Sailing Ships

I left San Pedro and found myself in Caye Caulker about an hour later. A laid back beach town Caulker is nice, but as I had took a day trip there before I found myself wanting to push on to the mainland. I was thinking of heading on, but then saw a sign for a 3 day sailing and camping trip going out the next day, so by the magic that is impulse, I decided to take the trip and stay the night on Caulker.

The sailing trip was very nice, 3 British students studying to be doctors, 10 Harvard Law students about to graduate, 3 Caribbean Garifuna guides, and a sprinkle of solo travelers like myself, made the mix for the journey south along the coast of Belize, from Caye Caulker to Placencia.

The trip consisted of sailing clear blue waters with occasional stops to snorkel and see tropical fish. The first night we stopped off at an impossibly small island (pictures later) pitched tents and had a camp fire. The next night was at Tobacco Caye, which was a little bigger, and at least inhabited by other people. 3 hotels, two restaurants, two bars, and a handful of houses, gave the place an air of civilization. Still, we pitched tents and camped again. One of the bars had live music in the form of 3 drummers. Perfect for dancing.

The trip had an interesting dynamic. The Harvard Law students all had their impending graduation in mind, and their new jobs to start. It was a sharp contrast of my recent departure from the formal working world, and it seemed odd to hear their worries and concerns about their jobs ahead. We were the same age and yet in completely different worlds.

I spent a lot of time working on the ship. I washed dishes, got to cook a meal once, dropped and raised the anchor (that means hauling up a very heavy chain), and even got to sail the boat. I am not sure, but I feel that this helped me get more of a connection with the crew. The best way to understand someone is to try do their job and see the work that weaves the center of their reality. If I am going to make a connection with the Caribbean Garifuna culture, I feel like that is the closest I will get. I think the trip to them seemed odd. Us tourists paying money to be taken down a coast line they knew with their eyes closed. Kind of like tourists paying me to drive them 200 miles along I-40 East, or something... In any case they were very nice. Towards the end of the trip we traded photos of our family and I am very proud to say, they gave me a crew t-shirt!

After the trip, I stayed the night in Placencia with my new British friends. In the morning we took the bus inland, and parted ways at San Ignacio were I am typing this now. They continued on to the border and into the Guatemala...

So far, San Ignacio is very nice. A mountain town, full of fruit stands, and a much lower cost of living than the islands. It feels like a breath of fresh air, it feels more like reality. I like it very much.