Of course, our transport from Cristo Rey to the ferry dock arrived on time. Likewise, the ferry to Caye Caulker was organized and on time. Our luggage was taken from us at the entrance to the dock in exchange for a luggage ticket and we received it back from a store-house window upon arrival to Caye Caulker. However, I couldn’t find the baggage slip and they didn’t want to return our bags to me without it. I had to give them my name and prove that the luggage was mine. I was frustrated at my own stupidity but impressed at their adherence to a system set up for the security of their passengers.
Imagine this: A tiny tropical island upon which is a small town, a kilometer and a half long and three hundred metres wide. No cars, swaying palm trees and reggae music on every corner. Heaven. No, I’ve used that one for the hammock in the jungle. Paradise.
We had an overnight on Caye Caulker before embarking on a 3 day catamaran cruise down the coast and after four days of jungles, caves and Mayan ruins, we were happy to be staying by the water.
There are two main tourist islands close to Belize city, which apparently has zero tourist attractions other than the zoo on its outskirts.
The largest caye and one of Belize’s principal tourist hubs is Ambergris Caye, which is full of resorts, loud music, parties and spring breakers. Caye Caulker is far more laid back. Accommodation is mostly bungalows and cabins, the only motorized transport are golf buggies and the island’s motto is “go slow”. The beachfront boardwalk is lined with coconut palms, restaurants serve great local food, primarily seafood caught that day and the locals speak Kriol, or Belizean Creole. It is apparently broken English, but it must be really broken because I couldn’t understand a word of it. This is the closest thing I could imagine to a tropical paradise. With one caveat. The beaches are infested with sargassum weed which is both ugly and smells like rotting garbage. So you have a tropical paradise where you can’t actually go into the water. Interesting concept. Most people use Caye Caulker as a base for day excursions which might include snorkeling the coral reef, diving the Blue Hole, or swimming with sharks, dolphins and rays. Others come for four or five days to totally chill out, where even going into the water, if it was possible, would expend too much energy. To be honest, I could see myself lounging here for a few days, where the only decision I needed to make was to choose between conch ceviche or fresh fish, washed down by either a margarita or a beer. In any case, it seems pretty successful in attracting tourists and preserving its laid back Caribbean lifestyle. It might seem like a risk banning resorts and cars in order to preserve the laid back culture, but it seems to work. I guess the smelly sargassum weed just isn’t such a big issue. But it does stink!
So what did we do? Walked the town’s dusty streets, drank margaritas and beer, watched the sun set from the porch of the Sunset Pelican Bar whilst eating fresh seafood and enjoyed the tropical vibe.
