Honeymoon - Day 3

Good morning, 6am. Nice to see you again. We once again tried to bring back the wonderful land of sleep for a while, and gave up around 8am. Coffee, toast and cereal made for a balanced breakfast before heading down to the pool for the morning. We enjoyed the sunshine and the warm water all morning, then went back to our condo for a quick lunch because we had big plans for the afternoon - SNORKELING! (#90 on the list! YESSS!)

We went snorkeling with Alfonse, the awesome guide who took us to Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley, two stops along the 175-mile barrier reef. Belize is home to the second largest coral reef in the world, and we were so excited to explore it! The first stop was Hol Chan, where we saw tons of little tropical fish, enormous eatin' fish, and several types of coral. We also managed to find a moray eel, a few sting rays, and the cutest green turtle! It was a crystal clear day, and the tides were working with us, so Alfonse took us into open water, past the reef. We ran into a little baby shark, but he was too far away to pay us much attention. After some shallow water snorkeling over the reef on the way back to the boat (and seeing more amazing fish), and lots of under-water picture taking, we hopped back on board and headed over to Shark Ray Alley. We quickly realized how this location got its name as we were told to "jump right in" to a sea of about 10 sharks and sting rays. No problem! Hey, did you know that the skin of a nurse shark feels a lot like a synthetic basketball? It was quite an experience, holding onto that shark (and #97 on the list) and I am really hoping those underwater pictures came out so I can post them!

After about 3 hours of snorkeling, we headed back to the Phoenix for a well-deserved nap. (Actually deserved this time, not like the other days). We wandered around town when it came time for dinner and found El Patio, a delightful little outdoor restaurant under a palm roof and sandy floors and a fountain in the middle. Another phenomenal meal. We started with drinks (warning kids... this post is not for you). I ordered a "panty ripper". Still not sure what was in it, but it was easy going down and not hard to order a second one. For dinner, I had the zesty grilled shrimp with a salad and fries that was sooo good. Andy had the garlic and white wine shrimp plate with a baked potato and slaw. It was then that we realized this trip would trigger us to eat more seafood (especially shrimp) than we ever had before.

We left El Patio and kept wandering around town until we found a little pub called Lolas, where I am pretty sure we were the only tourists. Anna, the bartender from Holland, provided us with Belikins, friendly conversation and advice about the town, and introductions to other bar owners that were enjoying drinks at Lolas. It was nice to be in the little "local" joint.

We headed back to the condo for some night time swimming, which was great. Perfectly quiet, lots of stars out, and a nice end to a busy day.