Belize Rain Report by Cowboy Doug via sms – catching up a few days worth. This morning 1/10th of an inch since 8am,  yesterday evening – Gonna give ya a rainfall reading… IF IT WOULD EVER QUIT!!! 1inch and 6/10ths WOW! We just got the road graded too. January 29th 30/100ths less than a 10th and January 28th Jeeze! a little over 2/10ths.

Enough about our rainy morning weather and onto some Belize History with  from Lucy Wallingford from Slickrock Adventures.  Lucy also does an interesting Belize blog – Behind the Scenes at a Belize Adventure Company. Lucy sent the email below when we were going back and forth for her Exploring Caves Branch River in the early 80s guest post. It struck me as a wonderful memory in time and I was glad she agreed to let me share it with you.

Hi Laurie,

We do have old pics, but they are all in slide form. But the really old ones I don’t have. When we first started kayak trips in Placencia in 1986 we rented a beach at the last house, which was near the old Kitty’s Place. We could only shop for food on Saturdays and you had to take your wheelbarrel down the sidewalk and take a number and wait 2 hours to get called to give them your list. Meanwhile our tourists are sitting back on the beach packing their kayaks waiting for me to get back with the food…. but only memories! No pictures. Funny how when you are in your 20s (at least back then) you couldn’t imagine that what you were doing at the time you would like to look back on and have pictures to prove it!

We came to Belize because we were running trips in Chiapas, Mexico and one day my partner Cully just thought he’d go check out Belize. He hired some guy with a sailboat to take him the whole length of the Barrier Reef and picked the itinerary still used by kayak companies today: Placencia,  Bugle Caye,  Laughing Bird Caye, Water Caye, Silk Cayes, Pumpkin Caye and Ranguana Caye. A 7 day trip. No one was out there back then but a few rasta fishermen; it was incredible.

I never even visited Ambergris until we got the coconut tree disease in 1998. I flew out there and Chris Berlin taught me how to treat coconut trees. Still today we use that method on Long Caye. We have treated our 500 trees every 3 months since then! Chris Berlin saved our island with this knowledge he freely shared with us.

Thanks,
Lucy

Find Slickrock Adventures  on Twitter and facebook.
Upcoming Palm tree disease article from Lucy next week.

Daily catch on Laughing Bird Caye. No problem catching dinner back then!

Camp on Laughing Bird Caye. It is now forbidden to camp there, a national park.

Kids of Placencia hung out around us all of the time. Of course these guys are much older now, this was 1987.

My partner Cully negotiating with the propriator of the Sea Spray Hotel in Placencia. I can't remember her name.

Beach scene, where we rented in Placencia. I bet the beach we rented was a couple of acres and I don't remember how much it cost but it wasn't much! This was the front yard of Mr. Clive and Miss Pearl.

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Belize Blog update
“Cable Woes and Cayo Connection Meeting”  – Wealth Ships
Why YOU Should Visit Belize in January – San Pedro Scoop
15 Top Tips For Sellers – San Pedro Belize – Invest in Belize Real Estate blog

Canadian news – World’s top islands: Frommers picks Tahiti, Belize, Tobago and more – The Toronto Star news paper.

Belize Travel News - Some of you may have seen the good news already but for those of you who haven’t, several Belize resorts scored major points in the trip advisor 2012 Travelers Choice Hotel Awards. Congratulations to all who made the cut.

Top 25 Hotels in the World
1. The Phoenix Resort
3. Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort

Top 25 Hotels in Central America
1. Phoenix
2. Hamanasi
3. Xanadu
5 Coco Plum Island Resort
7 Turneffe Island Resort
10 Victoria House
13 Belcampo Lodge
20 Las Terrazzas
23 Chaa Creek
24 Mata Chica
25 Grand Caribe

Belize Rain report by Cowboy Doug of Cowboy Doug’s Pool bar and Grill – text received January 20th 1/2 an inch of rain last night starting at 11:40pm. Don’t forget Tomorrow is pool party day, head on up and say hi to the cowboy.

Saga Humane Society Update
I hope this finds you well and enjoying the New Year.  There seems to be a buzz in the air with 2012, let’s hope it’s a good year for all of us!

Saga Humane Society would like to give a big thanks to Mojito Bar and their great staff for hosting our Pasta Cook-off. Friday the 13th turned out to be a lucky day for the Saga shelter animals with an anonymous donor pledging to match all proceeds from this event; Saga was able to raise just over $3,000. There was a great turnout of visitors and locals who enjoyed all the fine Pasta dishes presented.

Winners were: 3rd Place: Chicken Fettuccini ala Parmesan from Faride Salinas who received a Cutlery Set; 2nd Place: Pineapple Chipotle Pasta from Xenika Nicole Armstrong who received a lovely set of 8 Pub Glasses; and 1st Place: Pork Chow Mein from Sharon Metcalfe who Received a Toaster Oven.

We would also like to thank our other entries for their wonderful dishes. Pasta Fiesta Salad – Pineapples Restaurant; Dill Macaroni Salad – LouAnn LeClaire; Bow Ties a Ragu de Tonno – Rosa LaRosa; Shrimp Roulade with Prosecco Tarragon Cream Sauce – Chap Ross & Kathy Neimic; Tia’s Salad – Tia Hindson; and Veggie Callaloni – Mathieu’s Deli.

Raffle Prizes: Kim Gonzalez won a Full Groom from Pampered Paws sponsored by George’s Kitchen. A visiting tourist won a Rod & Reel courtesy of Captain Sharks. And Eliza and her parents Jessica Waters & Stephen Card won Dinner for 2 plus a Mojito courtesy of Mojito Bar.

Thank you to all the volunteers who helped make this event a success. Heather Beck Janina Canales, Grant Crimmins,
Ingrid Juarez, Joe LaRosa, Rosa LaRosa, Bob LeClaire, LouAnn LeClaire, Ingrid Lima, Katia Marin, Sharon Metcalfe
Lori Purdy, Nancy Rountree, Jonny Woodward.

Saga Humane Society would like to thank everyone for their continued support.

[front page picture of The Phoenix Resort by Matt Lankes and Demian Solano]

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Today I did not even have to leave the house to get off track from finishing my Social Media webinar blog post that I started the other day after attending the online conference about Social Marketing in 2012 .  My sidetracker came all the way from Canada via the coconut phone [msn messenger].

I got with Heather writing an environmental press release about a local resort that has stepped up to help Direct Abundance and Caribbean S.E.A aka Caribbean Student Environmental Alliance in their volunteer  work to help San Mateo become a green community.

Writing a press release is a job that neither one of us is particularly fond of, but one we both know is an important skill to have. I took the opportunity in helping Heather do hers to remind myself that this is a good thing to have in my tool box. Thankfully we have Google on our side and tacoboy who has written many and was willing to help us.

Belize rain report by Cowboy Doug coming shortly, I am waiting for him to go check the  Grand Caribe rain gauge when he is done his meeting. Current island temperature from San Pedro Weather Live – 84f or 29c. Looks like the cowboy is not on Belize time this morning as his text came quicker than I expected. He said north Ambergris Caye got 1/10th rainfall this morning.

I was just about to hit publish on this post and somehow got sidetracked by emails. Which is not a bad thing as the first one I opened had a Montana Weather report and picture from one of my readers from Helena MT who is ready for some San Pedro sun. I found that interesting as Cowboy also hails from Montana.

Two feet of snow last night…  9 below this morning…  up to 3 above right now.
Gotta love Montana in the winter;)
Looking forward to next monthJ
cheers,
brent

Two feet of snow and 9 below by Brent Doig in Montana

Coke tractor doing deliveries in San Pablo area

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Not a lot of rain overall, but usually it is drier this time of year so the showers over the past few days must be bumping the annual rainfall in Belize totals for January slightly higher. Typically January is drier in northern Belize and gets more rain to the south. Average temperatures for January run  low of 70.0 degrees to a high of 80.0 degrees.  81.5F and 28c Current San Pedro Belize temperature courtesy of San Pedro Weather Live – if you want a visual from South Ambergris Caye area click on link to see their weather station webcam.

Between out of country server issues and local internet slowdown  Storm Chasers Belize webcam on taco cam page has been a bit sketchy lately.  I hope the  internet gods are smiling upon us and the kinks get worked out asap. Sorry for any inconvenience to your Caribbean Sea viewing pleasure.

Unfortunately my foot still not quite ready for beach walks or aquafit class at San Pedro fitness club, I did make it to Legends Burger house and town yesterday. I am ok with that because tacoboy just had a coffee break in our pool and said the water was shockingly cold. I need to get some bike repairs done first as well,  Dicks beach cruiser needs a tire patch and so does Cindy’s. Luckily Zac had the patch kit and tire levers and Dennis is willing to do the repairs. All of the above happening on Belize time

I will leave you with a couple of canal pictures and a street shot from San Pablo area.

Sunflower street Canal

Walking to my friends house

San Pablo Canal

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Today’s San Pedro weather report comes from Dennis while he was visiting on his lunch break. He said it is hot enough to get ripe fast and was on shirt number two. He also noted, the Caribbean Sea is super calm making it a great day for swimming, snorkeling diving, fishing outside the reef boat rides. I will add a tacogirl travel tip – Don’t forget to pack sunscreen and a shade option on days like this and drink lots of water or coconut water to stay hydrated.

Listening to Moves like Jagger, I never get tired of this song. Totally agree with Michele in Playa Adam Levine is super hot in the video. I am bummed I did not get to see the Kinnon crew more but I was following doctors orders and resting as much as I could at the time. Thankfully what ever I had did not turn out to be pneumonia. Cindy still fighting her battle as well. Anoyne on island or mainland Belize have similar health issue right now? [Started as a cold and ended with no energy for too long]

Check out Michele’s recent Belize trip review – Best BBQ in San Pedro? Estel’s on the Beach!. The family blog is  Life’s a Beach and it’s about observations on life and Real Estate From Rob and Michele Kinnon in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico.

Pedro’s Hotel is now featuring live music Friday nights with Gino and the Shackshakers. The band w ill be be shaking their groove thing on Friday the 13th. Cindy’s  seriously strong rum punch will be on tap and the weekly food special $1 wings. Don’t miss a great party.

Hibiscus flower flowers

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Don’t forget if you are looking for something to do tonight big Party at Pedro’s Sports Bar $20 all you can eat pizza, Cindy’s seriously strong rum punch and live music with Gino and the Shack Shakers.

The Church..Revolution Brewery, Paonia by Ken Butcher

Weather comparison shot for Paonia Colorado to Belize was taken on my way to the beach.

People catching the last rays at Banana Beach Resort

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I had the opportunity to go outside and warm up a bit while doing a photo shoot in our backyard, I needed a blow up lobster picture for my front page. I would have used the image I shot for Giant Lobster found in the pool at  Grand Caribe Resort  but it was a close up and not wide angle and I did not want to use a repeat from San Pedro Lobsterfest Block Party 2011.  It was a fun m morning the office

2012 San Pedro Lobsterfest - Will be Biggest and Best yet

Now you can start planning your summer in Belize – the organizing committee of San Pedro Lobsterfest is pleased to announce the official dates of the 2012 San Pedro Lobsterfest. Festivities will begin on Friday June 15th, 2012 and culminate with the traditional Lobsterfest Block Party on Saturday June 23rd, 2012. With 9 days of celebrations of all things Lobster, the 2012 San Pedro Lobsterfest is the longest and largest Lobsterfest yet! Stay tuned for more announcements of specific events and locations leading up to June.

Pedro’s Inn is having a Welcome Back JD party tomorrow night and you are all invited to come out and enjoy Live music with Gino and the Shack Shakers, all you can eat Pizza for $20 and Cindy’s Seriously strong rum punch.

Saga Humane Society 2012 calendars available for sale.
Prices are $25.00 BZ each; 6 for $100.00 BZ and 15 for $200.00 BZ.
Call or email, or go to Saga Belize website to order and they will ship it to you.

SAGA Humane Society relies mainly on donations and fundraising to support the clinic and the shelter.  The purchase of a calendar goes to the direct support of the clinic and the shelter, Fort Dog. Saga team thanks you for your continued support in SAGA Humane Society. For more details and a visual please click the following link – 2012 Saga Paws and Princesses Calendar flyer

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Decided on a long hot shower to help me warm up. Normally I do not like to waist water and try to make it quick , but today the steaming hot water washed away thoughts of time and warmed me up from the inside out. Today would be a good time to have some Etre Touchy gloves – great idea for cold weather tech lovers.

After warming up I was able to focus on breakfast. I made tacoboy and I grilled peanut butter and Belizean honey sandwiches for breakfast. I know not the best morning start for clean eating, but great cold weather food. My healthy choice on that was to leave the bacon out – saved it for dinner instead

Camera used – Cannon PowerShot S5 IS

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Eating well is the key to a fabulous and energized body which is totally my goal. I have been doing fairly well with  clean eating and getting better at moderating with the not so good stuff. When I slow down and pay attention to what I eat and drink and how it makes me feel, it gets easier to say no thanks and opt for something better. Or just have less [coming from the girl  with the hollow junk food leg ] I am also thinking it is a good time to revisit the Wild Rose meal plan that I saved from a Liver cleanse I did 3 years back.

My organic vegetable order this week consists of celery,  moringa leaf, limes, bell peppers – assorted colors, mixed greens, zucchini squash and cucumber. I have been enjoying the moringa leaf in juices and salads, I highly recommend the raw form or the powder.

Moringa trees are highly nutritious, being a significant source of beta-carotene, Vitamin C, protein,iron, and potassium.  It has been used to combat malnutrition, especially among infants and nursing mothers. Leaves can be eaten fresh, cooked, or stored as dried powder for many months without refrigeration, and reportedly without loss of nutritional value.  It is said that Moringa leaves contain more Vitamin A than carrots, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach, more Vitamin C than oranges, and more potassium than bananas,” and that the protein quality of Moringa leaves rivals that of milk and eggs.  [ info from Sol Farms Limited, Farm Fresh Organics ]

To make our weekly orders even better,  Sol Farms has made a new addition to their facebook page and added a This Weeks Harvest tab to the left hand side. Each week they update it with what is available, and what is in the works. I was pleased to see that strawberries and local Maya cherry’s are on the up and coming list.

Once an order is placed Sol Farms in Teakettle Village Belize processes it and drives the vegetables to Belmopan where they are flown on Tropic Air to San Pedro. The shipping cost .65/lb and  the Tropic Air Cargo boys are great about letting us know when our order has arrived.  After we get the order we go put the money in their Scotia Bank account bank to pay for it.

For those of you who may have missed it due to rising fuel costs, Tropic Air increased airfare on January 1, 2012. New pricing in Belize Dollars for round trip flights from San Pedro to other destinations are as follows: Caye Caulker $163; Corozal: $216; Sarteneja: $216, Tower Hill, Orange Walk: $216; Belize Municipal: $163 and Belize International: $282.50, prices include rider fee of $5.00. Please check the San Pedro Sun newspaper for more details.

Pictures courtesy of Sol Farms Facebook page.

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I started the post above on Tuesday morning and had every intention of finishing it but ended up AWOL instead. With Dick leaving yesterday morning on an indefinite return date, and thanks to Zac loaning us his cart the past few days were all about driving around the island, listening to music.

Zac came for the final ride to drop Dick at the airport. After checking his bags and doing a one last errand, Zac drove along the beach road  and back down by the lagoon for some scenic views. It was one of those times where the clock was moving fast and slow. It felt like we were driving around for ever, at the same time I knew how fast the time was about to catch up with us – especially with his plane leaving 20 min early.

While at Tropic Air seeing Dick off, we caught up with Dianne saying her goodbye’s to Tracy [another good quality guy leaving the island  ] We also ran into Paula and Jesse Fay, also making an indefinite San Pedro departure.

As we stood in the waiting area chatting and saying our good byes to the boys I thought about how life moves people on and off the island. While I was  sad to watch them go, seeing Tracy made me smile and reminded me of the boomerang effect – the good ones often come back.

I will leave you with a randomly ordered  selection of pictures I shot over the last few days – not even going to attempt a tech battle  with my photo gallery today to try and get them in the correct order. That is one of the cons of the Olympus Stylus tough-8010, I have not managed to figure out a way to rename how the picture files show up in my wordpress gallery.  I have also recently noticed that the delete button has slowed down a lot, my guess is that this is because it is somehow being affected by salt air or weather. Even though they say it is waterproof up to 33 ft, I am reluctant to test that theory and will likely be considering a soft underwater camera case. A pro for the Stylus tough-8010 I love the how the picture color registers on sunny days.

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