Seeing is Belizing

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No, he hasn’t lost me yet (Cj writes) ... We crossed from Guatemala to Belize by land, and very soon found ourselves at another Mayan site - much smaller than Tikal and somehow more manageable, with a better sense of the community that lived there. Our guides delighted in regaling us with tales of how the Mayans ritually pierced their flesh - self mortification - in order to worship their many gods. Women used sting ray spines to pierce their tongues repeatedly, men used the spines to pierce - well, let’s say that the men in the group went very pale.

Then it was off to Caye Caulker, an exhilarating one hour speedboat ride out of Belize City. Came Caulker is an absolutely charming little Caribbean no cars to speak of, so everyone walks, bikes or uses a golf cart. Given that you can stroll right round the island in about an hour, that’s not nearly as hard as it sounds. It has a wonderful, laid-back, “go slow” vibe that goes perfectly with sipping cocktails and watching the sun go down. Our hotel is in the middle of ‘town’ on Middle Street. If we look to the left we see Front Street and the wharf to the east. If we look to the right we see Back Street and the sun setting over the sea.

Most of the main bars and restaurants are on the east side of the island, so sunset seeking on this side is basically impossible. However there’s a nice little bar jutting out over the water on the west side ...

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Photos

Front Street Caye Caulker
Cathy checking out local shells

And again
It is a slow lttle town but delightful

Stunning sunsets
Two days running

Comments

[Cathy]

Pah!
So there we were, strolling round the island, and we came upon a local braiding a girl’s hair. I looked interested, and she asked if I’d like mine done. ‘Not sure it would suit me’, I replied doubtfully. ‘Sure it would’, she said. ‘I’ve done four old ladies already today!’. !!!! Needless to say, my hair remains unbraided. Pah!