Paradise

Friday, Feb 25, 2011

We are on the island of Caye Caulker in Belize and it finally feels like vacation. The sky is blue, the water is turquoise, the snapper dinner last night was fabulous, there is a trade wind blowing, we've had a breakfast of fresh hand-made yogurt with hand-made granola, and watched the sunrise. We have walked to the “split” to see where we’ll be snorkeling later today and have booked a dive trip for tomorrow. Jeff is sitting on the steps of our little porch playing his mandolin, and we have a day ahead of us with nothing else planned. I do believe I must have been some sort of water creature in a previous life... it seems I can never get enough sun, sand and ocean.

Our hotel room is a bit worn around the edges, but the price was right, it's just steps from the water, and so far as I can tell, does not have bed bugs. Our bed is a bunk with a double on the bottom and a single on the top. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of clearance to that top bunk and we run the risk of banging our heads if we’re not careful. We have a little refrigerator and a coffee maker – life is good. The “bath” towels are hilarious - almost thin enough to see through and barely larger than a hand towel you put out for guests, but I guess that's one of the amenities you give up when opting for budget accommodations.

Caye Caulker is extremely laid back and quiet. The main forms of transportation here are golf carts and bicycles – no automobiles. No shirt, no shoes, no problem. The island is only 4 miles long and, where we’re staying, is only about 2 blocks wide. So last night we walked to the west side to watch sunset, and this morning we walked to the beach in front of us to watch the sunrise. Pretty nice.

We have been hearing about the recent snow in Minnesota. We are not missing it in the least.