Travel Like a Scotsman

CROOKED TREE After four days of relaxing and talking about the kids, the grand kids, the economy, retirement, health, you-name-it, we dragged our rolling bags through the sand and boarded the 6 am Richie's bus to Belize City.  After so many horrendous taxi rides, I was relieved to be on the bus. In Belmopan we had a short potty stop, and Verda and I went to find the bathrooms.  Yuck!  Why can't people in the Latino cultures ever keep anything clean?  How hard is that?  This place looked like it hadn't been cleaned in 5 years!  Plus you had to pay to use the toilets.  After that, Verda started saying she didn't want to take any more buses. When we arrived in Belize City, we would have had to find a bus going to Crooked Tree, figure out how to buy tickets, fight the pushy crowds and endure another two hours on the bus.  Unbeknownst to the rest of us, Ron found a taxi driver who agreed to take us all the way to the Lodge at Crooked Tree for $50 US.  He mu

ARRIVAL IN PLACENCIA WARNING:  Stay on the road!  This is our taxi after missing the turn to Cozy Corner and thinking he could take a shortcut.  Fortunately, there were 3 Belizeans who hang out near this spot waiting for idiots to get stuck and then charge about $20 to get you out. But Placencia is a little bit of paradise.  There are no, and I mean NO, signs of the modern world here except for cell phones, signs saying Visa/MasterCard accepted, and a weak, sporadic WiFi signal.  But not a Macdonald's to be seen, nor a Hilton, Radisson, or Westin.  The homes are small and simple, the restaurants are open to the sea breezes, and all the natives either sell food or crafts or boat tours. At home we seldom just sit and relax, but here the chairs on the beach under the little thatched umbrellas are so conducive to reading, conversation, or just closing your eyes and letting your mind go blank, that you can't help relaxing.  Younger and more fit visitors can go fishing,

Our next destination after Tikal was Placencia, Belize. We had not made arrangements for transportation, and we will regret that for many years.  There was a woman at the Tikal Inn who told us, absolutely, that there was no way to get back to the border except by shuttle which would cost us $30 each person (or $120 US).  But Bill and Ron talked to a guy who had a van parked in the parking lot who agreed to take us from there to the border for $75 total instead of $120 total. Once we arrived at the border and made it through immigration, we had to find someone to take us to Placencia.  Bill made the tactical mistake of talking to a guy on the Guatemalan side who agreed to drive us all from there to Placencia for $80 US.  Thinking that was too good to pass up, Bill gave him the money and said we would meet him on the other side, the Belize side.  Well, of course, the guy disappeared and we never saw him again. The Guatemalans will tell you whatever you want to hear to make a buck.

Today is Sunday and we have arrived at the Tikal Inn in Guatemala.  Only a few days into this trip and I am ready to tell you that you need to budget about twice as much as you thought to travel around Belize, see the ruins, the beaches, etc. There is literally no transportation system in Belize or Guatemala.  We are accustomed to a bus system that is easy to understand and use.  Here, the buses run only twice a week sometimes, or maybe only once a day, so your schedule is just completely shot.  So, you have to hire a driver and a car or take a taxi - and they are not cheap! We had to pay $115 "plus tip" which means $120 or more, depending on what Bill decided to give him, to get from Belize City to San Ignacio.  The taxi driver started out with a quote of 300 Belizean dollars for the trip, which would be $150 US, or $75 for each couple.  In Ecuador, we paid $25 each couple from Quito to Cotacachi which included a stop at the equator and a stop for lunch and was about t

SNORKELING AT CAYE CAULKER I cannot believe that I waited this long in my life to go snorkeling!  Why, why, why?  If I had done this sooner, it might have changed my life.  I don't want to go home - I want to stay here and go out in the water with the fishes, rays, and sharks every day.  Is it too late at 72? Yesterday we were served breakfast by Oty and Gaby at D'Nest and met a delightful young couple from England who were about to head out for the airport after a 10 day stay in Belize.  Since our trip was just beginning, we asked them what some of their favorite places were.  They told us about Crooked Tree reserve where they saw a myriad of birds including the largest bird in this hemisphere - one with a 12 foot wingspan.  Their description sounded idyllic, so we called and made reservations for two days at the same place they stayed.  I am glad I brought along my long lens.  Maybe I will get some great bird shots. We are staying at De Real Macaw on Caye  (pronounc

Arrival in Belize City, March 5, 2014 Flying to Belize is quite pleasant compared to some other flights we've taken - a short hop from Phoenix to Dallas/Fort Worth (a beautiful airport that offers so many choices you will think you're in your local mall), and then a movie-length flight to Belize City.  We flew on a two-month old Boeing 737 that offered more entertainment choices on a personal TV screen, but less leg room than other planes.  I watched "Nebraska" with Bruce Dern.  Very enjoyable. We had made reservations at a Guest House called D'Nest, and the proprietor, Gaby, was there at the airport to meet us.  Made us feel very welcome and special. The drive from the airport to the house showed us again that most people in the world are happy living much simpler, less extravagant lives than are Americans.  Most of the homes are small, with the ubiquitous bars across the windows and doors, and always a dog or two "ruffing" (as our 4-year old g