[**Before the Beyond Boston blogging term began, I went on several weekend trips around Belize. There is an amazing amount of diversity in the country, and it is unlikely that I will return to many of these places before the end of my co-op. To make up for this, this week's blog post is a throwback (hey it's thursday!) to my trip to Caye Caulker Island]
This is the blue out of your crayola crayon box. That unbelievable "no-filter-needed" cerulean blue that doesn't look real- even in real life. This is Caye Caulker.
In celebration of Hannah's last few days in Belize, we departed on an un-Belize-able weekend getaway. (HA. Un-Belize-able. You can't even blame me for using that pun because I swear to you, it is on every single tourist t-shirt in the country) Puns aside, this island is something magic. Maybe it's because I never went to Disney World or other fancy Caribbean destinations as a kid, but the seaweed littered, rocky beaches of the southern coast of Cape Cod simply cannot compare. A quick 45 minute water taxi can transport you to this little piece of paradise directly from the port in Belize City. Be warned though- this isn't a cruise ship. It's a full throttle speed boat with people packed in like sardines. The whole way there. Prepare for wind. See video for our reactions to this part of the adventure:
" Go Slow" is Caye Caulker's motto- and trust me, it's not just a suggestion. You can feel it as soon as you step off the water taxi- you're on island time now. It's actually nearly impossible to move quickly. The only form of transportation on the island are golf cart taxis that roll along sandy pathways barely wide enough for a car. Although the island is so tiny there is really no reason to use them. Wandering on foot, or by borrowed bicycle, is by far the best option for getting around. You might find yourself moving even slower than usual if you're suffering from a lobster food coma, or if you've been sipping rum punch in a hammock all day.
Despite our inevitable participation in the lobster-eating and rum-punch-drinking, Hannah and I's main purpose on Caye Caulker was snorkeling. There are dive and snorkel shops every few feet on the main pathway of Caye Caulker and it can be a bit of a daunting task to choose the right one. Luckily, as soon as we arrived at our hostel (Bella's Backpacker's), a fellow traveler immediately gave us a raving review of Stressless Tours- a new eco-friendly shop on the island. It's hard to argue with that, so we set off to book with them for the next day. (*Side note:* All snorkeling tours are a standard price of $65 USD on the island- but it's well worth the money)
One life-changing lobster dinner and a picture perfect sunset later, we were off to bed to prepare for the long day ahead.
The next day was a reality check.
I've never had a snorkel in my mouth, I can't remember the last time I swam for that long continuously, and I forgot what true seasickness feels like. Despite the fact that I pulled 2 consecutive all-nighters last semester, I've never experienced physical exhaustion quite like this snorkeling experience. Yet every time we jumped off that boat, it all just melted away. It was really just breathtaking.
From here, I really don't have any photos or video that can possibly explain how insane this trip was. For a while I had some serious regrets about not renting a GoPro for the occasion, but now I'm glad that I didn't have the distraction. I think by really looking around, instead of fiddling with a camera, I got the most out of the experience. Just know that it was absolutely mind-blowing.
For the most representative footage of a Belize Barrier Reef snorkeling experience please see Finding Nemo. Our tour guide was essentially Mr. Ray.
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