The small island off the coast of Belize is exactly what we needed. Colorful. Laidback. Easy. We couldn’t have picked a better spot to coast into our journey. Caye Caulker, in its present form, exists to serve travelers and we are glad for it.
The island is touristy but in a subdued kind of way. The dirt roads (and they’re all dirt roads) are lined with restaurants, bars, guest houses and dive shops. As a traveler, it has most everything you want, and none of what you don’t.
It’s dark in the hull of the water taxi. The light spilling through a small opening that serves as a door isn’t quite blinding. I can clearly make out turquoise water, although the spray kicked up by powerful boat engines does its best to obscure my view. Through the light, beyond the spray, and far over the water I can make out the silhouette of a large cruise ship.
My thoughts flash to what it must be like aboard: lavish buffets of familiar foods, theaters playing Hollywood films, spiffily dressed attendents ready to meet your every need with fluent English. No muss, no fuss; daily excursions whisk passengers to the mainland and back again. Everything is neat and tidy and perfectly organized.
Turning away from the water I look around at the motley crew of backpackers who are squeezed together in the small boat. There is the twenty-something couple from Australia making good progress on their around the world trip, a lone 40-year-old Canadian woman heading for some beach time before doing volunteer work in Guatemala, a family of three; independent travelers all.
Food shacks in Belize City, and site of our first meal in-country
The bright colors of Belize City are dulled with age and the buildings show clear signs of neglect. Dogs and bicycles and cars jostle for position with no obvious adherence to any traffic laws. We hear a mixture of rustling palm trees and Creole conversation. Touts pester us as we pass. We’re not in Kansas anymore and it is wonderful.
So often we talk about travel only in terms of seeing and doing. We completely forget about being. There’s something invigorating about being someplace different; really different.
Everywhere Once 