Got to Belize three days ago on the 6th. It's been wonderful so far... a little sun burnt, but still alive. I've met some great people down here and made some great new friends. As most journeys go, this one too has been very much about self-exploration and a very personal introspective along with the adventure of American Airlines losing my backpack on my way down here. Regardless I am managing. We've been snorkeling, swimming with shark, sting rays, schools of tuna, 60 pound grouper, and lobsters.... That was yesterday. The day before, Mayan ruins at Altun Ha, and some incredible ethnic food. I'm on Caye Caulker today, an island off the coast of Belize... not that many people here, but it's so nice. What a vacation. Pictures will be up by the end of July. Tomorrow we go to San Ignacio and Tekal (Guatemala), maybe some caving/spelunking and then to Belize Zoo and the baboon sanctuary. It has been a trip to remember. Sometimes I think I would sell my soul for Air Conditioning. Blisters on my toes, sun burnt, and tired, the journey continues. I was originally supposed to go to Paris , but it didn't work out. Silke, Annie, Thomas and Julia, I am truly sorry. So, Belize turns out to be even better. Today, maybe some kayaking, around to the west side of the island, where we you watch the sunset. I wanted to go wind-surfing, but it appears to be "rainy season", so all the shops are closed. Rainy season entails 95 degree weather, a blasting sun, and not a cloud in the sky. Interesting concept. Everyone here went crazy about the Tyson Lewis fight last night. It's so interesting to see all the locals get revved up about it. It's on public television here, so all the shops closed down early and showed the fight. People were really into it. Very interesting. Regardless... the journey goes on.... Cheese and cucumber sandwiches await me in my room. I leave here on Thursday. Where next??? Who knows. :) That's the adventure. :)
YOU NEED TO VISIT BELIZE, I guess is the point I'm trying to make. So beautiful... Check out www.Belize.com and other interesting sights. VERY BEAUTIFUL...
Ciao and Bon Voyage to all of you on your own Journeys... (Carrie, Ben, and others) My pictures will be up soon on www.Valadi.com
Take care....
Nojan
The adventures in Belize continue... Days 3 and 4 were a wee bit more hectic than before. So after snorkeling and a full day in the sun, getting roasted, we decided to take it easy for a day. Hanging out in the hotel in local bars and restaurants with a great deal of shade and air conditioning was exactly what we were looking for. Far removed from the thought of any national board exam or medical school, or upcoming rotations, we just relaxed under the palm trees and watched a couple of little kids climb up and throw down a few coconuts. I really wanted to wind-surf.... yet it seemed this "rainy" season which so far has been upper 90's and sun all day is the "off-season" here, and many of the local shops have closed down for vacation. We tried to get a sailboat, but the shop was closing as we arrived. I desperately wanted to see the sunset that night, on the water... So Jennifer and I rented a kayak and paddled to the other side of the island, a good half hour of hard labor. The sunset was so beautiful on the water... the sky was lit up in thousands of shades of pink, red, blue, and purple. One of the more amazing things I have seen in my life. Anyway... as we watched the sun set, our boat drifted further and further out to sea... it took us a good 20 minutes to get back anywhere near the island... and this time, we were paddling against the East to West current and wind. We still had a good ways to go, maybe a half hour of paddling... when the boat suddenly started filling with water.... we tried to empty it, but it didn't seem to be doing much good... our hands against the Waves.... we wisely paddled to the nearest dock as we had barely reached the proximity of the island... I was knocked out of the boat when it finally flipped and we tried to dump the water out... but it appeared not to be working when we tried to paddle away and it again flipped. So we tried to pull it out of the water.... (Now keep in mind that we were about 30 minutes down the beach from the village on the island coast.) But it was way too heavy... The kayak had a leak and we couldn't get the water out. We docked it... and ran through the jungle... a 10 minute run that seemed to take forever.... Crabs, tarantulas, snakes and all other creatures were out in the dark in the path... we could hear the rustle ahead of us as they scurried when they heard us.... Did I mention we were barefoot and only had our swimsuits... anyway... after nearly drowning, we got back to the village with only the paddles, took them to the shop, where they didn't expect us to pay... (how nice? They should have paid us... we nearly drowned at sea!) Anyway... a nice warm shower later, we settled down for a decent meal at Rasta Pasta on the island.... What a horrible night's sleep.... Today we got up early, packed our backpacks and got on our way to the Cayo district on the Western side of Belize... a 2 hour trip on an express bus was more than we could ask for.... and dirt cheap too.... San Ignacio.,,, very pretty little village. We have three days here..... We are contemplating our plans as I speak... we will probably decide over dinner. Mayan ruins: Xunantunich, Tekal (in Guatemala), or Caracol. Caves. Waterfalls, rivers and lagoons. I am very excited.... the most interesting adventure will take us hiking across a few streams, into a cave, crawling past boulders, and swimming inside another cave, then moving through narrow passages and scaling a few walls to get into the deeper caves where a few Mayan remains have been discovered by archeologists. Jen and I have to talk about it. She really wants to go tubing through some caves (how boring). Ok... on to dinner... We have a few places in mind... I love the ethnic food here... it's nice and spicy. Nothing Neil could handle. :) Ash... thanks for the email, I love you bro, it moved me. Lunch on me after I get back... How's the 5th of July for you? Alright... off I go... take care of yourselves and have a wonderful journey of your own...
Bon Voyage...
Nojan
So the journey is slowly coming to an end. It is now Wednesday. We have been in San Ignacio for 3 days. We took a canoe through a really nice cave yesterday. Two miles in, two miles back out... some really narrow passages. Had a great time, picked some oranges off somebody's tree, and rode in the back of a 73? Chevy Silverado going 45 mph on some unpaved roads. I swear the driver must have had some frontal lobe damage. We almost ran over a horse and a few horse-drawn Amish carts. The tour guide called the driver "Bullet". I wonder why? The cave was nice. Stalactites, -mites, bats galore, Mayan remains, etc. pretty cool. Today we saw the ruins at Xunantunich, very cool, a pyramid from the top of which you could see a good 40 miles away. Took some cool pictures. You'll have to check out my web-site around the end of July. Today we go back to Belize City, and tomorrow we fly back. I am very home sick, yet dread the return to reality: my life as a medical student. :( I am tired, thirsty, and lack sleep. The food here has been great, except for a thunderstorm last night, so has the weather. The people have been super-friendly. But I need to get home. In an hour we catch the express bus back to Belize City, so I'm going to see what I can do about finding a hotel for tonight... maybe a little last minute, but it's off season, and sometimes you can get better deals this way. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Nojan
It's Sunday June 16th. I returned from Belize on Thursday. Leaving San Ignacio in the afternoon, we got back to Belize City late, discovering that the hotel we had found for the night was in a very VERY sketchy part of town. It had air conditioning and the beds felt nice, so we paid the $50 and spend the night. Had some great Pizza at a local pizzeria...almost felt like home. Tey even had bread-sticks. The next morning we set out to buy souvenirs for family. The National Handicraft Center near the Tourism village had pretty large selection... Cashew and Blackberry wine, coffee, and fresh roasted cashews for parents, Jade necklaces and Mayan masks for ourselves. A quick taxi ride back and then off to the airport. We had one last Belizean dish with black beans and rice and got on our plane back. A long flight back, we got back to Atlanta around 1am. We ran as hard as we could to catch the last MARTA train for the night out of the airport back to Kensington station where we had parked the car. Finally got back to Macon around 4am... I was asleep before my head hit the pillow. Now, it's back to reality. USMLE Step1. For those of you who have taken it... congrats. For those of you who will be... Good Luck.
I am sorry I have lost touch with many of you... I sincerely appreciate the responses. I will try to get back in touch over the next month or so. My boards are July 3rd. I should have the pictures from Belize as well as my trip to Europe up by the end of July. So stay tuned.
Thanks for following me on my adventures... almost drowning in a kayak, seeing the Mayan ruins of Altun Ha and Xunantunich, canoeing into a cave on Barton Creek, Snorkeling and hanging out on Key Caulker and San Pedro, having American Airlines lose my backpack on our way there, and having to walk around with pants in a hundred-degree weather for over a day, talking everybody from shop-owners, to hotel-operators and taxi-drivers down in price. traveling on the bus with some shady characters, and living life to the fullest. The moral of the story: Always haggle!!!! Always! I wish you many adventures of your own. Take good care of yourself.
-Nojan
