Blogs from Belize, Central America Caribbean - page 2

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Central America Caribbean » Belize April 5th 2020

Hello everyone, After a long time, 7 months so be exact, I'm writing another travelblog-entry. With the Covid-19 (Corona) issue worldwide, most of us are at home so I do have time to write again. I'm still behind with my blogs but it doesn't matter, I'll slowly catch up. So I'll take you back to August 2018, when I planned a trip of just over three weeks. I flew Copa Airlines from Curaçao to Panamá, where I had to spend one night. On my way back to Curaçao I spent one night in Panama City again. Both times I took advantage to see and spend a little time with friends. From Panama I flew further with Copa Airlines to Belize, arriving at Philip S.W Goldson International Airport. Belize was the 76th country I ever laid foot ... read more
Snorkeling off Caye Caulker
Belize City: Baron Bliss Lighthouse
Snorkeling off Caye Caulker

Central America Caribbean » Belize March 21st 2020

We traveled from Belize to home today. We got up for the final sunrise and another beautiful day in Belize. One last look at the beautiful pool and beach. It was an interesting drive on the Hummingbird Highway today. We were stopped at several police checkpoints. Not sure who or what they were looking for, but they hardly stopped us and waved us through. A truck with bananas and a motorcycle were the most exciting things we saw. We dropped our car at the rental and then went into the airport. The airport was busier than usual. Lots of travelers trying to get back home as the last flights will be on Sunday. Our flight was on time and was uneventful. Immigration and customs in Chicago was uneventful. After a short delay to get our shuttle ... read more
Umaya Resort Belize
Truckload of Bananas on the Hummingbird Highway
Motorcycle on the Hummingbird Highway


Today we had a tour on the Monkey River. We took a boat ride from Placencia Village to the Monkey River to the south. We spotted some dolphins on the way. It was a nice day for a boat ride. We stopped at the village at the mouth of the river to order our lunch and then we got back into the boat for our tour. We went upstream and stopped to see the howler monkeys. We took a short walk into the jungle and saw one monkey on his own. The guide said the dominant male likely is not letting him be part of the group. We also saw a blue crab and baby hummingbirds in their nest. The howlers were very loud. We had lunch back at the village that had been prepared while ... read more
Howler Monkeys in Belize
Sunset Mojitos
Friday Sunrise Placencia


We got up early again today for another beautiful sunrise. We had breakfast at our hotel before heading northwest to the ruins of Xunantunich near San Ignacio. It is right near the border with Guatamala. It was about a 3 hour drive with lots of road construction on the Western Highway. Once there we had to ride the hand cranked ferry across the river. Pete stayed in the truck to drive it on and off the ferry, but passengers were required to be out of the vehicle. Once on the other side it was a 1 mile drive to the Xunantunich Archaeological Reserve. We paid our entry fee and then headed in to look at the information center and then to the ruins. This one was larger than the ones yesterday with more intact structures. We ... read more
Sriracha and Lori at Xunantunich
Loading the Ferry to Xunantunich
Thursday Sunrise


We were up early again this morning for the sunrise. There was a little bit more wind this morning, but perfect temperature. We headed to the Placencia Village to Carmen's for breakfast. We had "stuffed fry jacks" and the "fry tacos". Carmen's is where the locals go for breakfast. The 4 of us 8 for about 7 US dollars. The plan for the day was to go to some of the Mayan Ruins. We headed south of Placencia and first stopped at the Nim Li Punit Ruins. We were really the only ones there and were able to go through the visitor center and the ruins without seeing anyone else. The Nim Li Punit Ruins are known for a jade piece of jewelry that was found. A replica was in the visitor center. The ruins also ... read more
Lubaantan
Nim Li Punit ball court
Carmen's stuffed fry jack


We got up early again for another beautiful sunrise. The plan for the day was to head to one of the national parks we had driven past on our way from Belize City the first day of our trip. We were not sure how far away it was, but we left early so we could get there early enough to book the rappelling tour. We got there about 0845 and the tour was scheduled to leave at 0900. We grabbed some donuts and fruit at the restaurant and booked the tour. We were in a group of 8 total with 2 guides. The guide was very informative about the plants and jungle and gave extensive information at our rest stops on the hike up the Antelope Trail. We stopped to take a look at an overlook ... read more
Pedro Rappelling
Rappelling Down the Falls
Mayflower Bocawina National Park


We had another exciting day today. We were up early for the sunrise again. Next we packed our gear and headed to Placencia Village for breakfast at Wendy's. Local spot recommended to us. The food was good. Kasie was adventurous and ordered the fish. It was a whole deep fried fish. She really liked it. A local lady stopped at our table on the outside seating deck and we got a hot cinnamon and sugar donut from her. We also had one of the local pups join us for breakfast. He slept underneath the table while we ate. His collar said Kinkin on it. We gave him one of our fry Jack's after the meal and he casually ate it. He just nibbled at it at first and then finally ate the rest of it. We ... read more
Placencia Sunrise
Sriracha snorkeling at Silk Caye
Breakfast at Wendy's in Placencia Village


Another great day in Belize. Sriracha got up early to get photos of the sunrise. Not sure if there is something wrong with her? Up early! Breakfast was delicious and we discovered "fry jacks". Delicious triangle fluffy puffs of dough. After breakfast we drove to the end of the peninsula. We walked around and looked in some shops. We decided to book a snorkeling tour for tomorrow. Stopped at the "Supa Maket" to get some snacks. Anyone in Wisconsin or the U.S. that needs toilet paper needs to take a trip here. There is not a shortage of toilet paper at the stores. We spent the remainder of the day at our resort. Lots of activities. One round of bocce ball. Sriracha and Pedro played the supersized Jenga. Sriracha and Lori tried the stand up paddle ... read more
The Black Pearl
Swinging the time away in Belize
Placencia sunrise


Travel from Chicago to Belize went well today. We didn't have any issues in Chicago and the airport did seem busy with spring break travelers. Our flight was on time and really no issues. We arrived in Belize and made our way into the beautiful sunshine and warmth of Belize. The disembarking of the plane was down the steps and a short walk across to the airport building. Before entering the building we were sent through a line with a short interview with the "health department". "What state did you originate from prior to boarding the plane in Chicago?" and "Have you traveled to any other countries in the last 30 days?". Without too much delay they shuffled us into the building. It seemed that they were doing more extensive interviews on some of the passengers. ... read more
Belize countryside
Welcome to Belize
Chicago Airport


Over the course of 10 days and 2331 nautical miles we got to see a lot of this corner of the Western Caribbean. After our sail-away from Miami we enjoyed a lovely sea day…which is just right for settling in and unpacking and getting to know the Regent Explorer. Lots was going on with lectures and cooking classes and sports competitions and trivia. We took our Virtuoso group on a galley tour which we always find interesting. It is a true feat for the kitchen crew on a floating structure far at sea to be able to offer 700 passengers exquisite cuisine day after day and night after night. Each of the six restaurants have their own galley staffed with professionals. Our tour was of the Compass Rose galley which produces the majority of meals including ... read more
WATERY MAIN STREET ON CAYMAN
CHUCK & MYRT
THE DOLPHINS HOME PORT IN COZUMEL




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