We had heard that a variety of birds could be seen in the rain forest behind the hotel early in the morning, so since this was our last morning here we got up before the sun and dressed and packed. By 6:30 we were on the large back veranda of the hotel with our binoculars ready to see some birds. We were afraid that the light rain may have kept them away, but we were up anyway, so it was worth a try. As we sat and watched, several species of birds flew through our “backyard”. They would come in as a small flock and land in the trees and no more that 5 minutes later the flock would start to leave in the opposite way from which they’d come, like these trees were just a few in a large line on breakfast buffet. We are not typically bird watcher types, so I didn’t know the species names for the variety of colorful birds. But 2 species in particular caught my eye (and camera) and Google helped me with the names, the black-headed Trojan and the Collared Aracari (a relative of the toucan). Unfortunately we didn’t get to see the famous keel-billed toucan of Froot Loops fame.

A little after 8 our shuttle left for the small airstrip outside town called Maya flats. When I say small I mean a 400 square foot building and 1 strip of concrete maybe 100 yards long. This airstrip is fairly new and the cute wooden structure had a wrap around porch with rocking chairs where we could wait for our plane. The view of the Maya mountains from the porch was a bonus, and we thought we’d get to enjoy it for a few minutes before we left. Little did we know the fog that had settled over the tops of the mountains would delay the tiny planes that rely heavily on sight to fly safely over the mountains. So we settled in and talked and laughed with the 5 other passengers who were scheduled for our flight for what would be a 3+ hour delay. The reasons we decided to fly for this leg of our trip were both to save time, and because to hire a driver for the long drive to Belize City followed by a water taxi ride to reach the island would be around the same price. But here we were fogged in with no way to contact our friend John, at who’s house we were staying on the island and was presumably waiting for us at the airport.

We finally left about 12:15 (after a 9:00 originally scheduled departure time) in a tiny plane that would hold about 12 passengers. The Tropic Air employee who oversaw boarding told us where to sit according to our final destination, he then reminded us to buckle up and thanked us for choosing tropic air- or at least I think that’s what he said, he was also closing the small door by hand as he talked. About 12 minutes into the flight, we made a brief stop in Belmopan (the Capitol) to pick up several more passengers, which filled us to capacity. Since we had waited 3 hours for the fog to lift enough to see the mountain tops (we wouldn’t want to be running into them), to fly much of the way in thick white fog was not comforting. I keep telling myself it would break before we reached Caye Caulker so the pilot could see to land. Of course I did use some of the 22 minute flight to familiarize myself with the safety information located in the seat pocket. The plane bumped along, dropping a little as it hit air pockets, eventually it began to drop lower and lower until the fog did start to break and I could see the sparkling blue water of the Caribbean below me as if it was close enough to touch. As we descended quickly I then told myself if we landed in the water at least I now knew how to work the emergency exits. About 2 seconds before the wheels touched down I saw land below us, we had finally reached Caye Caulker safely. We taxied to the other end of the runway where the small terminal building sat. The back door was opened and the small rolling staircase was pushed up beside the plane so we could exit. Our friend John was just emerging through the trees on a small path beside the airstrip on his bike. Because we had not been able to reach him, this was the 5th plane he’d met today. We were the only passengers to get off at this stop and the plane quickly turned and headed back down the runway to take the rest of the passengers to Ambergris Caye. Ours were the only bags on the luggage cart so we collected them there beside the runway. (Of course we were still required to turn in our small luggage claim tickets to get them) We followed John down the short sandy lane to his house, which is not more than a 5 minute walk from the airstrip. He has a beautiful, uniquely built house called Sandcastle tucked into a lot full of palms and lush tropical greenery. He has 2 units connected to the house for guests/renters. Our small apartment is just perfect with its rugged stone walls in the bathroom and separate living room and kitchenette with a large screen TV. We even have a small, private screened in patio just off the living room. We spent the rest of the day seeing the updates to the house since we’d been here last year, doing some laundry and catching up with John.

Evening brought a trip to the sports bar for “Friday night Jam”. Local musicians perform, but any tourists or guests who are musically inclined are welcome to join the jam and even are offered the use of the instruments of the locals. To say there were some talented people would be an understatement, the atmosphere in the packed room and dance floor was electric as one after another performer shared their talents with us. They played a variety of music, with classic rock being the genre of choice. I kept thinking how the Hebert’s would absolutely love this. I don’t consider my a great music lover, but this was awesome. We stayed for a couple of hours and then found a local place for dinner, it was open air with only 3 foot wooden sides to define the space, with sand floors and brightly painted picnic tables. I had fresh grilled lobster and Christian had grilled shrimp. John opted for the chicken ( I guess he eats seafood all the time anyway). We had plenty of time to visit with the very slow (Belize time) service. But the atmosphere was so perfect I didn’t mind.

We biked home in the light rain and the cool air. Today has been very cool for the island, dipping below 70. But with the constant sea breeze and the rain, we were chilled after the 5 minute bike ride home. But the changing weather is only part of the fun. Perfect start to our stay on this island paradise.