the day to day "adventures in belize" have settled into more of a routine. cooking, cleaning, laundry (drying clothes the natural way...on the clothesline...can you believe it, mom?), walks, swimming in the lagoon and shopping in orange walk town 30 minutes down the gravel/dirt road for everything from milk (in a box) to paint, tile, faucets and lighting for the new house. the weather has been hot and humid and we even had our first thunderstorm the other night!
dee and ed continue to be wonderful hosts. since the guest house has only a gas burner and refrigerator, dee continues to provide us with delicious dinners every night, often followed by cards or dominoes (depending on how tired Ed is after his day of supervising construction). speaking of construction, the power house is almost complete, the guest house slab has been poured and the plumbing connected to the septic tank, and they have started on the block for the house. things are coming together much faster than i anticipated. after hearing some of the horror stories from others building here, we were cautiously optimistic. it appears we made a good decision on the location and builder for our dream, tropical vacation home.
we continue to put together the requirements for the QRP incentive program and will be returning to belize city sometime later this week to submit the paperwork. bank of america screwed up and deleted janessa from our safe deposit box contract, so jason had to fly to phoenix this past weekend to collect copies of certificates that are required (thanks for trying, janessa and thanks for successful completion, jason!)
gracies puppies turned 3 weeks old yesterday, are growing like weeds and are developing their own individual personalities. their eyes opened last week and they are teetering around on tiny legs that can barely hold their chunky bodies :) gracie is a wonderful mother, but enjoys being able to return to her routine also. she patrols the property at night for security, swims in the lagoon and chases the birds who invade her territory. Ed and Dee have convinced us to avoid the lagoon after dark because of crocodiles...according to them, gracie has had several encounters with the crocs and has only been successful in these encounters because she thought it was playtime. she pulled the intruders out of the lagoon by their tails and then ran around them barking and encouraging them to wrestle. gracie is no worse for the wear. yesterday afternoon while we were up at the construction site, we heard shotgun fire from a property well south of us. the work crew told us that there must have been a croc intruder during daylight hours...now maybe dinner?
we continue to document our progress with photos and will be updating those soon. thanks for following our "adventures" and stay tuned!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
construction begins!
Thursday and Friday we spent ironing out the details on the house and playing dominos and cards. On Saturday we received some troubling news about the people selling us the land and building the house (Ed and Dee). After hours of investigation and an in-depth discussion, we determined that the news was incorrect and we decided to proceed with the plans.
For Easter Sunday we were invited to a party at the home of the vice prime ministers brother, just down the road. When we arrived we discovered the main party had been on Saturday, but today the "left-over" party continued. We were welcomed with open arms and spent the next two hours talking with the brothers/family and eating (tamales)/drinking (corona). People here are soooo friendly! When we left their house we found out that they would still be at this weekend home tomorrow, so we invited them to come see our new piece of heaven! Afterwards, we spent the evening playing dominos (Mexican Train).
On Monday the first bull-dozer was delivered and then Rick and Ed drove Jim (the owner and operator) back to his home in Copper Bank. He will return tomorrow morning to start construction. When the guys arrived back home, who arrived by boat but the brothers and more family that we had invited over yesterday (with their cooler). They had already been drinking most of the day and were feeling no pain, except for sunburn! They loved our property and spent a couple of hours laughing and sharing with us again. When they left we had dinner and shared our DVD of Jeff Dunham with Ed and Dee. They really liked Walter!
Tuesday construction began and proceeded quickly. The land was cleared for the guest house and main house and the plans were finalized. Ed was so tired he fell asleep right after dinner, so we made an early night of it too.
Wednesday we drove to Belize City to start the process of applying for the QRP (Qualified Retired Persons Incentive Program) and to have the long-awaited car part exchanged in our car. The explanation meeting for the QRP didn’t take as long as we had anticipated and our car would take longer than anticipated, so we walked around downtown for a little while, had a breakfast sandwich in a little café, caught up on the internet and then took a cab to our favorite Belize City restaurant (Riverside Tavern) for lunch. From there we walked back to the Toyota dealership and waited for the service to be completed. From there we did a little grocery shopping before returning home to Progresso Shores. Whew…long day (we left at 0630 and got home around 4p). Will probably be an early evening tonight too!
Thursday was a quiet day for Linda spent around the house. Rick drove back to Belize City to pick up Scott (Ed’s business partner) at the airport. The rest of the day was uneventful.
Friday we drove into Orange Walk to meet with our new Dr, Ricardo Fabro. He did a routine check up and some labs so that he could certify our health for the QRP program. We went to the internet store to see if we could figure out what was wrong with our connection (she said she fixed it), then to get our passports copied for the QRP application, did some window shopping for furniture and appliances and finally some groceries before heading home for lunch. Quiet afternoon and then a game of Mexican train dominoes with Ed, Dee, Scott and his girlfriend, Chrissy before bed.
Saturday was another quiet day in preparation for the big poker game on Sunday. Boy is it hot and humid today! One thing we did determine was that the Smart gal didn’t really fix the internet connection, she simply convinced Linda that she had done so. We’ll have to check with Ed and Scott about what to do…
Sunday the poker game started around noon and we played through the day until about 7:30p. There were ten of us at the peak of the game (Rick and I, Dee and Ed, Scott and Chrissy, Chrissy’s mom, Nancy and Paul, Joe and Janelle (from Corozal). We only lost about $20 between Rick and me…not too bad for my first official poker game! Everyone got along great and immediately made us feel like part of the group. Fun times and good food/drink! What could be better?
Monday morning construction resumed early…they poured the slab for the guest house and started on the well construction! Things sure do move quickly with Ed in charge! We're keeping a day to day photo update of the progress, so check out the pix if you're interested!
For Easter Sunday we were invited to a party at the home of the vice prime ministers brother, just down the road. When we arrived we discovered the main party had been on Saturday, but today the "left-over" party continued. We were welcomed with open arms and spent the next two hours talking with the brothers/family and eating (tamales)/drinking (corona). People here are soooo friendly! When we left their house we found out that they would still be at this weekend home tomorrow, so we invited them to come see our new piece of heaven! Afterwards, we spent the evening playing dominos (Mexican Train).
On Monday the first bull-dozer was delivered and then Rick and Ed drove Jim (the owner and operator) back to his home in Copper Bank. He will return tomorrow morning to start construction. When the guys arrived back home, who arrived by boat but the brothers and more family that we had invited over yesterday (with their cooler). They had already been drinking most of the day and were feeling no pain, except for sunburn! They loved our property and spent a couple of hours laughing and sharing with us again. When they left we had dinner and shared our DVD of Jeff Dunham with Ed and Dee. They really liked Walter!
Tuesday construction began and proceeded quickly. The land was cleared for the guest house and main house and the plans were finalized. Ed was so tired he fell asleep right after dinner, so we made an early night of it too.
Wednesday we drove to Belize City to start the process of applying for the QRP (Qualified Retired Persons Incentive Program) and to have the long-awaited car part exchanged in our car. The explanation meeting for the QRP didn’t take as long as we had anticipated and our car would take longer than anticipated, so we walked around downtown for a little while, had a breakfast sandwich in a little café, caught up on the internet and then took a cab to our favorite Belize City restaurant (Riverside Tavern) for lunch. From there we walked back to the Toyota dealership and waited for the service to be completed. From there we did a little grocery shopping before returning home to Progresso Shores. Whew…long day (we left at 0630 and got home around 4p). Will probably be an early evening tonight too!
Thursday was a quiet day for Linda spent around the house. Rick drove back to Belize City to pick up Scott (Ed’s business partner) at the airport. The rest of the day was uneventful.
Friday we drove into Orange Walk to meet with our new Dr, Ricardo Fabro. He did a routine check up and some labs so that he could certify our health for the QRP program. We went to the internet store to see if we could figure out what was wrong with our connection (she said she fixed it), then to get our passports copied for the QRP application, did some window shopping for furniture and appliances and finally some groceries before heading home for lunch. Quiet afternoon and then a game of Mexican train dominoes with Ed, Dee, Scott and his girlfriend, Chrissy before bed.
Saturday was another quiet day in preparation for the big poker game on Sunday. Boy is it hot and humid today! One thing we did determine was that the Smart gal didn’t really fix the internet connection, she simply convinced Linda that she had done so. We’ll have to check with Ed and Scott about what to do…
Sunday the poker game started around noon and we played through the day until about 7:30p. There were ten of us at the peak of the game (Rick and I, Dee and Ed, Scott and Chrissy, Chrissy’s mom, Nancy and Paul, Joe and Janelle (from Corozal). We only lost about $20 between Rick and me…not too bad for my first official poker game! Everyone got along great and immediately made us feel like part of the group. Fun times and good food/drink! What could be better?
Monday morning construction resumed early…they poured the slab for the guest house and started on the well construction! Things sure do move quickly with Ed in charge! We're keeping a day to day photo update of the progress, so check out the pix if you're interested!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
decisions, decisions...
Tuesday we spent the day walking around Corozal. It’s a mostly Spanish-speaking town and the roads are very busy with cars, trucks, bicycles and pedestrians. We had breakfast at Al’s Café, pizza for lunch and dinner at “Patty’s Bistro”. None of them particularly fantastic, but all acceptable. We continued our discussions about what we had learned so far about the country (after 5 full weeks) and where we might like to settle down. We also drew up some housing plans for if/when we make any decisions. Overall a pretty quiet day.
Wednesday we packed up, finished up on the internet and visited with Las Palmas owner, Charles, for one last time. We also met a couple from Canada who are doing the same thing that we are (journeying throughout the country to see where the best “fit” is). They have chosen the northern end of the country, but have not yet purchased any property. After leaving the hotel we went to the pastry shop down the street for breakfast of cinnamon rolls (fantastic) and juice. Rick also had to try the Johnny cakes (kind of like a McMuffin, but the dough is corn-based and his had only cheese in the middle). We then headed out of town in search of Santa Rita, another Mayan Ruin supposedly right on the edge of town. Instead we found the Belikin/Coca Cola distributing warehouse and exchanged our empty bottles for full ones. The guys there gave us directions to the ruin, but we still weren’t having any luck. We stopped another gentleman coming out of a business and he offered to show us to the site in person. We followed him for less than a mile and, sure enough, there it was. He told us about the small site (the birthplace of the Mestizo’s) and then left us to explore. From there we left Corozal en route to Copper Bank to the southeast. After a couple of hours on bumpy, dirt roads and a ferry ride, we arrived at Cerros Beach Resort outside of Copper Bank. We met Jenny and Bill, the owners, who fixed us lunch and showed us around. Their cabanas were beautiful and right on the beach, but no access to the internet. After a couple of hours we returned to the dirt roads and ferry rides (x2) and headed for Sarteneja. The journey took us about 2 hours and brought us to the quaint little fishing village on the coast of the turquoise Caribbean Sea (Corozal Bay). We found lodging at Fernando’s Guest House, unpacked (once again!) and settled on the front porch to enjoy the view and breeze. No WiFi in the house, but Fernando’s sister/nephew have an internet café a couple of blocks down the lane. We headed down there about 515p, ordered dinner and caught up on the internet. By 7p our food was still not ready and the bugs were biting, so we asked if the food could be packaged “to go”. Instead they offered to bring it to our room when it was ready. 30-45 minutes later it arrived and was incredible. Rick had lobster and Linda had fish…well worth the wait. We played some cards (Rick won) and then off to bed.
Thursday we headed back to the internet café for internet and breakfast and then back to the room to await the arrival of Fernando Jr. who was going to show us some available property in the village. Several nice lots were available for a great price, but only one close enough to the water to even be considered. We don’t think Sarteneja is the place for us…a bit too far off the beaten path, right in line for damage if a hurricane came to visit and too small of a village to easily fit in as a gringo. We found another restaurant in town, Chez Didi, and split an order of lasagna with salad for lunch. Then we headed off in search of Warrey Bight since we had been told there was a great white sand beach there. After 90 minutes of bumpy, hot dirt road, we found the sea, but no white sand beach. The ride gave Linda severe indigestion, so instead of continuing the search, we headed back to our room. Linda took a nap while Rick sat on the patio smoking a cigar and admiring the view. We then walked to the end of a nearby pier and watched the kids playing in the bay, enjoying the breeze until sunset over the water. From there we headed back to Chez Didi for the steak dinner Rick had prearranged with her while we were there for lunch. Linda’s stomach still wasn’t back to normal, so she just had a sandwich, but Rick enjoyed his steak dinner and arranged to have another steak with eggs for breakfast in the morning. More cards after dinner, then off to bed.
Friday we started out with another round of packing, followed by breakfast at Didi’s and then another road trip. We left Sarteneja and journeyed for a few hours back to Orange Walk for a BBQ’d chicken lunch and fill up of gas. From there, back to Progresso Shores to iron out a decision about the land that Ed and Dee have available for purchase. We visited some of their friends, Phil and Linda, to get an estimate on an apartment rental for if/when we purchased, to live in while a house was being built. Phil was busy building his home on his large piece of land, but took a break to answer some of our questions and show us his rentals (gorgeous!). From there we ended our journey back at Ed and Dee’s and when we arrived we again fell in love with the view, the surroundings and the company. They again welcomed us into their home (air conditioned this time because of the excessive heat, thank God), offered us drinks and we continued our discussions where we left off on Monday. Dinner, drinks and conversation throughout the evening and then we were set up in the guest house for a comfortable nights rest.
Saturday we spent the morning in continued discussion about intentions. Phil and Linda stopped by in their pontoon boat around noon and took us for a ride in the lagoon. It was a beautiful, sunny day and the ride was incredible. The rest of the day was spent visiting between the six of us, defining options for a move and clarifying legalities. Good times!
Sunday we headed over to the Catholic Church early hoping to get lucky again with Mass times, but found out that they don’t have an early Mass, instead celebrating at noon. We joined up with Ed and Dee again and picked up where we left off on Saturday. Mid-afternoon they had visitors, the primary earth mover in the country (and many of his family members) and the country’s minister of security (the head of all the country’s security issues). We all ate, drank and visited all afternoon (the kids playing all day in the lagoon) and managed to end the day with the security ministers business card and well-wishes. Chicken Marsalis for dinner (yummy) during which we announced our final decision…lot #2, a new home (to be built by Ed) and a fully furnished 40 ft. RV (for us to live in while the house is being built and then for use as a guest house until the guest house can be built) now belong to Mr. and Mrs. Richard Ludka. We celebrated the announcement with a game of dominoes and then went to bed.
Monday we spent the day ironing out more details, swimming in the lagoon and preparing for a trip into Orange Walk tomorrow for shopping, legalities and lunch. Rick and Ed drove into the village and while there met the village policeman, Omar. He covers the villages within a 50 square mile area and gets around on a bicycle. If you need him quickly in a distant village, you have to go and pick him up! When they got home from the village, Ed found that their dog, Gracie, had started labor and given birth to her first puppy. Labor continued throughout the day and by the time we went to bed she had given birth to six more puppies. Rick fixed a pot roast for dinner and there was a game or two of dominos thrown in throughout the day for good measure.
Tuesday we all drove into Orange Walk in Ed’s truck and from 0830-1530 ran errands…setting up the internet, bank, shopping (groceries, TV, supplies), meeting the Dr. and pharmacist and having lunch. By the time we got home we were all exhausted, but Linda decided to unpack our purchases and set up housekeeping. Dinner was delicious again and then early to bed after some TV.
Wednesday we spent on the internet and phone trying to get a wire transfer for the down-payment of our purchase. The electricity went off so we were dependent on battery for the computer. Per the BofA website, we found out that large transfers are not allowed without a special pass that has to be mailed to the address on the account. We also learned that we can’t make 800 calls from our cell phone in Belize, so we had to crank up the generator to get Ed and Dee’s house phone to work. After about 30 minutes on the phone (at who knows how much/minute), we determined there was no way to make this work without flying home or waiting for the pass to come in the mail. After hours of deliberation and maximum effort on everyone’s part, we were able to solve the issue with family support (thanks Bob and mom). It was a rough day, so we decided a game of dominoes would lighten the mood…ladies won! After that a game of cards (Rick won), dinner, a little TV (very little) and bed.
Wednesday we packed up, finished up on the internet and visited with Las Palmas owner, Charles, for one last time. We also met a couple from Canada who are doing the same thing that we are (journeying throughout the country to see where the best “fit” is). They have chosen the northern end of the country, but have not yet purchased any property. After leaving the hotel we went to the pastry shop down the street for breakfast of cinnamon rolls (fantastic) and juice. Rick also had to try the Johnny cakes (kind of like a McMuffin, but the dough is corn-based and his had only cheese in the middle). We then headed out of town in search of Santa Rita, another Mayan Ruin supposedly right on the edge of town. Instead we found the Belikin/Coca Cola distributing warehouse and exchanged our empty bottles for full ones. The guys there gave us directions to the ruin, but we still weren’t having any luck. We stopped another gentleman coming out of a business and he offered to show us to the site in person. We followed him for less than a mile and, sure enough, there it was. He told us about the small site (the birthplace of the Mestizo’s) and then left us to explore. From there we left Corozal en route to Copper Bank to the southeast. After a couple of hours on bumpy, dirt roads and a ferry ride, we arrived at Cerros Beach Resort outside of Copper Bank. We met Jenny and Bill, the owners, who fixed us lunch and showed us around. Their cabanas were beautiful and right on the beach, but no access to the internet. After a couple of hours we returned to the dirt roads and ferry rides (x2) and headed for Sarteneja. The journey took us about 2 hours and brought us to the quaint little fishing village on the coast of the turquoise Caribbean Sea (Corozal Bay). We found lodging at Fernando’s Guest House, unpacked (once again!) and settled on the front porch to enjoy the view and breeze. No WiFi in the house, but Fernando’s sister/nephew have an internet café a couple of blocks down the lane. We headed down there about 515p, ordered dinner and caught up on the internet. By 7p our food was still not ready and the bugs were biting, so we asked if the food could be packaged “to go”. Instead they offered to bring it to our room when it was ready. 30-45 minutes later it arrived and was incredible. Rick had lobster and Linda had fish…well worth the wait. We played some cards (Rick won) and then off to bed.
Thursday we headed back to the internet café for internet and breakfast and then back to the room to await the arrival of Fernando Jr. who was going to show us some available property in the village. Several nice lots were available for a great price, but only one close enough to the water to even be considered. We don’t think Sarteneja is the place for us…a bit too far off the beaten path, right in line for damage if a hurricane came to visit and too small of a village to easily fit in as a gringo. We found another restaurant in town, Chez Didi, and split an order of lasagna with salad for lunch. Then we headed off in search of Warrey Bight since we had been told there was a great white sand beach there. After 90 minutes of bumpy, hot dirt road, we found the sea, but no white sand beach. The ride gave Linda severe indigestion, so instead of continuing the search, we headed back to our room. Linda took a nap while Rick sat on the patio smoking a cigar and admiring the view. We then walked to the end of a nearby pier and watched the kids playing in the bay, enjoying the breeze until sunset over the water. From there we headed back to Chez Didi for the steak dinner Rick had prearranged with her while we were there for lunch. Linda’s stomach still wasn’t back to normal, so she just had a sandwich, but Rick enjoyed his steak dinner and arranged to have another steak with eggs for breakfast in the morning. More cards after dinner, then off to bed.
Friday we started out with another round of packing, followed by breakfast at Didi’s and then another road trip. We left Sarteneja and journeyed for a few hours back to Orange Walk for a BBQ’d chicken lunch and fill up of gas. From there, back to Progresso Shores to iron out a decision about the land that Ed and Dee have available for purchase. We visited some of their friends, Phil and Linda, to get an estimate on an apartment rental for if/when we purchased, to live in while a house was being built. Phil was busy building his home on his large piece of land, but took a break to answer some of our questions and show us his rentals (gorgeous!). From there we ended our journey back at Ed and Dee’s and when we arrived we again fell in love with the view, the surroundings and the company. They again welcomed us into their home (air conditioned this time because of the excessive heat, thank God), offered us drinks and we continued our discussions where we left off on Monday. Dinner, drinks and conversation throughout the evening and then we were set up in the guest house for a comfortable nights rest.
Saturday we spent the morning in continued discussion about intentions. Phil and Linda stopped by in their pontoon boat around noon and took us for a ride in the lagoon. It was a beautiful, sunny day and the ride was incredible. The rest of the day was spent visiting between the six of us, defining options for a move and clarifying legalities. Good times!
Sunday we headed over to the Catholic Church early hoping to get lucky again with Mass times, but found out that they don’t have an early Mass, instead celebrating at noon. We joined up with Ed and Dee again and picked up where we left off on Saturday. Mid-afternoon they had visitors, the primary earth mover in the country (and many of his family members) and the country’s minister of security (the head of all the country’s security issues). We all ate, drank and visited all afternoon (the kids playing all day in the lagoon) and managed to end the day with the security ministers business card and well-wishes. Chicken Marsalis for dinner (yummy) during which we announced our final decision…lot #2, a new home (to be built by Ed) and a fully furnished 40 ft. RV (for us to live in while the house is being built and then for use as a guest house until the guest house can be built) now belong to Mr. and Mrs. Richard Ludka. We celebrated the announcement with a game of dominoes and then went to bed.
Monday we spent the day ironing out more details, swimming in the lagoon and preparing for a trip into Orange Walk tomorrow for shopping, legalities and lunch. Rick and Ed drove into the village and while there met the village policeman, Omar. He covers the villages within a 50 square mile area and gets around on a bicycle. If you need him quickly in a distant village, you have to go and pick him up! When they got home from the village, Ed found that their dog, Gracie, had started labor and given birth to her first puppy. Labor continued throughout the day and by the time we went to bed she had given birth to six more puppies. Rick fixed a pot roast for dinner and there was a game or two of dominos thrown in throughout the day for good measure.
Tuesday we all drove into Orange Walk in Ed’s truck and from 0830-1530 ran errands…setting up the internet, bank, shopping (groceries, TV, supplies), meeting the Dr. and pharmacist and having lunch. By the time we got home we were all exhausted, but Linda decided to unpack our purchases and set up housekeeping. Dinner was delicious again and then early to bed after some TV.
Wednesday we spent on the internet and phone trying to get a wire transfer for the down-payment of our purchase. The electricity went off so we were dependent on battery for the computer. Per the BofA website, we found out that large transfers are not allowed without a special pass that has to be mailed to the address on the account. We also learned that we can’t make 800 calls from our cell phone in Belize, so we had to crank up the generator to get Ed and Dee’s house phone to work. After about 30 minutes on the phone (at who knows how much/minute), we determined there was no way to make this work without flying home or waiting for the pass to come in the mail. After hours of deliberation and maximum effort on everyone’s part, we were able to solve the issue with family support (thanks Bob and mom). It was a rough day, so we decided a game of dominoes would lighten the mood…ladies won! After that a game of cards (Rick won), dinner, a little TV (very little) and bed.
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