Author Archives: orihar

Nestled in the south west corner of Bahia De Amatiqua in the Gulf of Honduras, is this ramshackle town. It has a completely different feel than Belizean towns. The languages on the streets are Spanish and Mayan with very little English, if at all. Lots of Garifuna people and traditional Mayan dresses. Poverty is presentContinue reading “Livingston, Guatemala”

Nestled in the South West corner of Bahia De Amatiqe in the Gulf of Honduras, this ramshackle town has a completely different feel than towns in Belize. Spanish and Mayan reign— very little English. Poverty is present everywhere you look. Lots of Garifuna people and traditional Mayan. Here are a few of the pics IContinue reading “Livingston”

A very comfortable anchorage—perfect for celebrating Passover— very unusual. During the Seder as part of the ritual we ask: how’s this night different from all other nights? Well, almost everything was different. Only the two of us instead of the whole family with minimal traditional foods, yet we had all the basics: red wine, matzah,Continue reading “Celebrating the holiday of Freedom— Passover”

Wednesday morning we got moving around 8:30 and dinghied across the lagoon and up the river to Independence – the Hokey Pokey ferry stop. An elderly man on the dock waved us in and took care of our dinghy while we did stuff. As expected, Papa Dena, the tall skinny, ex soccer star, with longContinue reading “Rio Dolce Redux”

Belize is also home to amazing jungles and wildlife. We took a day trip to the cockscomb basin wildlife sanctuary with Ian, our local tour guide. It’s about an hour drive from Placencia, passing the savanna on the way to the jungle. We did not see a jaguar, nevertheless we enjoyed a hike in aContinue reading “Jungle Day”

We waited all morning for the storm to pass and got tired of waiting. So we set sail from Tobacco Caye in the direction of the Pelican Cayes. Except there was no sailing, only motoring all the way in the rain. We arrived at Hideaway Caye and found that the five mooring balls were taken.Continue reading “Sailing in the Rain”

As we approached tiny Tobacco Caye on a beautiful crystal clear day and started the anchoring process we’re welcomed by a huge Eagle ray who showed us the good spot. Near this Caye, which is nestled on the reef, there are very few good anchoring spots and on the third trial, we managed to placeContinue reading “Tobacco Caye and Reef’s End”

Early morning, as soon as the sun appeared from behind the clouds, we started preparations to leave the very south tip of Turneeffe Atoll and find shelter from the raging trade winds inside the reef. We needed a blessings, and sure enough, a beautiful adult dolphin swooped near the boat and pirouetted in the water.Continue reading “A Dolphin Blessing”

Tuesday morning we woke up to a glorious sunrise, a lone boat in the expanse of turquoise waters. We anchored just inside the English Channel, the major pass for big ships on their way into the barrier reef and Belize City. A parade of four humongous cruise ships passed in the distance. We departed enthusiasticallyContinue reading “Failed attempt to get to the Blue Hole.”

Change of Plan. Russia has invaded Ukraine and that has changed everything. We can no longer sail to Cuba with our cargo of food and meds. This is a great loss and also a great relief. In the last few days we have heard from several resources that it’s no longer safe for us toContinue reading “Cuba Mission”