Saturday, June 21, 2014 - Transfer from Pook's Hill (rain forest) to Hamanasi (beach)

What a great morning!  We are leaving today for Hamanasi, which is southeast of here on the coast of Belize.  We were up pretty early as it gets light around 5:30 a.m.  We headed down to breakfast and it was a very slow and relaxing morning.  We were the only ones at breakfast...

After packing and breakfast, we still had time before we needed to leave, so the kids hung out in the hammocks while I played guitar.  I haven’t played in so long and it made me realize how much I miss it.  I also walked to the bridge to take a look at the large mahogany tree (the national tree of Belize).  I saw a large iguana along the way.

It was a little sad saying goodbye to Vicki and Myra and Hugo.  Everyone at Pook's is so nice and they really make you feel like family. After saying our goodbyes, we set off on a 2 hour drive to the Hamanasi beach resort with Mike.  We took some pictures on our way out from Pook's.  The first was of a typical guy with a machete.  Unfortunately, the blade is turned so you just see the very slim edge.  If you look closely it looks like a thin hair coming downward from the handle.  In the rainforest area, practically every person over the age of 6 owns a machete, and everyone over the age of 12 seems to carry one with them at all times.  Our driver Mike owned four, and told us that he uses them for chopping up trees that have blown across the road, slicing the tops of coconuts, slicing mangoes, and lots of other tasks.

We told Mike about Ken and Tiffany and how Tiffany said she had never traveled outside the U.S.  Her mother didn't want her to go to Belize because she thought it would not be safe.  Tiffany told her mom that "it wasn't like everyone was walking around with machetes!" We were laughing about it because everyone actual does!  (not in a dangerous way though)

One of the things I loved about this area is the many different colors of the houses.  There were also many unfinished homes.  Dennis, our guide for the ziplining / cave tubing was telling us it is because there are no mortgages in Belize.  People save up for a year and start building, save another year, build more, and so on.  He said it usually takes about 10 years to build your house.

Out on the paved road... so sad to say goodbye to Pook's

Mike, our driver, was great, he talked with us a lot and showed us several things along the way including the Traveler’s Palm.  It is a beautiful palm that grows in the shape of a giant fan.  When people are travelling and they run out of water, they can always go to a traveler’s palm and get the water that collects at the base of the fan. 

We drove the Hummingbird Highway.  At one point we were driving up a steep hill and Mike asked the kids to tell him when we started going downhill.  We crested the hill, and it looked like we were going downhill, so the kids told Mike.  He drove down the hill a bit, stopped the van, put it in neutral, and we started "rolling backwards uphill".  The natives talk about a strong magnetic field that can pull large semi trucks fully loaded up the hill.  In reality, it is an optical illusion.  It was fun to talk about and experience the feeling of rolling backwards uphill.  The scenery on the Hummingbird Highway is spectacular.

Mike showed us the mountains called the Sleeping Giant.  You could see the profile of a face and a belly of a man lying down.  Here is the face.

And here is the head and belly...

He also showed us a town that specialized in burning limestone to make lime.  Many of the homes had things that looked like giant kilns that were burning.  They burn the stone for three days until it turns into the white lime powder.

When we arrived at Hamanasi, we were greeted by name and handed lime fizz drinks with a cherry in them and a lime slice on the outside. So nice to be pampered!  Our greeter, Darwin, let us know that our room was not ready yet, but we were welcome to sit down for lunch.  So we went out on the veranda… very nice with a great view of the sea.

After lunch we went for an orientation that let us know mealtimes, where things were, what to watch out for like jellyfish and no-see-ums, and basically answered any questions we had.  Then we went to the adventure office to organize our five adventures.  Unfortunately our scuba diving which we thought was included was not.  It is only included if you are already certified. We will have to contact Adventure Life and figure something out.  We have scheduled snorkeling and two hikes.  Next we got fitted for our snorkel gear.  That is really nice and well organized because they take care of it and make sure it is on the boat before you go out, and bring it in from the boat when you are finished, so you don’t have to worry about it again.  So nice!

Finally, we got checked in to the room.  The kids have a room with twin beds, and the main room has a king sized bed in it.  

It is air conditioned too, so a big change from Pook’s.  We are so glad we went to Pook’s first!  There were flowers all over the bed and  a giant leaf that had a handwritten note on it.  It said, “Hamanasi Welcomes!  Mary, Danika, Jason, and David…  May you all enjoy a memorable and fun-filled Belize vacation here with us.  Best Regards, Your Hamanasi Family."  Wow, what a start!

Jason is in the pool now making lots of friends.  Danika took a shower and is reading.  I am sitting out on the deck writing.  Our deck is really private.  To the right, we have a view of the jungle with the sea in the distance off to the left.

To the left of our deck is a wall that blocks us from our neighbors and the main restaurant area.  Straight ahead we have a view of the pool, the dock, and the sea! It is perfect!

We took a walk around the property while Jason swam and Danika read.  The tree houses were really nice and private, but were up in the trees, so the view of the sea is blocked.  We are very happy we have the beach house. 

At happy hour, David had a local beer, and I had a local wine that tasted like a really fizzy sangria.  The kids had orange juice. Dinner was so much food!  I had the goat cheese salad for an appetizer and it was incredible!  Chicken and shrimp curry for main course, and chimichanga with bananas and raisins for dessert.

The food looks so pretty!

It get's dark rather quickly!  As you can see from the photos, we start dinner at 6 p.m. and it is light.  By the time the main course arrives, it is already dark.

Danika's favorite dessert, cheesecake.

Jason's favorite dessert, brownie a la mode.

After dinner David and I took a walk to the end of the dock while Jason swam and Danika read.  It was really windy and the dock was wet from the spray.  We came back to the pool and watched Jason swim for a bit.  Now we are back in the room getting ready to turn in.  It is beginning to feel like a real vacation, YES!