Tripping on the Yucatán

2002 Belize Trip Report

This was a solo trip out to Ambergris Caye, which is a small landmass attatched to the Yucatán Peninsula. "Caye" is pronounced "key" and means "island", but Ambergris is actually part of the mainland. It is offshore from the maniland of Belize, though, and you have to take a plane or boat to get there from the International Airport. San Pedro Town is the village on Ambergris, and the town is an odd mixture of Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean.

Scuba is the main activity on Ambergris. There's a barrier reef just offshore and the diving is very good. The water is warm, right about 80°F and the current is mild. Visibility is good, too.

The reef is cut by deep canyons. Swimming along the reef you come over built­up parts of the coral that are shallow, about 50 feet from the surface, then you cross the canyons which might be 120 feet down or more. It's fun diving in this environment because the changes in depth make the terrain seem very three­dimensional.

I was down there at Carinval time, which the folks in Lousiana call "Mardi Gras". This is a festive time in Latin America and San Pedro Town likes a good party. They had parades at sunset and everyone is either along the street or marching. It was fun.

I dove with an outfit called "Bottom Time" and they were a good dive shop. The divemaster was watchful but unobtrusive fellow who calls himself "Chocolaté. He's not the kind of guy who's going to bust your chops about wearing gloves, for example, but he was very helpful to Julie, a lass from Portland who rarely dives and was a little rusty. The boat driver, Elias, was a good guy and he handled the boat skillfuly, so we never had to swim any real distance to the boat after surfacing.

I stayed at Ruby's. Ruby's is a basic little hotel with rooms costing US$15, up to the ocean­front units at US$50. I like the more expensive rooms at ground level. They have a nice patio that fronts the beach where everyone walks. A great place to meet people. Ruby's has a take-out resturant where you can get killer "johnny cakes" for breakfast for BZ$1, or 50¢US;. The locals like to grab a coffee and johnny cake and start the day on the community patio, so it's a great place to hang out and get some local color.

The hotel guests hang out on the patio, too. My buds were other Americans, Germans, Italians, Canadians and all sorts of other knucklehaeds that I met out on the patio. Everybody's laid back and friendly. At night we'd break out the Belikin beers and tell tall tales.

The resturants are Ok. There are swanky places where you can spend US$20 (BZ$40) for a plate of seafood and not be disappointed. I like the pizza at Shark's Bar. Belize has good pork, poor beef, and killer chicken. I set up my camp stove out on the balcony and cooked up chicken and rice that was as good as any meal I had on the island. The local fruit is great, too. Nobody should go hungry! Belikin is Ok beer and Traveller's One Barrel Rum is great, a gold medal winner at Rumfest 2001. It's now available in the USA.

All things must come to an end and so it was with deep sadness that I packed out and boarded the 40 foot, 750 horsepower Thunderbolt, a sporty version of the Belize "water taxi". After a stop at Caye Caulker and a quick trip through the mangrove-lined lagoon, we docked at the "swinging bridge" in Belize City. They call it a swinging bridge because it can pivot at its center to allow boat traffic to pass. This is accomplished by muscle­power, with a dozen or so fellows cranking the bridge span around. A quick taxi ride can get you to the airport from here.

I wasn't interested in hanging around the airport, though. I was on a mission! I asked my driver to get me to the Traveler's Distillery, where I intended to find out why, oh why, they didn't have an import channel to the USA for One Barrel Rum. I was ready, willing and financed to become the importer myself, if that's what it took. It turns out that the folks who run the place are not interested in export. Too much trouble fooling with the ATF. I was disappointed but not surprised. I started importing the rum myself. After that letdown I toured the Belikin Brewery, where they were bottling Guiness Stout, and then took a tour of the countryside. Then I went to the airport and ran into my Italian friends from San Pedro Town. We hung out in Jet's Bar while waiting for our flight back to the world. Jet is a little fellow with a froggy voice that must have been the prototype for Tattoo on the old TV show "Fantasy Island". As we waited, more people we knew dropped by and more Belikin was swilled. Then, we boarded and headed home, splitting up at the airport in Houston after we went through customs.

Well, that's the trip report. I had a great time and I'd go back tomorrow if I had the money and the vacation time.