There's No Place Like PG

We got up at 6:45 again and ate breakfast. After breakfast, we got packed and ready to leave to Punta Gorda for the weekend. 

The boat, however, did not leave until like 11, so we hung out on the hammocks and inventing strange games, such as I Spy and tossing rocks into shells. In other words, we pretty much wasted an hour of our life. 

We then got into the boat and left to Punta Gorda. It took over 2.5 hours to get back. LuRue talked to Lindsey, but other than that we just listened to Caribbean, Reggae, music remixes. It was a bumpy ride and the boat driver was spinning the wheel like crazy to stay on course. 

We got to Punta Gorda and LuRue made a couple of phone calls to figure out our weekend. While LuRue ate lunch, Montana took her first shower in a week, which LuRue will take in a few minutes. Montana says it felt like she forgot how to take one.

They then went into town to talk to a wildlife conservation center about the program, “Ranger for a Day.” On the way, we stopped into a chocolate factory to ask about the free chocolate factory tour. We got to the wildlife conservation center, but figured out we couldn’t do the “Ranger for a Day” this weekend, so we planned it for next weekend and decided to do the chocolate factory tour tomorrow. On our way back, we stopped at Asha’s Seafood and BBQ and ate dinner. It was not as good as everyone had said, but they were out of all the foods we wanted to order, such as lionfish, BBQ pork ribs and sweet potato fries. They also had no good desserts. First day of the trip, we think, where for sweets, we only had a tiny taste of chocolate from the chocolate factory.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

We got up at around 6:45. We ate bacon, eggs, and bread. After breakfast, Simon had us and two other men watch a PADI learning how-to-dive video. After that, Simon had a talk on identifying coral, then all the divers went out to identify coral.

LuRue is sure she overheard Simon say to someone that then he would figure out what to do with Montana and LuRue. But no one came and Montana & LuRue were stuck on the tiny island with nothing much to do. For awhile they looked at reference books on coral to try to identify the different types. Then they went up on the roof of the main building & tried to take a panoramic picture. From the roof one can see all the shores of the island. Worse yet, one can see all this inviting Caribbean ocean practically inches away from anywhere on the island.

They were getting desperate to get into the water. LuRue asked one worker if we could swim where we had been a couple of days ago, but he said no, that the sea was too rough & the current was too strong. Right at the dock, there is an enclosed marina about the size of a large pool. The guy said it would be OK to swim in there, so we did. About half of the area is so shallow, our stomachs practically rubbed on the bottom. Then we swam over a sunken tire, some soles of old flip-flops, the guts of a lion fish, but we did spot the rare tomato fish (a half-slice of a tomato). But eventually we found a deeper part where there were actually a few fish. It was also deep enough that we could practice some of our diving skills learned on Tuesday. OK, so it wasn't the snorkeling experience that you would want to write a post card about, but at least we got away from the confines of the island and into the water!

After our "swim", everyone came back & just as the lunch bell rang, Polly, Simon, & some others came over to discuss our dilemma. Everyone feels very badly that the weather has been so lousy & that no one has had the diving experience they expected. We agreed & said we understood, but were hoping that we would think of some solution, such as snorkeling in one safe section. But Polly explained that the currents around the island can be strong enough to carry even the strongest swimmer away. But they had all discussed the situation & saw that it would be safe for one of the guides to take us snorkeling that afternoon. We jumped at the chance & after lunch got to go snorkeling for about an hour with Harry.

Montana joined another game of volleyball & they played until almost dinnertime. LuRue talked with some of the others, particularly a woman from California & another from Wales.

Dinner tonight was fresh-caught lobster from just offshore, finished off by desserts.

The Water is Alive

We thought we were going to sleep in, but island life begins early. Both of us were up & dressed before 7:00, just in time to attend the meeting for the early dive crew. Since one of the students has only until Friday to complete his course, he & another guy got a condensed lesson, while Jason gave us a slide show on fish ID. He then took Montana and LuRue out for a snorkel. The weather is still a bit rough, which roils the waters, but we still got to see several things. Most things we had already seen in Bonaire, but we did get to see our first Gray Angelfish.

Breakfast was about 10:00 because the divers' boat broke down temporarily. Food is generally good and is plentiful.

Polly gave three of us a mini-course on underwater photography. She has some absolutely spectacular photos of reef corals, fishes, & creatures. She has perfected her skills over the years, using different settings to enhance the details she wants, & uses strobe lights for the deep water pictures. She commented that Montana's is the best point-and-shoot camera you can get.

Since the seas were too rough for an afternoon dive (and even an evening dive later), Montana and LuRue decided to take a walk around the island. Montana wanted to walk faster because LuRue had on  uncomfortable crocs. We timed ourselves. It took LuRue 3 minutes, 10 seconds...Montana strode along in her sandals & was back at the starting point in 1 minute, 27 seconds.

We were also given a talk on corals. It got a bit technical, so some were not as interested as the rest, especially when it became political about regulations, their enforcement, and the encroachment by neighboring countries.

Before dinner, a volleyball game started & Montana held her own with the rest, including a 6-foot college girl who plays on her school team.


We covered some interesting talks at dinner...most of the guests are college students--three from Wales. Besides us, there is a young professional couple, and two middle-aged women. We are 10 guests in all.

Into the Ocean Blue!

We woke up to thunder & a downpour on the roof. We looked at each other & said, "Well, guess it'll be another day before we leave for ReefCI." Just then, Esme (Kate's replacement while she's traveling) knocked on our door even before our alarm went off, with breakfast tray in hand. Five minutes later she was back, saying that a taxi would be there in 15 or 20 minutes to pick us up. We were going! To say that we were flying around the apartment packing & picking up last-minute things would be an understatement. But we were sort of ready, even though it was raining & we couldn't imagine that we were actually leaving. And we didn't really leave the taxi driver waiting.

We met up with everyone at the Snack Shack again, then were driven to the wharf where all our bags were put into plastic sacks & stored here, there, and everywhere.

Were we really going to leave in this rain? Eight guests and 5 crew people piled aboard the open skiff & away we went. And went.

And went. We headed out into what looked like the open sea, and an hour and a half later we pulled up to a tiny island. Montana and LuRue expected to be landing on a small island that we might be able to drive around in half an hour. We would have to stroll very slowly for it to take ten minutes to walk it!

After a short introductory welcome, we were shown our rooms. More pictures of the buildings later. We are truly living an island experience. The crew is wonderful!! Very friendly, accommodating, and patient.

After lunch, we had our first scuba lesson. We and two guys were shown the equipment, hand signals, how to put on the gear, and next thing we knew, we were nudged off the wharf into the water by the instructor. LuRue was relieved to see that we actually floated!

Before the lesson was over, we had learned how to use our breathing equipment, how to kneel on the bottom, how to change mouthpieces if the main one was knocked off, and how to work with someone else's mouthpiece if in trouble. We were also shown how to clear water from our goggles, but both LuRue & Montana had to repeat this lesson for different reasons. They both had to go to the top to breathe. But they got it the second time.

We spent the rest of the afternoon snorkeling...around the whole island. The most interesting place was the roughest because of the remnants of the storm, with the water breaking over us. But it was worth every second!

Does this remind you of anything

Find the fish

Good dinner, good company and a promise of lots more to come.

Rain, rain, go away...cancelled trip!

Monday, June 17, 2013

Punta Gorda

Plans change…particularly in the tropics…particularly during the beginning of hurricane season.

At 9:00 this morning Jo was beeping the horn to pick us up for the trip to Thomas Owen Caye. We were ready & jumped into a cab with her where we met up with the rest of the group at the Snack Shack. Lots of people were milling around the tables, so we were never sure just who was part of our group. After a half hour or so, Jo was making phone calls with Polly on Thomas Owen Caye, who said the weather was deteriorating & to call back a bit later. In the meantime Simon (?)  gave some of us a slide presentation to the program which would normally be an introduction after we had arrived on the island. Shortly after that, Jo was handing LuRu back our Blue Belize room key & helping others make arrangements for places to stay.  It is looking like it will be Wednesday before we actually leave for the island. The Mayan gods are still angry with us.

ReefCI is watching the weather map & tropical depression closely to see where it is moving and how quickly.

This is bad news for those who were going to stay for only this one week, especially when they have reservations for some major activities this coming weekend. We do, too, but after we got back to the Blue Belize, I called and changed our drumming lesson & related activities to the final weekend. If we go to the island on Wednesday, we’ll not be coming back on the weekend as normal, but will stay straight through. We’re one of the fortunate ones for whom this will work out great.

What a delicious salad!

So back to our apartment as if we had never left…even our leftover food was still in the fridge. We had another rainy day walk through town. 

Montana is actually smiling...

Don't think she knew that at the time

This time we went to a restaurant we had checked out earlier. We had bean burritos, then went back to the Snack Shack for a yummy Oreo Mint milk shake, the first real one we’ve had in Belize.

We can’t really unpack much because we might get a surprise call in the morning to leave if the weather breaks.

Just FYI

In spite of the mini hurricane and flood flies, it looks like we it after all. On the island, there may be no wifi, so we may be out of touch for a while.
See you as soon as possible.

Rain, Flood, and Flood Flies

The day began with a wonderful breakfast, but before we were through eating, the rain, lightning, & thunder of last night came back with a vengeance. It seemed almost like a mini-hurricane with winds blowing the rain right into our apartment. Considering our place is on the 2^nd floor, we were feeling deluged.

As the weather raged, we filled our morning with poses for our modeling portfolios. 

After a chicken lunch, we geared up for the rain & took a long walk around town as the wind and rain had let up by then. We had to stop, of course, at our favorite ice cream place, actually the only one we know of so far, and which can’t possibly compare to Lilly’s in Bonaire. It’s a Chinese restaurant that gives out ice cream cones in cups—a two-scooper apparently requires two cups.

As we returned from our 2-hour walk, we got on the Internet to check out tomorrow’s plans with the drumming lessons. They have be postponed because the man giving the lessons is stuck in Belize City. Because we don’t get WiFi reception in our apartment, we have to go around the corner to an outside chair. We began to notice a few flies, looking like flying ants. Before long, the few turned into dozens and by the time we got back to the apartment, they were turning into hundreds & thousands. Worse…they were crawling into the crack under the door and creeping everywhere!

While I worked on the photos for this post, Montana kept busy sweeping, sweeping, sweeping. When Kate came over with our breakfast, she told us that they are Flood Flies & very common after heavy rains.  We are now down to just a dozen, mostly by the door. They are learning, however, not to mess with Montana! The storm went away quickly, luckily, and hopefully they will, too.