Caye Caulker Day - Updated (Christmas Eve)

Caye Caulker Day!

Our morning started out with a boat ride to town to the pier where we caught a very small boat. V was really worried that the little 21 foot 115hp boat was what we were going to sail on. It was only a ferry to the 38 foot Catamaran. We assembled and got under way and with the strong winds made for some great sailing. Our first stop was Hol Chan reef. The great wind for sailing was so great for snorkeling. Eleito and his staff did a great job, but with 19 of us split into two groups, it was still a little crowded for our tastes. We saw all kinds of fish and corals, and a few rays from a distance, but the wind made it difficult to swim to the reef.

Our second stop was Shark Ray Alley, with even a little more wind and current. The girls did great, Em was still fighting some minor mask problems, but we still saw a bunch of manta rays. (Rest in peace, Crocodile Hunter) Elieto, our guide dove down and cradled a huge ray, 3 foot across and brought it to the surface so everyone could see it. The ray could have swam out of his arms anytime it wanted to, but seemed happy to have all the attention, Yes, we all petted the ray, and lived to tell or friends of our experiences!

We then got back on the boat and the beverages and chips were served. We saw how they made rum punch, and now know why it’s not recommended that you drink it. Let’s just say that a full bottle of rum wasn’t enough to make a batch!

A short sail to Caye Caulker and we were on “shore leave” for 2 hours. Our guides tried to call ahead for lobster burritos but the place was closed. We ended up eating at a small open air place called the Sandbox. The food was outstanding! We had a big variety of food, from burritos to seafood chowder to lobster. All was very well prepared and tasted great.

Of course the girls wanted to shop, se we hurried up and they enjoyed one of the two streets on Caye Caulker. It’s a slower paced town than San Pedro, hard to imagine that it got much slower than San Pedro.

We sailed back under the power of the wind, many had some more rum punch, and fanta’s (pop or soda depending where you live) and some home made salsa.

Because we lost the wind we had earlier in the morning and we were about to miss our ride home, we had a power boat meet us and we changed boats for a faster trip back to town. Upon arrival back at town, we jumped on another boat and headed back for our Villa, where we listened to our new Belizean Christmas CD that the girls had just bought. It’s hard to get into the Christmas sprit here, very little Christmas decorations up, probably due to the cost. Our friends said that a 3 foot artificial lighted tree was $400 BZE ($200 US)!

As I was saying, Christmas Eve was pretty quiet here, we ended up eating PBJ at the villa as we were stuffed from lunch. Our time this evening was mostly time to decompress (relax). Have to get to bed so Santa can find us, because I’ve been good!

C – Out!