Bella Checks Out Bill Gates' Yacht

The "Sea Dream"

Jane and Tom and I walked over to Hotel Corona Del Mar to visit with Marjorie who has been the bartender at Coconuts (now owned by Corona) for over 25 years. We began talking with a couple who had just arrived from Providence Island, an island off the coast of Rhode Island, on their boat, the "Havs Dröm,"  Swedish for Sea Dream. The lady, Ann Marie (rhymes with John Marie) told us they had begun their trip to Belize on November 1st. I don't know how long it takes to sail from Rhode Island to Belize, but that seems to be a pretty long time to me. I noticed they weren't talking to each other very much. 

The "Sea Symphony"

A little later, Tom and I walked over to check out the "Sea Symphony," a really cool houseboat/party boat used by the good folks at Discovery Expeditions to take people out partying, snorkeling, diving, and snuba-ing. "Snuba" is right there between snorkeling and scuba diving. The air tanks are kept on board, and the guests can dive down to 20 feet without having a lot of equipment on their backs. Very, very cool.


One of the guides, Juan, told us they were just cleaning up from a party the night before with 40 people on board enjoying their high school reunion. Later, we looked in the Discovery Expeditions brochure and saw that the Sea Symphony has "seating for 18-22 people." Hmmm. Juan said they were out until one in the morning, so I guess everyone had fun. Check out that party area on the upper deck!

The "Attessa IV"

About 20 minutes later, we were talking to one of the guys at Belize Yacht Club. He pointed out to sea where we saw Bill Gates' super yacht, the Attessa IV, anchored just off the reef in front of our house. (Two years ago, a huge yacht anchored ON the reef causing damage to the coral. A stiff fine was levied for that infraction.) 330 feet long,  Attessa IV is the 23rd largest private yacht in the world, and has an estimated price tag of over $250 million. (I've checked into having our class reunion this year on the Attessa, but Bill hasn't gotten back with us yet.) You should see that yacht lit up at night. It is very, very impressive. And, yes, that is a helicopter on the stern. That cost extra.

Bill and Melinda's Living Room

You may care to add this interior picture of the yacht, shamelessly copied from CharterWorld.com, to your dream list. But you really just have to come to San Pedro to live the dream. It seems as though everybody does, sooner or later!

Shelley and Jane fly, not by helicopter, to Belize City tomorrow morning so Shelley can have more x-rays taken at the clinic there and see the orthopedic surgeon. Oh, yes, and refill a few prescriptions. Tom and I will probably nap, play "catch-up", and revel in our solitude.

By the way, some of you have been grousing that "Bella in Belize" is not always posted precisely at the same time each day. Hey, folks, this is serious research, not some kind of cookie-cutter hack job. Ease up a little!

From the No-Political-Correctness-Here Department:  
We were talking to a lovely friend on the island who had just gotten back from a visit to Immigration. (Personally, I am up to date on all my shots and don't have to make these monthly visa-extensions treks.) She arrived at the office at 11:45am and was told she would have to come back since they were closed. Pointing at the sign on the wall, she said, "But you don't close until noon for lunch. Are you really going to make me walk back home, then come back here again?" The Immigration Officer replied, "I said leave now, lady. Besides, you could stand to walk some more. Maybe you'll lose a few pounds." Our friend, quite thin and elegant-looking, was furious. To make things worse, when her husband called the Central Office in Belize City to complain about the way she was treated, he was asked, "Well, is she heavy?" My, my, my, my, my!

Watching for Bill Gates

Y'all come visit. We'll keep our eyes out for the rich and famous, and maybe keep an eye out on our figures. We wouldn't want to get fat and have to walk it off, would we? You're gonna love Belize!