Big Changes

So the big news of the week is that I have jumped ship!! Things had turned pear-shaped on the boat due to the arrival of new crew which would have made it too crowded for my liking, so I made the big decision to get off in Belize and continue my adventures on land.
So here I am at Cay Caulker, a small sand and coral island inside the barrier reef of Belize. All a bit of a culture shock as the Belize people are so different- a real mix of Creoles, descended from African slaves and British pirates; and also mestizos- people of mixed Euro and Central American heritage; and the indigenous Garrifuna of Mayan descent- a true melting pot.
This island is known for its diving and snorkeling trips where you can dive the Blue Hole and swim with the hammerheads; but really, it is a back-packer pick-up joint  (bit like BB), only the black dudes are doing really well. All a bit seedy - even the little boys are crude to us older white women- I had to pull in my teacher horns yesterday as I cycled past a group of boys playing soccer who called out some quite rude stuff!
I am staying in an old wooden Queenslander- type hotel right on the beach called the Tropical. I have a large, clean room with 2 huge beds, a bath and ceiling fans and a deck with views overlooking the lagoon and the reef for $40/night. There are only 3 streets on the island running parallel and you can see the ocean from both ways in some spots; so my 1 hour bike ride was enough to explore the whole island. The best thing is the street food vendors - lots of bar-b-que stalls set up all along the beach front. Last night I had a great meal of blackened barracuda steaks, with garlic vegies and yellow rice. I followed this later with a piece of chocolate coconut pie from a lady who bakes all day and then sells her cakes outside the picket fence of my hotel.

 My room is upstairs on the right

 View from my balcony with hammock.

Typical street scene on Cay Caulker, after a huge tropical storm last night that turned the island into a white sand puddle

I am leaving here tomorrow morning on the ferry to Belize City and staying there in a a guest house called The Three Sisters (why did I choose that one!). In a few days, I will fly up to Guatemala City and bus onto Antigua - a city known for its Spanish language schools, heritage architecture and volcanoes. I have found a yoga school there where I will spend some time recuperating from the past few weeks. For those who know me well, all will be revealed on my return over a few glasses of vino; for those who don't - you can read the details in my soon to be released book called " The Travels & Travails of Ali Dreyer" .... more later