Saturday, April 16, 2011

Easter is coming!

Easter greetings from Belize! We’re in the middle of the dry season…no measurable rain in months…and some of the plants and animals aren’t very happy. Some of the animals have become scarce, while others seem to have made a special appearance, probably looking for water. The parrots must be on vacation as they are not as prevalent as they had been. We miss them swarming to and from “work” everyday. Rick was fortunate enough to see an Agouti at our gate one afternoon. It’s a small, Belizean rodent, fairly rare in this part of the country, so he felt pretty lucky. On one of their morning walks, Dee and Linda encountered a large king snake slithering into the cane fields. The half they saw was about 3 feet long and 2 ½ inches in diameter. Since then Linda carries a large walking stick for just such encounters. We had our second batch of baby fish born on our reef…seeing the specks of babies swimming in and out of the rocks is very rewarding. Our free-range chickens are now laying 6 eggs everyday with the orangest yolks we have ever seen! Very tasty!

We had to turn the a/c on for a couple of days in the last month (heat index was 114 one day), but now it has returned to 80’s/60’s. Our favorite time of day continues to be 4pm happy hour/backgammon on the beach. Linda has become a master and Rick has had to completely change his style of play to have any chance of victory. He found some barely adequate Belizean Gin and some fantastic large stuffed Spanish olives for his occasional martini…shaken, not stirred.

We decided to dive into Belizean culture last month by visiting some of the medical community. Linda had her annual physical with labs. Everything looks great, except her elbow tendinitis continues to be an issue. Cost was less than $80 USD for everything! Rick had a dental exam and cleaning…only $35 USD total. Linda’s still trying to get up the nerve to get to the dentist…his office was busy when she attempted and she was too hungry to wait!

Rick went to our favorite butcher in town a couple of weeks ago looking for a specific cut of meat (for Pok Chuk…a Mayan version of pork fajitas). The butcher didn’t know what Rick was talking about, so he flipped around the pig that was lying on the front counter of the shop, handed him the knife and told him to show him what he meant. Rick proceeded to teach him how to butcher a pig. The Pok Chuk results were outrageous if anyone wants the recipe!

Linda has given up on homemade sourdough bread…it either was sour and wouldn’t rise or not sour and rose fine. The whole wheat bread will have to do for now. Today Rick tried his hand at shrimp ceviche. He went out to the garden and picked fresh cilantro, tomatoes, habenero, serrano and jalepeno chilis, mixed it up with onion and lime juice and it was scrumptious. The garden is also producing lettuce, carrots, chives, sweet basil, broccoli, cantaloupes and zucchini.

We closed on our house in Arizona at the end of March…the process was a little difficult being so far away, but with our realtor and Janessa’s help, we succeeded. We’re glad that we have one less thing to worry about!

Ed and Dee bought a pedal boat last weekend. Rick and Ed added a sun canopy and now Dee and Linda are pedaling around the lagoon every morning at 0630. OMG…it’s a lot harder than it looks! It’s also fun and a great way to view the early morning scenery.

We’ve been keeping our eyes open for a good deal on a boat and this week the opportunity arose to fulfill our needs. We purchased a 24ft pontoon boat, trailer and motor to putter around the lagoon. It holds 10-12 people and will be perfect for dominos, poker or other festivities. We’ll post some photos once the deal is finalized and we have the boat in the water. While the same guy was cleaning out his garage he also found a generator which will come in very handy as a back-up during those frequent power outages, especially during hurricane season.

Linda continues to keep busy with puzzles, latch hook, reading, baking, sunning and an occasional trip to the casino with the girls. Last couple of times she’s even come home a winner! Rick and Ed enjoy an occasional fishing trip on the lagoon, but last month they were lucky enough to make an overnight trip to Bacala Chico with some Belizean friends. They caught hundreds of fish, drank to their hearts content and got a hell of a sunburn. We posted pictures with last month’s blog, but forgot to mention the details in the blog. They’re hoping to repeat the trip as soon as time permits.

Easter is a huge holiday here in Belize. Family and friends gather and celebrate from Thursday through Monday. We can already feel/sense the festive atmosphere. Hopefully you are all in the spirit of Easter, too. Jesus Lives! : )

Guess that covers things for now. Livin’ and lovin’ life in Belize. Stay tuned!