July 2011 - Back in beautiful Belize again! (Part 2 of 2)
Note that the most current post is at the top of this page. For the first half of this trip, see the July 2-8 tab above.
Comments or questions? Email emilys7 @ gmail dot com
Comments or questions? Email emilys7 @ gmail dot com
July 16.
We are back home safely in Chapel Hill tonight. Our clock reads 10:12 pm, but it is 8:12 Belize time, so we'll see how quickly we are able to fall asleep tonight. Fortunately, after a long travel day and waking up way too early, we should be exhausted -- I know I feel that way right now. We had to leave Grand Caribe before 10 am today, so we really didn't do much this morning as we didn't want to have wet bathing suits nor sunscreen-greasy skin, so after eating up all the remaining food in our fridge for breakfast (other than a jar of Grey Poupon we gifted to Doris), we watched the Tour de France stage off and on (our only TV watching at all in the two weeks in Belize), walked over to Chico Caribe for one last look at our condo, finished packing, and said our goodbyes to Bernie and Doris and some of the Grand Caribe staff. Everyone there was most gracious to us during our visit, and we so appreciate everything they did.
I never did post any photos of the nice second floor, 2-BR oceanfront unit we stayed in during our time there, so here are a couple I shot as we were walking out the door today. It was large, luxurious, and very comfortable.
We are back home safely in Chapel Hill tonight. Our clock reads 10:12 pm, but it is 8:12 Belize time, so we'll see how quickly we are able to fall asleep tonight. Fortunately, after a long travel day and waking up way too early, we should be exhausted -- I know I feel that way right now. We had to leave Grand Caribe before 10 am today, so we really didn't do much this morning as we didn't want to have wet bathing suits nor sunscreen-greasy skin, so after eating up all the remaining food in our fridge for breakfast (other than a jar of Grey Poupon we gifted to Doris), we watched the Tour de France stage off and on (our only TV watching at all in the two weeks in Belize), walked over to Chico Caribe for one last look at our condo, finished packing, and said our goodbyes to Bernie and Doris and some of the Grand Caribe staff. Everyone there was most gracious to us during our visit, and we so appreciate everything they did.
I never did post any photos of the nice second floor, 2-BR oceanfront unit we stayed in during our time there, so here are a couple I shot as we were walking out the door today. It was large, luxurious, and very comfortable.
We had no problem with either of our flights. Here are a few photos from our Tropic Air flight to Belize City.
The Belize City International airport was a madhouse, absolutely bursting with people. Unlike an international airport in the US, food options are extremely limited. The one snack bar line was too long to wait in for lunch, and I was starved by noon (our flight was due to depart at 1pm), so I grabbed a hot dog from a little bar while Barry watched the luggage, and I watched it while he bought a few food items to bring home, including a couple of bottles of duty-free liquor. It was especially smooth sailing once we got back to Charlotte-Douglas International as we had no checked bags this time. We flew through immigration and customs, out into the airport shuttle, and to our car in long-term parking.
One thing we noticed upon our return to the US was how COLD it was everywhere inside. The plane was freezing (and we had no jackets), as were the Charlotte airport, and the Wendy's we stopped at for dinner on our way to Chapel Hill. Even outside was cooler (mid 70s) than what we've grown accustomed to (and unusually cool for NC in July, especially considering it was in the upper 90s to low 100s just a few days earlier!) But the air conditioning is what got me. There are plenty of air-conditioned spaces in Belize (though fewer than in the southern US), but for the most part, they are not nearly as cool as what Americans seem to like. Brrrrr!
We arrived at the apartment at 9pm, and everything was fine here, barring one plant that didn't make it. We don't get to pick up Paisley at the Bed & Bone until tomorrow night at 6 pm (they are only open for one hour on Sundays for pickup), so it's pretty quiet around here. We have already unpacked but still have a lot of receipts and notes to go through and organize, but tomorrow is another day!
One thing we noticed upon our return to the US was how COLD it was everywhere inside. The plane was freezing (and we had no jackets), as were the Charlotte airport, and the Wendy's we stopped at for dinner on our way to Chapel Hill. Even outside was cooler (mid 70s) than what we've grown accustomed to (and unusually cool for NC in July, especially considering it was in the upper 90s to low 100s just a few days earlier!) But the air conditioning is what got me. There are plenty of air-conditioned spaces in Belize (though fewer than in the southern US), but for the most part, they are not nearly as cool as what Americans seem to like. Brrrrr!
We arrived at the apartment at 9pm, and everything was fine here, barring one plant that didn't make it. We don't get to pick up Paisley at the Bed & Bone until tomorrow night at 6 pm (they are only open for one hour on Sundays for pickup), so it's pretty quiet around here. We have already unpacked but still have a lot of receipts and notes to go through and organize, but tomorrow is another day!
July 15. Our last day here (sigh...)
Since we had to turn in the bikes today, we took one last bike ride up north on this beautiful morning. We ran into Lorena on our way out of Grand Caribe and had a nice conversation. She is a sweet and smart young lady. We rode up almost as far as Mata Chica resort, several miles north of here, and finally found the elusive Mata Grande Grocery. What a cute place! I almost never drink sodas, but I splurged on a Fresca, as I haven't had one in years and years, and I was dripping sweat as usual.
Since we had to turn in the bikes today, we took one last bike ride up north on this beautiful morning. We ran into Lorena on our way out of Grand Caribe and had a nice conversation. She is a sweet and smart young lady. We rode up almost as far as Mata Chica resort, several miles north of here, and finally found the elusive Mata Grande Grocery. What a cute place! I almost never drink sodas, but I splurged on a Fresca, as I haven't had one in years and years, and I was dripping sweat as usual.
We then headed south into town to turn in our bikes. Had a nice chat with Joe when we brought the steeds to him. Next stop was at Sew What! to pay for and pick up our window roller shades from Kate. She was kind enough to wrap them up in plastic so we could easily walk with them. While we were checking out, her husband walked in. Turns out he is none other than the famous Elbert Greer, who owns the White Sands Dive Shop not too far north of Grande Caribe, and is a frequent poster on the Belize forums. He looked just like his photo, and we were delighted to meet him. Had no idea he was Kate's husband as they have different last names.
We had thought we might take the water taxi back to Grand Caribe since we've never tried it, and Barry had the window shades to carry, but we got there right at the wrong time, between two runs of two hours apart, so we decide to walk (approx. 2.5 miles). I haven't mentioned before a cute little old lady we pass every time we go to town. She is a tiny little thing, looks to be in her 90s, and she sits in a wheelchair by the side of the Boca del Rio beach road in the shade of some trees. When we first would pass her on our bikes, we'd shout out "Good morning", but it finally dawned on us that she might speak only Spanish, so we switched to "Buenos Dias". That got a huge smile, a wave, and a return greeting back from her each time!
As we were walking down Boca del Rio this time, a golf cart went by, which Barry quick realized was driven by one of the locals we've been friendly with, Loydee (sp...no idea how badly I've mangled her name, but that's what it sounds like!) She works at the toll bridge and is so sweet. He called out a hello to her, and she kindly offered us a ride, which we gladly accepted. We were only planning to go as far as the bridge with her, since she was en route to pick her daughter Pauline up from Bible school right there, but she is so sweet and generous she insisted on driving us farther north. I asked for her to let us off at the Palapa bar, only about a half mile south of Grande Caribe, so that she could get back to pick Pauline up. She wouldn't accept any money for gas either. People like her are one of the reasons we have fallen in love with this unique and special country.
We had thought we might take the water taxi back to Grand Caribe since we've never tried it, and Barry had the window shades to carry, but we got there right at the wrong time, between two runs of two hours apart, so we decide to walk (approx. 2.5 miles). I haven't mentioned before a cute little old lady we pass every time we go to town. She is a tiny little thing, looks to be in her 90s, and she sits in a wheelchair by the side of the Boca del Rio beach road in the shade of some trees. When we first would pass her on our bikes, we'd shout out "Good morning", but it finally dawned on us that she might speak only Spanish, so we switched to "Buenos Dias". That got a huge smile, a wave, and a return greeting back from her each time!
As we were walking down Boca del Rio this time, a golf cart went by, which Barry quick realized was driven by one of the locals we've been friendly with, Loydee (sp...no idea how badly I've mangled her name, but that's what it sounds like!) She works at the toll bridge and is so sweet. He called out a hello to her, and she kindly offered us a ride, which we gladly accepted. We were only planning to go as far as the bridge with her, since she was en route to pick her daughter Pauline up from Bible school right there, but she is so sweet and generous she insisted on driving us farther north. I asked for her to let us off at the Palapa bar, only about a half mile south of Grande Caribe, so that she could get back to pick Pauline up. She wouldn't accept any money for gas either. People like her are one of the reasons we have fallen in love with this unique and special country.
We took the shades right over to our Chico Caribe unit, and found a worker there fixing our DSL hook-up box. BTL will still have to come and put the faceplate on it and turn on the internet access, but it was nice to see that at least the innards are in place. I was hungry, so we headed back to Grand Caribe for lunch. Afterwards, we unloaded the dishwasher from yesterday and filled up the second load (much smaller) with the remaining dishes and cutlery and got that started. Barry also read in the manual that the reason the cycle went so much longer yesterday than it initially said was due to a "smart-sensing" mechanism that adjusts the time needed based on various things such as soil level, water temperature, and the like. So, our dishwasher is not possessed, as I originally thought, but actually has a brain. How things have changed from the last time we bought a new dishwasher (1999)!
Here are a few photos of the view from our Chico Caribe unit Barry took this afternoon. It was another beautiful day in paradise! No rain, highs in the 80s, great wind, and no mosquitos. While the dishwasher ran, I sat on the sofa with the sliders and windows open, and was completely cool and comfortable with a fantastic breeze blowing through. Even without the screens in yet, it was okay to do this since there were no mosquitoes. Nice!
Here are a few photos of the view from our Chico Caribe unit Barry took this afternoon. It was another beautiful day in paradise! No rain, highs in the 80s, great wind, and no mosquitos. While the dishwasher ran, I sat on the sofa with the sliders and windows open, and was completely cool and comfortable with a fantastic breeze blowing through. Even without the screens in yet, it was okay to do this since there were no mosquitoes. Nice!
He also got a photo of Bernie's weather station on his fourth-floor veranda, just moved over to Chico from Grande Caribe. It will eventually be on the roof of the building.
Late in the afternoon, we got drinks (rum and pineapple juice) at the bar and headed over to the Chico Caribe pool for a swim. It was my first time in the pool, and what a nice one it was! Perfect temperature, and no one but us.
We made veggie/bean/cheese quesadillas for supper again, along with the last of the salad greens from Zac, and some chips and salsa. We did very well in eating up all the perishable food we had bought, and after tomorrow's breakfast should have only a jar of mustard to give Doris!
July 14.
We began today with yet another bike trip into town after breakfast (oatmeal with mango - yum) on the veranda. It was a gorgeous day, sunny, and quite warm, with slightly less wind than in previous days. I was pouring sweat by the time we stopped at Caribbean Depot to talk about receiving the boxes we will be shipping down from North Carolina. Fortunately, they had a nice, cold air conditioner, which provided a brief respite from the heat.
After talking to them, we rode south a bit farther to Marina's grocery, which had been recommended to us by several people. It's a small store but prices were good on most items. We didn't buy anything, just looked at prices for future reference. After we turned around and began heading north, we found the health food store I'd seen on Facebook almost right across the street from Maria's fruit stand (not sure how we missed it before!) Unfortunately, we were about an hour too early, and they were not yet open.
We began today with yet another bike trip into town after breakfast (oatmeal with mango - yum) on the veranda. It was a gorgeous day, sunny, and quite warm, with slightly less wind than in previous days. I was pouring sweat by the time we stopped at Caribbean Depot to talk about receiving the boxes we will be shipping down from North Carolina. Fortunately, they had a nice, cold air conditioner, which provided a brief respite from the heat.
After talking to them, we rode south a bit farther to Marina's grocery, which had been recommended to us by several people. It's a small store but prices were good on most items. We didn't buy anything, just looked at prices for future reference. After we turned around and began heading north, we found the health food store I'd seen on Facebook almost right across the street from Maria's fruit stand (not sure how we missed it before!) Unfortunately, we were about an hour too early, and they were not yet open.
Next stop was, of course, Maria's, where we bought two more of her most delicious and juicy mangos, a banana and a tomato, and the man threw in a free banana as well. Then to Super Buy for some jack cheese and a Belikin (the local beer here in Belize). Just a bit down the street was Domingo's Popular Tortillas, where we bought, you guessed it, tortillas, for our final stop of the day. Freshly made and only $1.25 BZD for five (divide by two for the US dollar equivalent).
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After returning to the Grand Caribe, we did a little computer time, then headed over to Chico Caribe. We ran into Bernie and Doris, and Bernie suggested that we should turn on all the circuit breakers and test all the appliances in our unit. Thank goodness for this very practical suggestion, as we discovered that our hot water heater was not making hot water! Fortunately, the workers jumped right on that and were able to borrow an element from another unit to use for ours and will replace that unit's element later (the owner is not here so will not miss it). We also found that the range is not yet hooked up due to a missing clamp of some sort that is required. We were unable to test the washer/dryer because we knew the dryer was not yet hooked up. The microwave, disposal, and refrigerator are all working fine.
While we were in the unit, an owner from the building next door in Grand Caribe, Kyle, came over to say hello. He had been reading this blog and contacted me via email a few days ago to tell us that he was coming down today. What a friendly guy! We had a nice chat as we showed him our unit, then he took us over to his unit to show us some of the interesting things he and his wife (who didn't come this time) had done with decorating, furniture (many custom-made pieces), and accent walls in cheerful paint colors. Their unit is really attractive, tropical, and homey and seeing it gave us some good ideas. I'm ready to paint an accent wall now! We chatted with Kyle for some time, but needed to get back to our unit to check on the hot water heater (which had been fixed by this time) and do a dishwasher test.
As I mentioned in previous entries, I had already loaded many of the dishes, glasses, and all of the cutlery from our furniture package into the dishwasher, so we decided to do a light load to test its operation out. The "speed cycle" indicated on the digital display that it would take 45 minutes so should be done around 5:15, ample time for us to get ready to meet Bernie and Doris for dinner at 6pm. After awhile, Barry decided to leave since he needed to take a shower, but I already had taken mine, so sat on the sofa in the unit reading my book while the dishwasher ran. It seemed like a really long 45 minutes, but I wasn't wearing my watch so just assumed the timer was correct. When it finally finished, I got ready to leave the unit and discovered that it was 5:45, not the 5:15 I expected. Whaaaa? I had 15 minutes to run to our Grand Caribe unit, change, put on a bit of makeup (I wear almost none down here), and run a comb through my hair. It is a mystery why the cycle that was supposed to take 45 minutes took well over an hour, so we'll probably need to run the remaining dishes and glasses through another cycle tomorrow while Barry keeps a close eye on what is going on. I'm sure there must be a logical reason for it. Aside from the time issue, the dishwasher ran quietly and is really high-tech. Never had such a nice one with digital display and so many cycles and options. Very cool.
While we were in the unit, an owner from the building next door in Grand Caribe, Kyle, came over to say hello. He had been reading this blog and contacted me via email a few days ago to tell us that he was coming down today. What a friendly guy! We had a nice chat as we showed him our unit, then he took us over to his unit to show us some of the interesting things he and his wife (who didn't come this time) had done with decorating, furniture (many custom-made pieces), and accent walls in cheerful paint colors. Their unit is really attractive, tropical, and homey and seeing it gave us some good ideas. I'm ready to paint an accent wall now! We chatted with Kyle for some time, but needed to get back to our unit to check on the hot water heater (which had been fixed by this time) and do a dishwasher test.
As I mentioned in previous entries, I had already loaded many of the dishes, glasses, and all of the cutlery from our furniture package into the dishwasher, so we decided to do a light load to test its operation out. The "speed cycle" indicated on the digital display that it would take 45 minutes so should be done around 5:15, ample time for us to get ready to meet Bernie and Doris for dinner at 6pm. After awhile, Barry decided to leave since he needed to take a shower, but I already had taken mine, so sat on the sofa in the unit reading my book while the dishwasher ran. It seemed like a really long 45 minutes, but I wasn't wearing my watch so just assumed the timer was correct. When it finally finished, I got ready to leave the unit and discovered that it was 5:45, not the 5:15 I expected. Whaaaa? I had 15 minutes to run to our Grand Caribe unit, change, put on a bit of makeup (I wear almost none down here), and run a comb through my hair. It is a mystery why the cycle that was supposed to take 45 minutes took well over an hour, so we'll probably need to run the remaining dishes and glasses through another cycle tomorrow while Barry keeps a close eye on what is going on. I'm sure there must be a logical reason for it. Aside from the time issue, the dishwasher ran quietly and is really high-tech. Never had such a nice one with digital display and so many cycles and options. Very cool.
I managed to get ready in time and head over to Chico with Barry. We beat Bernie and Doris there by a few minutes, so it worked out fine. We all walked up the beach to Aji, where we discovered Kyle at the bar. Bernie invited him to join us since we had a larger table. Unfortunately the mosquitoes were out in force, just like last time Barry and I went there. The combination of slightly lighter wind and the deep foliage setting of the restaurant provide the perfect environment for the little blood-suckers, unfortunately. Still, a good time and meal was had by all, and we had a lovely walk back to Grand Caribe in on the beach path. The nearly full moon provided enough light that we didn't need a flashlight!
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July 13.
I haven't mentioned it yet, but over the past few days we finally came to the decision that we are not going to try to move into our condo in Chico Caribe on this trip. It was tempting as the workers really haven't done anything in our unit for two days (so it's not abuzz with activity), since they are trying to get Bernie and Doris' unit finished so they can start moving in this weekend. But there are a variety of things that keep our unit from being ideal to move into: no screens on the windows and sliders yet, so we'd have to run the air full-time, which we'd prefer not to do since the temperature and wind have been great for opening up, and electricity is expensive here. There's no threshold at the front door yet, so if we did have to run the air, much would escape under the door. The dryer is not yet hooked up, and we want to do a load of laundry before we leave to go back to North Carolina. There's no cookware yet (we will be shipping some down later), only dishes and cutlery. There's no internet or phone (supposedly this is coming very soon). No cable TV (we're watching the Tour de France on Versus, other than that, we wouldn't miss it). And there's still construction noise in the building and workers all around, so it wouldn't be that peaceful being there. We're not too disappointed. This Grand Caribe unit is plenty comfortable, and at least we have been able to see just how close our unit is to completion first hand, so we feel comfortable making the next payment on it. Today was a bit less tiring than yesterday, thankfully, and the weather was gorgeous! No rain, blue skies, great breeze, high in mid-80s. After breakfast on the veranda and some computer time so that I could write yesterday's blog, we rode the bikes to town. The puddles were starting to dry up, making for a much nicer road than the day before. We stopped at Joe's Bike Shop to check the inflation in Barry's rear tire, but it was okay. Cruiser tires need to be cushier than our usual road bike tires to handle the sand, bumps, and so forth. Joe was in a chatty mood and talked to us for some time. He's a good guy. This was a short town trip. We went to Super Buy for a few basic household items for the condo and some more black beans, then headed back to Grand Caribe. |
Next we walked over to the wood shop to ask Amir for an estimate to add a screen door to our unit, which he was able to give us this afternoon. I think it will pay for itself in the first month or two of not needing much A/C as the breeze here is fantastic and keeps it very comfortable so long as it's blowing. It dies from time to time, and you have to close up and use the air during rainstorms too, but we'd like to keep the windows and sliders open whenever possible.
After lunch we spent some more time on the laptops. I received an email indicating that Time Warner cable was charging me $153 extra for credit card refusals on my automatic billing on the one day they tried. Outrageous! The only reason my card was refused was that there was fraud on it, and I was waiting for my new card. I have never dealt with any outfit that charges for a refusal, and to be charged more than our actual cable/internet bill for the month for that is simply criminal. I quickly got a chat session established, and the representative assured me he had reversed the charges. Hopefully that is the last of that!
Next we walked over Chico and visited with Bernie and Doris in their unit up on the fourth floor for awhile. They were very busy dealing with construction up there. We had noticed a sewage smell in the hall outside our unit, and Bernie explained that it was because no water had been put in the traps of the hot water heaters for our unit and Mike's across the hall, which are housed in small closets off the outside hallway. So, Barry poured water in both traps and opened up our door and sliders to blow some air through and push the odiforous gas out of the hall. It worked! We also checked the level of our dishwasher with a level we borrowed from Bernie's unit, and it looked fine, so we left the dishes and cutlery I loaded up yesterday inside. We haven't turned on the hot water heater yet to actually run a load, but they should be safe stored inside there.
We invited Bernie and Doris out to dinner tomorrow night with us at Aji, and Doris told us that the chef and his wife, Hugo and Victoria, had left for the US today, but that he had hired a new chef from Capricorn (another very nice restaurant here), so hopefully it will be fine. Barry and I took a short walk up to make sure that they were still open in Hugo's absence (yes).
We then took a short, refreshing dip in the Grand Caribe pool before heading upstairs for a drink, chips, and Maria's fresh salsa. For dinner, we made a quesadilla with sauteed organic green peppers and sweet corn cut off the cob that we bought from Zac, along with black beans, jack cheese, and part of an habenaro pepper. Caliente! We also had a lovely salad of organic greens and arugula from Zac. Believe it or not, we didn't even have dessert tonight, but the dinner was delicious, and we so enjoy eating outside. We have always have done that whenever we possibly could, and down here, so long as the breeze is good (keeps mosquitos away), we are able dine al fresco frequently. Life is good!
After lunch we spent some more time on the laptops. I received an email indicating that Time Warner cable was charging me $153 extra for credit card refusals on my automatic billing on the one day they tried. Outrageous! The only reason my card was refused was that there was fraud on it, and I was waiting for my new card. I have never dealt with any outfit that charges for a refusal, and to be charged more than our actual cable/internet bill for the month for that is simply criminal. I quickly got a chat session established, and the representative assured me he had reversed the charges. Hopefully that is the last of that!
Next we walked over Chico and visited with Bernie and Doris in their unit up on the fourth floor for awhile. They were very busy dealing with construction up there. We had noticed a sewage smell in the hall outside our unit, and Bernie explained that it was because no water had been put in the traps of the hot water heaters for our unit and Mike's across the hall, which are housed in small closets off the outside hallway. So, Barry poured water in both traps and opened up our door and sliders to blow some air through and push the odiforous gas out of the hall. It worked! We also checked the level of our dishwasher with a level we borrowed from Bernie's unit, and it looked fine, so we left the dishes and cutlery I loaded up yesterday inside. We haven't turned on the hot water heater yet to actually run a load, but they should be safe stored inside there.
We invited Bernie and Doris out to dinner tomorrow night with us at Aji, and Doris told us that the chef and his wife, Hugo and Victoria, had left for the US today, but that he had hired a new chef from Capricorn (another very nice restaurant here), so hopefully it will be fine. Barry and I took a short walk up to make sure that they were still open in Hugo's absence (yes).
We then took a short, refreshing dip in the Grand Caribe pool before heading upstairs for a drink, chips, and Maria's fresh salsa. For dinner, we made a quesadilla with sauteed organic green peppers and sweet corn cut off the cob that we bought from Zac, along with black beans, jack cheese, and part of an habenaro pepper. Caliente! We also had a lovely salad of organic greens and arugula from Zac. Believe it or not, we didn't even have dessert tonight, but the dinner was delicious, and we so enjoy eating outside. We have always have done that whenever we possibly could, and down here, so long as the breeze is good (keeps mosquitos away), we are able dine al fresco frequently. Life is good!
July 12.
What a busy day! I usually try to write these entries before bed, but was too exhausted last night so am writing this early in the morning of the 13th.
The day started with a very early morning, as it looked threatening outside (after raining most of the night), and we feared we'd miss getting to town before another downpour again if we didn't get going early. There has been a tropical wave nearby, affecting Belize's weather and making it more unstable, wetter, and windier than usual. So, at the most unusual time (for us) of 6:25 am (yes, you read it right), we set off on foot to town before breakfast or coffee. Along the way, we were delighted to see a thundering herd of bicycles heading our way along the road. This is morning rush hour north of San Pedro as all the workers heading to their jobs at various resorts and restaurants commute at this time, mostly by bicycle, a few on foot. It was too early for taxis or for tourists and ex-pats in their golf carts. We saw numerous workers we recognized from Grand Caribe, and said hello to people the entire way into town. We ran into Marlon, who works at the front desk at Grand Caribe walking (unfortunately I mixed him up with someone else and felt terrible about that!), and once we got into town, we ran into one of the housekeepers here, America, who was getting ready to ride her bike up to Grand Caribe. She pointed out the cute place she lives, and we had a brief, friendly chat.
As it turned out, the menacing-looking cloud we were worried about passed south, and there was actually no rain either in the morning nor anytime later in the day. It was interesting to see the effect of the tropical wave on the sea, though, as the tide was a good bit higher on the beach, huge waves were roaring out at the reef, and small waves even made it to shore, which is usually completely placid and tranquil.
We walked to our favorite breakfast joint in San Pedro, Estelle's, only to discover that they were closed on Tuesdays. Disappointed, we decided to try Lily's Treasure Chest instead, and it turned out to be excellent! We both had veggie omelets, and Barry had wheat toast, while I tried the Johnnycakes. The breads were served with a delicious house-made pineapple-cinnamon butter, the waitress told us. Yum! We talked to an interesting guy from Seattle (who also owns a house in Merida, Mexico) at the next table who had hoped to go scuba diving, but the dive was cancelled due to the wind and rough ocean conditions.
What a busy day! I usually try to write these entries before bed, but was too exhausted last night so am writing this early in the morning of the 13th.
The day started with a very early morning, as it looked threatening outside (after raining most of the night), and we feared we'd miss getting to town before another downpour again if we didn't get going early. There has been a tropical wave nearby, affecting Belize's weather and making it more unstable, wetter, and windier than usual. So, at the most unusual time (for us) of 6:25 am (yes, you read it right), we set off on foot to town before breakfast or coffee. Along the way, we were delighted to see a thundering herd of bicycles heading our way along the road. This is morning rush hour north of San Pedro as all the workers heading to their jobs at various resorts and restaurants commute at this time, mostly by bicycle, a few on foot. It was too early for taxis or for tourists and ex-pats in their golf carts. We saw numerous workers we recognized from Grand Caribe, and said hello to people the entire way into town. We ran into Marlon, who works at the front desk at Grand Caribe walking (unfortunately I mixed him up with someone else and felt terrible about that!), and once we got into town, we ran into one of the housekeepers here, America, who was getting ready to ride her bike up to Grand Caribe. She pointed out the cute place she lives, and we had a brief, friendly chat.
As it turned out, the menacing-looking cloud we were worried about passed south, and there was actually no rain either in the morning nor anytime later in the day. It was interesting to see the effect of the tropical wave on the sea, though, as the tide was a good bit higher on the beach, huge waves were roaring out at the reef, and small waves even made it to shore, which is usually completely placid and tranquil.
We walked to our favorite breakfast joint in San Pedro, Estelle's, only to discover that they were closed on Tuesdays. Disappointed, we decided to try Lily's Treasure Chest instead, and it turned out to be excellent! We both had veggie omelets, and Barry had wheat toast, while I tried the Johnnycakes. The breads were served with a delicious house-made pineapple-cinnamon butter, the waitress told us. Yum! We talked to an interesting guy from Seattle (who also owns a house in Merida, Mexico) at the next table who had hoped to go scuba diving, but the dive was cancelled due to the wind and rough ocean conditions.
After breakfast we walked over to RF&G Insurance to inquire about a policy for our personal belongings inside the condo. We were told that the woman who represents RF&G would not be in until 9 am, so we had to kill some time until then. So, we wandered around town going into various stores looking at what kinds of things were available. We visited a couple of hardware stores, and in one, met a very nice employee, Carla. Since we'll certainly need at least a few items from there, she'll be a good person to know when we need assistance.
Finally, it was 9, and we went back to RF&G to talk to the insurance rep, followed by a trip to British Carribbean Bank to talk to Flor Nunez about our bank account and how to make a withdrawal. It was great to see Flor again; she is a beautiful lady and has been very helpful to us here. She sent us down to Belize Bank to make our withdrawal, which we did, then took the US dollars to Milo's to exchange for Belize dollars. You get a small bonus for doing this based on the exchange rate.
Next stop was Zac's (Healthy Belize) for some yummy organic produce (salad greens, sweet corn, sweet peppers, arugula, and another dragon fruit), and we bought an extra bag of salad greens to give to Doris. Next we headed to Maria's Fruit Stand for mangos, bananas, fresh salsa, and an onion. We didn't know that green bananas could be sweet and delicious, but the man working there (maybe Maria's husband?) gave us one to try, and it was yummy. Obviously a different variety from the yellow bananas we are used to in the US.
Here is what the unpaved back roads looked like on the way to Zac's after all the rains. Did I mention there's a tropical wave in the vicinity?!
Finally, it was 9, and we went back to RF&G to talk to the insurance rep, followed by a trip to British Carribbean Bank to talk to Flor Nunez about our bank account and how to make a withdrawal. It was great to see Flor again; she is a beautiful lady and has been very helpful to us here. She sent us down to Belize Bank to make our withdrawal, which we did, then took the US dollars to Milo's to exchange for Belize dollars. You get a small bonus for doing this based on the exchange rate.
Next stop was Zac's (Healthy Belize) for some yummy organic produce (salad greens, sweet corn, sweet peppers, arugula, and another dragon fruit), and we bought an extra bag of salad greens to give to Doris. Next we headed to Maria's Fruit Stand for mangos, bananas, fresh salsa, and an onion. We didn't know that green bananas could be sweet and delicious, but the man working there (maybe Maria's husband?) gave us one to try, and it was yummy. Obviously a different variety from the yellow bananas we are used to in the US.
Here is what the unpaved back roads looked like on the way to Zac's after all the rains. Did I mention there's a tropical wave in the vicinity?!
After a final stop at Super Buy for a few groceries, we started our long walk back to the Grand Caribe. I haven't mentioned that I made the brilliant (NOT) decision to wear a pair of closed-toe water shoes (because of the puddles) on this walk rather than my usual Teva sandals. I hadn't worn these shoes since our last trip to Belize, and never for such a long walk. I ended up with painful blisters on three toes. Thankfully, I had four band-aids in my purse and was able to keep the pain to a just-tolerable level to make the walk back, but it was not pleasant. Barry estimated that we walked a total of seven miles overall. We didn't take the bikes due to the number of puddles from the rains, and we didn't want to get splashed with mud when we needed to appear presentable for our business in town.
After arriving back at the Grand Caribe, Barry saw Tim, the developer of Grand/Chico Caribe, eating lunch at the bar and went to ask him a question. Tim said he could meet with us in 30 minutes to go over some of the logistics of insurance, HOA, and so forth, for our Chico Caribe condo. Thirty minutes? Eek! It was already noon, we were starving after our early breakfast, and I was too sweaty not to take a shower (I sweat more than Barry, for some reason -- lucky me). So, we had to hustle to get ready and eat a very quick lunch, then sprint over to the office to meet with Tim and Tiffany, who works for Benny's and handles a lot of the logistical details for Grand Caribe titling, insurance, phone service, and the like. It was a very productive meeting, and we got many questions answered. Turns out we need to go through a specific individual for insurance as he handles the entire Grand Caribe account, so we hadn't needed to stop in to RF&G in San Pedro after all.
Next stop was to get over to Chico to unpack boxes of dishes, glassware, and cutlery that came with our furniture package. Each piece had a price sticker on it that needed to be peeled off. Thank goodness these were not the horrible stickers that take months or years to peel off; they came off easily. I loaded up the dishwasher with a lot of it (it wouldn't all fit), but Barry reminded me that the dishwasher might still require leveling, so I may have to take everything out and put it in the cabinets until that gets done. If we can locate a level, we'll check it ourselves to see. The hot water heater is not yet on, so we couldn't fire it up right then and there.
While the sticker-peeling ceremony was in progress, the nice family (Marty, Sarah, and four kids) we'd met up north on a bike ride a few days ago happened by on a walk, so we invited them in to see our place. They thought it was great (as we do). After a nice tour and some chatting, they headed on their way down south for a meal in town.
At 5 pm, Bernie and Doris were throwing a party for the workers who had helped to build Chico Caribe. There was a huge cooler of beer and sodas along with some sort of food we didn't actually see (it was in containers). We went over and had a couple of beers. We even got to take an inaugural ride in the Chico elevator, which was just completed, up to Bernie and Doris' condo on the fourth floor. Bernie showed us some of his fancy, remote-controlled lighting and some of the new items completed on his condo. Barry and I won't normally be using the elevator, but we figured we should try it once!
Next stop was to get over to Chico to unpack boxes of dishes, glassware, and cutlery that came with our furniture package. Each piece had a price sticker on it that needed to be peeled off. Thank goodness these were not the horrible stickers that take months or years to peel off; they came off easily. I loaded up the dishwasher with a lot of it (it wouldn't all fit), but Barry reminded me that the dishwasher might still require leveling, so I may have to take everything out and put it in the cabinets until that gets done. If we can locate a level, we'll check it ourselves to see. The hot water heater is not yet on, so we couldn't fire it up right then and there.
While the sticker-peeling ceremony was in progress, the nice family (Marty, Sarah, and four kids) we'd met up north on a bike ride a few days ago happened by on a walk, so we invited them in to see our place. They thought it was great (as we do). After a nice tour and some chatting, they headed on their way down south for a meal in town.
At 5 pm, Bernie and Doris were throwing a party for the workers who had helped to build Chico Caribe. There was a huge cooler of beer and sodas along with some sort of food we didn't actually see (it was in containers). We went over and had a couple of beers. We even got to take an inaugural ride in the Chico elevator, which was just completed, up to Bernie and Doris' condo on the fourth floor. Bernie showed us some of his fancy, remote-controlled lighting and some of the new items completed on his condo. Barry and I won't normally be using the elevator, but we figured we should try it once!
After the party, Bernie invited us to come up to their place, so we went for a few minutes. It was well past dinnertime, and we still needed to cook, so we didn't stay too long, but enjoyed a little bit of socialization. When we finally got back to the unit we're staying in at Grand Caribe, it was 7:30, and we got dinner (black bean tacos) on the table at 8 pm. They tasted delicious, and not a moment too soon! Barry had also picked up a slice of cheesecake at Footprints, which we split. He topped it with mango, which was heavenly and so sweet. I believe it might be the same variety my grandfather used to grow in Ft. Myers, Florida. We capped off the night by checking our email and watching the very end of the Tour de France replay (we're two hours behind eastern time so usually only catch the very end of each stage). We finally fell into bed exhausted at almost 10:30. Yes, we are true party animals!
July 11.
We've had a lot of inside time today as it's been raining heavily off and on since after breakfast. We had a huge thunderstorm earlier in the day that Barry took some photos of as it came in off the water. It was neat to see first the reef disappear, then an anchored catamaran, then (almost) the Grand Caribe dock, as the rain got closer. I had heard that it rarely thunders here on Ambergris Caye, but we had loud thunder, serious lightning, and of course, the rain. This series of photos should give you some idea of the ferocity of the storm, though you can't feel or hear the howling wind. It was very exciting!
We've had a lot of inside time today as it's been raining heavily off and on since after breakfast. We had a huge thunderstorm earlier in the day that Barry took some photos of as it came in off the water. It was neat to see first the reef disappear, then an anchored catamaran, then (almost) the Grand Caribe dock, as the rain got closer. I had heard that it rarely thunders here on Ambergris Caye, but we had loud thunder, serious lightning, and of course, the rain. This series of photos should give you some idea of the ferocity of the storm, though you can't feel or hear the howling wind. It was very exciting!
The rain stopped long enough for us to get over to the Chico condo to go over some punch list items with Rupert, the construction supervisor. We also got a quote from Amir on the closet shelving and are going to go ahead and have one shelf put in to the bedroom closet and coat closet (plus a rod below), and a deep shelf in the utility (washer/dryer) closet with a smaller shelf on one side of the closet. We went with the plywood trimmed in mahogany option, half the price of solid mahogany. These are all inside closets, so no need to splurge.
We are going to meet someone from Amir's crew at Chico this afternoon to hang our bedroom and sliding door curtains, if all goes as planned. We were hoping to get to town this morning to take care of some insurance and banking business, but with the heavy rains and condo obligations, it appears that that will happen tomorrow instead, weather permitting. Hopefully Mother Nature will help us out.
Evening update.
My feet are aching from standing on tile for hours, but what progress we made in the condo this afternoon! Although the weather got better, we spent the afternoon over at Chico. The guys came and installed the curtain rods, the housekeeper came and cleaned up behind them; then we were able to hang the curtains ourselves! After that, we unwrapped all the shrink-wrapped furniture from Hummingbird Furnishings here on the island (great quality stuff; couldn't be happier) and put it into place, which took quite awhile. Unfortunately, they had sent the wrong TV table (I may have mentioned this in an earlier post from this trip), so we have to wait on that piece, but aside from that, the furniture is now in place! We also want to get a small desk built later.
We are going to meet someone from Amir's crew at Chico this afternoon to hang our bedroom and sliding door curtains, if all goes as planned. We were hoping to get to town this morning to take care of some insurance and banking business, but with the heavy rains and condo obligations, it appears that that will happen tomorrow instead, weather permitting. Hopefully Mother Nature will help us out.
Evening update.
My feet are aching from standing on tile for hours, but what progress we made in the condo this afternoon! Although the weather got better, we spent the afternoon over at Chico. The guys came and installed the curtain rods, the housekeeper came and cleaned up behind them; then we were able to hang the curtains ourselves! After that, we unwrapped all the shrink-wrapped furniture from Hummingbird Furnishings here on the island (great quality stuff; couldn't be happier) and put it into place, which took quite awhile. Unfortunately, they had sent the wrong TV table (I may have mentioned this in an earlier post from this trip), so we have to wait on that piece, but aside from that, the furniture is now in place! We also want to get a small desk built later.
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We still have to continue unpacking smaller household items in the condo, run all the dishes and cutlery through the dishwasher, and purchase some basic household items (toilet paper, paper towels, glass cleaner, and the like) before we can actually move in, but it looks like that will happen sometime this week for sure. So exciting!
Since we didn't get to town for groceries today and were short on time anyway, we got takeout from the Grand Caribe beach bar, Footprints, and ate it on the veranda of the unit we've been staying in at Grand Caribe. I have been meaning to mention that after the onslaught of mosquitos we had early in our visit, the past few days have been nicely breezy with no mosquitos in sight. The wind briefly died after the storms this morning, and the mosquitos came back, but it picked up again this afternoon, so the mozzies were all blown away. Gotta love wind!
Since we didn't get to town for groceries today and were short on time anyway, we got takeout from the Grand Caribe beach bar, Footprints, and ate it on the veranda of the unit we've been staying in at Grand Caribe. I have been meaning to mention that after the onslaught of mosquitos we had early in our visit, the past few days have been nicely breezy with no mosquitos in sight. The wind briefly died after the storms this morning, and the mosquitos came back, but it picked up again this afternoon, so the mozzies were all blown away. Gotta love wind!
July 10.
Today started early with a strong wind and rain storm that woke us up sometime in the wee hours. We were sleeping with the windows open and awoke to howling wind, fluttering curtains, and soon thereafter, rain coming in. Barry got up and started closing windows as quickly as possible throughout the unit, while I closed the bedroom windows right next to my side of the bed. Wild! Fortunately we were able to get back to sleep, but I kept dozing on and off and hearing rain pouring down outside. Kind of nice for sleeping, I think.
The rain stopped early enough that we were able to eat breakfast on the veranda, after drying off a couple of chairs. We then got ready to walk into town, carrying rain jackets in my bag, just in case. As we left the Grand Caribe condo, we saw Bernie and Doris eating breakfast outside at Footprints beach bar here, so we went and sat with them for awhile and chatted before heading on our way. By the time we got going, it was getting sunny and hot, so I regretted bringing the rain jackets along, since it looked like it would be sunny from then on (ha!)
We walked all over town going into various stores (quite a few were closed since today is Sunday), comparing prices, and finally ended up in our favorite grocery store so far, Super Buy, for a few items. We spent quite a bit of time in the store checking prices and selection and didn't even notice that the skies had turned dark again. As we were checking out, the heavens opened up again, and it absolutely poured. Now I was very happy for carrying our rain jackets all over town! Even with the jackets, we waited out the worst of the rain in the entry of the grocery store (along with several locals), then took off walking once it lightened up. The weather is even more variable here than in North Carolina!
Today started early with a strong wind and rain storm that woke us up sometime in the wee hours. We were sleeping with the windows open and awoke to howling wind, fluttering curtains, and soon thereafter, rain coming in. Barry got up and started closing windows as quickly as possible throughout the unit, while I closed the bedroom windows right next to my side of the bed. Wild! Fortunately we were able to get back to sleep, but I kept dozing on and off and hearing rain pouring down outside. Kind of nice for sleeping, I think.
The rain stopped early enough that we were able to eat breakfast on the veranda, after drying off a couple of chairs. We then got ready to walk into town, carrying rain jackets in my bag, just in case. As we left the Grand Caribe condo, we saw Bernie and Doris eating breakfast outside at Footprints beach bar here, so we went and sat with them for awhile and chatted before heading on our way. By the time we got going, it was getting sunny and hot, so I regretted bringing the rain jackets along, since it looked like it would be sunny from then on (ha!)
We walked all over town going into various stores (quite a few were closed since today is Sunday), comparing prices, and finally ended up in our favorite grocery store so far, Super Buy, for a few items. We spent quite a bit of time in the store checking prices and selection and didn't even notice that the skies had turned dark again. As we were checking out, the heavens opened up again, and it absolutely poured. Now I was very happy for carrying our rain jackets all over town! Even with the jackets, we waited out the worst of the rain in the entry of the grocery store (along with several locals), then took off walking once it lightened up. The weather is even more variable here than in North Carolina!
Right after we crossed the bridge to walk back north to Grand Caribe, we were offered a ride by a very nice couple in their Polaris. They turned out to be the owners of Aji Tapas Bar & Restaurant, where we'd enjoyed a wonderful dinner last week. Their names are Hugo (who also happens to be the chef) and Victoria, and they've been on the island for four years. They also had their little dog Lulu, whom they'd adopted four years ago. What a pleasure to meet them, and Aji is so close they are neighbors of Grand/Chico Caribe. Although we like to walk, we'd walked so far in town that we were grateful for the offer and ride back. My feet are aching tonight even without that extra mileage!
When we got back to Grand Caribe, we saw that it was absolutely gorgeous here. They had only had a fraction of the rain the town got, and the skies had already cleared back up. Check out how picture-postcard perfect the water looked today.
When we got back to Grand Caribe, we saw that it was absolutely gorgeous here. They had only had a fraction of the rain the town got, and the skies had already cleared back up. Check out how picture-postcard perfect the water looked today.
After our return and a simple lunch on the veranda, we met with Amir (I am guessing at spelling), who works in the wood shop for the Grand/Chico Caribe construction. We showed him the shelving we'd like in our unit in the closets (no shelving is actually included in our contract, only a rod in the master closet), and he is going to give us a price estimate. Hopefully the price is reasonable as we definitely want a shelf in each closet for storage. Even though our unit is only a one bedroom, we actually have a lot of storage, including a huge master closet (not walk-in but very wide), a small coat closet (which will store backpacks, rain jackets, and other gear), and a huge utility closet for washer, dryer, and utility sink.
They had done a couple more things on the condo, such as installing the bedroom closet rod and patching a hole inside the utility closet, plus quite a bit of cleaning. It is getting closer and closer, but there are still some important things to be done before we can actually move our stuff over, like installing the curtains. Still, it is nice to see that it's getting closer every day, and I'm sure we'll be able to spend at least a couple of nights there before we go back to North Carolina on Saturday.
We took some pictures of the kitchen with appliances installed. We have never had stainless steel appliances before, so I am sort of excited about that. It is going to be a really nice kitchen, and has a lot more storage than I was anticipating.
They had done a couple more things on the condo, such as installing the bedroom closet rod and patching a hole inside the utility closet, plus quite a bit of cleaning. It is getting closer and closer, but there are still some important things to be done before we can actually move our stuff over, like installing the curtains. Still, it is nice to see that it's getting closer every day, and I'm sure we'll be able to spend at least a couple of nights there before we go back to North Carolina on Saturday.
We took some pictures of the kitchen with appliances installed. We have never had stainless steel appliances before, so I am sort of excited about that. It is going to be a really nice kitchen, and has a lot more storage than I was anticipating.
Later in the afternoon, we spent some time out by the water relaxing under the palm trees, and Barry took the first dip into the Chico Caribe pool, which was a little cool for me by the time we got there (after sunset, and with a strong breeze).
July 9.
Today was probably the most relaxing day we've had since arriving a week ago, but we still kept very active as you'll see from this posting. After a breakfast of cereal with fresh mango and cinnamon bread, we rode the bikes into town, where Barry got Joe (of Joe's Bike Shop, where we had rented the bikes) to adjust his bike chain. It had stretched some and had fallen off numerous times the previous day. Joe fixed it, and we also chatted with him for at least 20 minutes before heading on. We did a bunch of errands in town, including changing all our remaining US dollars (except those needed for the return trip) to Belize dollars at Milo's, earning a tiny bonus based on the exchange rate, stopping at the Super Buy grocery store for some groceries, the Green House for some local tortillas, and Marie's fruit/vegetable stand for some fruits and veggies as well as some fresh salsa she makes daily. What a sweet little lady! Since we bought the salsa, she threw in two bananas and an onion for free. She came highly recommended on the forums we've been reading. We rode by Zac's place (Healthy Belize), but it was all closed up, so we had to skip it this time. Our last stop was The Baker for some more fresh, healthy bread (this loaf covered in seeds on the outside) for sandwiches, most of which we froze but will have for later. Even after all that, it was only 10 am when we got back to the Grand Caribe.
Today was probably the most relaxing day we've had since arriving a week ago, but we still kept very active as you'll see from this posting. After a breakfast of cereal with fresh mango and cinnamon bread, we rode the bikes into town, where Barry got Joe (of Joe's Bike Shop, where we had rented the bikes) to adjust his bike chain. It had stretched some and had fallen off numerous times the previous day. Joe fixed it, and we also chatted with him for at least 20 minutes before heading on. We did a bunch of errands in town, including changing all our remaining US dollars (except those needed for the return trip) to Belize dollars at Milo's, earning a tiny bonus based on the exchange rate, stopping at the Super Buy grocery store for some groceries, the Green House for some local tortillas, and Marie's fruit/vegetable stand for some fruits and veggies as well as some fresh salsa she makes daily. What a sweet little lady! Since we bought the salsa, she threw in two bananas and an onion for free. She came highly recommended on the forums we've been reading. We rode by Zac's place (Healthy Belize), but it was all closed up, so we had to skip it this time. Our last stop was The Baker for some more fresh, healthy bread (this loaf covered in seeds on the outside) for sandwiches, most of which we froze but will have for later. Even after all that, it was only 10 am when we got back to the Grand Caribe.
For lunch, we went to the Lazy Croc BBQ, right next door to Grand Caribe, as this is their last weekend open until November. We saw a handsome Great Blue Heron across the lagoon, and some tarpon flashing their fins, but no croc. We've been eating mostly vegetarian down here, so this lunch gave us our meat fix for awhile (pulled chicken for Barry and pulled pork for me; plus baked beans for us both).
After lunch, we decided to try again to take the kayaks out, and this time they weren't in use -- or floating out to sea (see yesterday's post!). We didn't paddle too long or far because we haven't kayaked in ages, so we aren't really in shape for it, but it was loads of fun. Barry took many photos of Chico Caribe from the water, some of which he'll send to other owners. Here's a small sampling of the photos we took during our paddle.
After swimming, we decided to take a walk up the beach and visit Shaggy at the bar at Rendezvous Restaurant. It was a perfect day for it -- blue skies and a great breeze. We had a great time chatting with Shaggy over pineapple juice and rums. He gave us some good local knowledge on places to shop, shipping, and so forth.
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After our paddle, we did a little swimming, first in a Grand Caribe pool, then in the ocean by the Grand Caribe dock. The water feels so good and is so clear and pretty! Shallow too.
There was a big children's birthday party going on at the Grand Caribe today, with a neat mermaid pinata.
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After we said our goodbyes to Shaggy, we got back to the unit we're staying in in Grand Caribe and did a little computing before starting on dinner. We made some black bean soft tacos with chopped tomato, sauteed onion, jack cheese, and lettuce, and had some chips and Marie's delicious homemade salsa. Yummy!
In condo news, the dishwasher was installed today, some touch-up was done here and there, and they had marked for the closet rod when we went by. The unit was also being cleaned for what seemed like all day, so we stayed out of the way and had more of a "vacation" day. It really is getting close! I want the curtains installed before we'll move in, though, as there would be no privacy on the first floor with workmen around all day. Sounds like that should happen soon. We need to start buying some basics we'll need when we move ourselves over there -- like toilet paper, dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent, and other necessities that this unit is equipped with but ours will not be.