Getting to Belize - 06-18-2007

Life has been a whirlwind lately. The anticipation of our wedding kept us from sleeping for weeks before the actual event. When the day finally arrived it went off even better than we had planned and we experienced a day that felt completely magical from start to finish. I went to bed feeling like the luckiest woman alive.

We awoke on Monday morning at 5:00am and headed to the Ottawa airport. Passed easily through US border services and had a short wait before boarding. Our itinerary said we would be on the plane for 3 hours, but the flight to Atlanta was took only two hours. So far we’re feeling pretty lucky! Once in Atlanta, we were anticipating a 3 hour stop-over (well 4 now that we arrived early), but the horseshoe up our asses guided us directly to the gate and we boarded the plane to Belize within half an hour of getting off the first plane! Still, feeling pretty darn lucky!

Once on the plane to Belize there was a bit of trouble with the weight and we were unable to take off until people dumped their luggage or the last family to get on, volunteered to get on a different flight. They were not happy about that and the loud-mouth father made sure everyone on the plane felt his discomfort. Security came and escorted the family of four off the plane. It was a relief to have peace and quiet on the plane and I laid back and tried to catch up on sleep. A few minutes later the pilot had announced that he dumped some fuel and the family got back on the plane and we were off!

I hated that flight. 3 hours of listening to that guy run his mouth in a southern accent while someone else banged on my seat. I likely wouldn’t have found it so annoying had I not been sleep deprived but it was a happy moment for me when we landed in Belize.

The Belize airport is as tiny as I expected it to be, and as hot. We picked up our luggage, grateful that it had all arrived and headed to our last connection plane. We had about a half hour wait at the airport so Mike bought a rum punch and we both had hotdogs with hot sauce on them. Our first food of the day and it was about 3:00 our time at this point. 1:00pm in Belize.

We boarded a 12-seater Cessna airplane and had a beautiful 18 minute flight to Dangriga, looking down on the citrus farms and the winding Belize River.

Once in Dangriga, our driver, “Boots”, (a nickname he got while in the military because of the meticulous way he shined his boots) picked us up in a nice air conditioned van. He said ”You’re early. You mind if I run a few errands before we head to Hamanasi?” We obliged and were glad we did. Boots took us on a drive through the town of Dangriga. We observed the homes of the residents that looked like our tool shed in the backyard. Travel teaches you how lucky you are and how much we have. Some of the tiny houses were elevated, we thought it was because of the water storm surge, but Boots told us that it allows the breeze to flow and helps keep the home cool. He also told us that the town must evacuate in the event of a hurricane since it’s right on the sea. He drove us by the local school where we saw hundreds of children in school uniforms sitting in open-aired classrooms on the sea.

To thank us for allowing him to run his errands, Boots stopped at a store and let us drink a beer in his van “Don’t tell anyone I did this, or I’ll get in trouble.” He said while we clicked a cheers to the refreshing Beliken beer. The first of many over the next two weeks to be sure.

The 35 minute drive to Hopkins Village was beautiful. The vegetation was so varied. Citrus trees and coconut trees grew beside evergreens and palms. Birds of paradise grew in abundance just on the side of the road. We passed many cyclists and wondered what they were doing with their day, it seemed like they were in the middle of nowhere. We passed a guy that could very well have been dead or in need of medical attention, lying on the side of the road with his bike. Instead of stopping, Boots just said “drunk on a Monday!” and kept driving.

After what was the bumpiest ride of my life, we pulled into Hamanasi. This place is absolutely stunning. We were greeted by Stephanie and a welcome drink made from fresh papaya and mango. Stephanie explained all the excursions and dining times to us and escorted us to our tree-house. MY GOD! I knew it was going to be something very special, but it exceeded my expectations. It’s huge, with gorgeous ipe hardwood floors, beautiful furnishings, a king size bed with hand woven bed linens, Mexican tile bathroom with double sinks and a shower made for two and fresh flowers everywhere!

After unpacking, having a shower and settling in for a bit, we headed to the bar to pick up a Belizian Breeze (dark rum, coconut rum, triple sec and tropical blend juice). We took a quick dip in the pool and sat in the comfy Muskoka chairs down on the beach. Sasha, the resort golden lab came to sit with us for a while under the coconut tree. We had a few more drinks just sitting there and then dressed for dinner.

Dinner was delicious. I had a gazpacho soup and a chicken linguine. Mike had a salad and beef burrito. The meals were presented beautifully as we sat at a white clothed table under the sky and twinkle lights.

Declining dessert, we headed to the beach. The breeze was so strong and delightful. It was like being in a wind tunnel, or we also likened it to our hot tub, where we were surrounded by warm, massaging air instead of water. Neither of us had experienced a feeling quite like that so we sat out there for a long, long time just enjoying it and each other.

Mike grabbed a bottle of wine and a key lime pie slice and we went back to our tree-house to enjoy them. As we sat on the balcony, me swinging in the hammock and Mike on the comfy wooden chair, we listened to the roar of the sea and watched 4 little lizards play on the balcony ceiling before I headed to bed.