hello my family. i took a trip to belize over the holiday and it was amazing. i traveled there with my portland family of friends. my dear friend diane is turning 50 on january 19 and she wanted to have a destination birthday. so off to belize it was - all 20 of us. the motto in caye caulker belize is "go slow." i got really good at going slow. actually i damn near perfected it. i had a little cabana with a sea view called gumbo limbo. it was the perfect little cabin. i loved it. i conquered many fears on my trip, including flying 9 hours and snorkeling. xanax helped with the flying and nothing helped with the snorkeling. well, the little life belt thing helped. it was beautifully surreal under the caribbean sea. clear, clear, clear. like glass. many rays and schools of fish. just hundreds of them. i survived a near drowning (well, in my mind it was!), getting caught in a literal torrential downpour, drinking not really that cold of beer (until we discovered bamboo! from a keg with frozen glasses? what!?), the breaking up of two of my dear friends (as jenn says, "there's no place like belize to break up with someone. i'd recommend it!"), getting to better know my friends who orbit around my immediate world, getting to know my immediate world better and to realize what an amazing adventure life can be when you conquer your fears!
getting back to portland and life as i know it was tough. i was in a depressed denial for about a week. i wore my "belize shoes" with no socks and tee shirts. yeah, it was 40 degrees but i didn't care. i was almost still warm from the 8 days i spent in caye caulker.
sometimes i can still feel the slow rock of my hammock, nearly cold belikin in hand, the caribbean sea and the softest, warmest of breezes.
