Our journey to Caye Caulker can only be described as excruciating. Most of us were feeling a little delicate from the night before, evidenced by the fact that we were nursing some pretty relentless hangovers. The thought of travelling countless hours to our destination was just about unbearable. With a stiff back and an aching head, my attempt to nap peacefully on the coach was a complete and utter disaster. Several uncomfortable position changes later, we arrived at the port of Chetumal; it was time to set sail for Belize. Reluctantly, we dragged our weary selves towards the water taxis that awaited us. The ocean had appeared calm from the dock. Once we were on the boat, however, it was apparent that we had been deceived. Our heads moved back and forth madly each time the bow clashed against a wave. I’m surprised none of us got whiplash. Time seemed to pass us by as Caye Caulker’s white, sandy shoreline began to emerge before our eyes. You could almost hear the sighs of relief from the group as our feet finally touched solid ground. Unsurprisingly, our first night on the island was relatively quiet. We feasted on fresh seafood at a local restaurant while sipping on some exceedingly potent cocktails with cheeky names that alluded to women’s underwear. After dinner, some members of the group opted to investigate what island nightlife had to offer while others (myself included) retreated to their rooms. I was later joined by my new roomie, Miriam, and we spent the rest of our night entering a game of hide and seek with an iPhone. Eventually, we admitted defeat and decided that drinking rum and coke in bed would be a much more productive use of our time. The next morning, we were up bright and early in preparation for our day of snorkelling on the Belize Barrier Reef. I filled up on a platter of fresh fruit and a banana smoothie from a popular breakfast spot before we were instructed to make our way to the dock. Our guides fitted us out with a set of flippers and a snorkel mask prior to boarding our trusty vessel, a speed boat named “Mr Wolf.” We jetted across the water for a good half an hour; the ocean spray cooled our skin in the heat of the sun. The boat soon came to a stop as we reached our first snorkelling spot on the reef. After a quick debriefing, we plummeted into the clear but choppy water at Hol Chan Marine Reserve. We battled against the strong current as our guide directed our attention towards the various sea creatures that swam beneath us. Schools of tropical fish and a Hawksbill turtle were within a few metres of us. It was incredible to see them flourishing in their natural environment; I may have uttered a few “oh my God’s” to myself underwater out of pure excitement and awe. We were soon back on the boat and heading to our second drop off point: Shark Ray Alley. “Mr Wolf” halted above a swarm of nurse sharks varying in size. They glided effortlessly through the water as they were coaxed to the end of our boat by the guides with offerings of food. One by one we plucked up the courage to enter their territory. I sat on the edge of the boat as a large nurse shark swam beneath my feet. With eyes closed, I plunged into the water and began to watch the feeding frenzy through my mask. Though nurse sharks are fairly tame in comparison to our ocean’s predators, it was a strange feeling of fear and exhilaration to be able to reach out and touch them – literally. Never in my life would I have dreamed of being so up close and personal with a shark; that’s usually the sort of thing my nightmares are made of. I watched them from a distance, admiring how unfazed they were by our presence. A group of rays also made an appearance as they swam playfully around their spectators, creating the perfect photo opportunity for those with GoPro’s. Our third and final stop on the reef allowed us some time to explore the various coral formations before heading back to Caye Caulker. The journey was accompanied by burgers and rum punch. We had a bit of time to spare before the evening’s activities commenced. My roomie and I wandered around for about an hour popping into local shops, capturing photos of the stunning views, saying hello to the friendly locals and reminding ourselves to follow the island’s motto: “go slow.” It was hard not to feel completely at ease in this little slice of paradise. We were fortunate enough to be able to spend the evening cruising around on a catamaran, eating corn chips and salsa while watching the sunset. Several rum punches later, we were back on the island where we enjoyed another sumptuous seafood dinner before checking out the evening entertainment joints – a sports bar and a reggae bar. The night was spent dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and swinging on rope swings that were strung from the ceiling. Midnight soon approached and after spending a day at sea, I was just about ready to collapse from exhaustion. We headed back to the China Town Hotel and crawled into our beds. Two nights on this enchanting island had passed so quickly. It would’ve been nice to have another day to explore, but we still had so much to look forward to. Tomorrow we would be heading to Guatemala and venturing into the heart of the jungle.
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A knock on my door woke me early the next morning; it was room service. “Could you come back a little later?” I asked politely, still half-asleep and scantily clad. The maid nodded her head and smiled before proceeding down the hallway with the cleaning cart. I dove back under the covers on my deluxe, super-sized bed and drifted off for another few hours. It was only when the sun began to creep through the gap in my curtains that I decided to start my day. The remainder of my morning was spent using a bar of hand soap to vigorously scrub my clothes clean in the bathroom sink. I made makeshift laundry racks out of any hook, door handle and chair back I could find. Now that I was feeling in control of my life’s administrative duties, it was time to catch a bus to La Isla Shopping Village to buy myself a new wardrobe, courtesy of travel insurance. The driver hit the accelerator before I even had the chance to finish handing him my fare, nearly sending me flying to the tail of the bus. I found myself a seat, and kept my eyes peeled for La Isla. It was a scorcher of a day and I could only imagine how much the others would’ve been enjoying themselves in Playa Del Carmen. The bus pulled up outside the mall, and I jumped out hastily before it started moving again. I had a checklist of things I needed to purchase: t-shirts, shorts, shoes, and, most importantly, underwear. Fortunately I was able to find most of what I needed in one store clothing-wise, but I made a special trip to Victoria’s Secret for my smaller, personal items. Happy with my purchases, I hopped on the next available bus back to the hotel. After cutting the labels off my new clothes and neatly packing them into my bag, I walked down to the beach to capture a few scenic shots. I could’ve easily spent the rest of my afternoon taking photos of the surrounding views; you can never grow tired of gazing at that azure blue sea. I let the warm water rush over my feet as I strolled along the sand and relished in the sun. In this moment, I felt completely at peace, without a care in the world. Before long, my tour group returned from the beach, having spent the day swimming, sunbathing and jet-skiing (cue envy). We killed a bit of time before congregating by the hotel’s pool to commence another evening of outrageous antics. Our destination, post-dinner, was Mandala Beach, an outdoor club right at the ocean’s doorstep. The key feature of the club, as we discovered upon entry, was a large swimming pool that quickly drew the crowd’s attention. Girls strolled around in their skimpy swimsuits, leaving little to the imagination, as we gathered around some tables and selected our drinks for the evening. Many of the club-goers found themselves by or in the pool by the time my friends and I had sunk a bottle of rum between us. Loud music and high-energy dancing defined the evening. The DJ played a variety of well-known tracks that heightened the party atmosphere. Following an extremely R-rated bikini contest, the night began to wind down. We taxied back to our accommodation in the hopes of getting an appropriate amount of sleep for our final day in Cancún. We were up early the next day, far too early for a bunch of people who barely managed to get a full eight hours sleep between them. Today we would be heading off on our own adventures, which we had personally selected from a range of options. I, like the majority of the group, had chosen to go to the Jungle Maya Park, where we would get to take part in some thrill-seeking activities. Safari-like jeeps greeted us at the park upon arrival. We climbed in, gripped onto the safety railing, and embarked on our journey into the jungle. After our bumpy ride came to an end, we were invited to participate in a traditional, Mayan welcoming ceremony that was held in an eerie yet beautiful cave lit-up by candles. I was particularly excited about our first activity - zip lining. I hadn’t zip lined since I had been on camp in primary school. After gearing up, we climbed a rickety ladder constructed from rope and wood to get to the top of first platform. I tried not to look down too often as the distance between ourselves and the ground grew with each step we took. The ladder swayed intermittently and the only safety assurance we had was a small clip on our harnesses that we used to attach ourselves to the rope railing. Once we reached the top, I realised how high up we were. I stood with my back to the zip line as the instructor secured me in place. He counted down from three before I pushed my feet off the platform. I flung my arms out and leant back, soaring over the jungle canopy. What a rush! We had two more zip lines to complete; the third and final one sent us splashing into a cave filled with crystal-clear water. Next up was a snorkelling tour through an underground water system. We each took running jumps as to enter the water in the most graceful way possible. Our guide swam ahead as we followed him deeper into the caves. A single torch and the occasional ray of natural light were all we had to rely on to illuminate our path. As we peered into the water, we came face to face with schools of fish that swam by in close proximity, watching us curiously. You could’ve reached out to touch them, had they not been so quick. We had to be mindful of the stalactites and stalagmites that encroached on our swimming space from top to bottom. Bats also covered the ceiling of the cave, and the occasional one flew overhead as we looked above. Eventually, we moved onto our final activity: rappelling into a cenote. In pairs, we gradually lowered ourselves over the edge of the opening, carefully moving our feet down the surface of the rock. We glided forty or so feet down the drop before reaching the water at the bottom and swimming out to meet for lunch. The day wasn’t over yet. After departing the park, we headed to Tulum for a tour of the ruins. I was absolutely awe-struck by the colour of the ocean and was itching to go for a swim. A number of us hurried down the stairs by the cliff side to reach the white sand below. The water looked ever so alluring and we wasted no time getting in. With the sun beaming and the warm waves rippling over our skin, it was most idyllic. Feeling sufficiently refreshed, we made our way back to the hotel to prepare for the evening ahead. For some, this would be their last night on tour. We enjoyed a family meal before spending our night at Palazzo, another popular club in Cancún characterised by caged-dancers and red spotlights. It was going to be hard saying farewell to these familiar faces, but it also meant that new friends would be joining us for the next adventure: escaping to the island of Caye Caulker in Belize. |
B is:A 26-year-old tea drinking writer of words trying to find her place in the world.
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