Belize and Cozumel

Three things to be happy about:
(1) a piggy bank
(2) t-shirts with a message
(3) reading upside down

Thursday was our day in Belize!  The ship docked a few miles offshore and we reached land by tender, about 15 minutes away.

Here's an eye opener:  I somehow thought Belize was an island, a part of Mexico, but it isn't - it's actually a peninsular and a country in it's own rights!  In Belize, English is considered to be the official language; it was a British colony until 1981.  Many people also speak Creole among family members.

What's a trip to Belize without chocolate!!

We visited the Moho chocolate factory in the tourism village, where chocolate from organic cacao beans is made and packaged right on the premises.

They offered samples of chocolate flavored with chili (hot!), ginger (hot!), almonds (yummy!), Belizean coffee, salt and lime (I wasn't that curious!), peanut butter, and coconut.

Friday morning we docked in Cozumel alongside the Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas...

They were looking at us with binoculars - and so were we!



Our tour that day was to the Mayan ruins, arranged through the ship...  

Our guide explained that these particular structures had been devastated by an explorer who was looking for treasures, using dynamite, which virtually leveled every structure to the ground before he was stopped.

I was fascinated by this tree, this very old tree!

Hundreds of years old, its roots have grown around, under, over and through the stones of the structure.

It's almost sad when you visit an artifact and all that's left are piles of stones in a national park.  You have to rely on tourist info and your imagination to know what it was like before.  Great tour though - we had a 20 minute stop at a beach before heading back to the ship.

My sister Michelle, Renea, and her daughter Megan

bye Cozumel!

Sunday morning, right back where we started!  

One last cuppa in the Windjammer before departing the ship for the airport!

I had a great time on the cruise!  The tribute to the Temptations, Ice Dancin', the ice cream machines, people watching, music on the Promenade (one night I was humming along to "Allllll my exes live in Texas...." - sheesh!), big coconut (and lemon, and oatmeal and chocolate chip!) cookies in the cafe, window shopping in those expensive shops, the casino, movies on the big screen... sew forth and sew on!