Okay...so THIS is how I envisioned Ambergris Caye...
And to be fair...this is part of the caye.
Tourism has taken its toll on the island much like cruise ships.
Remember when cruise ships were just that...
Large boats that you (yes) got fed a lot...entirely too much...and maybe a lounge act and a dress-up night...
Where else were you going to wear that gold sequined sheath dress?
But...the cruise destination WAS the main attraction.
Today...the destination seems superfluous. An afterthought.
After all this wow...it is no wonder that people expect Dollywood or Pigeon Forge when they disembark...instead of (boring) sandy white beaches, palm trees and thached huts.
"Mom...there's no WIFI...I am going back to the ship!!!"
~sigh~
But I love Island Time.
(...and Belize has always been famous for Island Time...)
Slow...really slow...relaxed...warm sand...waves and a cold umbrella rum punch drink...oh and slow....
So (virtually) here we are.
Back to a time before tourist sprawl.
(...yes...that is possible with virtual travel...)
Come along and explore with me.
Through palm trees by quiet lagoons...
Some of the paths giving way to the beginnings of hidden beaches.
Until we find a perfectly beautiful spot to bask in the sun.
Just the beach...and the sounds of a slight breeze in the palm trees. The throaty squawk of a brown pelican overhead...or mewling of a seagull. The smell of your coconut tanning oil and maybe the pineapple rum drink in your hand...the heat of the sun and the salt of the sea drying on your skin. The taste of sea salt on your lips.
The heft and touch of a cool pink conch shell...abandoned by its sea-slug inhabitant, and the perfect souvenir of this day.
A day not to DO...but simply to BE.
The beginning of my Belizean Caye painting...
Which will eventually end up something like this...
Or that is the plan.
More anon