Desert Island: For Allison and Pat's birthdays we went to Snake Caye (pronounced "Key") with some friends and fellow JVs from Belize City. Some friends offered to take us in their boat as long as we supplied the rum, not a bad deal! After an hour in said boat we arrived.
The water was clear as glass, ice blue. A small strip of beach, white sandy beach, a handful of palm trees and a look out tower were the sum total of this tiny beautiful island. It was truly paradise. My good friends, beautiful island and a few drinks.... made for an excellent day in the Caribbean!
Illegal Border Crossings: One of the many joys about my job is that I travel most days of the week leading retreats all around the Toledo district. This includes going to far off villages that are multiple hour truck rides on very poorly maintained dirt roads... how does a JV relax after a leading a rowdy retreat to 30 7th graders? Illegally cross the border to Guatemala on foot for a few Gallos (great, cheap Guatemalan beer) and a snack before returning back to town. When I say "illegal border crossings"... most Americans reading this will think running through the desert in the middle of the night, hopping a wall and avoiding being shot by xenophobic minute men. However the rest of North America is much more casual about their borders. So much so, in fact, that 90% Jalacte's income comes from corn sales in Guatemala. Many Guatemalans cross to Belize for work and land to farm. So when I crossed the border it was merely a 20 minute hike across a river, through a field and through some one's farm. You know you have reached the border when you see the row of hedges in a line... and nope, I didn't even need to hop that, there is a well tread walkway. Next thing I knew, Pat and I were sitting in a bar listening to Spanish music sipping on something cold and synthesizing our day.
Remote jungle camping: Next up on the list of incredible things I have done in the past two weeks... Machakilha. Machakilha is the most remote village in Toledo, possible Belize. There is no road to this village. To arrive you must hike for an hour and half through the jungle. After leading my last retreat for this half our the year, Pat and I hiked to Machkilha. We were unsure of what to do or where to go but were led by a man from the village... who, as I would come to find out, wisely brought his horse. I jokingly told him I forgot my horse at home... (Note: humor does not translate well to non native English speakers). And we set out, mind you I looked something like Panama Jack in my khaki hiking shirt and zip off North face pants. (Pat wore his "diva"shades, a polo, and some sneakers and looked like he was going to watch the US Open.) Let me tell you, this hike is no joke. The whole time when I wasnt swatting flies or pulling one of my legs out of the very deep mud I was expecting to be taken out by a blow gun. I sang the theme song of "Indiana Jones" most of the hike. The fact that I was walking to one of the most remote areas in this part of the world was super invigorating. The jungle was nearly silent as we hiked and sloshed through the mud. We were told this was the dry time to cross... you must need a kayak to make it in the "wet" season, I had mud caked on my shoes all the way up both legs. After and hour and a half of very vigorous hiking... (these grasshopper legs are good for long strides) we arrived. Though it didn't exactly look like it, this I found out, was because there is no real "village" but rather just 20 families and a school. Open pastures, the mountains of Guatemala on the horizon. It was beautiful.
In the past four months I frequently frighten Belizean children by my appearance, I would like to think it is because of my stunning good looks, but in reality I think it is my gargantuan height compared to their 3 foot frames. This village was even more so, something told me not a lot of white people appear randomly on Friday afternoons like the tall, muddy, sweaty mess I was. Pat and I set up camp, and got ready for the night. During the hike I imagined staying up late learning from the village elders their ways and secrets to happy and long life life while sitting around a fire (think Dances with Wolves) but in reality after leading 5 retreats back to back and the epic hike I was asleep for the night by 6pm haha. It was super relaxing to be so far away from traditional civilization, the stars were amazing, and due to how tired I was, sleeping on the ground felt like a pillow top mattress. We woke the next morning had some tortillas and headed for the long trek home. (I'm wrapping this up... I feel very long winded in this entry)
Oh the last little bit of adventure in my life.....
Matt's Rats: Last week I found a dog bone in my Tshirt drawer, thinking it was a stupid prank from my elf heighted roommate I rolled up newspaper hit Pat on the nose and pushed his nose into it "BAD Smirf, BAD Smirf!"
... well not really, but it turns out he didnt place the doggie biscuit there.
I thought nothing of it and left for retreat, yesterday after returning from the long hike/ camp out at Machakilha I found 4 more dog treats in my t shirt drawer, 4 more in my collared shirt drawer. After a bit of investigating, it was found out- Pat received a bag of dog bones for our dog Baxter in a recent care package and in the bottom of this bag was a nibble hole, sure sign of a rodent. Turns out the rats (featured previously in Matt's Motorcycle Diary), snuck into the bag... and carried the bones into my room, crawled up the back of my dresser and into my drawers where they have now created a nest. Pat shook my dresser yesterday to see if the new friends were home and a Rat the size of a small cat came darting out (resulting in both of us yelling like little girls and jumping on the first elevated thing in site... for me, a chair, for Pat, he jumped on me... remember his short stature).
Two thoughts crossed my mind:
1) "Wow... that is kind of impressive they carried those big bones all the way up and into my clothes!"
2) "We just got those bones... have they been sleeping/peeing/shitting on my clothes this whole time and I didn't know?"
I slept on the couch upstairs last night.
