Bella Hits the High Seas

Yesterday, in honor or Taff's 40th birthday, seven guys and I set sail on the good ship "No Rush"! (Although I was the only female, I was allowed to attend solely as a journalist observer.) Making up for the estrogen imbalance which occurred  when "the girls" visited last week, testosterone ruled on this adventure. It was "guys' night out" on steroids. 

Captain Steve

First, "the crew."  Captain Steve and First Mate Roy (aka Reggae) are very serious about showing their guests a good time. They navigated, cooked, gave plenty of information, and even hosted a spirited game of dominoes. And if you think dominoes is a docile childhood game, think again.

Next, "the guys." The first three, Jock from Scotland, Kevin from England, and Taff (rhymes with cough) from Wales have known each other for a lot of years and have been on "No Rush" before. Added to the "United Kingdom" mix was Richard from Ireland, a pilot getting in a ton of commercial hours flying with Tropic Air. (Think about this: the Scots, English, Welsh, and Irish have been fighting each other for centuries, yet these guys were having the time of their life together. There's a lesson in there somewhere.)

"Reggae" cutting conch.

Three Americans were also on board: Orion from Southern California (a diver who has been coming to Belize since he was five years old), Jason from Colorado (whom I've told you about previously), and, of course,Tom. (Unlike Tom, Orion has the ability to hold his breath for 5 1/2 minutes and free dive to 90 feet.)

Taff holding lunch.

We sailed (that's real sailing, not motoring) for about an hour and a half to the south of Ambergris Caye, then stopped for swimming, snorkeling, and fishing. There was plenty of beer on board plus the ever-present rum punch. A highlight for me occurred when Richard yelled to Tom from the boat that there was a shark swimming next to him. Tom laughed good-naturedly until he saw the shark, then started swimming quite a bit faster back to the boat then you would have thought possible! Oh, sure, nurse sharks are harmless. Right. Let's see how you like having one three feet away. 

Me, trying to fit in.

After we anchored, Steve and Orion went diving for conch, the principle ingredient of the ceviche that Reggae later prepared with chips and pineapple slices. Then came the freshly-caught snapper, fried potatoes and onions, and rice and beans. Add a few Belikins and you have a man's meal! Yarrr! Those boys ate like kings. By the way, those fish were big!

Next, we were off to the reef to watch (key word: watch) the big sharks. The sharks, who have played this game before, swam alongside eating the chum and our leftovers. They were happy, and we were happy. Peace and love to all. We sailed back to Ambergris Caye arriving about 4:30pm. After a few more drinks at the dockside bar, we headed home, exhausted and happy. Tom was asleep by six o'clock. What a day.

Softball Team Victory Parade

Now, for you sports buffs, please take note that the San Pedro High School Boys' softball team were named the Belize 2012′s National High School Softball Competition champions. According to the San Pedro Sun, it’s an historic win for SPHS, who, for the first time ever, have won their first national championship in any sporting discipline. One contributing factor, I think, was the San Pedro pitcher beaning four St. John's players in the third inning! Soft balls ain't that soft, boys!

Sunrise in front of our house this morning.

Y'all come visit. We'll sail on a catamaran and eat fresh conch ceviche, or maybe just hit the ol' softball around. You're gonna love Belize!