Unbelizable!!

Wonderful day

Unbelizable is my new word. The local say that their country is unbelizable and we must return.

It actually is quite special and we had a very nice and unbelizable day in Belize.

It began by us discovering that we would be in port with three other Carnival ships. We were anchored along side Carnival Pride, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Splendor. It should be a hectic day in port was our first thought but since our excursion was all day we would not have to contend with much of it.

It was a cool morning and when the captain announced that it was 65 degrees we were in a quandary. We knew we would be on the water for a good part of the day and that would make it seem cooler. They had advised long pants and long sleeves because of the threat of mosquitos. I had nothing casual with long sleeves and my only slacks were navy or black which is not good for mosquito country. In the end we both wore long pants and took our jackets along. Those jackets were reversible with nylon on one side and fleece on the other,,, not exactly what to wear into the jungle.

We had room service breakfast and then headed out. We went to the Library to enter the Wake Show contest and then on to the Princess Theatre to be tendered with the rest of those going on this same excursion with us.

Usually when we are tendering Princess tenders are used but not today. The tenders from Belize were being used. They were larger and more open and I think they were faster. When I heard that the ride would be between 18 and 20 minutes I decided to take a gravol. The tender ride was not bad at all and then we boarded the boat that would take us up the river. I expected a larger boat and I expected a slower boat. The first thing they made us do was don life jackets….not a good sign!??

The boat just flew through the waters of the Caribbean sea and at times it came down hard and it made spray come up and we were soaked. But once I realized how stable it was I exhaled and enjoyed the rest of the trip. It was wonderful. Our guide Ann was so very capable.

 Our first stop was at a manatee reserve at the mouth of the Wallace River. We sighted many of them. They don’t live right here but the come there every day to feed on the grasses that grow there. Then we began our tour up the river. We saw many different birds, monkeys, iguanas and dolphins. I guess the dolphins like to swim along side of the boat and they swim in the wake and it is like taking a bath because the fast flowing water from the engines washes them. We had 2 or three of them jumping and playing behind us. It was exhilarating to see them. We spent about an hour and a half exploring the river. While we travelled Ann pointed out animals and homes and told us a little of the history of Belize.

Our lunch stop was at a place called The Iguana Stop.

 Lunch consisted of rice and red beans and chicken fried and cooked in a red sauce and a green salad. For me it was like a step back in time. Every Sunday that was dinner. Ann said it was a traditional Sunday meal in Belize as well as in Barbados. The only difference was the lack of hot sauce. I asked and Ann showed us where the hot sauce was if we had wanted to use it. She told me that Belizeans do not use as much spices as the other Caribbean islands. There were some vendors here and I was able to get Ken his hat pin. This is the first time we have been to Belize and we always collect a pin from a new place

After lunch we boarded an air conditioned bus and headed for the Mayan Ruins at Altun Ha. This is a Mayan Ceremonial site. It is believed to be approximately 6 square miles in size and the excavation is a work in progress. Only a small part of the work has been done and it will continue as funds become available.

There are 13 structures that surround a 54 foot temple of the sun god. Ann was very knowledgeable and she told us all about it. Ken climbed the tall temple but I passed.

 There were vendors there as well. Many of their good were very special, not the usual assortment of trinkets. I bought a lovely mahogany carving of 2 people holding hands. I really like it.

 The day was warm but not too hot. We kept getting high cloud cover that kept it comfortable. Ann was telling us that she and the other guides almost froze in the morning because 65 is cold for them. But needless to say we did not need those jackets. Ken said he heard one mosquito but I did not hear or see even one. After about an hour and one half of exploring we boarded our bus and headed back to the pier.

It was after three when we got back and the last tender was to leave at four. There was no time to shop or explore and a tender was at the dock loading so we headed back to the Caribbean Princess. There was nothing that we needed or wanted to buy anyway.

Sail away was beautiful. We were alone for dinner again. Those people did not return and the other couple has never showed up. Rui said he felt sorry for us not having our friends with us. But Ken and I have always enjoyed each other’s company so it is not a hard ship.

After dinner we went to the show in the Princess Theatre. It starred a comedian named Phil Tag and he was very funny.

Then we went to the international café for specialty coffee and brandy.

 This is the first time we have done this during this holiday. It was great because while we were drinking our coffee Tim and the Caribbean Princess Showband was playing Dixieland Jazz. It was a grand way to end the evening.

We headed back to our room and when we arrived we found that Ken had been chosen on the wake show again. I put his name in and twice he has won and I have never won. The prize is a magnetic clip and since he has won twice he has offered to share….

Tomorrow we are in Cozumel.