Belize

Belize:

We entered Belize through Punta Gorda by boat from Livingston in Guatemala. The seas were very rough that day and we had to endure a very bumpy ride with water spraying all over us.  As we sat in the front it was not that bad but the people in the back got absolutely drenched. At least the captain gave us all plastic sheets to wrap around ourselves which helped a bit. I couldn’t wait to enter Belize as we were going to stay on an island for a week just fishing, snorkeling or simply chilling out. The border crossing was easy enough and even though I thought I needed a visa for the country they didn’t give me any trouble. The only issue we had was when one of the inspectors saw us eating fruit. It is prohibited to bring any fruit into Belize which we didn’t know as there were no signs and the official made me take our avocado out of the bin. Not happy enough with that he took me into his office and gave me a lecture about my avocado causing millions of dollars worth of canceled export fees. The guy was obviously on a power trip as there were much nicer ways he could have done his job.

From Punta Gorda we boarded a yellow chicken bus and made our way towards Dangriga. Gillian bought us a local breakfast with eggs, sausage, mashed black beans and triangular fried breads called “jacks”. It tasted really good especially the fried bread stuffed with beans. Funnily enough, the breakfast had similar ingredients to a full English, but prepared differently. As there were no proper fishing tackle stores and we had limited time I decided to travel straight to Dangriga while Gillian got off at Maya Center with all our luggage to grab a taxi to Sittee River. Once in Dangriga I prepared myself for the week to come with a big selection of fishing lures as well as a machete for chopping open coconuts. I loved the way the locals spoke with their Creole accents as well as their laid back attitude – it didn’t take me long at all to fall in love with the country! With my shopping finished I hopped back onto the chicken bus and got dropped off at a junction to Hopkins.

While standing at the junction a local on a bicycle approached with an iguana tied to the handlebars which he sold to another local guy waiting with me for 15 Belize dollars. I’m sure the iguana severely regretted getting up that morning as not only did he have his legs broken and tied behind his back, he was also destined for a pot later that evening.  I felt sorry for it as they could at least have killed it to put it out of its misery although it seems to be pretty normal behavior here.  Another thing that is very normal is hitching a ride and I couldn’t help but smile standing there thumbing a lift with the funny talking locals. It turned out that Hopkins was the wrong turnoff for me and I had to organize a cab to take me the last few miles to Sittee River as is was getting late. Sittee River Guest House is located next to the river of the same name, about 6 miles upstream from the ocean. The wooden huts were very cute and built on stilts with thatched roofs while the forest around us was home to many species of birds. We were woken in the morning by a cacophony of noisy birds and sleeping in was impossible with the racket outside! One day, while staring out across the water, we saw around 10 toucans flying over the river and into a tree near us. It is magical seeing them in their natural habitat and not a cage. They are such beautiful birds with their colorful beaks and cheeky attitudes. Very amusing as well are their calls which sound exactly like the ribeting of a frog. I’d heard the call many times before but never realized it was toucans until Carlos from Finca El Cisne pointed it out to me.

Ian, a larger than life local Creole guy, met us at the guest house and patiently answered all our questions regarding our stay on the island. With his booming hippo-snort laugh he told us that we must make coconut-rums after he saw my machete. I followed his advice and bought 2 bottles of the golden stuff aptly named Gold Rum! We spent our second day in Sittee River preparing for the week ahead, camping ahead on the island. Hopping on bicycles, we made our way to Hopkins to do our food shopping. I found it amusing that while living in London, strangers would look at you funny if you greeted them, while in Hopkins strangers looked at you funny if you didn’t greet them – so much nicer! Unfortunately there were no ATMs in Hopkins and because of the limited food on offer we had to go to Dangriga. Buses from Hopkins to Dangriga were few and far between so we ended up renting a motorbike for half a day. What I found interesting was that pretty much all of the shops were owned by Chinese people. We finally managed to do all our shopping and as it was so hot we rushed back for a cooling dip in the river.  The river had two layers: the top fresh and cool and the bottom salty and warm.

Glover’s Reef (Atoll): From Sittee River we boarded Becky’s catamaran which was loaded to the brim with all our clothing and camping supplies for the week. To top it off the heavy load were lots of long planks of wood for building a new bar on stilts over the water. Since it was such a nice day we mostly sat on top of the catamaran for the 3 hour journey, admiring the view of tropical islands as we sailed by, dreaming about living on one forever. The sea was a mix of brilliant shades of blue and constantly changed as we travelled over coral reefs or sandy parts, where it turned the water into the most brilliant turquoise. Every now and then a bright blue flying fish would suddenly leap out of the water. Brimming with excitement, our island finally came into view - palm trees growing out of the white sand, with wooden huts perched on stilts over the water connected by little walkways to the island. I suddenly found myself inside one of those post cards which always gets you dreaming and seem too perfect to be true!  After our boat ride we had to exit our dreamlike states and form a human chain for unloading all our baggage. Becky then gave us a tour of the island after which we all scurried away, just like the thousands of hermit crabs on the island, to set up camp for the week.

The island was paradise and exceeded my expectations in many ways. Covering the island with a big green umbrella were hundreds of coconut trees while the ground was covered in white coral sand. In front of our island were shallow sandy stretches of ocean dotted with rust colored patch reefs while a reef crest which one could hike on ran northwards for miles. In contrast to the turquoise shallow parts were the dark deep waters of the drop-off lying either side of the reef crest. I found my little piece of heaven on that island and couldn’t stop smiling while staring out over the brilliant blue sea. Although very rustic, the island had all the facilities we needed: a kitchen for cooking, showers, compost thunder box (toilet) and basin with water running through a pink conk shell.  Accommodation options ranged from camping or dorms to the gorgeous water cabins. The cabin guests could sit on their decks or lie in hammocks while watching all the stingrays glide by or watching the sun rise or set over the ocean. The only bit of stress while on the island was having to look up for falling coconuts or down to avoid trampling on any of the hermit crabs. They were fascinating little creatures that came out at night time to clean camp. Our kitchen especially was a favorite hangout place for them which meant that we had to store our food well out of range. They are excellent climbers and I found a few of them scattered around on the kitchen table most mornings when I got up for my usual cup of coffee. 

 Other than relaxing, the island offered activities such as diving, snorkeling, fishing and kayaking. On the first day I rented a kayak for the week and paddled out to the 1 mile marker from which fishing was allowed. I didn’t manage to catch anything that day although I was able to anchor and dive from the kayak to look for conchs. I knew there were many of them around as the island’s pathways were lined with thousands of conch shells! While keeping an eye out for the many jellyfish around I managed to dive down and grab two conchs for dinner later. Back on land one of the locals showed me how to open them: first you have to make a hole with a hammer in the back of the shell then slice the conch off the shell using a knife through the hole (like you would a scallop), and finally pull out a very weird looking shellfish. The guts (good snapper bait) are then cut off together with any black skin leaving only the white flesh after which it is “hammer time”. Eating certain shellfish can be like chewing shoe leather  therefore making it necessary to tenderize the meat with a small mallet by bashing it repeatedly until the texture is soft. After battering the conchs Gillian coated the conch steaks in flour and egg and then deep fried them.  We ate them with sautéed potatoes and green beans and it all tasted pretty good, almost sweet in a way, although a few bits were a little chewy – I was determined to catch a fish the next day!

I was up early the next morning and again paddled out to the fishing ground, trolling a tube lure behind the kayak for barracuda. One struck my lure and quickly stripped my reel of line although that one unfortunately got away. I had better luck on the second strike and landed a nice barracuda destined for our pot-luck dinner that evening. Armed with the conch guts of the previous day I anchored my kayak next to a patch reef and started fishing for reef fish. It didn’t take me long to catch quite a few more: large triggerfish, porgys, snapper and a few more - a very successful day’s fishing even if I do say so myself. That night we all came together for a pot-luck dinner where everyone cooked something different for the table. We prepared fried barracuda steaks, Thai flavored trigger fish fillets and barbecued reef fish while the others made coconut rice, spaghetti, salad, sushi and pudding.  Sharing with us were Torie and Lisa (young Canadian couple), Jerrod and Katie (young American couple), John and Audrey (Canadian couple), Mike (American), Craig (Canadian), Arthur (German), Nicole (Canadian), Maddy (Becky’s 9  year old daughter) and Alison (Maddy’s home school teacher). Having the pot-luck dinner was a nice way of getting to know each other and we all had a good evening eating way too much food.  

Also living in the shallow waters with the stingrays and barracudas was a huge school of bonefish with literally hundreds of them. I was finally able to use my two fly rods again that I’ve been lugging all around the world. The wind blew most days which made casting with a fly line difficult especially with my 6wt fly rod. I therefore had to change to my 9wt rod and It wasn’t long before I landed my very first bonefish. They have tremendous power for their size and quickly stripped my fly reel onto the backing.  I had lots of fun catching them and even more so when I finally hooked a few on my 6wt rod. Craig also successfully fished for them although we both stopped after a barracuda “harvested” a few attached to Craig’s line. Due to the barracuda eating our bonefish as well as spooking poor Jerrod and Katie, I was determined to hunt one down and turn the hunter into the hunted. Armed with a light spinning rod I booked a spot on the restaurant’s fishing boat with Warren (Becky’s son). They charge US$25 for the day and all the fish caught is kept by the restaurant although they were nice enough to let me keep a few for dinner. 

Warren’s boat is called the “Fish Head” and joining us that day was Sandy, his uncle. After netting a few sardines for bait we set off to deeper waters and started fishing. As I really wanted to catch a barracuda, I tried spinning with various lures although it proved unsuccessful therefore I changed to a hand line and fished for bottom fish. We caught a few grouper, snapper and red hind during the morning although the only barracuda I hooked bit through my line. Warren was determined I catch a barracuda so he took us to a shallow spot where he suggested I try my rapala surface popper. There are few things that get my adrenaline pumping as much as dragging a popper over the surface while the water behind it explodes with a large fish chasing it! I finally hooked into a large barracuda which tested my 7ft medium spinning rod with 30lb braid to the limit. That one didn’t get away and I’m sure I rivaled the showing of teeth on the photo while holding him - thank you Warren, you made my day!

My fishing and kayaking days was however thwarted when I woke up one morning with my forearm in severe pain. My tendons made a grinding sound which I could both hear and feel and so I discovered that I had tendonitis after consulting John and Audrey. They told me to get as much rest as possible while taking ibuprofen for the swelling – all that was left for me to do was snorkel! Glovers Reef is known for its coral reefs and one of our favorite activities was snorkeling around the many different reefs. With the water being crystal clear we spotted thousands of fish swimming around the colorful coral. We saw many other species of fish including barracuda, bonefish, nurse sharks, eagle and sting rays, parrot fish, trigger fish, razor fish, snapper, grouper, porgys, angle fish, flat fish, scorpion fish, needle fish and turtles. I also saw many crayfish hiding in the reefs and was very tempted on grabbing one for the pot but couldn’t as it was breeding season. One day while diving alone I’m not sure who had the biggest fright when I came face to face with a giant Jew Fish after diving down deep and looking into a cave. I called him Goliath as he was bigger than me! Becky told me that they are very scarce and I was lucky to have seen one which made it even more special.

Our six days on the island were over way to quick and we even tried to find time in the schedule to stay another week but it was just not possible. I was sad leaving the island as by that time I was just getting to really know the reefs and fishing spots. The island enchanted us all and none of us really wanted to leave although Becky the boss wasn’t waiting around for anyone so it was time to board the catamaran for the return journey. Back in Sittee River Becky gave us a ride to the main road where we waited for a chicken bus – we managed to get 10 of us with our luggage into her SUV! Our journey that day involved the catamaran to Sittee River and 3 Chicken Buses to Dangriga, Belopan and finally San Ignacio (Cayo). While driving we spotted some people dressed conservatively: men with boots, black trousers, blue shirts and Panama hats and women in long dresses and black head bands. I was told they are Mennonites who came from Germany and settled in Belize. They are anti-technology and also don’t cut their hair or use any deodorant or other beauty products. There are around 10,000 of them residing in Shipyard, Spanish Lookout and Little Belize.

San Ignacio: We stayed at the Hiatt Hotel which is owned by a friendly old man and his two small fluffy dogs. On offer in town were a few tours such as caving, horse riding, canoeing or a trip to the Carocol Ruins. However, we chose not to do any tours as we’ve done most activities already and it was time to catch up on internet and washing.  The town sure had a few interesting inhabitants: one had a handbag wrapped around his head while a few loved to rev and spin their cars. One very wasted guy offered us marijuana and cocaine one evening while we were having beers and pretended to take a very important phone call after we declined, even though his phone didn’t ring! Tori, Lisa and Arthur were also staying in town so it was nice spending time with them for burritos and beers or wandering the streets sampling street food made by the locals. I tried curried chicken, rice and beans while the other sampled burritos or tacos stuffed with either chicken, beef or cheese. Even though dirt cheap, the food was delicious and Belize could be a cheap country to visit if one choose to eat street food. The only activity we did do was to hike up the hill to the Cahal Pech ruins which date back from 1200 BCE. The site is a lot smaller than Copan Ruins and as a school bus dropped off a whole horde of young, overexcited school children, it was time to move on via a coffee and cake shop recommended by Tori and Lisa. The shop was called Sweet Things and it was well worth a visit as the chocolate cakes were to die for. Gillian especially loved the place and I had to drag her away before she spent all out savings on cakes for the snack bag!

Although we didn’t spent much time in Belize and didn’t visit many places, I loved the country. I found the people very friendly and with them speaking English it was nice being able to have conversations with the locals. I regret not studying Spanish before our trip or while we were in Spanish speaking countries as I would have enjoyed it much more speaking to locals instead of the broken charades we had to do instead. Our week on the island will remain one of the highlights of our world trip for me.  I would go back tomorrow if possible and will always dream of the turquoise seas, snorkelling, fishing, coconuts and the cute hermit crabs that never ceased to amuse me. The people in general were very laid back, especially along the coast where they spoke in a funny accent which cracked me up all the time. If I had to choose a country to live in from the many we have visited Belize might just be it.

Complete photo album: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=10150168051352743&id=749927742&aid=343715&l=35737ae993