“Walk Slower!” a coconut and machete-wielding man yelled.
While I typically walk with an unusual gait and large stride (a ‘proper pace’ per UK standards), the local Belizeans were absolutely correct in their recommendation. With little more than three miles of continuous ‘road’, lined with the best mixture of multicultural foods, cheap vices, and plenty of stories to be heard, it’s no wonder the motto has become a namesake on Caye Caulker!
The first few minutes on the island washed away any lingering hesitations of choosing this as a destination. However, this is not a travel blog and I am certainly no tourist blogger. Here is my story of Caye Caulker, as a curious scientist and passionate engineer…with an insatiable love for food and culture.
We first arrived on the island after the usual hour-long ferry ride from Belize City. But an engine failure left us ‘boating slow’ through the open ocean. The delay was a paired with magnificent views of the smaller Caye’s, making the extra hour-ish ride not so bad.
At this point of my 12,019 summer adventure, it had been 74 days of traveling to/from the Arctic Circle, around Guatemala, and now finally to the Caribbean. During these travels, it became evident that both corporate and foreign investment into lodging/hotels in growing touring destinations is one of the largest contributors to displacement and disenfranchisement of locals. In my pursuit of being a #conscioustourist it also became our goal to only stay in locally-owned establishments – no frills, just real experience. While increasingly challenging to find in heavy tourist areas, Vista Del Mar guest house was no exception, having survived two hurricanes during its tenure. Tanisha told us her island stories and frightening hurricane experiences as we ate delicious toast with local pineapple jam, banana, and peanut butter; complimentary with our 3-night stay. Did I mention free water refills for our well-traveled bottles? #reuseorrefill (more on that later).
Yes, four days on this tiny, lively island was full of humbling stories and amazing eats while walking slow, hammocking even slower. I am still thankful for being introduced to ‘bread fruit’, which may actually solve the World crisis alone! And although most of the time spent was with a relaxed, full belly, being frisked down by police our first day on the island made me truly appreciate the little things…
Opportunity for Open-mindedness. And cannabis.
The thought of smoking had been on my mind for awhile after taking a hiatus in Guatemala. Hanging out on the beach, I acted on my urge upon seeing a small local crew ‘medicating’. You see, I have always believed cannabis, like alcohol, facilitates otherwise obscure connections with other Humans; Kevin and Jeffery were soon to be more fuel to my opinionated fire! I carry out negotiations for a blunt, rolled with local tobacco leaf, in exchange for a shared smoke and ‘Stouts for the crew’ (Belikin Stout, good for any occasion!).
Kevin hands it over, then shoots me a look, tells me “Don’t light it! We have spies…”
Suddenly, two police officers approach us in their golf cart. Shit. I was immediately targeted when they walk up, and told by the office in the “Tourist Police” shirt that his role was to be my protection against bribery. “Quite an interesting dynamic” I thought, as I was questioned and frisked down. Of course, I keep it cool, respectful, and thankfully come to realize that a person can legally possess up to 10g of cannabis. It was however, prohibited to be smoked “in public”; and the ‘spies’ Kevin mentioned were shop owners who didn’t support free toke’n. Well, this blunt was freshly rolled and not yet sparked so I was free to Belieze 😉
We made the rounds to the many local food stands; grilled jerk chicken and bread fruit, coconut rices and red beans, and super-fresh lobster from a guy in croc’s. Our motto is to share the belly love when it comes to food…
After a food coma, we saw Jeffery at Margarita Mike’s and decided to hang out for a few. Being in a wheelchair, and in an area with little to no ADA infrastructure, Jeffery had limited options for mobility, work, housing, and overall lifestyle. Nonetheless, we couldn’t have met a more joyous person on the island that night. We decided to hang out and give Jeff a push to the full moon party – never have I felt greater joy to help!
We share a few beverages and as he tells us of his earlier life in Biscayne, working on the family farm. That was until his life was changed forever, being hit by a stray bullet, rendering his legs paralyzed. After years of physical therapy on the remote mainland, the mobility and lifestyle challenges of this jungle community presented barriers impossible for most people to surpass; things us privileged tourists couldn’t imagine. After faced with family abandonment, discrimination from his condition, and homelessness, his PT told him to leave home and set course for The Island Life. It was possible, she told Jeffery, that Caye Caulker may have more opportunity and mental relief from the many challenges.
Along his travels, Jeffery faced unimaginable adversity; the scariest of all being an encounter somewhere along a jungle path at night with an armed, large man, who threatened his life in exchange for the little money he had. Eventually, Jeffery made it to Caye Caulker, where the healing vibes of waves, sun, breeze, and plenty of palm-tree shaded hard packed sand was waiting. Jeffery continued to face more challenges than most people have ever known, being houseless with restricted mobility on the sand-riddled island. However, tourism offered a reprieve in the form of opportunity and newfound entertainment. And new friends 🙂
It was a Friday night,
and the MC made sure everyone knew it was “a full moon party!”
Judge his habit and occupation if you will, but Jeffery’s price for the local herb is up for negotiation based on what you can afford to give…and comes with a tobacco leaf for your next bluntacular experience! Of course, keep in mind that this transaction provides just enough for food, a tiny place for him to call home, and his nightly drink of choice – “cran-barrel with no ice!” in his genuine, raspy voice… Keep an eye out for him and his crew if you visit, give him a push down the ave and tell him Robert and Sierra send our love. Still upset we never got pictures, but the memories will never die! After all, hearing these humbling tales for yourself can only open one’s heart #onelove
Being the bearded social butterfly I am, our stay was full of many other stories, pertaining to the island itself…with a keen eye and earfull of conversation, I learned soo much more behind Caye Caulker and beyond the main strip. Walk slow, and stop often…if you love animals, then put the Caye Caulker Animal Shelter on your radar. Its quite the experience…
Random tip: If you end up buying a coconut along your stroll, have him open slice up after you drink the juice; there’s a solid breakfast or two worth of delicious coco meat inside!
Slowly Sargassum
Ferrying to Caye Caulker, one of my first observations once in the open ocean were massive fluffs of floating seaweed. Arriving to shore, we notice the windward coastline covered in the greenish brown invader.
‘What the hell?‘ I thought…’Is this what Loa was talking about in Flores?’
Our Belizean friend from days previous mentioned how Sargassum had been a recent challenge for the island, leading to a “slow-season” (no pun intended). It turns out he wasn’t kidding. Search ‘sargassum’ for yourself and see endless pictures of pristine coastlines, covered with heaps of the mysterious beach bum(er). Only appearing along the Caribbean en masse in the last 2-3 years, this coastline invader’s outbreak remains left to speculation; however, most sources have linked the massive blooms to anthropogenic climate change and industrial-scale eutrophication. As it turns out, sargassum would become a continued topic from this point forward on my summer adventure…Read more along my journey through Quintana Roo!
Be-leached!!!
It had been 7 years since my last dive, so I decided to keep it mellow with a chartered snorkeling sailboat cruise to the Belize Barrier Reef. We chose Raggamuffin mainly because of the sailboat and their commitment to be environmentally-conscious, emphasizing no single-use products and strict no-touch guidelines while underwater. Upon leaving shore, the crew informed us that sunscreen ‘must be applied now, or not at all’ to allow for drying time before entering the water. Anyone caught after this warning would be prohibited from snorkeling.
‘Awesome, they know about the problem!’ I thought.
But to our surprise, we were the only tourists with reef-safe sunscreen…let alone water-resistant products #reefsafeorburn
After an hour sail, we made it to the first preserve, Caye Caulker Marine Reserve; (thankfully) being actively monitored by park rangers against poachers or other threats to the reef system. Entering the water, floating between scratchy patches of sargassum, my anxiety of global climate change affecting the oceans was heightened well above my fear of seaweed critters in my beard…
Friends, the stories of bleached, dying reef ecosystems, buried beneath the heaps of distracting rubbish news, is painfully, sadly true. This was not the same experience of nearly a decade before. The colonies, typically consisting of 1-4 coral species each ~1-2 meters in diameter, were separated by massive patches of dead/broken coral and sea grass. Although much damage was brought on by 2016 Hurricane Earl, it was heartbreaking to see what little reef ecosystem exists after decades of pollution, physical damage from Humans and our cruise ships, with the devastating effects of ocean acidification. Obviously, we were instructed to not touch or take any coral, but this warning to temporary tourists now seems futile given what Humans have ‘accomplished’ in our short tenure on Earth.
After seeing the state of the Caribbean reefs, it became very clear that we have no more time for global inaction; we ALL have the responsibility to protect these vital resources!!!
Slow, rubbish.
An island is no stranger to the perils of consumerism, and the ever-growing cocktail list of mass-produced goods. While the main strip was relatively trash-free, bottle caps were embedded in the sand everywhere, and the less tourist-traveled paths were inundated with plastic bottles, non-returnable bottles, miscellaneous debris, and many rusting, discarded appliances. Seeing all the rusty appliances, mainly old electric stoves, made me really think about ways we can improve on our present economic system. In general, how critical pathways like the circular economy could immediately benefit places like Caye Caulker. Another notable observation was that every store you purchase beer from has a bottle opener while securely collecting the tops; interestingly enough, the immediate outside of these stores seemed to have the highest density of discarded bottle caps! I did hypothesize it was attributed to a certain animosity I observed between store owners and their local patrons…
The stores do have a great bottle deposit system, but only for returnable bottles; a rapidly shrinking resource. Anyway, here are some tips from Utility²…
An island is no stranger to the perils of consumerism,
and the ever-growing cocktail list of mass-produced goods
A Changing Island and Threat to local’s ability to Walk Slow.
I must address the elephant in the developing tourist destination’s room – foreign investment and acquisition of local economic sectors [otherwise referred to as ‘foreign direct investment‘ (FDI)]. This is a contentious topic, similar to the ‘trickle-down economy’, where opinions generally flow from one’s worldly outlook (and economic position)…Let’s begin with a short history lesson, that goes something like this: for centuries, indigenous populations have been exploited by foreign invaders; infamous acts of cultural destruction and environmental devastation by many present-day World powers. This trend marches on; whether on the back of political corruption, economic desperation, or exploiting community hospitality, but surely with shear disregard for history’s lessons and its tragedies. In this case of Caye Caulker, it has started through the acquisition of nearly every market, business (restaurant / mercantile), and tourist enterprise from local ownership. Even after being awakened to this issue over several beers, it remained a challenge to eat, drink, and lodge locally. I could not find a single market not under Chinese ownership…and neither could the local’s (hence the animosity). Nearly every new hotel and “shiny” tourist-trap restaurant on the main strip I asked about was Chinese owned. This growing global issue is one that all of us tourists must battle together. #eatshoplodgelocal
Thought Experiment:
For island nations facing the continued onslaught of disposable goods and new challenges arising from climate change…
WHAT IF companies which IMPORT goods onto the island, were then legally obliged to EXPORT the same weight of such goods, minus consumables, back to the mainland?
Additionally, incentive could be given in the form of a sales-tax reduction for rate-based removal of such refuse from the island! Maybe a few rusty stoves??
WHAT IF plastic bottle sales were limited to only sizes larger than 1L? Sizes smaller than 1L do not provide much benefit towards hydration. If you are consuming less than 1-1.5L of water per day (32-48oz), your body has likely been trying to tell you it is severely dehydrated! This solution may help to solve many issues at once!
WHAT infrastructure needs to be improved to help island states like Caye Caulker be better prepared for the future? With sea level rise and increased storm intensity, planning ahead for these challenges is critical.
HOW MUCH energy could be produced locally, renewably through processes like pyrolysis or biochar, if concerted efforts were made in waste sorting? Can we use sargassum as a fuel?
HOW do we help people & places like Jeffery, Loa, Vista Del Mar Guesthouse and Jenny’s Fry Jack after the next hurricane? How can FDI be leveraged to benefit the island’s people?
Thanks for reading! Now hop on your favorite travel site and book your trip to this amazing place…
Robert writes to share his experiences and observations through a lens of curiosity and questioning; why are so many places on Earth facing analogous challenges? how do we leverage nature’s regenerative mechanisms to craft more robust, equitable solutions? Utility² represents a big-picture vision in solving many shared challenges, by modernizing municipal utility services & infrastructure, while empowering community through engagement and cultural resilience in under-served, and developing regions.
