An expensive detour
Trip Start
Feb 23, 2008
1
15
32
Trip End
Aug 23, 2008
Placencia,
Belize
Thursday, April 17, 2008
We parted at the bus station. The trip south took 4.5 hours. At one point a policeman got on board followed by 3 smiling locals in handcuffs. I suppose using public buses is more cost efficient than a prison transport. I wondered whether their friends were on board and they were planning an escape and thats why they were smiling but the trip passed without incident.
I arrived at Mango Creek and took the water taxi to Placencia (you can drive to this caye but the last 20 odd miles is dirt road and very uncomfortable)
I headed to Omar's and got a bunk bed for $11US. Placencia didnt have the same feel as Caye Caulker - it was more expensive and didnt have as many backpackers but i was making this detour to see the whalesharks. I had almost seen them in The Seychelles but the one afternoon i didnt dive was when they were seen
The next day i found a dive shop and booked 2 dives for the following day and the whaleshark dive for Thursday. It was cheap ($160US for 2 dives) but Placencia is one place you can dive with them and not just snorkel.
The next day the weather hadnt improved. A wind was blowing and there was no sun. The 2 dives were good especially the first where we saw the largest sea turtle i have ever seen. Guessing by the number of barnacles on its shell it must have been quie ancient. They look so awkward swimming but incredibly fast
The girls arrived that night plus some other people from Caye Caulker who had caught a yacht down. They had had a bad time due to the weather and the crew
I awoke the next day hoping the weather would be better but alas it was overcast and windy. My hopes were shattered when told that it was too rough to get out to where the whale sharks might be and we would be going to another dive site closer in. I was guttered especially after the trip out to The Blue Hole thru a 2m swell. These waves were like ripples in comparison. I thought the skipper a pussy and sat the journey in silence. The dives were ok and on any other day would have been great
That night was my last night here. I needed to get to Honduras via guatemala in a week or so to start my diving course and i had already spent 11 days in Belize when i only intended to spend 1 week. We all met up at oe of the many bars during happy hour and i drank too much rum. To make matters worse on the way to the water taxi the following day i noticed that the sun was shining, there was no wind and the sea was like glass. Just my luck
