10 Jan, Mon

10 Jan, Monday up at 6:30 again, and continue my maintenance chores. i'll never be finished ... Madi keeps saying can 'WE' do this .......... ?????????? turn that 'W' upside down and you get 'ME' ! Many of the stores here, groceries and home supplies, and hardware are owned by people of Chinese decent. in fact, there is a China Town, which consists of a Hotel, Supermarket, and Hardware store. they are nice, but don't seem to be very friendly. but, the guy at the Hardware Store and i are becoming friends :) i'm not his biggest spender; but i am his most frequent customer, ... and probably his biggest pain in the neck! i go in an buy 4 hinges, or 3 hooks and eyes ... i think he's warming up to me ... or more likely, feels sorry for me, .... or thinks i'm weird! Weird ???????? why would anyone think someone dressed in this 'get-up' is weird? photo of me in my 'no-see-um' fashion statement .. holding my 'tool box' . Dinner time again. after walking the length of the north end of the island, i ate at the Happy Lobster. No, did not have lobster. i haven't eaten Lobster yet ... not sure why. it's everywhere, i guess maybe i'm 'saving it' ... you know, like that nice candle that you are waiting to burn for a special occasion. Tonight i had barracuda. i've had it twice before and have not liked it. but people have told me it is good, so i tried it again. It was like a tuna or shark steak, a little dry, but much better than the other 2 times i had it. i met a Jos who was sitting at the table next to me. another visitor from Holland (remember Peter from Holland from last year?) nice, sincere guy, has done a lot of travelling and shared some wonderful photos he took in Indonesia. i told him what i was doing and he said he may stop by tomorrow.

9 Jan 2011

9 Jan, Sunday one of the cats, Cookie, doesn't get along with any other cat, so he's in an area all by himself ... a LARGE area. being the judge and jury, i've decided that's not fair ...... and today one of the campers, Kyle from Minnesota, asked if there was anything he could do. Don't let him get away !!!!!!!! so i ask him what he would do to divide the area. Kyle works on a farm and he could do this job in an afternoon. Of course, we can't get the materials today, because it's Sunday, and he's leaving tomorrow :( IF i'm successful, this job will take me DAYS :( here is an example of a 'patch job' to keep the cats from escaping from a whole in the fence; but it's not working and they've figured out a way to escape. so, i tore out all the misc boards and attached some screening. it's not perfect, but it's better than it was. every night is the same. i need food (inexpensive) and i need to use the internet. tonight i choose a "Sports Bar" and they are playing Trivia. 4 nice young Asian guys from Canada join me at my table..... their Trivia name is "Can-Asians" ... cute, huh? now i feel something at my feet ... it's a sweet faced boxer-mix dog .... i am eating some fish that i'm not terribly impressed with. i normally DO NOT give animals 'people' food ... but .... i offered him a piece of the fish ... he took it so gently ... he finished my plate, and is now laying with his head on my feet. God, my heart goes out to all animals !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ... and now i can't disturb him .... i'll be here all night :)

8 Jan 2011

8 Jan 2011 Unlike last year, the weather is hot and sunny. I packed extra warm clothes this year because it was so cold the first couple of weeks i arrived here last year. Not so this year, at least so far. The weather has been perfect, ... sunny, warm breeze, and i've not been cold. For those of you who know me ... that's amazing ..... and i LOVE it ! There are a couple young tent campers here. One helping Madi with the cats and the others just helping her cause by paying to stay here. Today another volunteer arrived, Stephanie, from New Brunswick, Canada. (That's just north of the Maine border. ) She works for the ASPCA there. I think she is going to be a great help; and i'm excited that Madi has gotten some reliable and responsible help. So many times, young people show up with great intentions to stay for a week; but the enthusiasm fades after a few days, and they leave. This is especially sad when Madi has spent considerable amount of time training them. But Madi always takes it all in stride; appreciating the time they've offered. i spent my day repairing and replacing .... i'll be at this for awhile .... :) The 3 of us went to dinner that night, an unusual event for Madi; since she rarely goes out. Madi is on the right. i have my "Bugg Off" shirt on ... i'm determined not to be breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the no-see-ums this year! If you notice the green peppers, this is obviously not MY dinner .... but looks good .... note the little 'umbrellas' and the Belican Beer ....

2011--Belize Again

7 Jan 2011: I'm in Belize ... back on the Barrier Reef for my second winter. I had so many fun and exciting adventures last year, I came back again. i like it here, i'm comfortable. so, at least i am starting my journey here. i've kept in touch with Madi, from PAW Animal Sanctuary, that i stayed with last year. For those of you who have just joined the blog, here is the web address, (www.pawanimalsanctuarybelize.com), it is located on Caye Caulker, off the coast of Belize. i really procrastinated in getting myself organized as to where i wanted to go this winter. I wanted to visit Madi and the cats again, i knew that much. And, as of this writing i still don't have my next plans finalized. So, hang on for the ride. I flew into Belize City this year. Last year, i experienced the 'adventure' of flying into Cancun, Mexico; successfully making my way via buses to Playa del Carmen, then south to the Mexican/Belizian border, and continued south and east to the islands. It took me 2 days to get there. And, i accomplished my objective: part of the adventure is in the 'getting there'. This year, i left Kalamazoo at 6am and arrived in Belize City at 2:10pm, quickly went through immigration and customs (nothing like Cancun). Madi arranged for a taxi to meet me at the airport. i felt quite special, with a sign with "Donna P" on it waiting for me :) Chester SPED to the Water Taxi, since he promised Madi he's have me on the 3pm water taxi. we arrived just in time to be 'wisked' onto the 3pm boat. Whew! That has to be some kind of a record. Maybe you think i'm getting 'soft', ... but please, don't make any judgments just yet. I am staying in 'my' room ... the one i stayed in last year. But it's been upgraded from a room with a bathroom and a bed. i now have a refrigerator, microwave, sink, and a 2-burner hot plate, table and chairs, easy chair and 'coffee' table. The refrigerator is especially welcome! We still don't make ice; but it's nice to have cool water to drink, and a place to store my vitamins :) oh, and some very cold wraps to 'ice' my wrist. Here are 2 pics: My initial reaction is that not too much has changed here. She has 'lost' a few more kitties; but has also gained a few .. so the numbers are still around 80 !!! There is lots of 'repair' work for me to do, hinges, latches, screens, etc. ... they all have 'my' name on them :)

8 Mar - End of 2010 Adventure

Mon, 8 Mar Marta drove me .... and my bags .... into San Ignacio to the bus stop. i got on the bus to Belmopan, changed buses there to go to Belize City, and caught the water taxi out to San Pedro. My 'adventures' are coming to an end, sadly ... but i have met so many friends, and made so many memories, and pages and pages of blog that i can read and re-read when i get home, and pinch myself, to remind me just how lucky i am to have been able to enjoy this opportunity. i found this really good map of Belize, and you can track every place i've been .... starting at the top in Chetumal, Mexico, to Corozal, Belize, across the sea out to San Pedro, and then to Caye Caulker. then you can track me across the sea to Belize City where i flew south along the shore to Dangriga. from there a boat ride out to Glovers (the Marine Reserve is even shown !). then back across the sea to Dangriga, and a 2hr bus ride up to Belmopan, another 1hr bus to San Ignacio. look to the left and you see Xunantunich, and Benque Viejo del Carmen, and the border of Guatemala, Tikal is not shown (this is a map of Belize) ... then you back track from San Ignacio to Belmopan to Belize City, and back across the sea to San Pedro. i'll continue blogging, but doubtful it will be everyday, .... i'll be living more like a 'local' than a 'tourist' ... but enjoying the warmth, sunshine, and the sea ! hugs to you all and thank you for all your support and friendship !

Sun, 7 Mar

Sun, 7 Mar i had originally planned to leave this morning with Eddi. she was heading south to Punta Gorda, and i was going back to San Pedro. i wasn't in any hurry, so Marta suggested that i stay another night and go to Xunantunich today, and then spend another night with her. she dropped me off at the main road and i caught a taxi south again, almost to the Belizean border town of Benque. Xunantunich (zoo-nan-tun-ich) is another Maya settlement. it is on the other side of that same river where the kids were swimming. so you have to take this ferry across. it's run by a man pulling a cable .... as you can see, he takes cars and trucks across as well. it is a mile or so walk up a gravel road to get to the temples. taking my time, minding my toes, i enjoyed the views. i saw several wooden boxes about 1ft square, that were hanging from trees, with a rope and pulley attached to them. i asked at the visitor center and was told that a bee keeper was using them to capturing bees and taking them to their bee farms .... interesting .... i also took these pictures of these fruits ... the tree is call "HorseBalls" ... i guess you can see why. the fruit is a favorite of the Howler Monkeys. Xunantunich was discovered in 1938. it was another ancient city that thrived between 650-1000AD and supported 7-10,000 people in a radius of 1-2 miles. i mentioned that Cahal Pech in San Ignacio used to send smoke signals back and forth. Xunantunich means Stone Maiden because legend tells that a maiden appeared one night briefly, but then turned to stone. Xunantunich survived the initial collapse of the Maya civilization but was abandon around 950-1000AD. all of the sites i went to were quick to stress that the collapse of the Maya cities did not mean that the Maya culture became extinct. Many Maya people live in Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, and Honduras today a photo of the main temple .... nothing too special about it from this side .... but, ....either side of the temple is highly decorated, and of course, has been restored .... but it is very interesting to look at. there was nothing like this at any of the other sites i visited . this was on the North side of the Temple ... and the South side of the Temple i climbed all the way up to the top of this temple, and was inside the temple taking a few photos, out the doorway looking south ... and the other side, looking north ... when i heard people talking below and making noises like the Howler Monkey makes ... so i climb down i go to see if i can see them too ... yes, there was a troupe in the trees. to my inexperienced eye, it appeared there was a 'mom' 'dad' and at least 2 young ones. i watched the little ones for quite a while ... it looked like they were having a fun time with their 'monkey business' ..... i took these photos, which do not give you any idea of what was going on. check out my video on You Tube ... and see the fun they were having. video is named "Howler Monkeys" .... go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SE6pnHx2pGI i then climbed back up to the top of the temple for some panorama views .... when i was at the top i talked with 2 women who were here with a group of nurses from Loyola in Chicago. the one woman has been bringing students here and visiting The Medicine Trails at Chaa Creek for 15+ years. when i came down again, the monkeys were still there playing, and entertaining everyone, under the watchful eye of their parents.... i walked back down the road again, across the ferry, and had some roadside grilled chicken, rice and beans, then caught a taxi back to the entrance to Chaa Creek; where i walked the mile or so to Marta's house. in the evening she took me to work with her at Chaa Creek and the guys in the kitchen set a place for me at the table for dinner. everyone there was so nice! i've also posted the video, titled, "Spider Monkey" from Tikal on You Tube. you can see it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMJTFfuicXM

Sat, 6 Mar

Sat, 6 Mar Eddi and i packed up our backpacks and took a taxi to Santa Elena to catch the bus back to Belize. we drove through Santa Elena and realized it was Saturday, Market Day. the streets were packed. we walked around Santa Elena for an hour or more, taking in the culture. if you look in the center of the photo, you can see the pale yellow arch and the bridge going over to Flores beautiful fruits and veggies herbs and spices and in the middle of it all, ... while you are at it, why don't you just get your teeth cleaned ? and, yes, there are chickens in those baskets ... live chickens .... and animals no longer living .... don't you just hate Saturday morning Traffic Jams ??????????????? we finally decided we'd better head for the bus. this was not our bus, but i couldn't help notice the 'JOPLIN, MO' still clearly visible behind the front tire ... memories of home sweet home ... well at least the same country :) the bus was a minibus and took us about 2 hrs. the border town of Guatemala is Melchor. i had to pee, so we went into 'town'. there must have been 9 medical clinics within the first 3 blocks, and 2 funeral parlors across the street ... seemed strange to us. then one street over, we found their Market ... it is hard to imagine that they could possibly sell all that merchandise. we later found out that many Belizean families come across the border to shop in Guatemala because it is cheaper. After we left the market, we crossed the river and saw the kids swimming, moms doing laundry, and dads washing vehicles. across the bridge we exited Guatemala ... they were very nice and friendly in Guatemala, upon entrance and exit. Can't say the same about the officials in Belize. Marta had offered to come pick us up at the border and bring us to her home to spend the night, ....savings us a US$30 taxi ride, not to mention sleeping accommodations. i mentioned she has some animals, ... i couldn't resist this little guy all safe on his mom's back ... and her expression .... "wha chu lookin at?" a good shot to end the day