Author: Dave

Jesus welcomes me to Caye Caulker on his yellow Huffy ten speed. If that doesn’t tell you that you are in for a weird day, i don’t know that will.

jesus and I walk and talk for a while, and it turns out that he is from the same town, Corraza (I think), that jaime in Belize City is from. Jesus tells me of his pastimes on the island which include “helping you so you can help me.” We discuss interesting issues like the presence of hot water, beds, and golf cart taxi lap times on the jaunt down the beach. carrying the 40+ pounds of backpack I have on, doesn’t let me appreciate the near equatorial heat, humidity, and sunshine as much as I would like. Jesus takes me to Ignacio’s that is owned by Rueben, and the fun begins.

The place is perfect. Roughly 12 x 12 feet, my cabin is a wooden stilted construction that might give cavement pause. It has a shower (cold), and a toilet that will not process toilet paper, hence the warning sign directing newcomers to use the trash can. The toilet is lucky, since there is no toilet paper in the bathroom anyway.

I’m a little weirded out today, so I sit in my new cabin for about an hour before I force myself to go mingle. First on the list is booking a scuba trip for the following day to Blue Hole. Success. The owner of Big Fish Dive Company gives me “Special Deal, for you buddy” of $350 BZD, roughly $175, to go on a three tank dive to Blue Hole the following morning. At 5 am.

My main goal for coming to the island paid for, I decide to walk around. I have been walking. Alot. I wrecked my R6 pretty badly about 2 years ago and damaged my ankle pretty sincerely. What with martial arts 4 days a week and more motorcycle crashes since then, it still manages to complain a bit more than it should. Today is one of those days. I’ve walked the length of the caye (20 minutes one way) about 8 times today.

On one particularly ill fated trip to The Split, a segment of the caye where the ocean has cut it in half, i rented a snorkel and fins to go take some underwater footage with my neat HD Flip. So, in the process, I managed to lose my ATM card and my room key in one fell swoop. Not the best start to an adventure on an island.

For those of you keeping track; yes, this IS the ATM card that I cause a near crisis before I left raleigh as it had to be fedexed to me to make it in time. Looks like we are in for some more fedex action. But how does one hit a moving target like me with an international delivery of such delicate nature when not even the moving target knows where it is going to be at any given date?! Not easily, it appears.

Since the cell phone I have for Belize has a limited amount of credit on it, i doubt it will last very long internationally, so when jumping on the WIRELESS INTERNET, god forbid, at my cabin, I have the delightful surprise of seeing my friend Janette online. A quick IM later and she has the schwab guys calling my Belize cell phone, since incoming calls are free, this is a dream come true.

I have to hand it to both Rueben of Ignacio’s and the Schwab guys, neither was fazed by my awesome display today. Rueben just told me to take his key and sent me off to make a copy, and Schwab told me to fax them a release so they can send my card south of the border. Normally, I would scoff at the idea of faxing from the Atlantic Ocean, but I’m the guy using wireless internet and talking on a cellular telephone to a bank in another country. I’ll make it happen.

Gigantazon, my brother in Madrid, is doing what he can to pull strings for me in the upcoming journeys, and a number of other people have sent me contacts to look up folks in countries south of here. Thanks to all of you. Now if I could just stop shooting myself in the foot long enough to actually have a crisis free day.

The single bulb overhead flickers from time to time, but I certainly won’t complain. the windows let in the amazing ocean breezes and after the lights have all gone out on the island the stars are shining overhead in a way that makes me feel like a primitive; like some slack jawed neanderthal imagining what magical beings hang over my head and watch me make an idiot of myself. 🙂

It’s late ande i’ve got an early dive tomorrow. time to sleep.

With what I am hoping will be my final dealing with American Airlines, I am sitting on the patio at the Smokin Balam and awaiting the delivery of my now Dominican bag. The curtain in the window behind me to the left is distracting me. Making me think someone is watching me from behind.

So, with minimal fanfare, I said goodbye to warm showers today, as there appears to only be one water handle that comes out at a single temperature whether in a sink or shower. It’s not as cold as it was in Pamplona, just not anything near comfortable for sustained periods. Rinsing, then turning off the water to soap in the warm air for a bit, then rinsing the soap off again bit by bit seems to be the least uncomfortable way of cleaning off the salt and sweat of the days excursions.

I am constantly surprised when I travel that so many other people are doing the same thing. There is an incessant stream of new backpackers filing into both the guest houses, another monster of a man just checked in to the Balam. Spares barely a word for me and goes to his room. From my vantage on the porch, I have limited visibility of almost everything, but total clarity of nothing, save the upstairs porch across the road; which I can tell you after many hours of intense scrutiny, is a very dull place. I just got my third layugh of the day at the old Chinese man crossing the street in a mesh tank-top that would look out of place on anything but a low rent male stripper. Or Cher.

Man’s search for coffee has ended today at Moon Clusters. This coffee shop is a short walk down Queen Street past the police station. The whole place is hand painter and though the coffee is only fair by USA standards, it bears mention for the paint job.

Still no sign of American Airlines.

I met my first Belizean Couchsurfer today. I feel like I am being spoiled. Everyone here speaks Enlgish. Jaime and I ate lunch at Senor Coconut and it was great. The restaurant is out of chicken today, which does not appear to be an unusual occurrence, and so I had fillet o’ fish with rice and beans. Fresh squeezed orange juice was also provided, though ice was included before I could say ‘sin hielo.’ Let’s hope the whole ”Don’t drink the water” advice doesn’t come in to play here.  Jaime is an administrator at the local hospital and has to get back to work, but offers to swing back by after lunch and pick me up to go out tonight. I accept. This gives me about two more hours to write, think, get my bag, and get hungry again.

I just saw the closest thing to a proper sport bike i’ve witnessed since arriving. A Kawasaki 250R. Shameful. I’ve walked nearly the length and breadth of Belize City and seen mostly battered 125’s or smaller.

Finally, my bag is here. Nothing seems to be missing, but my travel size shower gel has come open in my toiletries bag and slimed a few things. I’m glad I had the presence of mind to separate all the toiletries into smaller groups and put them in different smaller bags inside the larger toiletries bag. Thus the pollution was localized and easily cleaned.

I just rented a simcard from the Balam and added ten dollars to it, Belize dollars, and I’ll have a telephone number for the next few days while I am scuba diving in Caye (pronounced key) Caulker. It’s 011-501-628-2003 if anyone feels like giving a shout. I believe incoming calls are free, but will find out soon enough if people start calling me.

I am in need of a shower again, some 8 hours after my last shower. I was probably in need of a shower about 2 hours after my last one by North American standards.

Somehow, there is a wireless signal, weak though it is, at certain points on the balcony at the Balam. If anyone ever does stay here, it appears to be strongest at the top of the stairs; there is a bench and small table there for easy use. I’ll try and upload this to test it out.

This has been an interesting day. I met G-Money Marlin, the Sprite messenger. I saw the doppleganger of my friend Emma Jean Flynn. I met a man from Chile, by way of Sweden, who told me of how he fell in love with a Cuban hooker about 5 minutes into our first conversation. I went to a coffee shop next to a barber/laboratory. I walked all over the city, again, and saw that some things aren’t so different between Belize and the USA; never walk down a street that has sneakers hanging from the power lines overhead.

In a few minutes, I’m going to re-assemble my backpack  and go grab dinner with Jaime and my new hooker loving friend and find some food and wild conversation. I may stay at Jaime’s place tonight based on his internet and shower situation, as he was kind enough to offer his couch.

Tomorrow, the Hungry Monkey!

So, I finally made it to Belize. And my bag made it to the Dominican Republic. If only we could agree…

The Smokin Balam guest house is clean and small. Everyone I have spoken to is a family member and friendly. they are honest and straightforward and seem to be constantly cleaning or socializing.

There is internet in the lobby of the guest house and it seems to be on par with most slower dsl links from the states with one exception. Skype will not work in Belize.

The local telcom company, BTL, doesn’t feel like letting free telephone calls slip past them, so the internet connections filter out skype calls. I seem to be logged in to skype, but when i try to place a call, it just sits there and will not dial.

I’m about to go out walking through the city, though I am told I should be off the streets by 9 or take a taxi and I need to be back in the Balam by 11 or they lock the doors.

As my bag with all my clothes, tools, computer and tech bits has gone to an entirely different country, I find myself in need of some basics. I’m about to scarf down the last bit of food i got from my AA food vouchers from MIA and go out looking for some things to photograph..

Continued…

Belize City is small. I walked across half of it and back this afternoon in search of American Airlines offices and sights to see. Not much I’m afraid.

I’ve hit couchsurfing.org pretty hard tonight and hope to have some folks to chat with and check out the surrounding area tomorrow. I’m staying at the Smokin Balam guest house right off the river that cuts the city in half and it’s quite nice. I do notice that the guest house across the street seems to be the place of choice for backpackers, though. If I had a backpack (grrr) I would be tempted to go over there.

There has been a story running on the tv in the background for the last hour about how people are getting shot all over Belize City. makes me a little less than thrilled about heading out on the town tonight. It’s been a long day and I think I’m going to stay close to home, as it were.

God has a huge presence here. every person I have spoken to says something about God or prayer, or this or that church. The oldest Anglican Church in Central America is right down the street and I was delighted to see a Japanese Christian marker outside the church very similar to markers I saw all across Japan.

I’m starting to yawn. time to turn in.