Today I left Ambergris Caye so here are a few scenes from the place:

Dennis, the woodcarver. "Sit down, you ain't got no place to go"

The school. Note the cart with the parasol nearby the fence to sell candy to the kids.

One the whole, Ambergris is a charming place. I can see how people end up moving or retiring here. Downstairs from where I stayed is a bar. Most of the 'locals' (i.e. people who have moved to the caye) hang out at that bar. I went down to meet them one night. They are a mix of British/Canadian/American people. Charming, cheerful, gregarious, and friendly, it was good to meet them all. The bar was outfitted with a bell at the corner. Whenever someone would ring it, they would buy shots of Jaeger for everyone in the bar.

The bar is owned by an English gentleman who by the end of the night was singing along to Beetle songs in the back corner. Joining him was a Scotish gentleman who was rallying fans for a big Glasgow soccer match. "THARTY SIX YARRS OF HISTREEY" he bellowed, adding weight to the impending match. Click for photos and coverage from the night at the bar

The really nice thing is that you run into these people, and other people you meet, quite often on the caye. The place only has three main streets: front, back, and middle. It becomes almost like a Northern Exposure, or MASH episode or something. Interest is built simply by coincidence. "Oh, I just bumped into so and so" or "there goes such and such, must be on his way to so and so's." It is very nice and certainly a feature missing from Cary. There you are lucky to bump into anyone you know maybe once a year.
The small town effect doesn't just create interest, but it creates a kind of charm. You can just bump into someone, and then decide to join them for coffee. This happened to me today when I bumped into Laurie, a full time blogger for the caye. (see her blog) I always think a good lithmus for a place being a nice place to live is the ability to bump into someone and then have a coffee with them at a sheik outdoor place. In that regard, Ambergris passes the test.

As I am leaving I want to talk a little about how it was coming to this place and how it was those first few days backpacking alone. For one thing, I was pretty home sick (still am), I missed the comfort of home, I missed my usual activities and routines...but on the other hand, each day the caye grew on me more and more. Now that I am leaving, I find that I will really miss it. I will miss the new routines and activities I have for myself here. Strange how people are like that, eh?

I kind of feel torn, like I should stay on, even if just for a week. It will let me get to know the place more, I could have time to volunteer at the school...but, that would be the easier way out...right now, more adventure awaits...or if it doesn't, then I can always return! :)

I don't want to sound bitter, I am just saying this is an aspect of things down here, it is geared for tourists, and I knew that going in...I can say that I have learned two key lessons from the experience:

1. It is easier to buy into the charm of things when you are in a group
2. Having set plans for the day is a big determinate of success and happiness

This second is the most evident. Everyone makes plans and obligations for themselves when no one else decides to impose some on them, and it is a big part of human happiness. I don't know if it is because having tasks and obligations are such a powerful form of distraction, or if people just need structure in their everyday lives. But I do know that having plans makes a good deal of difference.

Thus it is that I am going to go see some Mayan ruins tomorrow, then go snorkel at a coral reef game reserve on Thursday. Then on Friday I have been invited to tour a school where I might go on to volunteer the next week.

Today I went to Caye Caulker, It is a lovely island town, with sandy streets, one central main street, a few grocery shops, restaurants, laundry, and a post office. The rest is hotels and one hostel. It all seems nice, and to me, it seems like it is "set-up" for young backpackers, as those were the people mostly around, other than a few locals and east-asian business owners.

After Caulker I stopped by the library here on San Pedro. It is mostly a library for kids, and it was nice to see them smiling at me as they looked at their books and joked around with each other. Seeing them is an encouragement to go volunteer at the school. I also wish I had brought a few books or magazines, as the library could probably use them.

....

Oh, and before I forget I met a student from UCLA today who is here to save the crocodiles. She was actually inspired by the crocodile hunter and so is now making this her mission before going on the grad school to study crocodile pathology. It was inspiring, and I think the next time I travel, it would be good to have a mission like this, which is in line with life goals...

Later in the evening a crowd gathered as someone had caught a big dorado(mahi-mahi), I don't know how much it weighed, but it was one of those fish that was as tall as the guy who caught it when they hung it up. After weighting it they gutted and filleted it right there on the dock. The guts attracted a 2-3 large sting rays and kids gathered to hold guts close to the surf as to draw the sting rays closer. After that they picked up the mud of the surf and made it into balls, which they threw at the rays...

A lady I met told me that I could volunteer at one of the schools here, and possibly the library. I will go check out the library tomorrow and might try the schools later on. To be honest, I don't know if I have the heart for it, but I think I should at least try.

Leaving your environment forces you to realize all the dependencies you had in your home. (i.e. getting shot out into space would suddenly make you realize just how important air is to you). I mention this since I am now going to list all the differences that have come to my attention in my first ~18 hours here:

• Tap water is not recommended, which makes drinking water $1.50 a gallon, and I used to complain about Cary water prices...
• I also used to complain about no sidewalks in Cary, but the situation is much the same here. Not that big of a deal since most everyone drives golf carts.
• People are really, really laid back. Really. I found out that I am a work-a-holic.(if you guys can believe it!) My brain kept on telling me that I needed to be doing something, that I am lazy...though what else would a work-a-holic say?
• Electrical outlets, electricity, cell phones, Internets, all this stuff is now scarce. This goes with backpacking and staying in hostels instead of hostels or resorts. You are forced to slow down. Today my mission was to call home and get drinking water. When was the last time that took you most of the afternoon?
• Then again, beach is like 30 seconds away from everywhere, so everything has its pluses and minuses...

Tropical fruits, hand-made arepas, watching Lebanese t.v. in Lebanese owned stores... is all in there too...