Rum punch in hand, freshly caught fish dinner in the stomach, hangining out in the water just off a deserted island that we called home for one night...I´d say there are worse places to be. That was night one of the 3 day 2 night sailing/snorkeling trip I took last week from Cay Caulker (in Belize) to Placencia (also in Belize, further down the coast). It was amazing. The only thing that would have made it better was for there have to been just a little less wind...I don´t know how our tents managed to not blow away that first night. We spent the day on the boat all three days, hanging out, sailing and made at least one stop every day at a snorkeling sight and at least one more stop for general swimming/lunch eating. We had two guides who cooked everything for us, actually caught and cooked a lot of it (spearfishing...). There were 13 people on the trip, some couples, some solo travelers, myself and my friend Robbert who I met way back in Semuc Champey (and then ran into him again while with Dad). It was an incredible trip, the water is so beautiful and blue, there weren´t a bunch of other boats around, the sun shining, and just the wind the water and us. Awesome.

Before the sailing trip, Robbert and I traveled from Flores into Belize where we stayed a few nights at a town called San Ignacio, taking a cave river tubing trip one day, that was fun, but not as great as it could have been. Apparently, during the rainy season, it is almost like white water tubing through these natural caves, which is what we wanted, but the water level is low right now, so it was pretty mellow. Plus, it was a Thursday so we were sharing the park with hundreds and hundreds of cruise ship passengers on a day trip from Belize city where the cruise ships dock. There were 15 buses of people, 45 people each bus and then 2 or 3 buses of just intertubes. Crazy. The culture/economy of cruise ships just fascinates me. The night we stayed in Belize city we walked around town in the afternoon and pretty much everything at the water was closed and locked up-in particular this whole dock full of probably 50 store fronts right where the passengers un-dock, mainly because there was no ship. So, theorhetically, they do business only 2 days a week for most of the year (I think more during cruise ship high season). And, the crazy thing is that they probably make enough, if not more money, than a 24/7 shop owner somewhere else. Really, it´s just such a...fabricated environment to a degree. Seeing that whole line of shops all closed reminded me of where our family undocked in Cozumel Mexico on our family reunion cruise and how we had to walk through this seemingly teaming, busy little mall/local shop area and I wondered if on off days it looked as closed up and abandoned as the dock in Belize City...

Overall, my crash course in Belize (really very few days) was quite enjoyable. The country is definitley different than the surrounding places in Latin America, I think mainly because it was a British Colony rather than a Spanish Colony. It struck me as a very diverse country where English, Spanish, and Garifuna are regularly spoken, not to mention all the Chinese we saw. Also, I would classify the country as a place more geared for vacationing tourists rather than backpackers-partly simply because the exchange rate is less favorable (2 belize to 1 US $) but there are little to no hostels and not a lot to do other than beaches, water sports and hanging out. I was impressed at how seriously I think the country is about protecting their barrier reefs etc, since that is where a large part of there economy comes from. I guess I don´t know the reality of how well their protection laws work, but at least the intention is there. We (randomly) ended up in Caye Caulker during the annual Lobsterfest, which was fun, although not too special. We did manage to eat some pretty fabulous grilled lobster...nearly accidentally as we thought we were ordering the much cheaper lobster kabobs...but, after first getting over the shock of the restaurant bill, we decided that we were probably going to ever be in Belize at Lobsterfest once in our lives, so spending a little more than we´d prefer on some lobster was OK...It was amazing how empty the town felt after it ended though! However, if I were to go back to Belize for a beach vacation, I would go to Placencia (where our sailing trip ended) not Caye Caulker (the more normal haunt). So if any of you out there were thinking about a beach vacation to Belize, check that out first :).

So, the reality is that in 2 1/2 weeks I will be once again back home in Idaho--a concept I am beginning to daily struggle with getting my mind around. I can´t believe how fast time has gone and can only be so prepared for what it will be like to go back (although, one of the guys on the sailing trip pointed out to me that home is sort of like a soap opera-there are a million and one things going on when you don´t watch it regularly, but you can turn the TV on and pick the story line up right way, as if you hadn´t been absent all those other episodes...I thought that was an interesting way of looking at home, and true to a degree.)

Today I find myself once again in La Ceiba, Honduras, preparing to take a ferry out to the Bay Islands. I managed to catch a boat from Placencia to Puerto Cortes in Honduras yesterday (meaning that I finally have that Honduras stamp!) but am still reeling a bit from the boat ride. The ocean just had a grand time with the motor boat we were on, basically the trip was equivalent to a 2 1/2 hour intense amusement park ride. I have no idea how I managed to not get sick, especially when the children sitting next to me started throwing up on the ground next to my feet and all the windows to the cabin were closed so the water wouldn´t get in (loosing ventaliation). I guess I´ll have to give some credit to the three days on a sail boat...but it is not a trip I would choose to do again I don´t think. But hey, it makes a fun story! And really, the most important part is that I am now here in Honduras (with that stamp...) and, with the exception of my return trip to Guatemala to fly home, am practically done with long travel days. I stayed last night in La Ceiba with a couple of Irish girls who also came from Placencia and was planning to stay another night here and catch the morning ferry tomorrow, but I´ve managed to get more done this morning than I planned online and my laundry was done quickly, plus I was having a bit of difficulty finding an affordable room for one person...so, I´ll just take the afternoon ferry out to Utila. So there. I´m looking forward to doing my open water dive, as time has gone on I have grown more excited about the idea of diving, plus I am looking forward to just staying in one place for more than 2 or 3 nights.

Well, I find I may be rambling now so will move on to my other computer duties. Love to all!!