Waking Up in Belize but Going to Bed in Guatemala

 July 9, 2022

We were getting picked up at 6:45 for Tikal but were smarter today and planned for earlier just in case. Of course, they were early. My breakfast consisted of leftover pie, a meat stick and a juice box--- thanks to the man across the street. We wished Cheryl and Jeff well, thanked them for their hospitality, and hopped in the van with our backpacks. We got to the border of Guatemala and Belize and crossed it without any hiccups (we'd heard horror stories of people waiting for hours to get across only to get denied-- however these stories were from our hosts who had never actually done it themselves so who really knows) As soon as we crossed we noticed a smiling face waving at us. She introduced herself as Mariela, our Tikal guide for the day. She was friendly and fun and ushered us to the van for a girls day out. We stopped at a gas station so we could all use the toilet before our two hour drive to Tikal. While chatting with the other girls in the car, there were 3 of them, we came to find out that today was Sonja's birthday. I immediately snuck out to tell Mariela (she was sitting in the car so I knocked on the window and it scared the SHIT out of her- sorry Mariela!) Mariela made a phone call and after we got in the car we took a quick detour, made a stop, and I watched as she snuck a cake in a cooler into the back. We finally made it to Tikal, got out of the car, walked in and waited for an open back truck to take us up to the top. The ruins were HUGE. The ruins were HOT. The ruins were SO WELL PRESERVED. Kristin and I climbed up, down and around. The sun was beating down and we could feel the layers of bug spray and sunscreen mixed with sweat start to slide off our bodies. Never fear- Mariela came to the rescue. She took us on a walk under the canopy cover and told us stories of the ancient Mayans as we searched for, and found, monkeys, toucans and lizards aplenty. We climbed many, many stairs to the final ruin, which provided a viewpoint that looked out over the treetops of the jungle. It was breathtaking. Mostly because it was beautiful but also because it was a trek to get there and also a little bit because the steps were steep with no barriers on either side and one could easily just topple off to their death. BUT we didn't. 

Did you know Wrigley's gum became famous because of these ^^ trees? They're gum trees!

After spending lots of time out in the sun we went to a café where we had a delicious lunch complete with birthday cake. Sonja was so surprised and super thankful that we made her birthday so special. We then parted ways with the three other girls in our tour- they were heading back to Belize and we were staying in Guatemala. Luckily for us Sonja's husband works in Guatemala so she drove us and we got to continue chatting with her. 

Our first stop in Guatemala was a tiny island called Flores. Mariela assured us that it's very safe to walk around at any time of day, including at night. This was the place we should check out the nightlife she said. We wished her well, checked into the first accommodation of our trip with AC- woohoo! and got ready to hit the town. We showered off the layers of ruin sweat and prettied ourselves up for a night out. 

Our first stop was Skybar- it was on a rooftop and had views of the city. It wasn't nearly as crowded as Mariela had said it would be but also it was early. We ordered some nachos to share and some BIG Gallo beers. Gallo is the local beer of Guatemala. Belizeans and Guatemalans argue over whether Gallo or Belikin (the local beer of Belize) is better. Spoiler alert- Kristin and I were never hungover on Belikin so my vote is for Belikin. But more about that later...

After splitting a few liters of Gallo we chatted up some locals at the table next to us. They were super friendly and offered to take us to this "disco" we had heard about. We got there and they paid our cover to get in. Once inside we wished we had been able to communicate with them better because the looks on their faces said it all. The club was hot. The club was packed. The club had sweat dripping from the walls and ceilings. The club had smokers INSIDE. The club had old men grabbing my butt. EWWW. We ordered a bucket of gallos (of course!) to share with our new friends. The five of us agreed to dance for as long as it took us to finish our beers and then to dip. We watched as one of the locals danced while covering the top of his beer with his thumb. He motioned to the sweat dripping from the ceiling and then made an X over his beer. Gross. We definitely weren't drunk enough for this party scene. We finished our beers and headed outside to bask in the cool night air (it was still probably 75 degrees). Our friends wished us well and headed on their way. Kristin and I decided to stop by another bar that was open air, much less crowded and had a dance floor. When the bar closed we watched as locals bought beers and brought them into the street to drink near the water. Genius. We followed suit. We ended up sitting along the water with a snobby brit and his Guatemalan body guard. The brit kept trying to blow cigarette smoke in my face so I stole his pack of cigs and ripped off all his filters. Unfortunately this didn't keep him from smoking but it did piss him off enough to stop smoking in my direction. Kristin and I chatted with the 'bodyguard' for quite some time all the while trying to improve our Spanish speaking skills. More people cycled through the water front and we ended up sharing beers and chatting with tourists from France, the US, the UK and El Salvador. Some of the guys jumped in for a swim but the locals told stories of crocodiles near the pier so Kristin and I opted to keep our feet on dry land. After finishing all the beers we had purchased from the bar, and then some, Kristin and I wished our friends well and walked back to our hotel. We were ready for a good night's sleep after our long, but fun, day. 

Ziplining, Spelunking and Tubing OH MY!

 July 7, 2022

Today was the day we were going ziplining and cave tubing. I was up early so I could make it to the market before we were picked up at 830. However, when I got out of the shower Kristin said they had switched our pickup time to 8am. WOOF. I ran to the market (aka the neighbor's yard stand) to get fruit for breakfast but the woman didn't have any change so I ran to the grocery store (aka the man across the street's home), bought some juice, got change and then headed back to the market for fruit. Kristin and I scarfed down our bananas, went to the bathroom and then hopped in the van. I hoped and prayed that my banana, granola bar and juice would be enough to sustain me through the caves (no bathrooms there!) 

A nice man in a van picked us up at our gate and took us into town to a gas station where we transferred into a pickup to meet our guide 'Cisco, and another Canadian couple on their honeymoon, Sean and Michelle. We squished threesies in the back seat and settled in for the hour plus ride to our destination. Upon arrival we got suited up for ziplining. There were 6 lines in total, with the highest being 120 feet off the ground, and the longest being 1200 feet. We climbed to all of them. Each was more brilliant than the next. They took us through the jungle, over the river and out on the other side. The views were magnificent. 

After ziplining we met back up with Cisco and got ready for cave tubing, or spelunking, as I later learned cave exploration is called. We had a 50 minute walk, with our inner tubes, through the jungle to the water. I was initially dreading this, however, we were shaded by palms and other jungle trees so the temperature wasn't bad. Cisco stopped a lot to share jungle survival tips with us, some of which included: if you need protein, crack open a termite nest and eat the termites. If you are trying to keep bugs, birds and other creatures away, find a dormant termite nest and set fire to it. The flames won't catch-it will just smoke. If you have horrible diarrhea you can find this prickly purple nut. Crack it open and suck the juices and you'll be stopped up in 2-5 minutes time for 2-3 days. If you encounter a jaguar (which he has 8 times over the years), make yourself really big and make lots of noise to intimidate it. If you encounter wild boars run like hell up the nearest tree and hang on tight because they will try to bring the tree down. 😳

Once we got to the entrance of the caves Cisco encouraged us to climb the rock face and jump from it into the clear water below. I was the first to scramble up and wow did the water feel great. Cisco shared a lot of Mayan history with us, including stories of how the civilization used to make sacrifices to their gods. The ancient Mayans were experiencing a severe drought so they entered the caves to be closer to the gods in the underworld and made sacrifices. First they started with animals, but it did no good. Then they went deeper into the caves and did human blood- piercing tongues, cutting fingers and nipples to extract the blood to burn as incense to the gods. These acts still did no good. Humans decided they needed to sacrifice themselves to the gods so they were offered in 3 different ways- decapitation, broken neck or ripped out heart. You guessed it. This still did no good. Finally, in their final plea to the gods the Mayans went deeper into the caves and sacrificed their newborn babies. And of course, this did no good. Why weren't the gods helping the Mayans you ask? Because the Mayans were deforesting the jungle and when there are less plants there isn't as much water. They were doing it to themselves. Sounds familiar... doesn't it?

Entering the cave was picturesque. The four of our tubes were tied together while Cisco floated on his back while pulling us along with a rope attached to his foot. We would float for a bit, then stop at a bank, get out of our tubes and explore it. Our first bank had TONS of bats flying overhead. 

 As we continued to float Cisco entertained us with stories of history, culture, and cave exploration. We hopped in and out of our tubes and climbed up the cave walls into nooks and crannies to get better views. We turned off our headlamps and floated in total darkness. We found deep areas where we jumped out and swam far below the surface. We even swam into tiny spaces where our heads barely poked out of the water. We found one of the sacrificing areas and got to look at pottery that was over 2000 years old. WOW. After 50 minutes of walking and 5 hours of floating Kristin and I hopped out of the water and navigated our way back to the entrance because I definitely had to go to the bathroom. Once the rest of our group returned, we shared an amazing lunch of chicken, plantains and rice, cole slaw and even jungle juice. When in Belize, right? Today was  one of the best experiences I've ever had traveling.

We got back to our airbnb, exhausted from the day, and decided to head to Carm's, a local restaurant out of a lady down the street's home. It was absolutely delicious. I'm not sure what I ate, but there's a picture of it below. 

We then stopped by the "beer store" aka a side window of a man's home with two steps leading up to it. We watched anxiously as a man rode up on a moto, walked up the window, yelled something in Spanish and then magically, from the back of the house, a man appeared, opened the window, motioned to the contents of the cooler and gave the man what he requested. We immediately stepped up and got some beers from the cooler and walked back to play games and drink our belikins on the back porch. We also did laundry at the outdoor machines and OH MY GOD we saw the biggest spider of our lives.

Did I mention that at night these are the sounds we hear? Bet you can't guess what's making them.

Mayan Chocolate Might Be My Favorite Chocolate

 July 8, 2022

Kristin and I got up and walked to Carm's (a woman who makes breakfast, lunch and dinner out of her home on the side of the road) where we had DELICIOUS fresh squeezed watermelon juice. We then hopped on the local bus to San Ignacio. And when I say local I mean you can literally stand on the side of the road and flag it down and it'll stop right where you are for you to hop on. We were definitely the only tourists on this thing. Thanks to the man in the grocery store (aka his house) across the street for the tip. 

While in San Ignacio Kristin and I treated ourselves to AMAZING massages. They only had a couples massage available though so umm... sure we could be a couple? It did not disappoint. After our relaxing massage we walked up and down the main drag and decided to sit at an outdoor bar. We ordered cucumber basil mojitos and the sweet Canadian running the place sent one of the bartenders down the road to the market to get fresh basil. MMMM they were delicious and definitely worth the wait. While sipping our bevvys we met some locals who asked to take our pictures-- they were local artists who work out of a shared art space and do media, design and music. They were currently running some ads for the bar we were at but asked if we wanted to head to the space to check out some of their music. While that sounded inviting we had planned to take a chocolate tour further up the road so we wished the artists well and headed on our way. 

The 45 minute chocolate session was all about the history and culture of Mayan chocolate. The Mayans harvest the cacao beans and then turn them into a chocolately drink. We got to try grinding the beans down-- it's hard work-- and then adding the paste to hot water with honey, cinnamon and a little spice before sampling. While the drink was tasty it was HIGHLY caffeinated which I learned the hard way- I was SO revved up for the rest of the night and did not sleep a wink.

We figured why not head back to our tried and true Guava Limb and enjoy another DELICIOUS meal. Again, it did not disappoint. After our day in town we headed back to Cheryl and Jeff's where we did laundry, played some games and took cold showers to try to cool off. (Unfortunately this tactic did not work and it led to me getting up in the middle of the night, hot and sweaty, to take a second shower.)

Public Buses in Belize

 July 6, 2022

Today I woke up around 7 and leisurely read the news and worked on my blog while laying in bed. After checking out of The Guest House Inn we walked to Martha's vegan cafe and enjoyed breakfast on a terrace overlooking the ocean. We shared a spinach and cheese quiche and Martha's famous peanut butter banana nut waffles. I also had a chocolate hazelnut flavored iced tea which was delicious.  

After we walked the long trek to the 2 sites in Belize- the Belize Sign and the Lighthouse. It took us all of 5 minutes.

 For good measure, and because we had time, we walked to the end of the pier where the boats were loading up for the day. After, we headed back to The Guest House Inn to pick up our bags and lament about the fact that we weren't able to eat at 501 Hub before departing. Of course, things always take more time than we anticipate and when we got to the taxi stand our driver said he had no change so we walked to the Radisson, got change at their bar and made our way back to the taxi stand. At this point we were running on borrowed time to make it to the bus station- so much so that our driver was BEEPING at the police vehicles in front of him. We made it to the station but were told that our bus didn't have any seats left. "No worries. You can come with me" said a man's voice from behind us. 

Ummm... this sounds like the start of a horror movie. He told us that he was the bus conductor and that the bus would be picking him up right around the corner. 

Ummm... "riiiiight" because why are you not on said bus right now sir? 

The man behind the gate at the bus depot told us no, but the woman selling tickets told us yes. What were we to do? The next bus wasn't for another 30 minutes so we opted to make this a horror movie instead of a chick flick. 

We followed the bus "conductor" to the side of the road where sure as shit the bus pulled 'round for us. He put our bags under the bus and then ushered us on. The bus was PACKED and there were lots of standing passengers, but at least there was AC (initially we had been told we'd be taking an old school bus with window ventilation only!) The driver started ZOOM ZOOM ZOOMING down the roads, so much so that the locals started yelling out for him to slow down. Kristin and I were being whipped around like rag dolls and more than once I had to apologize to the people sitting in the seats near me. Eventually he slowed to an appropo pace for a bus. Finally enough passengers exited that Kristin and I got seats. There was one stop with a toilet at Belmopan so Kristin and I hopped off, paid for the toilet and by the time we exited the bathroom we caught the bus reversing out of the parking lot. We ran and waved wildly and the conductor just shook his head at us. We hopped on, found seats and just looked at one another. We almost got left on the side of the road in Belize while a bus took off with our bags 🤦‍♀️

But... we didn't.  

Needless to say we didn't exit the bus again until we reached San Ignacio. The town was cute but unfortunately the outdoor market was closing up for the day so we walked to Guava Limb, which was recommended to us by our airbnb hosts, Cheryl and Jeff. It did not disappoint. It was set in the backyard of the jungle with trees and shrubs all around. There was an outdoor pizza oven and prep station for cooking. There were so many unique, amazing looking dishes on their menu but Kristin and I decided to share the Asian noodles with peanut sauce and the eggplant rigatoni, coupled with 2 for 1 red sangria. Everything was outstanding. We were stuffed but the desserts looked too good to pass up so we got a piece of mango cheesecake and a slice of flourless chocolate cake to go. 

The restaurant called us a taxi and he told us he'd take us to Cristo Rey for 20 BZD (10 US) so we agreed. The climbing hills were outrageous and scary at times (I wasn't sure our poor little taxi was going to make it but he thought he could he thought he could he thought he could) and so he did. After gravelly roads and a detour with windows all the way down, we made it to Lucky Dreamer Lodge. Our hosts greeted us warmly and gave us an orientation to the sites, sounds and rules of the jungle in the outdoor kitchen. I appreciated their thoroughness but of course I had to go to the bathroom so I could've done without the lesson on the differences between the multiple types of toucans on the property. The banana bungalow is all ours. It has a wraparound porch with chairs, table and hammock that overlooks avocado, pineapple, and coconut trees. Inside there's a vaulted ceiling with screened windows on all sides, a luxurious bathroom and one huge king bed. While there are bugs aplenty, Kristin and I applied more than our fair share of deet today so hopefully we'll wake up tomorrow without any (more) bites. Cross your fingers for us🤞

Beaching our way to Belize City

 July 5, 2022

After two short days we were checking out of Colinda Cabanas 

and heading to Belize City. The last ferry to the mainland is at 5pm, so we decided to spend one last day on the beach before making our way inland. Caye Caulker, the island we were staying on, was actually split in two by Hurricane Hattie in 1961. There is what's called The Split at the north end of the island. There's a small ferry that brought us,and our bikes, across to the other side for 5 BZD ($2.50 US). You could easily swim across because the divide is so small, but our bikes and bags definitely would not have made it. After getting off on the other side we biked to KoKoKing, a beach resort that multiple locals had recommended to us. We got a shady beach cabana for $12 US and sprawled out for a day of sun and sand. KoKoKing had a huge cocktail menu which included many different tequila drinks to choose from. My favorite was the King Beach Margarita, which was frozen with mango and a tangy red salt. I also tried a tequila cocktail made with grilled pineapple, but the KoKoKing proved the best. 

We relaxed for the entire afternoon here before biking, ferrying and biking again to get our bags at Colinda Cabanas. We were almost back when the skies opened up and the rain poured down on us. We pedaled on but arrived absolutely soaked. We waited out the rest of the storm underneath our cabana (they're built up on stilts) and within 5 minutes were on our way to the water taxi that would be taking us to Belize City. Since we were soaked we decided to sit underneath the boat as opposed to on the top deck. In about an hour we'd reached Belize City. We hopped in a taxi to our airbnb and upon arrival had to laugh at ourselves. We had taken a taxi less than 2 blocks 😂 We were initially planning to fly to Belize City so I mapped the route from the airport, not the water taxi terminal, and found that it was quite far. I'd written in our document that we needed to take a taxi so here we were🤦‍♀️ Our driver, Earl, was really nice about it though and did not overcharge us. After checking in we both showered. Unfortunately the restaurant below our airbnb, 501Hub, was closed, and we were told not to walk around in Belize City after dark, so we went across the street to the patio at the Radisson and ate pizza, salad and french fries- we are American after all. 

We enjoyed another early night and were in bed by 1030. We keep telling ourselves that one of these nights we'll experience the Central American nightlife, but not yet.

Sharks, Stingrays and Snorkels- OH MY!

 July 4, 2022

We were up at 9 and ready for shark snorkeling. However, when we walked down to Tropical Paradise the deck hand told us he couldn't get ahold of his captains--- he said they must have been partying too hard at lobster fest the night before-- so asked if we could switch to the 230 tour instead. We didn't have anything else going on and it seemed we didn't have much of a choice so we said sure and agreed to meet back later. We headed to the dock outside Colinda Cabanas and settled down near the water in some beach chairs. 

We encountered a rainstorm that quickly passed and after lounging for awhile we decided to grab lunch. The place we tried to go wasn't open so we opted for a spot near the water that was. We had the local dish of Belize- coconut rice with beans, stewed chicken, plantains and coleslaw. Unfortunately they were out of plantains 😧 neither Kristin or I liked the slaw very much but the chicken had really good flavor. I want to try it again somewhere to get the full experience. We also met a Belizean friend, Brian, who chatted with us while we waited for our food. He used to live on San Pedro, a larger more commercialized island, but said that when it started to get too built up he moved to Caye Caulker because he enjoys the simpler life. I feel you bro. 

After lunch we grabbed some beers for the boat and then walked back to Tropical Paradise for shark snorkeling. 

OH. MY. GOD. This was one of the coolest experiences I've ever had. There were TONS of sharks and stingrays and we swam right next to them in a part of the ocean that the Belizeans have aptly named Shark Ray Alley. It was AMAZING. 

Click here to watch a compilation video of us snorkeling!

I have never been that close to so many sea creatures for such a long period of time. While we hit up 3 different snorkeling spots throughout the day, this was definitely my favorite 😍 It was here that I also got to feed one of the birds that was circling overhead. Captain Philip gave me a sardine and instructed me to hold it up by the head and sure as shit almost immediately a bird swooped down to grab it out of my hand. 

After Shark Ray Alley we snorkeled in two areas with beautiful corals and fishes but nothing compared to the sharks. After two snorkeling stops we headed to a beach to see seahorses, but I was way, way more enamored by the pelicans. Squat, port belly birds that hop around and dip their big beaks up and down, almost like nods of hello. They come right up to people and one even sullied up and sat down next to one of the tourists near the water. I loved watching them. Back on the boat we went, this time to feed the tarpon fish. Eating them in Belize is now illegal because previously the fish was almost hunted to extinction. Now catch and release fishing for tarpon is sport only. We coasted into a small lagoon and there were TONS of tarpon, much like the sharks earlier in the day. We held sardines by their tails over the side of the boat which allowed the tarpon to jump up and grab them. Kristin was super afraid but she overcame her fears and did it. 

And after spending three hours at sea, our shark snorkeling adventure had come to a close. We docked back at Tropical Paradise and thanked Captain Philip and the deckhand, Murray, before heading back to Colinda Cabanas. Our plan was to head to The Pelican to watch the sunset and have dinner, however, the sun sets earlier in Belize than in Chicago during the summer, so between our two showers we looked outside and it was dark. We rode our bikes to The Pelican anyway and enjoyed a DELICIOUS dinner on the water. Kristin had a veggie quesadilla with plantains and I had a giant shrimp kabob with grilled veggies and parmesan potatoes. 

It was 930 by the time we finished dinner and while Captain Philip had suggested 'The Bar' for darts and pool we were just too tired from our day of sun, snorkeling and sand to make it. We pedaled back home and on the way passed by the Belize Power Plant, a school and a church. We headed to bed with stuffed stomachs, marvelous memories and happy hearts 💗 

This was one Fourth of July we would not forget.

Belize Belize

 July 2nd and 3rd 2022

My trip to Central America is beginning. I was lucky enough to get a ride to O'Hare- thanks Keith- complete with Taco Bell on the way. Although it's a holiday weekend I moved through check in (unfortunately it wouldn't let me check in online) and security fairly quickly and had plenty of time to kill at my gate so I got a fruit cup and got ready for Dallas.

 I was in the very last row of the plane and had a window seat. There was someone next to me in the middle but no one on the aisle. Surely the patron in the middle would move to the aisle so we both had more space. NOPE. This middle loving woman stayed next to me the entire flight and knocked into me multiple times while she was asleep. Woof. So much for social distancing.

I called Super 8 as soon as we touched down and they told me to be ready for their courtesy shuttle in 25-30 minutes. An hour and ten minutes and two phone calls later, I was picked up. The driver muttered, "Good thing you're alone. I only have one seat left." 😖
After a total of 4 minutes squished like a sardine between 13 other passengers I was dropped at Super 8. I had to sign up for a shuttle the next morning. They ran every 30 minutes but apparently had a 30 minute window from the time scheduled for pickup. Also I had to be ready 15 minutes before the pickup window started? I begrudgingly booked an earlier than necessary shuttle and headed to bed. 

In the morning the front desk was "on a break- thanks for your patience" so I stuck my key behind the desk and stood in the doorway to watch for the shuttle. Even though it was 8am it was already 95 degrees so I wanted to be in the AC for as long as possible. Eventually the front desk returned from their break and asked me if I had booked a shuttle.
Ummm yes you watched me fill this form out not even 8 hours ago. Are you telling me no one has called the shuttle? So on the phone the front desk man got. Luckily I only waited about 30 minutes this time before being picked up. I got to the airport with PLENTY of time to spare but won't be doing Super 8 shuttles again anytime soon (or ever!)
Kristin lands an hour before me in Belize so our plan is to meet at the baggage claim once I land (in case there's no wifi and we don't have a way to contact one another) Fingers crossed we connect!

After waiting over an hour in the line for customs I found Kristin 🙌
We hopped in a taxi to the water taxi station and once there had about an hour to kill before boarding the last ferry of the day to Caye Caulker. These men tried to take our bags and load them onto a cart.  Told us we'd get them back once we got off the boat but we were skeptical so we did not let rhe men take our bags and instead brought them with us to the end of the pier where we bought our ferry tickets. The ferry lady assured us that those men were legit and we could in fact leave our bags with them. Thank you, men of Belize. After walking back down the pier and dropping our bags off- the men laughed at us (obviously!)- we stopped at a bar/restaurant called 'The Last Drop' and hung out with a local named James who hooked us up with a DELICIOUS veggie quesadilla and Panty Ripper rum pouches. It was the perfect 'welcome to Belize'. Kristin had another pouch but we had an hour boat ride ahead of us so I opted for a beer instead and we hurried to the end of the dock to make our ferry.

It was a most gorgeous boat ride to the island. 

After disembarking we almost forgot we had to pick up our bags  🤦‍♀️😂 After laughing a whole bunch we headed to the baggage claim and then proceeded on our way. We had about a 15 minute walk down a sandy beach road to Colinda Cabanas. There are no cars on the island-- golf carts and bikes only-- which made the walk super enjoyable. We passed by tons of colorful guest houses, shops and cafes. After arriving at our brightly painted blue and yellow cabana we showered and rode our bikes to Lobster Fest. 🦞 It's the first weekend of lobster season so what better way to celebrate than at a street fest with music, food, beer and souvenirs? We parked our bikes and wandered the streets while sipping belikin, a local Belizean beer. We eventually ended up at a rooftop bar and restaurant where we ate a delicious meal of coconut rice and veggies while watching fireworks

. We finished the night with live music at one of the local bars. While biking back I stayed upright (even though my bike seat was way too tall.for me!) But Kristin was not so lucky. There was a wooden ramp we had to traverse and as I looked back I saw her slowly, slowly, slowly topple to one side off the ramp. She wasn't able to catch herself so into the concrete wall she went. Her elbow and knee had scars to show for it. After lots of giggles, we made it back home and climbed into our beds for our first night sleep in Belize.