Let’s be honest...

Feb. 29th - one of my friends said to me before we left for this trip; so you and your husband (significant other) are going to be together for a year, 24/7?  I’m not sure I could do that.  As much as Alan & I love each other we both need our own personal space.  I will take my camera and go off to be totally immersed in taking pictures.  Alan will go to a local coffee shop to talk about business with the owner.  But at about 5pm we both circle back to this dock for a glass of wine & to watch the sunset...and all is good.

Fresh red snapper

Feb. 28th - There is a grounds keeper at our home by the name of Diego.  He is very sweet and is always around to answer our questions or give us guidance about the island.  Yesterday we asked him if there was a place we could buy fresh fish to go with the vegetables that we had.  He said he would get some for us.  We said; are you sure it’s not too much trouble?  He said; not at all.  We gave him some money and he got on his bike and rode to the other end of the island to get these.  We had to force him to take a tip......I’m going to miss these people!

Reefs

We went snorkeling at a reserve called Mexican Rocks yesterday.  It was beautiful and teaming with reef fish as well as sea turtles, eagle rays & large lobsters.  Fortunately, the reefs here are still pretty healthy.
BTW - About 25% of all marine species live in coral reefs.  According to scientists about 70-90% of reefs are expected to disappear in the next 20 years due to climate change.  Coral is very sensitive to temperature and it cannot adapt to our warming oceans.  The coral turns white (bleaches) then dies.  If you want to learn more about it there is a great documentary call Chasing Coral on Netflix.  You can see the trailer at chasingcoral.com.

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry & narrow mindedness

This sign is in downtown San Pedro.  The people here generally make a point to not put down other people, other groups or other countries.  It’s a refreshing change.

How the locals live

The locals do not live as well as we do however they seem just as happy....hhhmmmm

Passions

Have you ever thought about your “passions” in life?  Or written them down?  I have and I’m going to share mine with you.  My closest friends will not be surprised and if you have been following this blog you won’t be surprised either.  Here you are...

Travel - dah

Photography - I love the art of telling a story with photographs

Nature - the more I am outside and “in one with nature” the happier I am

Caring for the environment - I will proudly say I am a “tree hugger”

Caring for my health & body  - As I mentioned before, not for vanity reasons but to be able to go on adventures when I’m 80

Giving back - I have been so blessed in my life, I feel it’s the right thing to do.  There are many charities that are happy to take my money but I give my time & money to organizations that line up with my values, such as environmental causes and helping people that have the biggest challenges and the smallest voice.

If you are squeamish don’t look at this...

This is a 3 inch black scorpion.  I was picking up some clothes on the floor when I saw it.  At first I thought it was a twig...then it moved!  Of course I yelled for Alan to come and kill it. (while I stood on the bed).  We later learned it is rare to see them especially in our home.  They are not poisonous but they have a painful sting.

My happy place

Feb. 21 - This is my happy place in this VRBO.  I have a long list of excellent books that friends have recommended and I’ve spent many hours here reading them.  Other times I just sit and look at the ocean and contemplate life.

Sharks!

While sailing yesterday we stopped to snorkel with about a dozen nurse sharks, they were 8 to 10 feet long.  Nurse sharks are not dangerous - unless harassed or provoked.  I’ve always had a fascination with sharks.  I’ve seen them several times while scuba diving, it’s always a thrill!  They are very graceful and elegant in the water.

Sailing

We went sailing yesterday, I love to sail but I don’t get to do it very often.  We sailed to Caye Caulker, which is a sleepy little island with about 1,000 permanent residents.  We stopped at the Hol Chan Marine Reserve to snorkel.  It was awesome!  The water was warm, clear & teaming with beautiful reef fish.  This reserve was organized by Belize and other environmental groups that are concerned about the future of our reefs & oceans.
Also....we got to see several 9 foot sharks, I’ll tell you more about them tomorrow :-)

Have & have not

Feb. 17th - On this small island almost everything needs to be brought in.  The grocery stores have a very limited selection and they are often out of the basics.  The exception to this are fruits and vegetables.  Every other morning Andreas & Alejandro bring a cart full of fresh fruits & vegetables to our back door and we can purchase as much as we want.

Fill your life with adventure not things

Before we left on this year long adventure we were talking with a dear friend of ours, she said “what are you going to do with all of the things you buy on your travels?  Are you going to ship them back?”  We had kind of a deer in the headlights look and kindly said we probably won’t buy anything.  According to a National Geographic article Americans are tremendous consumers and we have more “stuff” per capita than any other country in the world.  I also know that much of our stuff ends up in a landfill.  I’ve been making an effort to give away anything that is not necessary or does not bring me joy.  It’s really very freeing.

Best seat in the house

Feb. 15th - Best seat in the house, oops I meant best seat in the ocean.  We stopped at an ocean side bar and they had 5 or 6 tables in the ocean, it was calm, crystal clear and about 4 feet deep.  We spent an hour or so at this table with a cocktail and enjoyed the fish swimming around our feet.

Love is in the air

Happy Valentine’s Day from Belize

Talk to me

Talk to me!  The locals love to talk to us and we love to talk to the locals.  The people who grew up on this island speak 3 to 4 languages.  Mayan was their original language but it is starting to fade away.  Everyone speaks Spanish at home.  All children (like Serrina above) are required to learn English in school.  With friends they speak a cool lauguage of their own called Creole.  It has a Carribiean sound similar to Jamaican.  If they slow it way down for us we can begin to understand it :-)

Lobster Party!

Lobster Party!....not us, the lobsters.  Saturday is the end of the lobster season.  The lobster get some time to relax and make babies.  Lobsters are plentiful here and much less expensive then the US so we have been enjoying them.  However on Saturday.....all good things come to an end.

It’s a Secret

Feb. 11th - yesterday we rented a golf cart and drove about 8 miles to The Secret Beach.  The funny thing is everyone knows about The “Secret” Beach.

Beautiful crystal clear Belize waters

Feb. 10th - the turquoise water here is so incredibley beautiful mainly due to the reef.  The reef is 182 miles long and is about 1/2 mile off shore.  The water within the reef is less then 15 feet deep so the white sand reflecting the sky gives it those lovely aqua colors.  The reef is respected and cared for which is critical to it’s health.  Beyond the reef it turns into the deeper and darker waters of the golf of Mexico.

No worries, be happy!

Feb. 9th - No worries, be happy!  How could I NOT take a picture of this handsome guy.  To quote Bob Marley; every little thing is going to be alright...

The 2nd best reason to leave the US in 2020

Of course the best reason for this trip is to see many incredible places around the world.  The 2nd best reason to leave the US this year is to avoid political ads in an election year!  It doesn’t matter if you are left or right, they are insulting to our intelligence, mind numbing and filled with distortions.  I do read the news each morning.  I avoid so called news that is far left (MSNBC) or far right (Fox) I don’t need anyone telling me how to hate the other side.  I seek news outlets that are fair, factual and use journalists providing information that has been fact checked and vetted.  I still do my own fact checking after that.
One thing is for sure; we will vote this fall, we have arranged for absentee ballots from Greece.  I am looking for a candidate that is; honest, has integrity, is intelligent and will help heal our very divided country.  That removes Donald Trump from the list.

Those who wonder are not lost

Those who wonder are not lost....almost every day we hike this trail along the ocean.  It goes for miles and miles and miles.  Almost every day we see or find something new.

The good, the bad & the ugly

The good news is Belize has beautiful silky sand beaches.  The bad news is every day hundreds of ugly pieces of plastic wash up on shore.  It comes from Brazil, the US, Africa and every other country in between. The world uses 1.5 billion plastic bottles every day but only about 22% are recycled.  A bottle not recycled takes about 450 years to decompose.  I am sure if everyone cared and everyone worked together we could solve this problem.

LandShark beer

Drink LandShark beer; it won’t solve your problems but neither will water.

Grocery shopping on the island

Feb. 4th - Grocery shopping on the island - Only the best!  Oop’s I meant; Only the basics!

about Belize

Feb 3rd - Belize is a small country in Central America next to the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world (the largest is the Great Barrier Reef in Australia).  It’s a melting pot of many different cultures, countries and skin colors.  No one seemed to want to conquer it or take it over so they all just moved in and get along pretty well.  Ambergris Caye is the largest of it’s 200 islands and has great scuba diving!  The only town here is San Pedro, it’s VERY laid-back and earth friendly.  They try to keep cruise ships out & structures no taller than a coconut tree.  The perfect spot to decompress from work life!

Good morning from Ambergris Caye

Good morning from Ambergris Caye, I think we are going to like this place!

Ambergris Caye, Belize

Feb. 1 - made it to Belize City around noon and took a tiny little plane to Ambergris Caye.  The plane had one engine and one pilot so fortunitly they both worked well!