Walking
along one of the three main streets in Caye Caulker. Helene Goupil.
The
small Maya Island Air plane looked like a brand new flying bus, with
six gray leather seats in the back and two bigger seats for the pilot
and his absent co-pilot. I do not have many pictures of this flight
because the moisture in the plane didn’t allow me to see through
my camera lens, but I still remember the patches of sand and blue. It
was such a tranquil flight; and all for $40 USD--that’s what I
call a deal!
The smallest country
in Central America, Belize is not usually thought of as a Caribbean
destination, but visiting its islands will show you otherwise.
Brochures say that
Belize is mother nature’s best hidden treasure and looking out
the window to the boats and sandy sea bottom, I'd agree. The Caribbean
is not the budget traveler’s paradise because island hopping is
expensive and there are very few hostels. But Belize has been able to
have both the expensive resorts for the luxury tourist and the affordable
hostels for the budget-conscious traveler.
Ten short minutes
after boarding the plane, we were making our descent onto the dirt runway.
As we were landing, I could see through the front window, over the pilot's
head, an airline employee walk towards the plane with a cart for luggage.
When we touched down,
Josh and I were the only ones to get off the plane and we looked at
each other and smiled again--that was our second good sign.
The airport employee
smiled too when we asked him if it was easy to find our hotel. “Just
walk down this road, and it’s the house with the big jaguar painted
on it, trust me, you can’t miss it,” he said.
He was right, getting
lost on this five-square mile island would be hard to do.
With three
main streets, twelve motorized vehicles and eight hundred people, Caye
Caulker, also known as Hicaco, is a quiet island twenty one miles northeast
of Belize City where expensive resorts have been kept at bay, unlike
its flashy neighbor, Ambergris Caye.
As we walked
up the road, we spotted the colorful jaguar on the wall. Among some
30 hotels, the Jaguar Morning Star guesthouse is one of the only houses
that survived Hurricane Keith. The house was actually used as a hurricane
shelter and is intact. The cabana we stayed in is now firmly grounded
in cement to prevent it from moving again should another tornado come
by.
Joanne and
Al Wright, the owners of the guesthouse, came back from vacation to
a very damaged yard after Hurricane Keith had gone. Al says he is slowly
getting his fruit trees and flowers back but he’s hoping they
will stand the next hurricane.
The most damaging
hurricane Caye Caulker has seen was Hurricane Hattie in 1961. Hattie
split the island in two and people now hang out at the bar overlooking
the Split. Al tells us that as a kid, he used to jump over the split.
Today, sailboats and kayaks use it as a landing point for tourists and
the Split is now about thirty feet wide.
“What’s
good about the hurricane is that whenever something bad happens, you
can say the hurricane did it,” Al says, smiling.
That night, the town,
located at the other end of the island, was getting ready for Lobster
Fest, a weekend celebration that marks the beginning of lobster season.
The fact that we accidentally stumbled into Lobster Fest, and that our
first dinner on the island was lobster with a side dish for under $10
USD, was our third good sign. But at that point, we didn't need another
reason to love this place.
As we walked toward
the festival, locals were getting off the water taxis and were turning
the main dirt road into a big party. The richest families were cruising
in their golf carts, the main mode of transportation on the island after
walking and biking. Food stands and barbecues were installed outside
to grill whole lobsters. Music was playing and a gentle breeze reminded
us what we loved about the Caribbean.
After a great first
evening, we got ready for our snorkeling trip to Hol Chan Marine Reserve.
With the barrier reef only a mile away, you could spend every day of
your vacation in the water here and find new spots full of sponges,
coral canyons, eagle spotted rays, and sharks.
Although the group
of snorkelers was too large for my taste, the marine life was so amazing
that I almost forgot the masks bumping into me. The rum punch served
on the sailboat on the way back made it seem like everyone was that much
friendlier.
On the boat, we met
Eileen, a native New Yorker who had spent a few months working in Guatemala
and had crossed the border to Belize to renew her visa. She told us
that she had found a place to stay for approximately $15 a night and
that included a shared kitchen which she loved because it allowed her
to save so much money.
"A
school of grey reef sharks looked as if they were ready to come to my
rescue."
She had already made
plans that night to cook with other travelers but we decided to meet
for a drink at the I & I bar later that evening.
The I &I bar
is like the tree house you dreamt of as a kid. With stairs, ropes, wooden
bridges and swings instead of chairs, this bar is a great place to play
like a kid but still have your grown-up Belikin beer. Mind the gaps
though, after a few of those Belikins, the steep stairs can get dangerous.
With boats sailing
down to Honduras and daily flights to Tikal in Guatemala, Belize is
a popular stop for travelers on the Central America circuit. It’s
also a nice vacation spot for people like Eileen or for those coming
from the West Coast of the US like us. From San Francisco, Belize City
is a quick six-hour flight and cost a little less than $600. With no
time difference and the same language, what else could you ask for?
Some of the world’s
best diving, maybe? Belize has that too.
Most scuba divers
are either hardcore divers who I enjoy talking to because they love
the ocean and know so much about it, or they are hardcore travelers
and, well, I love talking to these people too. The conversations helped
me relax and feel less nervous before jumping in the water.
The Blue Hole, a
dive spot made famous by Jacques Cousteau, has to be the most amazing
diving experience I have ever had. As I swam straight down to 100 feet,
a school of grey reef sharks looked as if they were ready to come to
my rescue if anything happened.
When I reached
the stalactites, a feeling of happiness took over and although the thought
of getting my air tank stuck under one of the stalactites had worried
me before jumping in the water, it now seemed like a fun idea. Nitrogen
narcosis, or the effect of high nitrogen pressure on nerve conduction,
can do that to you. I now understand why dive masters, brothers James
and Cardinale, kept insisting on one point before the dive.
"No
matter how you dizzy or drunk you feel, do not take the regulator out
of your mouth!" said Cardinale, later relating the story of a woman
who got so "narced" that she spit the regulator out of her
mouth.
That day,
I thought about the great time we had in Caye Caulker. I may not be
able to afford a sailing vacation in the Grenadines again, but this
was definitely a another great Caribbean vacation and I know I will
definitely be back. As the locals are fond of saying, you better Belize
it!
Caye Caulker
Facts
Population:
800.
Size: Five miles long and between .15 and 1.2 miles
wide.
Currency: Belize Dollars or U.S. Dollars (with a fixed
rate of exchange of $2 BZD for $1USD).
Hotels: Prices range from $10-$60 USD a night. Be sure
to make a reservations if you’re planning a visit during Lobster
Fest, Christmas or New Year’s Eve.
Restaurants: Dinner specials such as lobster and vegetables
cost around $10 USD.
Getting there: From Belize City, take a water taxi
for $10 USD. Or, fly Maya Island Air or Tropic Air from Belize City
International Airport.
Getting Around: On foot. Bicycles and golf carts rentals
are available.
What to bring: There is a risk of Malaria so insect
repellent with a high concentration of DEET is recommended.
Helene
Goupil is the editor of InsideOut Travel.
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