As we continued our walk through the small town, it dawned on me that we also needed lettuce for the salad.  What’s wrong with me, unable to remember the ingredients for some of our favorite recipes?  Have we been out of touch for so long?  Reassuring Tom that we’d find lettuce, we continued along the road to the vegetable stand several blocks away.  He didn’t complain about the “store hopping.”

Two small but fresh heads of iceberg lettuce were awaiting us at the tiny vegetable stand.  Would we get lucky and find a bigger head of cauliflower here?  Not the case.

The little vegetable stand where we found the two heads of lettuce.

Continuing on, we entered another small grocery store to find a large box of strawberry Jell-O, directions in Spanish. No problem. I’d convert the “litro” to cups and we’d be good to go.

This box of a Jell-O equivalent is Belize $2.45 which results in US $1.23.

Turning around, we headed back to the first store with the cauliflower.  Much to my delight, it was still there.  A bunch of green onions, the two chunks of cauliflower, and US $2 later, we were out the door and on our way back to the deli for our loaf of bread and Parmesan cheese. Our menu is intact!

Maya prophesy reminder from December 2012, on the walk to deli.

On the walk back, we stopped at Mathieu’s Deli purchasing the load fresh baked Italian bread, a chunk of Parmesan cheese for the pizza, and a variety of cheeses made at Caves Branch in the Cayo District. The owner, Ian Anderson, whom we met about a month ago at the wine and cheese party, had invited us for a cheese and wine tour of his cheese factory. We just might take him up on his kind offer.  Perhaps, soon.

It felt as if we’d walked for miles.  Having worn my FitBit pedometer on my belt loop, I’d estimated we’d walked three or four miles when in fact it only revealed a paltry two and a quarter miles.  

Tomorrow night, we’ll be ready for our guests, recipes prepared with our seating, and plate situation somehow resolved.  We’ve found that a part of the joy of our lives as we travel the world lies in the pleasure that we discover in the minutiae.  The big items, we’ll plot and plan. The few items, we’ll wing it!

Jessica Cauliflower Salad

1 head romaine lettuce, sliced in shreds
1 head raw cauliflower, cut into small pieces
1 pound lean bacon, cooked and diced

4 green onions, chopped

1 cup almonds, slivers toasted in oven or skillet

Dressing

1 cup mayo

3 T. red wine vinegar

12 packets Splenda

Prepare all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.

Pour dressing over salad and toss until everything is well coated. Amazingly, this salad keeps nicely for 3 days if its refrigerator as soon as you serve it.

Enjoy!
Jessica’s Strawberry
Oreo Dessert (not low carb, sugar-free or gluten-free)

1 12 oz package Cool Whip

1 small package frozen strawberries, partially defrosted (1 hour) and drained

1 small sugar-free raspberry Jell-O

1 large package Oreo cookies or a box of Oreo crumbs

Dissolve Jell-O in 1 cup boiling water

Refrigerate until cool but not set

Crush Oreo and press into a 9 x 13” pan

Whip Jell-O until frothy in a food processor, add frozen strawberries, and then fold in the Cool Whip.

Cover with remaining Oreo and refrigerate.

Delicious!  You can easily double this recipe.

Playful night in Belize despite “24/7″…

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 Tom and I enjoyed the balmy evening, sitting on the beach in front of our villa.
I’ve never cared for the expression, “24/7,” thinking it sounded as if it were a lazy way of saying, “all the time,” “around the clock,” or “every minute of the day.”
 

The words “24/7” never crossed my lips until a few days ago while lounging at the pool, chatting with a guest at Laru Beya, it fell out of my mouth when she asked me, “Now that you both are retired, how does it feel to be together all of the time?”

Without hesitation, I blurted, “Being together 24/7 has worked well for us.  We don’t whine, snip or pick on each other. It works!”  I let out a little gasp, shocked at myself for having said the dreadful expression.  24/7?  Yep, that’s us. 24/7?  Yep, that’s most retired people. 

A few hours later, while again lounging, this time in the comfy chaise on our veranda, I allowed my mind to wander to the conversation with the woman.  After 22 years of being together with busy work schedules and personal lives, we’re finally together.


We shot this coconut tree photo in the dark on the beach in front of our veranda. 

How do couples make it work?  Over the years we observed many couples on their way to, and eventually into retirement.  Some made it work.  Some didn’t. 

Early on in our relationship and in many years to come, Tom and I surrounded ourselves with a role model couple we adored, Sue and Chip, our dear friends and neighbors four doors from us with whom we spent many enjoyable hours. 

Entrenched in lively conversations on countless occasions we discussed every possible topic, over fabulous food and drink, during holidays, special events, as well as on Chip and Tom’s shared birthdays on December 23rd. 


Hold it steady, Honey.  Its a little blurry!

As a couple, Sue and Chip personified the ideal of retirement.  Chip, retired as an orthopedic surgeon, used the finite hand skills he’d acquired as a surgeon to fulfill his artistic bent busying himself as a sculptor, artist and singer.  Sue, a charming hostess and friend to many, played tennis and entertained guests, surrounding herself with meaningful social and academic adventures.

Well rounded as individuals, they came together fulfilled and content, lovingly and unselfishly reveling in each other’s interests and activities.  Observing them during our countless times spent together, we knew we needed to follow suit into our own retirement with caveats we learned from Sue and Chip (never spoken but observed):

1.  No nagging, no complaining, no snipping and no negative tone of voice when asking or responding to anything at all.
2.  Expand on or develop new interests to fill a portion of your time in gratifying endeavors, sharing what you’ve learned with your spouse opening new avenues for conversation.
3.  Spend time with friends and family building relationships of your own.
4.  Socialize together always speaking well of one another with a twinkle in your eye.  Never complain about your partner’s bad habits (which seem to worsen as we age) to others, including family.
5.  Share financial status with one another on an ongoing basis especially if one handles the money more than the other.
6.  Discuss life’s concerns in a productive manner, inspiring solutions and resolutions together as a couple.
7.  Compliment each other, always seeking new ways to express your interest and attraction to many aspects of your partner, not merely complimenting their outfit for the evening (which in itself always earns brownie points!). 
8. Always give one another credit for accomplishments even if only one of you did most of the work.  After all, it is a partnership.
9.  Have fun!  (This can be achieved in many ways, if you know what I mean!)
10. Have more fun!

This is what we learned from Sue and Chip.  This is what we strive to achieve every single day.  It’s a choice, isn’t it?  It’s not a matter of circumstance one falls into via good or bad luck.  Do we accomplish it “24/7?”  No, but like any good habit, its easier to fall back into the goodness, if one so chooses.

We lost our dear Chip the end of May last year (see blog post in archives for June 1, 2012).  We miss him.  We’ll always miss him.  But, in us (and in Sue and many others who knew him and easily loved him) his legacy of love, laughter and passion for life continues on,  along with the fine example of a happy and fulfilling retirement as an individual and as a couple.

Last night we had fun, as we so often do, prompting our silly pictures posted on Facebook and again here in this blog today.  May it serve as a reminder that this, dear friends, is what retirement means to us, not traveling the world on one adventure after another but, being together living our lives to the fullest, living in the moment, with a “twinkle in our eyes” of what is yet to come.

Be well.

Thoughts from a milestone birthday…

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Stormy windy day on my birthday.
Repeat photo from a sunny day a few weeks ago.

Yesterday morning, on the day of my 65th birthday, clouds rolled in from the white capped sea creating a gloomy blanket over us.  Standing at the glass door at 6 am, I wondered if it would clear in time to spend the bulk of the day outside, as we’ve done over the past two weeks since arriving at Laru Beya, a virtual paradise of lush gardens, shifting sands, and non stop congeniality.

As raindrops propelled by the fierce winds splayed on the glass, for a moment I allowed myself a little whine, “Goodness, can’t it be nice on my birthday?”  Quickly reminding myself that the “old me” might have been annoyed by an inclement day, I straightened up and threw my brain into reverse.

“It’s a perfect day.  I’m 65 years old today, alive, healthy and living in a haven of loveliness with the man of my dreams, living a life I’d never imagined, a life I never dared to dream. Let it rain!  Let it pour!  It doesn’t matter.

No walk on the beach.  No long walk next door to be driven to the outdoor Singing Sands, five miles down the road to celebrate the occasion with yet another special dinner.  No one-hour by the pool soaking up our daily dose of Vitamin D, which now “they say” reduces the effects of aging.  We shall see how “that’s working for us!”

Coffee, shower, dress for the day and tidying up our place in preparation for our Mayan maid Gloria to come in and clean at 9:00 am, the same time our trusty cab driver Estevan appears to take us grocery shopping so we’ll be out of her way.

She was early.  We like her.  Tom blurted out, “It’s Jessica’s birthday today!” Obviously, he was fishing for birthday wishes for me when back in the US, the wishes came in abundance on that day. 

Gloria throws her head back and laughs, “Its my birthday today too!  Happy birthday, Miss Yessica,” she says with her sweet broken English.  We all laughed together.  Tom and I couldn’t give her enough good wishes.  How ironic?  I can’t recall ever meeting anyone with the same birthday.

Determined to find something fabulous to make for dinner, we rummaged through the three freezers at the grocery store in Seine Bight, the little town next to us, a short cab ride away.  Sensitive to Estevan waiting outside, I had an awful time making a decision:  frozen chicken parts, thin frozen steaks, frozen hot dogs or frozen short ribs. 

Hummm…what shall it be?  The limitations of our diet added to feeling confused and rushed.  I grabbed the chicken, parts unknown, unable to make a decision for any other nights. 

We grabbed the four packages of cream cheese we’d ordered a week ago,  several packages of local peanuts in the shell, a head of cabbage, six giant carrots and three onions from huge bags that had just arrived from the farm.

After a total of only $35 plus $10 plus tip for the cab, we were back on our way “home” still wondering what we’d cook for the birthday dinner.  As we put the perishables in the ample ice cold stainless steel fridge, perusing its contents, we decided on eating the leftover homemade pizza still in the freezer while I’d make a fresh batch of coleslaw by shredding the vegetables by hand. 

The knife in the drawer was dull.  I sharpened it on the rock Tom had brought inside  and washed for cracking coconuts.  It worked much to my surprise.  When does one “wash a rock” while living in the US?.  Never.  I made the coleslaw early in the day to chill.  Coleslaw and pizza?  Sure, why not?  A perfect birthday dinner.  (This was the other half of the pizza we didn’t really love but ate it anyway a week ago).  It tasted better the second time.

The rain continued throughout the day into the evening.  We’d cancelled the dinner reservation online.  We stayed in all day and evening.  I finished Part 2 of Monkey River for this blog, posting multiple photos (a slow laborious process in Blogger).  Tom watched the stock market news on TV. 

I responded to a multitude of thoughtful birthday wishes posted on Facebook, spoke to family on Skype and paid bills online. You know, the stuff we do on rainy days, snowy days, days we’re stuck inside.  I was not disappointed.  It was a good birthday.

Tom did the dishes as usual.  I played solitaire on my computer scoring my highest score ever.  At 9:30, my head nodding into my computer, I decided to turn in.  For some goofy reason I was tired. I guess that what 65 year olds do.

Party Time in Placencia, Belize…

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Gunter, the chef, baker and purveyor of fine foods at Mathieu’s deli.

Who knew that less than one week after moving into our ocean front villa at Laru Beya that we’d be going to a local party?  Yep, that’s us, social butterflies. 

An element of our ability to travel the world is wrapped up in our combined enjoyment of meeting new people, experiencing new cultures, ultimately making new friends.

After our first friends, Kari and Stu from Canada left Friday morning off to visit another island and then head home, we’d planned dinner Friday night with our favorite newlywed couple, Pam and Jerry, who’d invited us to join us.  

Last night was their last night in Placencia and they too were heading off to another resort in Belize for the remainder of their honeymoon.

The marina at Habanero’s/Mathieu’s.

Early in the afternoon Pam, a long time resident of Belize and a US citizen, came dashing over to our veranda as we lounged after a long walk on the beach.  Her enthusiasm along with the bounce in her step, led us to anticipate she had something exciting to tell us. 

“We’re invited to a party!”  she blurted. 

“We?”  I questioned hoping that the invitation did indeed include us.

“Yes,” she babbled, “all of us are invited to a wine and cheese party across the street at Mathieu, a quaint bakery attached to Habanero, our close and favorite Tuesday night Mexican buffet spot.

“Its at 4:00 pm. Would you like to go with us?”  she questioned with eyebrows raised.

More boats at the marina.

Tom and I looked at each other for a moment reverting to our “old selves” thinking of a reason “why not?”  But our “new selves” chimed in simultaneously,
“Yes, we’d love to!  We’ll look for you there at 4:00 pm sharp!”

Pam smiled wide.  We’re going to a party!

Planning to attend the party for a few hours returning to our respective villas to get ready for the evening and drive the five mile distance to De Tatch, a local eatery consisting of multiple little huts on the beach and one large thatch hut, known for its traditional Belizean food and juicy imported steaks (I prefer the local grass fed meat).

Arriving promptly at 3:55, we grabbed a rattan table for four with comfy padded chairs, seeing few people.  Tom and I looked at each other surely thinking the same thing, “Where are all the guests?  Not much of a party.”  No wine, no cheese was in sight.

Nice catamaran!

Within minutes, we found Pam and Jerry, happy to find us.  We all reveled in how thoughtful promptness is, as we gathered around the table, looking around the sparse area. 

In a flurry of activity, the Belizean way, the area filled with locals, expats, tourists and us, leaving us feeling excited and included in what proved to be a delightful experience as you can see from the attached photos.

Cheese being served at the party. Ian Anderson, the cheese maker, manufacturing cheese made in Belize, is the gentleman serving cheese. 

Frosty lasses of fresh squeezed pineapple juice was poured all around. (None for me.  No sugar here.  No problem.) The imported red and white wine flowed freely and the food…much more than cheese. 

Servers passed trays of appetizers including many locally grown fruit, hand carved imported deli meats, Bruschetta made with locally grown tomatoes piled atop breads made right there at the Matthieu Deli plus a wide array of the most amazing cheeses actually made right here in Belize at the resort, owned by Ian Anderson, featured in the photo above.

Breads served a appetizer table.  Drool worthy.

The cheese making factory is located in Ian’s resort, Caves Branch in Cayo District. Its by far the best cheese we’ve ever eaten.  The proceeds from the sales goes to an organization for the betterment of Belizean children.  What an amazing operation.

Tom tried a few small slices of the amazing breads, as he has from time to time when we’ve dined out recently with no adverse effects, when eaten in moderation. None for me.  

Our newlywed friends, Pam and Jerry, as the area fills with party-goers.

Gunter, the chef, baker and cheese purveyor, a charming salt and pepper haired man from Germany was busy making platter after platter of his delectable delights.  The servers were darting in and out of the congested gatherings of party goers with platters in hand, serving generous portions. 

The cheese was to die for.  Immediately after tasting four or five of the cheeses, I dashed off to the counter in the deli, credit card in hand hoping to purchase a few of our favorites. 

Tom calls me a “food voyeur.”  So true!

Alas, in the Belizean way, they didn’t have any to sell.  This truly was a party!  It wasn’t a promotion to sell cheese.  I drilled Gunther, “When can we come back and buy some of these cheese?” 

“Come back tomorrow,” he proudly stated, “It should be here tomorrow.”

This morning when the maid arrived to clean our villa, (love having a maid twice a week), Tom and I walked over to the deli, hoping to find the cheeses in stock. 

With limited options at the grocery store, it will be a treat to snack on a variety of cheeses as dessert which I learned to enjoy after dinner aboard the Celebrity Century cruise ship.

Tom, wrapped up in lively animated conversation!

Alas, most of the cheeses we loved were available and we happily spent US $72.00 for a variety.  The blue cheese hadn’t arrived yet giving us a good excuse to meander to the deli (a seven minute walk) again in the next few days. 

While there this morning, we chatted with Gunter and Ian, both of whom were more than willing to visit with us.  Ian invited us to his cheese factory in Cayo District, an hour and a half hour drive from here.  This definitely is an option for the near future when we’ll rent a vehicle for a few days.

After the party, we headed back to our villa, changed for the evening and met Pam and Jerry by the pool for a 10 minute drive to the village for dinner.  Already full from cheese, I couldn’t imagine having dinner until I saw grilled conch on the menu.  Since arriving in Belize I’d longed for conch but, each time it appeared on a menu it was batter fried, not for me.

Tom ordered the imported rib eye steak, seasoned well but, thin and tough.  My conch, chewy as anticipated, was delicious.  Seated in the large thatched hut with literally no breeze, the no-see-ums were feasting on us.  Shortly after eating our long overdue dinners and many rounds of interesting conversation, we headed back to LaruBeya.

Saying goodbye to Pam and Jerry, knowing we won’t see them again, left us a little sad.  All of our new friends were gone.  But, today is another day.  The pool will start calling us in a few hours for our hour of sun and fun.  Without a doubt, in the next few days we’ll make new friends and begin once again. 

This, my friends, is the intended nature of our new lives “wafting through our world wide travels with ease, joy and simplicity.”

Splurging on dining out this past week plus the cost of the cheese, put us over on our budget by $30.  Thus, we’ve decided to dine in tonight and tomorrow roasting the two free range organic chickens we’d purchased on Wednesday. 

Right now the two chickens are marinating in the refrigerator.  With a small piece of cabbage left along with our ample supply if huge whole organic carrots, I’ll make a batch of coleslaw (sugar free, of course),  roasted garlic and roasted carrots to accompany our diinner. 

Homemade food sounds especially good right now.  For dessert, we’ll enjoy a platter of the Belizean made cheeses.  Thanks Ian.  Thanks Gunter.  We’ll surely see you again!

Be warm.  Be well wherever you may be.

We’ve got transportation plus booked two more cruises!

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Yesterday morning, we returned the golf cart to Captain Jak’s Resort in Placencia Village. At a cost of $1200 a month after doling out $5000 US for the next two months to live in the fabulous Laru Beya Resort, there is no way we’d consider paying $1200 a month for a golf cart rental. Cars are much more. 

We choked to pay the $350 for the week we had it. However, in essence, we never would’ve found this place without it. It proved to serve us well.

The golf cart rentals at our resort are $35 US for 12 hours and of course, $70 for 24 hours (no deal here).  This morning I asked if they’d give us a special rate for four hours once a week enabling us to go to the grocery store and out to eat.  The lack of enthusiasm indicated it was an unlikely option. 

Compared to our past experiences traveling to Mexico, it appears that “negotiating” is less likely in Belize. As we continue our travels we’ll surely discover that each country has its own demeanor as to dealing with “tourists” in their continued efforts to “make a deal.”

Dropping off the golf cart left us five miles south of our resort.  We could walk around the little town for two hours to catch the next bus at 2:30 for $1 US each or grab a cab for a total of $10 US (for both of us). 

Finding our way to the famed long sidewalk along the beach, we walked its entire length.  See quote below:

“Aside from the beach, the main attraction in Placencia is the world-renowned main-street sidewalk, cited in the Guinness Book of World Records as “the world’s most narrow street.” It’s 24 inches wide in spots and runs north–south through the sand for over a mile. Homes, hotels, Guatemalan goods shops, craft makers, and tour guide offices line both sides.”

An hour later, after the long enjoyable walk along the sidewalk in almost 90 degrees and a massive amount of humidity, we decided it made sense to grab a cab back to Laru Beya, rather than ride the bus.  It was time to build a relationship with a cab driver.  We lucked out (so we think thus far) when Estevan responded to our taxi hail.  

Along the ride, it took no time for me to chime in and ask him how much he’d charge for a once-a-week trip to the grocery store in Seine Bight, which would include: picking us up at the resort, driving to the store, waiting for us while we shopped (we promised not more than 20-30 minutes), then driving us back to the resort. 

Estevan hesitated to give us a price.  He asked us to suggest what we’d pay.  No problem.  We offered him $10 US for the round trip, including the wait.  He agreed without hesitation.  Beginning this Wednesday at 9:00 am, continuing every Wednesday for the next two months, Estevan will arrive to take us grocery shopping, out to breakfast or lunch, or any other outings we may desire during his daytime shift!  We’re relieved.

There are four restaurants within walking distance.  We’ll alternate these from time to time preferring to cook our own meals in our upcoming (as of Sunday) well-appointed granite kitchen, dining at our own table, and chairs on our outdoor veranda about 20-30 feet from the ocean.  

We can’t wait to cook our own meals  The restaurants, all loaded with ambiance, offering well-prepared local flavors, serve tiny portions.  Neither Tom nor I snack between meals and enjoy hearty portions when we do dine.  Each night after dinner, we find ourselves still hungry, wishing we had access to something we can eat.  It’s not easy here in Belize with limited foodstuffs in the minuscule grocery stores, most of which are more like a 7-11 than an actual grocery store.

Today, we spent the entire afternoon by the pool. The sky was clear, the humidity down and the temperature was a paltry 82. Perfect! We met a lively Canadian couple by the pool, yakked up a storm, and are meeting up with them to go to Robert’s Grove buffet tonight.  

On the cruise ships, we enjoyed meeting couple after couple.  With our past tumultuous week, we hardly felt like socializing. Now, as we get ready to move to our villa tomorrow morning, we’re feeling all the more relaxed and at ease. 

We officially booked the two cruises for October and November 2014.  The details on the first of the two is on yesterday’s post. 

Here are the details on the second cruise:


FastDeal		 25425
7 nights departing November 9, 2014 on
Norwegian’s Norwegian Epic
Brochure Inside $1,799
Our Inside $599
You Save 67%
Brochure Oceanview $2,399
Our Oceanview $829
You Save 65%
Brochure Balcony $2,399
Our Balcony $829
You Save 65%
Brochure Suite $2,699
Our Suite $979
You Save 64%
The prices shown are US dollars per person, based on double occupancy, and subject to availability. They include port charges but do not include airfare or (where applicable) airport or government taxes or fees.
ITINERARY
 
DAY DATE PORT ARRIVE   DEPART
Sun Nov 9 Miami, FL 4:00pm
Mon Nov 10 At Sea
Tue Nov 11 At Sea
Wed Nov 12 Ocho Rios, Jamaica 8:00am 5:00pm
Thu Nov 13 Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands 8:00am 4:00pm
Fri Nov 14 Cozumel, Mexico 10:00am 6:00pm
Sat Nov 15 At Sea
Sun Nov 16 Miami, FL 8:00am

We upgraded to the Mini-Suite for both of these cruises, giving us a sofa, a desk in about 20 more square feet.  In a cabin, 20 square feet makes a substantial difference.  The additional cost to upgrade was $75 per person per cruise, well worth it for the total 21 days at sea.  We’ll stay on the same ship, in the same cabin enjoying extra amenities which we will share with you as they occur.

(We love cruising. The little cabins don’t bother us at all, easily maneuvering around each other. I’m not afraid t of rolling seas and noises anymore. Tom never was. We love the food, meeting new people every night, the entertainment, the classes, the movie theatres, and the pools. I love the health clubs and health orientated classes. We love it that neither of us had a moment of seasickness, even in rough waters. We love cruising together.)

It’s possible that the prices on these two cruises along with our remaining six cruises could drop over the next 21 months. If that occurs up to 90 days before we sail, we’ll receive the reduced prices. 

However, it’s our responsibility to check to see if the prices have gone down informing our cruise guy, Joaquin, who will immediately give us a credit emailing us a new “cruise confirmation” indicating the new pricing.  We’ve saved $1400 so far by watching the prices! 

Time to get ready for our “double date” tonight.  This couple is one floor above our new (as of tomorrow morning) villa.  We’ll be neighbors for the remaining five days of their trip.  They’ve rented a fishing boat for a day and invited us to join them. Our luck, we’ll catch a sailfish and have no wall on which to hang it.

Ah, the joys of being homeless.

We moved!!! …Thank goodness!…In 5 days, we move to a condo on the beach!..Yeah!

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The view from our 5-day hotel room

We awoke yesterday morning to no working toilet even when adding water. No water came out of any faucet.  How would we shower? With bug spray all over me, I desperately needed a shower.

OK. We admit it. We aren’t as tough as we thought we were. After a futile effort of days of looking for a new place to live for the next 62 days, we considered taking a ship out of Belize to go anywhere.

With last minute cruise deals, we calculated the cost of cruising for the next two months.  It would have been about $10,000 for both of us, staying on the same ship to avoid moving and moving, actually less than we had expected. But, the prospect of putting out that amount of money made us both cringe. 

Yes, the $5000 monthly average for planning this cruise option was within our budget with all meals and “transportation” included but we’d have to pay for “extras” including beverages and Internet which, for that amount of time would easily total another $3000, making it out of the ballpark.

View of the resort restaurant from our 5-day hotel room

A few nights ago while sitting at our computers until after midnight, hot air swirling around the one-room little house from multiple fans, windows shut to keep out the bugs, we desperately tried to figure out an affordable solution.  Bug bitten, exhausted, feeling dirty with no hot water we started making no sense and finally went to bed.   

For the first time ever in our almost 22 year relationship, we were snappy at each other. I felt responsible since I’d booked this location. Had I known about the water situation, of course, I’d never have booked it. It wasn’t unreasonable for Tom to begin to question if this was going to be the quality of our lives over the next few years.

Anxiously, I reviewed all of our future properties we’ve rented, questioning if I was picky enough when booking them. They all seemed good. This was a fluke, not my fault. Of course, I wouldn’t book a house that was comparable to living in a tent with a bed.

After contacting literally every affordable property within 100 miles with no luck finally deciding against the cruise option, we had no choice but to drive around in the golf cart looking for “for rent” or “vacancy” signs. 

We’d put down a deposit of $100 on an adorable rustic resort in Placencia Village, Captain Jak’s but they didn’t have an opening until February 20, ironically the day of my 65th birthday.  Although not on the water, we’d have no ocean view and no AC.  The owners were wonderful, giving us a fair price and doing everything they could to accommodate us. 

The idea of leaving our former lives and loved ones behind was to be traveling with ease, not strife. We needed a hotel room if nothing else until the 20th but we didn’t want to move twice.  It was hard to think clearly in our circumstances.

Driving around in the golf cart along the highway, crazy traffic whizzing past us, we drove into a few resorts.  Entering into a resort on a long winding road with exquisite landscaping with flowering trees, walking paths, and even its own miniature golf course, we stumbled upon Laru Beya, a corporate-owned resort of villas, hotel rooms, restaurant, pool, and activities. This was going to be out of our league.

Had we planned a vacation in the past, this easily would have been ideal for us for a one or two weeks, hardly affordable for over two months.  Standing at the desk, we tentatively asked if they could accommodate us and if so, the cost. Again, we cringed deciding to see what they had available “for the fun of it,” we said.

By 3:00 PM yesterday we were lounging in these chaise lounges, relieved and happy.

A delightful hostess, Veranish (spelling?) showed us two identical villas, one the main floor, another on the third, both within 30 feet of the Caribbean Sea with enormous private furnished patios overlooking a sandy beach which was virtually a paradise.  We were smitten. 

Again tentatively, we ended up at the desk “trying to make a deal.” No dealing here. Take it or leave it. The main floor villa wouldn’t be available until February 10th. Could we take five more days without water? The rent per month would be $2500.  I’d negotiated them down from $5000 a month. They’d need the entire two months in advance to secure our possession from February 10th to April 9th. 

I wanted to commit, then and there as I scratched my dirty feeling legs. Tom wanted to discuss it overnight.  We left. The drive in the golf cart back to the little house was silent. Along the ride, Tom relented, with conditions:  no eating out, including Valentine’s Day, my upcoming 65th birthday, and on our anniversary, March 7th.

Not responding immediately, I began to weigh the pros and cons.  The grocery stores were sparse of protein sources, I desperately needed to eat. Unable to buy any raw vegetables, eat any salads, it’s difficult to cook anything except breakfast. 

Swatting the bugs, I reviewed our grocery expenditure since we’d arrived, a mere seven days ago. We’d already spent $325 US at the grocery store and eaten out once (we never made it to the Bistro) at Robert’s Grove for $87 for a total of $412, averaging at $58.86 per day for food.  Pointing this out to Tom, he didn’t budge on his conditions. “OK,” I said, “Let’s take the villa at Laru Beya for the 10th. Somehow we’d get through for six more nights.

Using Skype to make the toll free call to Tim, the manager at Laru Beya, we told him we’d take the villa on the 10th.  I offered to pay over the phone, but he insisted we could stop over in the morning to take care of business. We weren’t relaxed yet. What if someone booked it online overnight and it wasn’t available in the morning?

Tired and stressed we decided against the long ride to the Bistro for dinner, when now the prospect of spending another $80 for dinner felt especially uncomfortable. With another narrow package of the grass-fed ground steak in the tiny fridge, again, I made the bun-less sliders with bacon and cheese with a side of canned spinach and cooked carrots. Actually, it tasted pretty good.

Talking to each other again, we went to bed with a sense of uncertainty, both of us so much wanting this to work out. During the night, the owner’s dog started barking, unusual for this otherwise quiet dog. The owner’s outdoor lights suddenly flashed on as Tom bolted out of bed peeking out the windows. She had warned us about possible crime in the area during the night telling us to leave the outdoor lights on all night.

At night, we turned off the lights so we could open the windows before going to bed to get some relief from the heat. If the outdoor lights were on, we found, it attracted the bugs.  Oh, please.

Tom bolted out of bed another few times when the dog barked again. He left on the outdoor light. My heart racing expecting some terrifying event, I hid under the covers trying to keep the mosquitoes and no-see-ums from biting. 

If I’d been the crying type which I’m not, I could have cried then but, what was the point?  Men seem to feel helpless when women cry often acting unsympathetic and angry when they “can’t fix it.” I didn’t see any benefit to making my loving attentive husband feel any more frustrated than he already was.

Exhausted, we fell back to sleep.  At 9:00 am I awakened Tom, reminding him that Tim said he’d be in the office at 9:30. A short time later we were standing in the office of Laru Beya ready to pay our $5000 by credit card.  Handing Tim a card on which we had ample “room” we began to relax.

Oh, good grief!  Our credit card was declined!  How could that be?  I’d verified it, that very morning when Tom was sleeping.  I asked Tim to run it again for a smaller amount. He said “I did and it still wouldn’t go through.”

He handed me the phone. Making an expensive long-distance call on their phone, on hold for no less than five minutes, I finally got through to a rep who was apologizing profusely for “the inconvenience.”  They’d blocked the card when the $5000 charge came in the first time, assuming it was a stolen card. That explains why the smaller amount didn’t go through.

I explained, “I’d called all of our cards while in the US with the dates we’d be in various countries to avoid this exact scenario.”

Again she apologized, explaining that this large of a charge warranted a call from us for our protection. She approved the transaction and minutes later we signed the charge slip. I couldn’t do it fast enough. 

Tom asked Tim, “Do you have anywhere we could stay beginning today?”  I held my breath awaiting Tim’s answer. 

“Let me look,” he said. Minutes went by, again, my heart pounding as Tim investigated the options. “We have one room for $250 a night room we can give you for $182 a night with tax included.”  (He’d included the tax in the two month’s $5000).

“Yes!” we both said, “we’ll take it! Can someone come to help us get our stuff soon?” Tom asked since it all wouldn’t fit on the golf cart.

“Yes,”  Tim stated with certainty, “Of course, we’ll do that. We have a van. How’s 1:30?”

We hurriedly returned to the little house madly packing everything in sight. That early morning I had managed to eek out a load of laundry when water ran for a short period. It was still wet on the line. Hopefully, by 1:30 it would be dry. In a matter of an hour, we’d packed everything. When we moved in seven days ago, we had unpacked only enough clothes to get through a week, making the repacking easier.

Arriving back at Laru Beya by 2:00 pm anxious to unload our stuff, me in the van with Tim, Tom puttering behind in the golf cart (which we have to return by Friday), we realized that in our enthusiasm, we’d failed to ask what were we getting for the five nights?  As a beautiful resort, we mindlessly assumed it would be suitable. 

Maybe we didn’t ask on purpose, both knowing if they so much as gave us a closet it would be better than from whence we came. Alas, it was a nicely appointed, but, a small hotel room with a huge bath with running hot water, air conditioning, free Wifi, cable flat-screen TV, and no kitchen. The tiny fridge had no freezer to store the packages of sausage for the yet to be made pizza but instead a basic hotel room refrigerator. We’d make do. If the sausage spoils, it spoils. 

We loaded the remainder of our perishable items after two sturdy helpers (along with us) hauled all of our luggage up three flights of stairs to our new digs for the next five days when, on Sunday, the helper returns to move us to the first-floor villa.

Rather than count the days until Sunday, we decided to love every single moment in our hotel room.  Tom wimped out (his word, not mine) since now we have to eat out. No kitchen for five days.  We putted over to Robert Grove’s in the golf cart for another outdoor restaurant last night across the highway for their Tuesday night Mexican buffet. 

We couldn’t stop smiling, apologizing for our irritability these past few days.  Tom said, “If we had started out here at Laru Beya, we would have said Belize is pure Paradise.  We must come back here in the future!” 

We made it to Placencia Belize, bumpy road and all…

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The “tenders” that took excursion passengers from the Celebrity Equinox and other ships that were anchored in the bay due to shallow waters at the pier.  We took this photo from our tender which was much larger with a double deck and steep steps to the 2nd level where we sat during the 30 minute ride.
One of six single lane bridges we encountered on the Hummingbird Highway, the almost four hour drive from Belize City to Placencia, a narrow peninsula on the Caribbean Sea
The beach at our cottage on the Caribbean Sea.
A banana plantation along the Hummingbird Highway.  The blue plastic bags are used to protect the banana from insects instead of pesticides.

A few years ago, I had trouble going to a Minnesota Twins ballgame, the ride in the car, sitting in the bleachers, the stairs up and down.  I was falling apart.  Now, less than two years later, I’m hauling my share of carry on bags, up the steep steps to the second level of the tender for a 30 minute bouncy boat ride in choppy waters from where the Celebrity Equinox anchored out at sea, too large to dock at the pier.

Thank goodness for discovering that food played a huge role in my chronic pain syndrome, now all but gone, making it possible for me to be a participating partner in our upcoming years of world travel.  For this, I am very grateful.

However, my newer state of being doesn’t diminish my persistence in getting things done and getting them done right.  This morning, still on the Equinox, with all of our bags packed and ready to go down to deck two to await our departure on a tender, we waited to hear from the Celebrity’s Immigration Officer, Jennie.

Her objectives, after my careful instructions were to accomplish a few things:
1.  Acquire visas for us for at least the one month Belize offers with the availability of applying for the remainder of our stay.
2.  Get us and our bags safely off the ship on time to meet our private shuttle driver Abraham at our prearranged 12:30 PM at ship terminal #2 who’d be waiting for us holding a sign with our name, to begin the four hour drive to Placencia to our awaiting little beach house.
3.  Avoid us standing in a lengthy line behind all the passengers who were going on excursions in Belize City and avoid all the passengers waiting for us to get our luggage loaded on the tender.  Passengers didn’t have luggage, just purses and bags to carry the loot they’ll purchase on shore. 

We each had heavy computer bags, Tom’s two-liter duty free bottles of booze, bottles of water for the road trip, my overloaded handbag and a heavy bag with all of our prescriptions and preventive medicines that I always keep in my possession.

While I was at the guest services awaiting our stamped passports Tom was upstairs in our cabin on Deck 10 lining up the luggage for the soon-to-arrive porter with a cart to take it to the tender boarding area.

If timing went as we’d planned, we’d be at Terminal 2 in Belize City to meet driver Abraham promptly at 12:30, head directly to the Fed Ex office to return the XCOM Global MiFi to San Diego and begin the long drive to Placencia.

At 11:30,  Jennie frantically arrived at the desk to tell me our passports were approved by the Belizean Immigration Officer who had come aboard at 10:30 and we were set to go.  She handed over our two passports, wished us well and dashed off. 

Still standing at the desk, I knew I’d better check the passports. The visas in both of our passports read:  6/2/2013.  In US speak that means, June 2, 2013. In Belizean speak that means, February 6, 2013. He’d only approved one week!!! Now what? I took a deep breath.  Stay calm, I hollered at myself in my head.  Summoning a guest service rep to go find Jennie again, I waited impatiently another 10 minutes. 

Showing her the dates on the passports, she became embarrassed and flustered, mumbling something about the Belizean Immigration Officer having gone to eat at the ship’s buffet.  In a firm but diplomatic voice, I asked her to please go interrupt his breakfast kindly asking him to extend the visa to 30 days, giving us ample time to apply for an extension by mail while in Placencia. 

Aware of the clock ticking, Tom appeared at my side, ready to head down to Deck 2 to our awaiting bags and to board the tender.  Moments later, Jennie appeared again with the passports in hand, showing us that she had in fact, interrupted his breakfast as he gave us the 30-days visas.  Off we went down to the gangplank and boarding area to about 100 passengers in line waiting to board the next boat. 

Asking Tom to get out our two “Priority Tender Passes” only to discover moments later that most passengers in line also had a “Priority Tender Pass.”  Oh, how I had thought we were special!  Ha!

By now, it was noon. Surprisingly, the line moved quickly as passengers swiped their “SeaPass” ID cards into the slot.  As we moved up the line, I started asking staff personnel about our luggage. “Where did they put our luggage?”  No one answered until we reached the point of swiping our cards in the machine. 

A loud siren started blaring as soon as my card was read.  The same happened to Tom.  We were immediately whisked aside to curious onlookers who were trying to assess our “crime” only to discover that they were being alerted to the fact that we were getting off the ship and not coming back.  Steps away from boarding the tender we were approved to depart after a phone call was made.  

I continued to ask about our luggage.  “Where is it?”  I harped again trying to sound friendly.  Tom had already reminded me about my persistent manner to avoid coming across as “the ugly American” making endless demands.

A uniformed man appearing to be a police officer for the ship stated with raised brows, “Your luggage went on an earlier tender.  Its at the pier waiting for you.
“Is someone watching it?” I asked.

“Yes, madame, it’s in the hands of Celebrity personnel.” he reassured us.  We boarded the tender hauling our multiple carry on bags to that second story when we barely found two seats next to one another. 

Squeezed between several passengers, a lively conversation ensued with the passengers around us, fascinated that we were getting off the ship to stay in Belize for over two months.  I appreciated their enthusiasm but my mind was on the luggage.

Finally I relaxed to enjoy a lovely woman sitting next to me, a world traveler from Germany, an archaeologist.  The 30 minute ride flew by, wind and sea spray splashing around us in the open air boat as we chatted on about science, paleontology and the caveman.  Quite interesting!  I could easily have spent hours with her. 

Exchanging business cards, we promised to stay in touch via email as she was very interested in reading our blog as I was interested in hearing more about her family winery in Bordeaux, France.  As she dashed away, she threw her head back to shout to me, “Come to visit us at our winery in Bordeaux.”  Whether said flippantly or sincerely, I momentarily relished in the prospect of spending time at her family owned winery.

Moments later, we were being herded off the tender all the while looking for our multiple orange bags.  After a lengthy walk on the dock, we discovered a Celebrity “tent” with cups of water accompanying the goodbyes from the uniformed staff.  Our luggage was no where to be found.  The Celebrity staff member who was dressed in a uniform was apparently a police officer who led the way for us to follow him. 

Madly searching for our bags in the crowded terminal, we also had an eye out for Abraham and his sign with our name.  There he was.  No luggage.  A row of van drivers were desperately trying to move through traffic and get their loaded vehicles on their way. 

In what was a wild flurry of activity, as Abraham joined us in the search for our bags, there were two vans in front of ours, all blocking traffic.  Suddenly, we saw ORANGE!!!  Our bags were in a van we had not requested, not Abraham’s van!  The doors were being shut and it was ready to drive away.  We both yelled, “Stop!! Those are our bags!”  Stop that van!  The van stopped and minutes later, a load of about 25 bags in the rear of a huge van were being unloaded to get to our bags which of course were on the bottom of the pile.

The other awaiting van in front of the van with our bags took off with passengers and luggage, on their way to the airport. After unloading the “wrong van” we discovered were missing three large bags, two orange, one black and they were on their way to the airport.

It was sunny, humid and 90 degrees.  Pushy, pushy, pushy.  But, nice, nice, nice.  We managed to convinced the other van driver to contact the airport van to turn around in crazy traffic and road construction and come back with our three bags.  Yes, our bags ended up in two separate vans, neither of which we had requested or desired.

After what seemed like an eternity, we had all of our bags in Abraham’s van and we were on our way to FED EX, arriving a good 20 minutes after leaving the ship terminal through bumpy dusty unpaved roads in some of the poorest areas of Belize City.  Oh, oh, FED EX had moved.  They are now within a block of the ship terminal.  We’d have to turn around and go back. 

“Oh, no,” I persisted, “is there a UPS or any other shipping company near us now?” 

Abraham quickly answers, “Yes!  How about DHL?” 

“Yes!” I chimed in, “DHL it is!”  Minutes later we were standing at the DHL desk watching the rep look up rates in an old fashioned book as opposed to a computer.  Thirty minutes and $72 US later, we were out the door, insuring the package for $800.

And so began the almost four hour drive down the Hummingbird Highway.  We went through six, yes six, one car width bridges.  We encountered washed out roads, cracked broken pavement, scary single lane passing, slow semi trucks up the steep winding hills, slow drivers, crazy drivers, winding and mountainous roads.

We encountered cows in the road, cows in the pasture eating real grass, roaming free, chickens wandering in fields, pecking at natures little tidbits, soft billowy clouds over the sea, endless rows of banana trees and more orange groves than I’d ever seen growing up in California.  Endless coconut trees lined the hills and valleys, a lush forest of Mother Nature’s untarnished bounty of its fruits of the land.

Shortly before we arrived at the cottage, we asked Abraham to stop at a grocery store to get us through the first few days until we figure out transportation.  He gladly obliged while we dashed into the little store.  Shocked by the prices and knowing there was another bigger grocer a mile from the cottage, we opted to purchase bare necessities, food for breakfast and dinner.

Much to my delight, the steaks were local grass fed, from the farm where I had observed the cows grazing, the brown eggs were organic, free range and cage free at $2 a dozen.  The produce, although limited in its selection was fresh and had that “just picked from the field” look. 

When the cashier rung up our groceries, it totaled $114.  I was sadly disappointed this small amount had cost so much.  Tom nudged me when he saw the look on my face, ‘That’s Belizean dollars.  Its actually about half of that!”

At 5 pm, we arrived a the Little Cottage with the good directions provided by the owner. We were tired, hungry and anxious to see the beach house and get situated. 

We weren’t disappointed.   The house, situated on the owner’s property only requires walking the length of the small ocean front lot to the Caribbean Sea. 

Today, we’ll do laundry, in piles from the most recent eight day cruise which must be dried on a clothes line (no dryer), unpack only what we need, figure out transportation and spend as much time outside enjoying the ocean breezes, the breathtaking scenery and the unfamiliar sounds from birds of unknown origin.