Day 4 Wednesday November 19th Belize City, Belize
We had to tender to shore. The water there is very shallow and the ship went is as far as it could go before not being able to not get out. The boat ride to shore was about 20-30 minutes long.
A little bit about Belize. Belize is rectanguler and it measures 180 miles from North so South and 68 miles from Est to West. The population is 280,00 and over 50 percent is less than 18 years old. They are an English-speaking country. Belize gained its insependece in 1981 and is a peaceful, indepentent nation. There government is unque in Central America. It is a true dmocracy which operates under the britich parliament system. 15% of American's retire in Belize. They have never gone to war.
Once we got a shore it was off to catch the bus to our shore excursions. We were going Aeruak Trecking and Cave Tubing. The bus ride into the jungle was about 1 1/2 long. While on the bus our tour guide Marcus gave us some infomation about some of the history. He was telling us why Cashews are so expinsvie. The tree that they grow on only produces the nut once a year and on one tree it only produces about 70 nuts. When they harvenst the nut it is really dangrous, alot of the works lose there eye sight and some feeling in there hands. They also make wine with the nut, which is very popular ther in Belize.
When we got to the Aerial Treck area we got all geared up.
We hang out with Jon and Lauara which was a lot of fun. Laura was afried of hieghts but Jon really wanted to do this so she agreed to do it. The instrutions they give us are one hand behind your head as a break and the other holding on to the rope. They tell us not to break until the person at the end tells you to. If you stop in the middle of the line you have to pull yourself to the end. Which would be a lot of work. We had Jon and Laura go before us because she was afried if they went after us she would go. So the hooked her up to the line and off she goes, she starts off fine but then she gets realy scared and starts to but the break on to soon. We are yelling at her to let go because she is going to stop in the middle and there is no way she will be able to pull her self to the end. So she just lets go and she yells I'm SORRY, I'm SORRY, because now she has no way to stop and she is going to run into the man at the end. Jon and Randy and I were laughing so hard. I know to her it wasn't funny but watching her reaction was. We all had so much fun. Then we at lunch which was great BBQ Chicken and rice and beans and coke in a glass bottle.(I don't remember the last time I had a coke in a bottle).
After the Aerial Trek he hiked up a huge hill, by the time we got to the top everyone was huffing and puffing. Everyone changed into there swimming suits and water shoes, got our life vest on and head lamps and tube and off on a hike through the jungle to the river. I like hiking and this would have had been an easy hike if I had the right shoes on. I took my water shoes not wanting to get my tennis shoes wet. The trail was so rocky. My feet hurt so bad I think if someone had have cut them off it would have felt so much better. (for those who don't know I have really bad feet 4 surgries on them etc). After a two hike and I being the very last one, everyone was pretty much waiting on us (Randy and I and Jon and Laura).
John and I jumped ito the river while Randy and Laura got in slow. Everyone had thought that the water was cold but Randy and I. Coming from Utah where the lakes around here are colder than what the water was there. It was nice and warm. They told us a couple of stafty rules and off we went. One of the rules was if the water is running fast then the water is shallow so left your bum's so they won't hit any rocks. Well the water was running fast at the very begining and I thought that I had my bum up high enough that it wouldn't hit well i't wasn't and I hit the rocks hard and so then my bum hurt more than my feet did.
The cave was awesome. There are stlagtits and stlagmites formations which was really neat. At one time are little group was a little behind that Marcus came and had us all hold on to each other and he swam backward on his tub. I couldn't believe he had the strength to swim with all of us that far. They ahd us all turn our lights off in the middle and it was pitch black, you could not see your hand in front of your face. A little farther in we came to a waterfall(very small one coming into the cave from above and off to the side there were trees and bushes growing with just a little bit of light.
At the end that water was running a little faster kind of like a rapid and not to shallow so we didn't have to lift our bum's. But they wanted us to have are feet out in front of us so in case we hit the wall then we could push ourselves off. Well my tube didn't want to work that way and I was going head first and I new I was going to hit and so I took the water proff camera and put it behind my head so when I hit the wall I wouldn't hit my head. It worked but smashed my finger alittle. But my bum and my feet hurt more so I forgot that my finger hurt. At the very end we saw groups of bats sleeping in the little holes in the wall. Very cool, when they aren't flying around.
When we got out of the water Laure gave my here cloggs (same shoe size) but which was so nice of her the hike back wasn't long at all but the trail was still very rocky and not having to wear the water shoes was nice. Thanks Laura. Than it was time to huff it and puff it back up the hill and back on the bus for the long ride back. On the way back we found out that it was a national holiday there so everyone was off work and headed to the park for a party. We drove by the park and it looked like it would have been alot of fun.
When we got back to the dock we didn't think that we would have a lot of time to get our souviniers so we hurryed and got a few things and caught the boat back to the bus. When we got back on the ship we found out that we still had 1 hour, wish we would have known that so we could have spent more time shopping. I don't have the picture from the water camera devopled yet, Sorry.
Belize Port
Fishing Boat
The Norwegian Pearl
Later that night we ate at Teppanyaki which was so good. The only kind of shrimp that I usually like is the coconut, but I tried it plain and it was really good the way they cooked it. There was this guy that we had seen a couple time before around the ship. He was older but all pimped out. While we were waiting to be seated a couple of kids were waiting with us and he pulls out this pad of five dollar bills and starts passing them around to the kids. They sit you in groups of 8 per table, he was sitting at the tabel next to us he offers to pay for all of ther dirnks and he orders the bottle of wine for each person. It was crazy, I have never in my life seen someone that rich before.(how would it be).
The show that night was a comedy show with Jeff Harms. We and Jon and Laura we sitting in the second row and the lady in front of us just kept heckling him and he would heckle right back she gave him almost his whole show. A few night later she did the same thing. Laura and I were laughing so hard at her that we almost peed our pants. Since it had been a long day we went to bed early. Plus we had to be up early the next day.
Sorry I still can't get all of my pictures to turn.
