Long Green Slitherin' Thing

This morning, just as I was getting done with my first shower of the day, Dianna hollered to me that there was another snake on the patio, a big one... a big green one!

I grabbed a towel and came trotting out to see what it looked like. Wow, it was big. Not as big around as the Fer-de-Lance I had killed a couple of weeks ago, but about twice and long as it was. And a pretty green and yellow longitudinal striping, with a green head that in the right light almost glowed a bright metallic blue.

He was positioned right outside the front door and was staring intently at something in the flower bed right beside the door. Being big and brave, whipped off my towel (truthfully, I never had it on) and waved it at him. Immediately he retreated to the green and purple plants (I don't know what they are) alongside the patio palapa. After I beat a retreat back into the bedroom and got dressed (which consisted of my daily uniform - shorts and t-shirt), I grabbed my camera and took a few shots of him.

A willing subject striking a fearsome pose

He was a most cooperative subject too. Pretty much staying in the same pose, just swinging his head around to keep an eye on what I was doing, I was able to take several neat shots of him (or her).

Almost Blending In

After getting done dressing, I got onto the Internet, looked up Belize Snakes (or variations thereof) and as close as I could tell from that, it appears as though our visitor is a Parrot Snake. Why they're called that I don't know. It said they eat mostly frogs and such.

I also decided that after we got back from shopping, I was going to dive into the stuff we still have packed from the States, and try to find my Animals of Belize and Guatemala book, so I can make a proper identification of our visitor.

As we left to head into town to do some shopping to get stuff for us (microwave popcorn - you know, the really important stuff) and to get some things for Miss Blue (condensed milk, yogurt, potted meat, etc.), we saw he was still in the planting bed.

Followup on Blue - and Me Too

Dang it. Don't you hate when that happens? I just lost four or five paragraphs (probably really dynamite stuff, too) of this mornings effort. I thought I had saved it when I went to look at my previous post to make sure I wasn't going to repeat myself too much.

When I tried to return to the edit, it said there was nothing to edit, that nothing had been saved. Arrgghh! I don't know if it was me or the Blogger software - or both. Either way, it's aggravating and frustrating.

I'll try to recreate what I can remember of it.
...

There. Wasn't that fun? I'm an absolute blank. Oldfartitis at work, I guess.

So, what was it I was going to write about? I know one thing was going to be an update on Blue's condition. I guess that's where I'll start.

The immediate crisis is over. Blue may have had an epileptic seizure, we're not totally sure. She seems to have gotten over that pretty well. There's still a very slight limp and sort of a head wobble sometimes. The tests Dr. Sheila ran all turned out negative with the exception of the thyroid test. Cats normally have a thyroid reading of low fifty's - Blue is currently running 108! So, she definitely has an over-active thyroid or hyperthyroidism.

That would be the bad news, except Sheila is out of the necessary medication for that. And, a new shipment isn't due for two months yet. Sheila has asked a local pharmacist to try to locate appropriate meds for treating this. Probably would be easy if the patient was people, but for the low doses a kitty would require, that presents a completely different problem.

Anyway, the near-term fix, per Dr. Sheila's direction, is Blue can eat as much of anything she wants, and as often as she wants it. Tuna, tuna, tuna. That's Blue's shopping list. Ours includes tuna, but also includes condensed milk, yogurt, Ensure, and some other fatty good stuff, if we can get her to eat it. We'll be shopping today.

Is this the kitty equivalent of laying around, eating bon-bons?

As for me... I had my blood pressure taken the other day. Dr. Allen told me my BP is now that of a 30-year-old man. I knew I was getting younger.

I also had a couple of tests done at the Corozal Clinical Laboratory. Cholesterol and thyroid for myself. My cholesterol, at least one number, is 148.3. Much less than the +225 or so that it was a few months ago (The report didn't give the other number). It's all this good eatin' of rice and beans. Well, that and Belikin, no doubt.

My thyroid, I'm guessing, is doing about the same. I don't know. I can't interpret the numbers myself. After I picked up the results, I went over to the Evergreen Pharmacy to let Dr. Allen read them and tell me what's what. He had been called away on an emergency (I don't know if it was medical or what) and wouldn't be back till Wednesday. So, it'll just have to wait till then. Good news, anyway, on two things, BP and cholesterol.

The two tests cost $99BZ. I had them done at 8:30AM, and the results were ready at 11:30AM. I noticed on the envelope the technician stuck the report in, that the lab also does house calls and is available for 24-hour service. How cool is that?

So, at two in the morning some time, if the urge hits, you can call up, have the lab tech come to your home, and put your mind to rest on that pesky medical condition you've been losing sleep over.

Now, the lab office itself is nothing to write home about. The waiting room is about 3' x 8', with a Naugahyde couch, two plastic chairs, and a corner table, all lit by a dim, fluorescent 2' bulb, about ten feet up on the ceiling.

The room where the blood draws, etc., are done is just around the corner, separated from the waiting room by a piece of plywood - no door. There, you find a small plywood table, a chair for the client, and one for the tech. Lit by the same bulb as the waiting room.

The lab part of the operation is through a swinging door to the back of the building. That's all I know. I couldn't see anything past the door. That area is lit by it's own fluorescent bulb. There's also a small window so the tech can see out to the waiting room. It also has a cutout so he can hand you your results, or, I suppose, so you can pass in any samples you may have brought in with you for analysis.

Not quite the same spiffyness of the States, but, it's functional, and, I can't recall any lab up there offering house calls and 24-hour service.

Cashing in One or Two of Nine

Over the past couple of days, Miss Blue, our intrepid kitty, having recently retired from State government service, having worked long and hard at the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) prior to moving down to Belize, had to have cashed in at least one of her nine lives.

"Nine Lives - Feelin' lucky
Nine Lives - Live again
Nine Lives - It ain't over
Nine Lives - Live for ten"

Nine Lives by Aerosmith

She came about as close as it's possible to dying as a kitty can without doing so. Close enough that Dianna and me had to force feed her (using a needle-less syringe) with special cat food from our super vet - Dr. Sheila. We did the same thing with water, doing both several times a day for about two days.

It started with what seemed to be epileptic seizures (we're not sure on that), then total loss of appetite for food and water, extreme stressing out, panting, rapid pulse and respiration, wide, vacant eyes, lack of balance, and probably a few other symptoms I've forgotten.

Anyway, we took her to Dr. Sheila, who, after examining her, sedated her and kept her for three or four hours to give her a drip to get water into her system and to draw some blood to do some tests.

Dianna managed to get a saucer under her to capture some urine for Sheila to do a test for sugar in the urine. All of the tests turned up negative or insignificant. Sheila did tell us while Blue was sedated, she took the opportunity to clean some of the plaque off of Blue's teeth (we've got to do a better job of keeping her teeth cleaned - at least annual trips to the vet).

After that, we took her home and began the force-feeding process. At that time, it just wasn't looking good at all. It was very upsetting for all of us. Midas even showed concern, coming around her much more than usual. Dianna even canceled going with Rosie (Cody, our grounds-keeper's wife) to a cousin of Rosie's wedding.

Well, little by little things began improving. Yesterday afternoon, we tried giving Blue some juice from a can of tuna. That sparked a definite reaction! That was the first time she tried to drink anything on her own for a couple of days. It was very encouraging. A bit later, we tried giving her some tuna to eat - she even managed that.

From that point till now, it has been a steady improvement. So much so, that this morning when I got up, Blue was sitting right near the food and water bowls and meowed at me that she was hungry. I tried giving her some of the soft kitty food Sheila had given us. Oh no, that wouldn't do. She wanted the good stuff - the tuna.

I gave her a couple of teaspoonfuls of tuna and a liberal helping of tuna juice (water, not oil). Right after that, she was at the water bowl,joggling the bowl to see the water level, and drinking quite a bit. Then, after a survey and tour of the whole house, it was time for a nap under Dianna's nightstand.

We may be out of the woods on this. It still seems like she's favoring her left front leg and her balance is still somewhat shaky at times. We're wondering if maybe she might have had a slight stroke. Who knows? We're still waiting till Monday for test results on blood count and thyroid, so there may be something yet.

Jenni suggested maybe she caught a gecko or spider or who knows what and reacted to it. All this could be in the mix.

We may never know for sure. All we do know right now, is that Miss Blue is on the mend, again, and appears to be well on the road to resuming her normal activities.

And we can relax.

Blinking 12:00...

The Isuzu is now in about as good a condition as it is possible to get. I've had the shocks installed. What an amazing difference that alone makes! Two of the old shocks were completely failed and the remaining two weren't far behind. Speed bumps and pot holes are now almost fun!

I also had the engine oil and filter changed, fuel filter replaced, exhaust system and hangers inspected, chassis lubed, transmission oil changed, A/C fan belt replaced, and the A/C serviced - can you believe it, the A/C works! It's a miracle!

Now, I can get on a regular maintenance schedule to try and keep this thing running smoothly for quite a while.

Now, all I have to do is vacuum and wash, and it'll be all set. Oh, yeah... And figure out how to set the

Unpacking "Just A Few"

Now that we've gotten all our stuff, we went through the packing list, the inventory we created as we packed up each box, and decided which box's contents were important enough to warrant opening them up. We chose 5 or 6 boxes. Items like the wire shelving, kitty Littermaid, microwave, coffee maker, printer, PC cooling fans, UPS, etc., is the sort of stuff we wanted to get opened right away.

Dianna Noting Contents of Box

The house has suddenly gotten a bit more full and more like home as it gets stuff in it that we've known for a long time. Even the kitties - they got their scratching post, with both of them taking turns crawling in and on it, their electric litter box, and toys, all help make this home.

Boxes Being Emptied

We're going to resist, as much as possible, the temptation to open up everything till we get into the Mennonite house. Hopefully we'll be strong-willed. The more we can leave in boxes will definitely make moving to the new place easier.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Yesterday was one of the busiest we've had since moving to Belize. The day started off with us jumping into the Isuzu and heading off down the highway to Orange Walk. Our plan was to find somewhere along the way to have breakfast, then get to San Sing's motorcycle shop and see if he had the part I needed to get the scooter running again. After that, we thought we might try to find the People's Store in Orange Walk. That was about the extent of our thinking.

Canadian Bob had pointed out a restaurant on the outskirts of Orange Walk as being a nice place to eat. I thought we might have breakfast there, but as we pulled into their parking lot it became immediately obvious they weren't open. We decided to cruise on through Orange Walk to San Sings - take care of the primary task, then we could worry about everything else after that.

Naturally, I overshot San Sing's. As we turned around, it looked as though they might not be open. The only clue from that side of the building was that there were a couple of vehicles parked there that I had not seen when I was there on Saturday. As we swung around to the far side, the garage doors were open, and I could see a couple of folks crouching over a dismantled scooter inside.

We pulled up. I grabbed the broken part and went into the shop. After exchanging morning greetings, I asked if they might have this part. Both men looked at it, mumbled a bit, and one asked if it was for a Honda? I answered in the affirmative. About that time, the other mechanic got up and ambled over to some storage shelves. I wasn't sure if he was looking for my part or something for the scooter they were working on.

At last he came back with the part I needed. Price: $47BZ. I paid them for it and we left. A somewhat abrupt end to the conversation, but that was all the conversation that was needed.

We were still looking for a place for breakfast. As we turn back onto the main road from San Sings, we were just passing Landy's Hardware as I remembered I needed to get a new filter for our Rotoplas cistern, so we pulled in there. I found a sales girl who pointed me to the filter locations. Of course, there were several different sizes and shapes... I hadn't dismantled the old filter, so I had to rely on a picture on the box to find what I hoped was the right filter.

But there were two different boxes. Both looked to me like the same filter but, since everything was in Spanish, I couldn't be sure. She took the two boxes and went off to find the answer. After a couple of minutes, she was back - they were the same product, just one newer than the other.

I had already lost Dianna in the store. After paying for the filter ($23BZ), I went out to the vehicle - no Dianna. So, I went back in. I should have known... there she was, immersed in looking at housewares. She reminded me she needed to find a wedding gift. I had completely forgotten.

Breakfast was still a gnawing necessity, so it really wasn't too hard to pull her away from Landy's. But, as we were leaving Landy's we decided to stop across the road at a business named Santiago Castillo to see what they did or had to offer. On a previous visit, a sales person at Landy's told us we could shop there.

Entering the Santiago Castillo compound, we weren't sure if they were a business or a government agency - a nice new and modern-looking building surrounded by a eight-foot security fence, complete with a guard house at the gate. After parking in their clean, paved parking lot, we approached the front door where we were met with a sign: "Press buzzer for admittance". What was this place?
After we got in the front door, we were still in the dark. We were in a lobby sort of area, with three or four uniformed staff behind computers at a low counter, a glassed-in Cashier's area, and no other sign at all of what this place was about.

We were about ready to turn around and get out before we got in trouble, when a very friendly young man came into the room and asked if he could help us. I answered that he could and asked what they did there? He smiled hugely and said this was a popular shopping place for Americans and that we were welcome.

Still having no idea what we would shop for at this place, he offered to let us look through a catalog, which we started to do. At about the same time he introduced us to Patricia, one of the staff at the computer terminals. She offered to show us around the warehouse. Ok, we said, as she escorted us behind the counter and through a doorway into the warehouse.

As we began walking through the warehouse, it finally dawned on us what this place was. It was sort of like a mini-Costco, selling case-lots of toilet paper, cleaning stuff, foods, and some hardware items. Ah-ha! Now we had it. As we walked around looking at everything, we asked Patricia about the business, and yes, it was similar to Costco, but on a slightly smaller scale and without the membership fees. They did sell mostly wholesale to businesses, but did sell also to individuals, still mostly in case lots. We found a huge box of clumping kitty litter that we asked if we could buy that. We could. Patricia put it on the floor and asked one of the warehouse men to bring it up front for us.

About this time, she mentioned that their store downtown sold everything in the warehouse but at retail and in single quantities. That was the People's Store. More of the puzzle was falling into place. We asked where it was located as Nigel and Jenni had told us of People's but we still hadn't found it.

After we got back out to the sales area in front, Patricia rang up our litter purchase. Well, that's too easy a description. She entered a lot of keystrokes into the computer, asked my name and what town we lived in, and printed out three sheets of paper. After shuffling them into order, she proceeded to stamp each sheet with it's own stamp in large capital letters: "CUSTOMER COPY", in red - "OFFICE COPY", and "WAREHOUSE COPY". Then, she stamped each sheet with another stamp that had the company name and "PAID" on it. She initialled each of these stamps. Then, each sheet was stamped with a red stamp that said: "S C Ltd. CASH SALE". She then stapled the three sheets together, handed them to me and directed me to go over the the glassed-in Cashier's booth to pay for our purchase.

At the Cashier's booth, I handed the young uniformed lady my three copies. She made several ledger entries, a couple of computer entries and took my money. After filling out a receipt form, which said they had received $26.99BZ from me, and stapling this form to the original three, she gave me my change... and, the four forms, all neatly stapled together.

We picked up our big box of litter, and saying goodbye to everyone who had helped us, we went back out to our Isuzu. I couldn't help but wonder later, just how bad we had screwed things up at Santiago Castillo since we had the warehouse, office, and customer copies of the invoice, and the receipt. It was amazing how much bureaucracy there is just in a simple kitty litter purchase.

We cruised on to the southern edge of Orange Walk still looking for breakfast. At last we found a restaurant, the Sit and Dine Restaurant, where we had a nice two-egg breakfast.

After breakfast, we headed back into town, circling around the square, where we finally found the People's Store. After parking, we went in and did some shopping for laundry detergent, a wedding gift, etc., in short, the usual. As we finished loading our purchases into the Isuzu, my cell phone rang.

It was Roy Pascascio, of Roy and Son Trucking, saying he had most of our boxes and was planning to deliver them to us later in the afternoon. Hoo Haw! Our stuff was going to arrive from the states! Yippie!!!

After that, we headed back toward Corozal Town with a bit more focus than we would have normally.

Arriving at the house, we unloaded the vehicle, and I decided since it was around 12:30 PM, that I probably should get some 2x4's to put down on the floor of Tony's meat shop, so we could store our stuff and not have to worry about getting water in it from seepage under the door.

I called the lumberyard, appropriately named "the Lumba Yaad" asked if they closed for lunch - they did till 1 PM, and if I could get some 6' 2x4's - I could, so I headed into Corozal to do that.

I wasn't exactly sure where the Lumba Yaad actually was located, and figured I'd use the time before 1PM to find them. I did, at about 5 till.

Of course, this being Belize, I waited till about 1:15 PM, and still no one showed to reopen the Lumba Yaad, I decided to head to the Post Office, to mail a refund check from Comcast to our bank in Olympia (It cost $0.60BZ), to check the mail at our and Tony's mailbox, get some cash to pay for the lumba, and stop at the Doctor's to have him look at my finger, which had decided to look like I had whacked it with a hammer (I hadn't, but that didn't seem to bother the finger - it was doing its thing), and get back to pick up the wood.

I did the post office thing, cruised by the Doctor's office (at Evergreen Pharmacy) - they were closed till 3 PM, so that was a bust, got cash and made it back to the Lumba Yaad by about 1:40 PM. They had reopened and I got my lumba. 12 - 6' dimensional 2"x4" pieces of mahogany. Can you believe it? These things weigh a ton and are full 2" x 4" cut. The twelve pieces cost me $84BZ. I had envisioned just leaving the wood for Tony to use in his smoker after we moved our stored items to our own house. But with that quality wood and the cost - no way! I'm keeping it.

I got back to the house about 2:15 PM. I had to drive with the tail down and the spare tire carrier opened, so I drove all the way back with the emergency flashers flashing, for all the good that would have done. I put the wood on the floor in Tony's meat house and went to wait for Roy to show up.

A little later, Paul came over. Plying him with beer (we had to twist his arm) he told us he had actually gotten his boat into the water and it ran - all good signs. He was planning a trip over to the far side of the Cerros Peninsula to visit Donna and Enrique's resort and we were invited. Not sure what day that was going to happen yet, but soon.

Paul stayed till about 6:20 PM, still no Roy. I called Roy on his cell phone a couple of times to check his progress. He had been delayed by very heavy rain down in Belize City and was heading our way.

Roy and his crew arrived about 7:45 PM. I met them out on the highway. He was concerned that his truck (about a 24' single axle job) would get bogged down. I assured him the soil was solid enough to support whatever he had and he came in.

Backing up to the meat house, Roy and his crew off-loaded all 88 pieces. Some boxes looked a little dented, but overall, everything looked to be in good condition. Keep your fingers crossed. After thanking Roy profusely, they left to head into Corozal, and we went in the house, showered and

More Strange Fruit

Late yesterday afternoon, Rosie (Cody's wife) came over to visit. She had brought us several mamie apples and a new fruit to us - about a gallon of Craboo. Craboo (Byrsonima crassifolia HK), goes by at least 30 different names throughout Central America. It's known as craboo here in Belize and is a popular fruit, loved by children and adults. It's a smallish berry, about 1/2-inch in diameter, a dull yellow in color, and has a fair amount of flesh surrounding a small seed pit.

I think Rosie thinks we either don't eat enough or we don't eat the right foods, because she brings us enough fruit each time to feed a large family. Or maybe she knows we're appreciative of her showing us some of the many fruits

One of the recipes I downloaded says it has an offensive odor... Either my sniffer is broken (a possibility) or they had a different variety than the one we have. Ours really is odor-neutral. the craboo fruit is used in rice dishes, soups, tamales, and as preserves It's also very popular just eaten as it comes from the bush or tree, or mashed and mixed with evaporated milk as a desert.

Craboo can also be made into a shake and can also be made into a desert stew.

Craboo dishes can also be purchased if you're visiting San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, at Anotjitos Letty's on Pescador Drive.

Rosie also brought along one of her brothers (she has 6 brothers and 3 sisters) from Mexico. He lives in the village of Cocoyal, roughly across the border from Orange Walk. His nickname is "Coach". I've forgotten his given name (a terrible habit of mine). Rosie had Coach help her haul all the fruit from another sister's farm on the far side of Ranchito to our place and then back to her and Cody's house.

He's over here in Belize for a niece's wedding next Saturday evening. Rosie invited Dianna to attend. That will be an interesting and fun experience. Dianna's promised to take lots of photos and write up the event here.

Un-Pimp My Ride

This last Friday I decided to do some errands. I needed to refill a couple of medications (prescription drugs to you folks in the States). Here, I think just about everything is OTC.

I also needed to pay my first visit to Dr. Allen, a new arrival here in Corozal. He's a US doctor, here for two years (I'm guessing on some sort of mission or fellowship or something). He's established an office (more like a broom closet) in the Evergreen Pharmacy - our favorite pharmacy. Dianna and all the ladies think he's the best thing since sliced bread. I'm not sure if that speaks to his medical abilities or what. I needed to see Dr. Allen because a mosquito bite on my right ankle had become infected and my foot was beginning to puff up - not bad yet, but I didn't want to take any more chances than I needed to.

I also wanted to get a couple of new newspapers next door to Evergreen, and had some groceries on my list, so a stop at New World Market was in order as well.

On the way into town, I took the First Avenue way, as that goes alongside the bay. It just makes for a nice, refreshing ride to see all that Caribbean blue as you cruise. Along the way, near the Thunderbolt ferry landing, there's a whole flock of pelicans that hang out there that I had been meaning to shoot (with my camera).

Luck was with me. They were in, so I stopped along the quayside and took a snap of them. It's not a very good shot, but it'll have to do till I can get down there with the good camera and lenses and shoot more. In the distance you can see the Thunderbolt pier. There's also a pelican that usually roosts on a wooden pier stump. You can't see him in this shot - he's to the far left and on this morning, looked like an appendage of the stump, so I left him out.

The Fleet at Anchor

After that I zoomed on to the Evergreen Pharmacy. I got into town about ten-till-eight in the morning and Evergreen doesn't open till eight-thirty. The little store next door was open, so I went in, purchased a copy of the Independent Reformer (one of the anti-PUP papers) - it was the only new paper they had.

I went from the pharmacy over to Al's Restaurant and ordered a cup of coffee and a small bottle of water. I sat at one of the two sidewalk tables they have, and had a leisurely half hour of reading the paper and enjoying my coffee.

At about 8:35 AM, I paid up at Al's, mounted up and rode over to the pharmacy. Not opened. I went into the newsstand and asked the vendor if he knew if they usually showed up close to on time. He kind of shrugged his shoulders and said they usually showed up by nine or so.

I was just getting on the scooter again to head back to Al's when the news vendor hollered to me that they were just now arriving. I looked across the street, and sure enough, the three girls that work at the pharmacy were getting out of a car - a good sign.

After watching them open the roll-up metal shutter (hurricane and theft prevention), I got my replacement drugs with no problem and asked if Dr. Allen would be in. Catherine, the Pharmacist, said that he usually came in about nine. As I was finishing bagging up my drugs, in walked Dr. Allen.

Medical treatment in third world countries is not really a private affair. I sat on a chair in the store, he wrote in his book on the display counter, asked me questions about my visit, age, problems, etc., did some examination of my swollen ankle, then asked my to step into his office.

Now, you really have to see this to believe it. His office is just to the left of the pharmacy main door. It's about 3' x 6'. It has a very tiny table top that serves as a desk, with a folding wooden chair. There's a padded patient's chair right next to the desk and crammed in is a 3' examination table, oh, and a wall-mounted fan and fluorescent light hung from the ceiling. The walls of his office go up about eight feet.

He had me sit in the patient's chair and prop my foot up on the desk chair. He leaned over the examination table to look at my ankle. If it was any more cramped, we'd have had to have been very good friends.

the Evergreen Pharmacy

So, he poked and prodded, then had me come back out into the store area because there was more room. After he finally decided my ankle was infected and that I wasn't having an allergic reaction, he went back into the pharmacy to order some antibiotic medicine for me.

As he came out and was telling me how often to take the tablets, he said "Oh, here's my nurse." He proceeded to introduce us. I missed her name entirely as she kind of put me off when she said I should cut off my ankle bands (the red and green, port and starboard turks head knots I have on each ankle). I told her I'd had them for three or four years and they were staying. Probably not the best start for either of us. And besides, she drives a Hummer - first and only one I've actually seen down here. An unnecessary and ostentatious display of wealth and conspicuous consumption. So there.

Anyway, my business was done with Dr. Allen, so I packed and paid the doctor ($20BZ for his office call, and $23BZ for the antibiotic) and went out to the scooter. I fired it up and was just ready to head out into traffic to go to New World and back home, when it died.

I tried several times to re-start it to no avail. It cranked fine, but no fire. I called Canadian Bob and Brit Paul for any advice or tips. They both agreed it sounded like an electrical problem... I agreed. I thought it might be spark plug or wire.

Dr. Allen even came out a couple of times to see if he could help. He admitted what he knew about mechanical things was minuscule, but at least he made the offer.

I called Dianna to let her know I was going to be a while before I got home. She said Cody was at the house and might be able to help, and put him on the phone.

I explained to Cody, and asked him to come into town with his van, thinking that we'd be able to put it in the back and haul it home.

When Cody arrived, I realized we'd never get the scooter into his van - it has all the seats. What to do, what to do...

Cody suggested taking it to the lawn mower repair shop he takes his and Tony's mowers to. I was reluctant as Bob and Paul both swear the only scooter wrench worth anything is San Sing, A Chinese mechanic in Orange Walk, about an hour away from Corozal.

With no other options, I said ok. I'll push it over to the mower shop and leave it with them, and Cody will give me a ride home.

I left it at the mower shop with the assurance they would either call or it would be ready by two PM.

At 2:30 PM, I had Cody drive me back down there (having neglected to get their phone number, and of course, they're not in the phone book). It wasn't ready. The store owner told me his mechanic was at lunch... What? It was supposed to be ready. Oh, that's right. This is Belize. Chill, chill. So, I said I'd check back in the morning - this morning, Saturday.

This morning, bright and early, about 9 AM, I strolled into the store. I could tell just looking at it, that it wasn't done. No mechanic in yet either. The owner did show me an electrical part near the battery, that he said the mechanic had told him was the culprit. I looked at it and disconnected it from the scooter. I told him I would go to Orange Walk to see if San Sing had the part and would be back.

Driving the Rodeo, I decided I needed Paul or Bob to go with me, if possible, since they knew where San Sing was located. I managed to get Bob to agree to go. Paul was putting his boat into the water today (with a possible trip to the far side of the Cerros peninsula tomorrow, which Paul invited us to go on with him).

We did try calling San Sing before we trekked over to Orange Walk, but naturally, Digicell, the pre-paid cellular provider here in Belize, was not cooperating. Their network was on the fritz, so we couldn't connect to their network. It's Belize, Mon.

I stopped to let Dianna know we were going on a road trip. Bob and I made it to Orange Walk in about 45 minutes, and wouldn't you know it, San Sing was closed today. Guess what I'm doing Monday morning?

Anyway, it wasn't a total bust. Bob showed me a store called the Boundary Store, where they sell all manner of used stuff - household items, clothing, bits and bobs of just about everything. I bought a gray metal file box for our file folders.

After that, we stopped at the Orange Walk Market Place, and had 12 small picante chicken taco roll-ups and two glasses of mango juice. This was for $6BZ - that's $3US apiece for lunch!

So, we headed back to Corozal. Later in the afternoon, I got a call from the mower shop owner. He said the mechanic had taken a similar part from another scooter and mine started right up. I told him I would see San Sing first thing Monday and would be back down to his place right after that.

That's where things stand. I feel alot better about leaving it at the mower shop since they were actually able to trouble-shoot the problem. As the owner said, their biggest problem for everything is the unavailability of parts here in Corozal. I agree. Anyway, I'll have it solved Monday morning - if San Sing is open.

House Plans Changed

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you may remember that earlier we had posted plans for the "big, concrete" house...

Well, this isn't that. We had worked on a set of plans for the small wooden Mennonite house. We even built a model of it. It's not much to look at - the hip roof is built out of scrap foam-core so we could save some sheets for future models (good thing too - we used 'em).

First Mennonite House Model - With Roof On

This model was built to 1/4-inch scale, that is, 1/4-inch equals one-foot in real life. This scale doesn't leave much for you to work with. It was OK for the initial glimpse, but wasn't really suitable for true "doll-housing" as Dianna likes to call it. Really getting down and scoping things out through the windows, etc.

First Mennonite House Model - With Roof Off, Showing Interior

Using that first model, we spent a lot of time looking at it, at other plans on the Internet, and at a couple of books loaned to us by Canadian Bob. And, after much discussion drawing, sketching, scribbling, gnashing of teeth, wringing of hands, and generally peeing and moaning, we've come up with a new design.

I have to be truthful - it was Dianna who came up with the idea. I took her sketch and did the below drawing, and both of us worked on the model.

The software we used for this project is some new software we downloaded, called "SmartDraw 2007" (http://www.smartdraw.com). It's not cheap (around $200 - don't tell Dianna), but it's extremely easy to use and produces very nice drawings. It's great for all sorts of other things as well, such as wiring diagrams, certificates, etc.

Mennonite House Plan Revision

Here's the model of the revised plans we built - took us about two days to do it. It's built to 1/2-inch scale.

1/2" Scale Model of the House

For those that have known us for a while, we had built a similar model before, for the house we built on Rogers in Olympia (Sandy and Owen's house now). It really came in handy for us and the contractor to be able to show what we wanted, to view how things would look through windows, traffic flow, etc. It's also a lot of fun to build. Now all we have to do is get the real McCoy built.

The Battle Has Been Joined

Since we first inhabited this pristine area, we had sighted the enemy's scouts only occasionally. Usually we were able to see them first, pop them and move on. It seemed they had only light support, so we assumed their main force was some distance away. An assumption that was to hit us squarely in the kitchen cabinets this morning.

They attacked en mass (in what has come to be known as the Battle of the Cabinets) and reduced our forces (including the vaunted feline commandos) to total disarray for a quite a while. Our camp was completely overrun, but enough of us managed to regroup to begin drawer to drawer mopping up operations later in the morning.

With Commandante Edna leading a small group of determined defenders, we took back one drawer and one cabinet after the other. The enemy losses were appalling - they seemed willing to send their troops into the firefight with little or no regard to their personal safety.

Some of the Slain Enemy

Our main battle group located their beachhead, a "cabinethead" if you will... centrally located near an outlet for major pipelines into and out of the central kitchen nerve center - a tightly packed high-rise affair used by our forces as a major logistical and supply center, as well as a major refurbishment center where equipment is cleaned, repaired and stored for the next operation.

To secure the cabinethead, our valiant forces had to foray far afield to a major urban supply center to secure enough natural and chemical deterrent so our crack combat engineers could begin the arduous process of denying the enemy their easy entry to the battle area.

After much toil and the occasional brisk "crash" of weapons and other materials slamming into the enemy's bodies, we were able to permanently secure the cabinethead, thus ensuring a bright future for us and our kind.

Permanently Secured

Oh, we know there will be other battles and skirmishes in this ongoing war, but we are determined that victory shall be ours! Our battle cry rings loud and clear - "Quick, hand me the Baygone!" - The little bastards are back!

This 'N That

This is another bit of a grab bag... It seems that I have to do this every once in a while. I guess it helps get loose ends tied up and in order, somehow.

Anyway, just so you can see that we do have modern conveniences here, the shot below is Dianna doing laundry out in our (Tony's) laundry/yard tool shed. There is a top-loading washer that does a fairly good job.

Dianna Doing Laundry in the Laundry Shed

We use a solar-powered clothes dryer - lines and clothes pins. The common perception is that electricity costs too much here to use it for such tasks. I'm not sure if that's true or if it's just frugality at work.

Dianna Hanging Laundry Under the Palapa

Anyway, our clothes lines are now under the palapa - makes for a nice shady area to hang washing up in, but it also gets a nice breeze, that helps dry the wash quickly.

Had an interesting thing happen this afternoon while Anthony, Cody' brother was visiting. He'd brought some cigarettes for Dianna. We were all sitting on the porch when Tanya all of a sudden started barking emphatically at something. I couldn't see anything.

Dianna suddenly hollered "There's a snake!"

Sure enough, just in front of the Isuzu, there was about an 18" snake crawling leisurely along. Tanya was still acting excited about it. I grabbed the machete that we keep by the front door (just for such things) and headed out to look at it.

I nudged it with the machete and got a look at the head, which was kind of broad and arrow-shaped. An old but unreliable indicator of a snake being poisonous. It had a diamond scale pattern, well-defined running down its back with dark background and lighter diamonds. I didn't see any rattles on the end, but it did appear to have a stub tail.

I asked Anthony if it was a bad snake - he was still on the porch and wasn't coming any closer. He said it was a bad one. I had no way at the time to deal with the snake, no loop stick or forked stick or anything but the machete. And Tanya was still trying to get to the snake.

So I executed it by chopping its head off. I opened the mouth with the tip of the machete and could see two short fangs. I scooped the head and the body and pitched them over the fence to keep Tanya away and so some of the local wildlife will dispose of the remains.

Later I looked on line for snakes of Belize. It seemed quite obvious to me that the snake was a Fer-de-Lance or Tommy Goff. The most poisonous snake in Belize. But, I read, that even if you do get bit, you have a fair chance of not getting "envenomated" as they said, or maybe just getting a slight dose. however, after getting bit, it's imperative to seek medical help. Just last year a guy up in Xaibe was bit by a Fer-de-Lance, didn't seek medical help and died. Keep that in the back of your mind.

I didn't feel good about despatching the snake - he wasn't threatening us. Tanya was the only being at the time that was in danger from the snake. But, I had no other way to deal with it in the near term. I will try to be more respectful in the future.

Under the palapa, we never fail to find wildlife - seems they also appreciate the shade. Below is a bright green, grasshoppery-sort of thing. I have no idea what it is. That will have to wait till I get my Belize wildlife book down here.

Green Thing

We have had a new crop of young Jesus Lizards - they seem to be running all over the palapa area outside - maybe that was what the snake was going for.

This little guy cooperated quite well in allowing me to approach and take his photo. He's about two or three inches long in the body, so you can see his tail is easily twice that length. And are they fast!

Tiny Jesus Lizard Watching Me

We had a good Barracuda dinner again, fixed by Dianna. There was enough for us to eat our fill, for the kitties to get as much as they wanted, and for Tanya to have plenty to accompany her evening bowl of kibble. And, there's still some left over for lunch tomorrow.

Elusive B.E. L. and Others Finally Located

Ah, the wonders of modern navigation and correct directions... It never ceases to amaze me. Finally, after several days searching for the local Corozal Town office of Belize Electric, Ltd. (BEL), I found it - and re-found the local Belikin distributor - Bowen and Bowen, and the local armory? camp? compound? of the Belize Defense Forces (BDF). I say re-found, because when we first arrived here, Greg of Belize North Real Estate, took me up there to get a case of beer. I hadn't been able to find it since.

BEL was a bit more difficult. I didn't notice it on my first trip through there. And this morning, it wasn't any easier. Finally, I stopped adjacent to a really faded sign anging on a fence across from the Belikin bottler. If you really squinted you could almost make out that years ago, it may have said Belize Electric, Ltd.

I needed to find BEL to restart the process of getting a transformer installed near our property so we can actually have juice at the new house. I had a response letter from BEL to Craig and Mae, the previous owners, but it was over a year old, so the prices were out of date. I now have to wait for a Mr. Rosado to rework the numbers and get back to me so we can get that ball re-rolling.

I was also interested in confirming where the Belikin bottler was because we've been saving bottle caps from Coke in the assumption that a program they had some time back either is in effect or might be for the Christmas holidays. That is, for every 6 bottle caps for Coke you turn in along with $1.00BZ, you get a nice heavy Coke glass. We've got enough bottle caps for about a case of glasses. Not that we drink Coke that much, but our grounds keeper, Cody, goes through two or three a day. It mounts up.

I wanted to find the Belize Defense Forces base because eventually, I want to see if I can acquire a BDF t-shirt. I think that'd be cool. I'm also going to try to find one for the British Army Training Support Unit Belize (BATSUB) (http://www.army.mod.uk/batsub/index.html), located down at Price Barracks in Ladyville, just outside of Belize City. That'd be cool, too.

My take on Country Club

Okay, I've had it with Yin's (Dave's) dialog. It's time for Yang's viewpoint. That's me, Dianna. I know many of you are saying it's about time. But I have been busy (yawn). Anyway, I just wAnted to give you my slant on today's visit to the Xiabe Country Club. First off, the only thing clubby about it was the name. The ride to it was on a very bumpy road, my ass is sore from the hellholes and the dog attacked my sandal like it was a chew toy!

When we finally found the place the only thing good was the pool, but did we bring out suits - nooooo, so we watched the kids swim - again. I have yet to step a foot into water except for the puddles we run into full of rain water.

When we got our meal, we had to take one hand to eat and the other to fight off flies. They won! The "restaurant" was a huge open area with plywood decor, along with plastic outdoor chairs that you find growing in fields, I swear! The food was being cooked on a barbeque under the palapa and all the smoke did nothing to keep the wildlife (flies) away.

The food was cheap though, which only makes it seem worthwhile. I am telling you all this so that if you come here you won't be swayed by Yin's take on Belize. Just need to give everyone a dose of reality.

But, actually it is really cool here and I wouldn't trade it for the world - maybe a cold shower but not for the world!

La-De-Da - We've Been Out to the Country Club

Today, Dianna and I took a scooter ride out to the Xaibe (pronounced "shy-bay") Golf and Country Club for lunch. Actually, it was our second attempt to get there. The first trip got us quickly back into Corozal.

Xaibe, one of the many villages here in Belize, has a little over 1200 people. It was founded by Mayan immigrants from Mexico during the Yucatan Caste Wars. It means, more or less, "cross-roads".

Signs... Who needs 'em.

As Tim, the owner of the Club said, "The easiest way for us to get there is to turn left at the big tree." Sure. But, some sort of indicators would sure be nice. One tree looks fairly similar to another unless you're parked right next to it, then, yes, it does look like a big tree. Not exceptionally big, but big nonetheless.

Anyway, on our second attempt, we found it. Nice place too. Good sized pool, full of frolicking kids, ice-cold Belikin beer, and good food. We had the barbeque'd chicken.

On leaving, we went the way Tim suggested, and when we got to the "big tree", we turned the wrong way, which was ok, it just took us back into Corozal before we headed home.

It did make for an interesting afternoon's cruise. We ran into a bad dog on the way out there. He came after us like he really meant business. Dianna told me after we got to Xaibe that he had actually nibbled on her foot without breaking the skin.

The Xaibe Golf and Country Club is actually somewhat of a misnomer. It has the clubhouse, complete with restaurant and bar, but is shy (no pun, etc.) the golf course. Tim said the course will be started possibly in January and will be nine holes to see if that's a go. If it is, the other nine will magically appear sometime down the road. But, don't hold your breath - this is Belize, after all. Tim has been working on the Country Club for about the past four years, so things percolate along at their own speed here in paradise.

The clubhouse has banquet facilities, meeting rooms, and a five-a-side soccer field. For the Corozal area, it really is a nice facility. We had an enjoyable afternoon and left with full tummies and made it back home safely. Signs would help.

Ho Hum, Ho Hum, It's a Gray Day

You ever have one of those days, where it's gray all day? It goes without saying that if you're from the Pacific Northwest, you know all about what I'm talking about. Well, believe it or not, we've had one of those down here in Paradise - I mean Belize.

It started off nice and cool and overcast. We got ready to head to town for breakfast and grocery shopping in our newly repaired Isuzu. Backed out of the driveway and motored off toward downtown Corozal.

We got to Al's, and managed to find a parking spot right in front. Not that that's a big achievement, really. Parking is never a problem in Corozal - no parking meters, no traffic lights. A place where policemen walk their beats and ride around on bicycles... Kinda like Mayberry with palm trees. You have to substitute Miss June for "Aint" Bee, though.

So, anyway, as we sat down at Al's for breakfast, it started to rain. That's usually a good sign. The sky will clear up afterward. Not today. We had a good breakfast and then ambled across the street to see what the local Corozal Farmers Supply Store had to offer. Salt licks and other necessary stuff for real farming, plus lots of hardware - tools, nails, and other things. I did buy a small home-bottled jug of Mr. Menzie's Laquer Thinner so I could clean a brush I used yesterday when I Varathaned an oak threshold I had purchased to keep rain leakage out of the living room.

We got done at Al's, and went over to the little news shop beside the Evergreen Pharmacy to get the weekly rags, the Reporter, Amandala, the Belize Times, and the Guardian. They all come out once a week. At least two of them are owned by the competing political parties and report accordingly. Yellow journalism is alive and well down here. I was amazed to find a current copy of Popular Mechanics, in a plastic slip-cover for sale alongside the papers. This is first rate. I didn't buy the magazine but was impressed that it was for sale.

As raindrops continued to sprinkle, we went on to Caribbean Chicken where we got some chicken breasts and thighs, and some yummy yogurt (strawberry fruit). After that we cruised on to D's Supermarket and blew a ton of money on dog and cat food, litter, fabric softener, etc. Of course when we came out it was still gray.

After draining the Belize Bank, we went home. It was still gray. It did drizzle a few times and stayed relatively cool (Ok, it got down to 87 degrees). Humidity came and went all day, and stayed gray.

We read our current novels, the new newspapers, laughing about the Belize City Fire Department being accused of slow response as three houses in a crowded Belize City neighborhood burned to the ground. That wasn't what was the hoot, that was sad, 4 or 5 families losing everything - the hoot was the fire department was slowed down to a 35-minute response because of their participation in a fire safety presentation elsewhere in the city! Oops.

We watched a Jim Carrey movie - not one of my favorite actors, in Me, Myself, and Irene. It was still a gray day.

As nightfall approached, we polished off the rest of the rice and beans with stew chicken that I had made the other day. We'll probably read some more this evening. We're looking forward to sunshine tomorrow, enough of this gray stuff.

Sunshine! Sunshine! Sunshine! Sunshine! Sunshine! Sunshine! Yeeeeaaaaaahh Sunshine!

Repair 'N Ride, the Sequel

Earlier I had mentioned that our Isuzu Rodeo was going to the hospital for some repairs. Well, we just got it back. All I can say is, "Wow! I'm a happy camper!"

Auto repair as I said previously is a real hit or miss proposition in Corozal and throughout Belize. Going on the recommendation of Deema Williams (of Spa Massage with Abel), I contacted Mr. Rick Magaña (no relation to Edna, our housekeeper) here in Ranchito and took the Rodeo in to him. That was on Monday. We got it back today, Friday.

Here's the list of what Rick did and costs too:

8 Rear Spring Bushings $60.00
Timing Belt $90.00
Center Shaft Bearing $95.00
Water Pump $140.00
3 Oil Seals $60.00
Engine Mount $180.00
Coolant $5.00
Total: $630.00
Labor: $365.00
Grand Total: $995.00

Keep in mind that's Belize Dollars - $995.00BZ = $497.50US.

Like I told Dianna when I got back from taking Rick back to his shop, "If I didn't know it was the same car, I'd swear it was a different vehicle."

It still needs shocks and Rick knows those are one the way in our shipped stuff. When I have him install those, he also recommended replacing the light transmission fluid with 40wt oil. Light transmission fluid is simply not up to the task down here. So, I'll have him do that as well. I might even have him install the A/C fan belt that's being shipped as well, and see if he can trouble-shoot the A/C itself. Such a deal.

Rick is a golden find down here. He's US-trained and operates in a very professional manner. I'm impressed and recommend his service to anyone.

It Costs How Much?

Cost of Stuff in Corozal, Belize

I've listed costs for a lot of things here in Corozal Town. We may not have the flash of Ambergris Caye, and life is certainly slower up here on the Bay. Lan Sluder, a writer who has produced several good, factual books on Belize (Dianna and I have used and still use them for reference), seems to imply luxury is only available on Ambergris. I don't think that's necessarily true. We have several luxury houses in town and, of course, many more up at Consejo Shores (what we refer to as Little America).

The average expat - and here, I'm referring to the many-faceted expat culture we have up here in Corozal - are not just from the US, but hail from all over - Canada, Australia, England, South Africa, Austria, and Holland are just a few of the locations that come immediately to mind, can live here minimally on perhaps a Social Security monthly income, has to watch expenditures closely, turning off fans when not absolutely needed, etc., or they may have investments that, along with retirement income, etc., allows them to live a more up-scale lifestyle. We're all over the map.

I think the so-called traditional view that “Belize is the most expensive country in Central America” is simply not true. The availability of certain goods, or lack of, is true. That is what puts Corozal Town at a convenient location. Being close to Chetumal, Mexico, (9 miles away) provides ready access to several Mexican big-box stores, a genuine Walmart (called Bodega Hererra) and Sam's Club (called Sam's Club), and a bit further afield up toward Cancun, Home Depot and Costco (a few hours away), making the local unavailability of certain items relatively easy to deal with.

What we do have is an extremely relaxed way of life here. Genuinely friendly locals that are willing to deal with you straight up. That is, if you go to the Corozal marketplace to purchase your veggies or fresh fish, the stated price is the price that everyone pays – whether a local Mayan from Ranchito (a village just on the southern edge of Corozal where we live) will pay the same price as a Canadian tourist visiting for a few weeks. In the time we have been here we have not detected the price-gouging foreigners have come to expect simply because they are foreigners and that is so popularly believed to occur everywhere.

Most expats here tend to choose a life style that is comfortable and somewhat unassuming, preferring to blend in as much as possible with the local culture as is possible for Yanks and Brits and Canucks and everyone else in the expat community to do so.

What follows is a list of representative prices for stuff in Corozal. All dollar amounts are listed in US dollars, although at 2:1, what could be an easier conversion rate?
----------------------------

• 1-kilowatt hour of current (electricity): $0.25
• 10-minute call from Corozal to Belize City: $1
• 7-minute daytime call to U.S.: $3.53
• Avocados: 6 for $1
• Baby Powder: 22 oz. $1.80
• Bananas: 20 for $1 (Free if you grow 'em)
• Beer by the case, delivery to your house: $24.38 (with an empty case to return)
• Bleach, Sno-Brite, 1 gal: $2.35
• Bottled water, delivered: $50 cents to $2.50/gallon
• Bread, Whole Wheat, Loaf: $1.00
• Broom, plastic fan-type: $4.41
• Bus from Corozal to Belize City: $5 regular or express
• Butane, 25-gallon tank, filled on site (called for delivery on Sunday – 15 minutes from call to truck showing up in driveway): $6.50
• Calamine Lotion, 120ml: $2.13
• Candle Lighter, Bic: $7.20
• Canned soup (Campbell’s Chicken Noodle): $1.15
• Cat Litter, Litter Guard – 25 lb. Bag $3.25
• Cat Litter, Fresh Step Crystals – 4 lb Bag $11.80
• Cereal: $5
• Chicken: $1 per pound
• Cigarettes (Independence Belize brand): $2.63 a pack
• Coffee (Belize, Gallon Jug brand): $6.50 per pound
• Coke, Coke Lite (Diet Coke) and bottled water delivery are also available. $12.50
• Construction of reinforced concrete home: $40-60 per sq. ft.
• Cotton Swabs 400 Ct: $1.25
• Cookies, McVitties Digestive Ginger Nuts, 200 g: $1.90
• Crackers (Premium Saltines): $3.32
• Diphenhydramine Expectorant: $3.63
• DSL Internet access: $50 to $200 a month
• Eggs, 1 dz. $1.20 dz; 5 for $0.25 Brown eggs only, white are illegal.
• Electrical service for 1000 KW monthly: $210
• File Folders, Manila, 10 ct.: $1.20
• Garbage pick-up: $10 a month (they come to collect the bill)
• Lawn Mower Repair, Briggs & Stratton: $12.50
• Lean ground beef: $1.50 per pound
• Linguine, Mueller's, 18 oz: $2.21
• Liquid Plumber, 80 oz: $8.51
• Lobster dinner: $22
• M & M's Minis: 1.08 oz: $0.59
• Motorcycle Helmet, Small, Adjustable: $26.51
• Motorcycle Helmet, Large, Heavy Duty: $46.76
• Movie DVD (pirated): $4 – 7.00
• Muriatex Muriatic Acid, 1 Lt: $1.95
• Music CD (pirated): $5
• Napkins, Delsey, 125 ct: $0.63
• Off Aerosol, 9 oz: $7.96
• Office visit, private physician: $10
• One-way airfare from Corozal to Philip P. Goldson International Airport, Belize City: $21.10
• Onions: $0.40 per pound
• Peanuts, Salted 12 oz: $2.07
• Pizza, Corozal Town: $12 delivered
• Pork chops: $2 per pound
• Post Office Box Rental, 1 yr: $32.50
• Potatoes: $0.50 per pound
• Red beans: $0.60 per pound
• Residential lot with bay view in Corozal: $36,000
• Rice and Beans with Chicken or fish at local restaurant: $2.50
• Rum, liter (Belize One Barrel brand): $6.82
• Rum (Belize One Barrel brand) drink at bar: $1.50 to $2.50
• Secret Deodorant, 1.6 0z: $4.98
• Shampoo, Local Caprice Brand 900 ml: $2.50
• Syrup, Aunt Jemima, 12 oz: $2.54
• Taxi within Corozal Town: $2.50
• Taxi, Cancun to Corozal Town: $400.00 (5.5 hr trip)
• Toothpaste, Aquafresh, 50 ml: $0.90
• Tomato Sauce, Med. Can: $0.78
• Tomatoes, Local 1 lb: $1.00
• Tomatoes, Imported from Mexico 1 lb: $2.50
• Trash Bags, Glad 13 gal/22 ct: $6.01

Bileez Kriol Stew Chicken

Today we begin cooking Belize-style. We're starting with a simple recipe called "Bileez Kriol Stew Chicken", or just "stew chicken."

"yu kyaahn travl pahn emti stomak."

So, to get in the proper mind-set for handling this recipe, you need to at least know what Kriol is. The saying in bold above is Kriol for literally, "You cannot travel on an empty stomach."
The Creole (or Kriol as is really proper here in Belize) came about from the interaction of British (mostly Scottish) Baymen with African slave women as mistresses and common-law wives. Many of these women were later freed. Any resulting children became free people of color. This mixture of European and African slaves created the Creole population and the Kriol language developed as a mix of West African languages, modified via Jamaica, and English of the Baymen. You can learn more about Kriol at The Kriol Council of Belize website (http://www.kriol.org.bz/).

Having introduced you to Kriol, Stew Chicken, the way it's done here, is not strictly a Kriol dish. It uses as a primary spice, something called "recardo" - red recado (achiote paste) is a mix of annatto/achiote seeds (Achiote is the seed of the Annatto plant, also known as the "lipstick tree"), cumin, cloves and other spices. We get ours from Peter and Julia, our favorite vendors at the Corozal market. It's also available locally from Caribbean Chicken. La Perla (http://www.delmayab.com), is a California company specializing in Mexican spices, sells recardo - achiote (recado rojo) in powder or blocks, online.

So, there is a strong Mayan/Yucatan/Mexican influence going on here - which is in keeping with the melting pot nature of Belize.

In any case, everyone here knows stew chicken and likes it - especially accompanied by rice and beans (usually asked for in restaurants as "rice and beans with stew chicken", or stew pork or beef, or whatever.

On to the recipe... This one is a mix of three or four that I found online. As near as I can tell, this is in keeping with Belize tradition - everyone has their own twist on the recipe - a pinch of this, a dash of that, so that it becomes individualized, but maintains the central essence of the dish.

Ingredients:

• 1 large stewing chicken, cut up at least into four parts
• 6 limes for juicing (I quarter the limes and crush them using a heavy water glass in a small pot)
  
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 sweet pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 1/2 balls of red recardo (about 1 1/2 tablespoon, more or less)
• Salt, if desired
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2-4 cloves of garlic
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 cup cooking oil
• 2-3 tablespoon vinegar
• Several cups water

Squeezing the limes

The observant chef will see I'm not using the red juicer above. We found it after I was almost done juicing the limes my way.

Getting ready to wash the chicken with lime juice and water

Instructions:

• Cut chicken into pieces and wash with lime juice and water. Discard liquid when done.
• Mix recardo with vinegar, salt, pressed garlic, peppers, soy sauce, onion, and water. Add chicken and marinate as desired.
• Heat oil in frying pan until oil is hot. Add sugar and let it brown.
• Brown each piece of chicken and put in another pot (I use a crock pot).
• After adding all the chicken pieces, pour the spice marinade mix into the pot with the chicken.
• Add water to cover.
• Cook till the chicken falls off the bone.

Serve with rice and beans.

Note: Fried plantain makes a great addition.

Stew Chicken - Ready to Eat

All that's needed now is rice and beans and a few pieces of chicken on top. Garnish with the plantain. Ummm Mmmm, Good!

Just a quick update... We ate some last night with rice and beans, all made in the traditional manner. All I can say is it was really good. I forgot to take photos of the plates, brimming with rice and beans and stew chicken - Maybe tonight's dinner will be photographed.

Also, that pot above gave us two or three large containers of stew chicken and gravy that we froze for future use as well.

Repair N Ride

We get to ride our scooter but at the expense of repairing the Isuzu...

It's a good news, bad news thing. Our Isuzu Rodeo, the "shockless wonder" you might say, has some other problems as well. Such as, a bad water pump, front bearings that are shot, motor mounts that are gone, rear spring mounts that are broken... I think that's about everything.

We have found what has been recommended to us as a reliable mechanic by three separate people - a local guy named Rick, who is supposed to be a US-trained mechanic. When I met him yesterday, he seemed quite professional, spoke very good English, and, his workshop, which is at his house, seems quite clean, organized and professional. That's compared to most auto repair places down here that seem to do it either alongside the road or actually in the road. Something to behold.

Anyway, after dropping Elsie (our house guest for the past month) off at the Corozal airstrip - she's going diving for a few days down at San Pedro, then up to Cozumel for a few more days diving, then flying home to Calgary, Canada, I ran on up to Rick's house.

His place is about a half-mile up the Northern Highway from our house, so, after dropping Elsie off, I was at his place in a couple of minutes.

Rick and I went for a test drive as he took me back home driving the Isuzu. The Isuzu behaved as it should have, displaying all its symptoms for him, instead of purring like a kitten. We also heard a new two-toned humming sound (bearings failing). Anyway, he got a good understanding of just what's wrong.

After Rick dropped me off, Dianna and I headed off on our first scooter road trip into Corozal, both of us wearing our cool new helmets. It was a real kick. We went to

• Immigration - to get our monthly tourist visa renewal (we have to do that for the next year to get our residency),
• Dianna wanted to stop and see her doctor ($20BZ for an office visit with Dr. Allen - a US-trained doctor, really a nice guy),
• check mail at the post office (junk mail being forwarded down here by the USPS),
• mailing the hotel key back to the Hotel Mopan in Belize City ($0.50BZ),
• paying our monthly tourist visa fee of $100BZ at the Treasurer's office,
• back to Immigration to show them the Treasurer's receipt so they would stamp our passports, and
• riding back home. Whew!

What fun. We're going out again today on the scooter. It is fun, fun, fun! Dangerous but fun.

Bright Lights, Big City

We finally made it all the way down to Belize City, or just "Belize" as the locals say it.

The day started with a nice breakfast at Mrs. June's, who had been on vacation in the States for the past two or three weeks. She told us about going shopping in the States - not for clothes, but restaurant tools and accessories. It's nice to see her back and in business again. We missed her.

After finishing breakfast, we drove down to Belize on the Northern Highway. It was so nice to run on a paved road with no potholes, just dodging the occasional sugar cane truck and remembering to slow down (and I mean SLOW DOWN) for speed bumps.

As we were approaching Belize, we came up behind a large pickup truck fully laden with cinder blocks and towing a trailer also loaded with blocks. As we passed them, Dianna hollered that it was Franz (our contractor for the Mennonite house) driving the truck. We waved like crazy and kept on going.

We had talked earlier in the week with Franz about meeting him in Belize at Benny's (more later) since he was working on some new office spaces next to the Radisson Fort George Hotel, in Belize.

After a couple of hours, we got into the outskirts of Belize. Our first mission was to stop at Brodie's - the first US-style store we've seen here. Complete with paved and marked parking lot - of course, many people still couldn't quite master the art of parking between the lines, managing a sort of willy-nilly attempt all the way down the line.

Brodie's sells cat litter - one of those every-day products in the States that seem near impossible to find down here. They have it. We bought 75 pounds of dry litter - three huge bags, and two smaller bags of a new (to us anyway) crystal absorption-type litter. The dry litter (Litter Guard) was selling for $7.50BZ for a 25 lb. bag, and the crystal stuff (Fresh Step) was selling for $23.59BZ per bag. The crystals are supposed to last five times as long as the other... We'll see.

Our next task was to find Duke's Marine, which we did, just a little bit further down the highway. We pulled in and one of Duke's employees laughed at us because we pulled so far into their yard that we had to drive back toward the store, that he had pointed out to us.

Of course, we still didn't understand the directions and overshot it the other way. After parking, he pointed up some stairs to get to the actual store. He still found our ineptitude hilarious. It certainly would have been easier if they'd had a bit larger sign pointing up the stairs... but, who's complaining?

Anyway, we stopped at Duke's to get twenty snaps for British Paul for his boat. Turns out, there's single or double snaps - depending on your fabric thickness. We tried calling Paul on the cell phones, but couldn't get through. Oh well, we decided to bag it and try at the hotel to contact him and maybe make the purchase on the way back to Corozal.

So, we headed back out onto the road to Belize. Thank God I've had a few weeks of experience driving in Corozal. I couldn't imagine being a tourist, fresh off the plane and picking up a rental car to head into Belize City. Narrow streets, pot holes, crazy drivers, crazy bicyclists and motorcyclists, crazy pedestrians, crazy dogs, and traffic signs that may or may not indicate anything, all create an interesting driving experience, to say the least. We did see the first stop lights we've seen since moving here - exciting.

After cruising around downtown for a bit - lost, of course (we wanted to be on the west side of the river and we weren't) we finally found a bridge (not the famous Swing Bridge) to get us across and to the Hotel Mopan. The hotel is a nice, quiet, inexpensive hotel in the southwest side of the city. From there, we walked to Bird's Island for lunch.

Sign on the Way to Bird's Island

Bird's Island seems to be sort of a small, island used as a cultural, educational, and recreational center for tourists and schools. We walked into the island area surrounded by a bunch of kids from the State's who were going to the island for something official connected with their visit. Just not sure what that was.

There's an outdoor restaurant there, with cans of Off strategically placed for patrons use. There were a few mosquitoes there. The place was surrounded by several large pools of stagnant
water. But, we had a good lunch anyway.

During lunch, we managed to call Paul and figured out what size snaps he needed. We'd handle that when we left Belize.

After lunch, we strolled into downtown Belize. Approaching the Haulover Creek, which bisects the town, we were struck by the similarity of the downtown waterfront of Belize with the Carenage of St. George's, Grenada.

Colorful Caribbean Colors Show Off the Belize Waterfront

As we walked up the river toward the Swing Bridge, we passed the local fishing fleet, anchored in the creek and making a picturesque view of the waterway.

Belize Fishing Fleet at Anchor

I'm not sure how boats on the inside would get out, maybe it's not an issue if they all leave about the same time.

More of the Fleet

After a few more minutes we came to the Swing Bridge - so-called, because it swivels from the center, to open up the channel to boats. Different that the Northwest, it only opens once or twice a day for boats - no blowing your horn and having the bridge open up to allow your boat to head on its way. You just line up and wait.

The Famous Haulover Creek Swing Bridge

Nothing ever seems crowded when you're right in the middle of it. the picture below with Dianna looks like she's got the entire bridge to herself.

Dianna Dancing on the Swing Bridge

Thursday evening, we strolled into town, near the Radisson Fort George Hotel, to the Smokey Mermaid, located in the Great House, for a delicious supper. On the way there, we were accosted by a persistent street "guide" who called himself "Prince Charles" and for the longest time, refused to take "no thanks" for an answer. We finally managed to dislodge ourselves from the Prince and were able to continue on to the Smokey Mermaid in peace.

When we finished our meal, it was well after dark, so we took a taxi back to our hotel. It is a big city, after all, with the usual night creatures.

Ok, I couldn't resist one more shot of the fishing fleet. These may look like recreational sailboats, but most of them are actual, working boats. These are the boats used for Belize's fishing industry. Might not be large, but boy, does the fish ever taste good (speaking of which, Cody brought us another Barracuda from his fishermen friends right before we headed down to Belize City).

At the Head of the Fleet

Back at the hotel, Friday morning we enjoyed coffee on one of three of the Hotel Mopan's balconies - one for each floor. An added bonus was this old safe used as part of the balcony decorations.

Hotel Mopan Balcony Decorations

Here's a closeup of the safe. I know Don and Owen will enjoy this. I know nothing about it other than the location.

Closeup of the Mopan Safe

Another decorating touch there were several large coffee urns, used as planters. Probably burnt out and re-purposed into serving as planters. Man, they must have gone through some coffee - there were at least four or five coffee urn planters around the hotel.

After an enjoyable breakfast at the hotel, we strolled the opposite direction toward downtown and Benny's - a housewares and building supplies store downtown. We drifted around in their first floor area thinking that this wasn't quite what we had in mind - a few items displayed, but mostly counters for sales staff to write up tickets, and large shelves in the background. Not conducive to figuring out what sinks and tile you wanted in your house.

Finally, we saw a door with a sign above it saying Showroom upstairs. That was what we were looking for. Sinks, toilets, tile, lights, faucets, counters and more on display.

Franz finally found us and we began serious household shopping. We picked out a toilet and bathroom sink - all white, and tile for the shower, bathroom, and laundry room. After about two hours, we were done. It was time to return to the Mopan and check out.

We said goodbye to Franz, checked out of the hotel and then tried to find a Harley dealer that Elsie had remembered seeing on our way in. We wanted to buy Dianna a helmet for the scooter. We never did find the Harley dealer, but we did find a scooter dealer... naturally, with a bunch of helmets, all too large for Dianna. So we headed out of town, stopping at Duke's again to pick up Paul's snaps.

We decided to head over to Orange Walk on our return to Corozal. There was supposed to be a good-sized motorcycle shop located there.

Pulling into Orange Walk, we were hungry. But not as hungry as the mountain of fried rice, shrimp, and veggies we got at a little Chinese restaurant in Orange Walk. It was enough for lunch, supper back home, and a lunch again.

Checking out the motorcycle shop, it turned out they only had one helmet (too large) and that with a messed up face-guard.

We tried Landy's, the big hardware store in town. They sell scooters as well. No go. Why would you sell motorcycles and not helmets?

We decided a last-ditch effort would be to try Courts, kind of a discount appliance and housewares chain throughout Belize, specializing also in financing same - they also sell scooters. Well, low and behold, they had a helmet too! Of course, getting someone to show it to us was hard. We were about ready to leave when one of the sales people finally came to help.

The helmet fit well, but it's face guard had a bit of a scratch on it off to the side. The manager decided we could have it for a 10% discount. So, Dianna finally got a helmet for $50BZ. Half the price of the one I got in Corozal.

After scoring the brain bucket, we zoomed off to home. As we opened the door, Miss Blue was upset with us again... the kitties had run out of food and she was letting us know she was unhappy.