Janie, great family and community reporting. Love it!

Great trip report great pics - as always good to see you and Bruce and was glad to meet the boys

backatcha, tg. thanks everybody. i'm working on the rest...

you still reading?

While Steve and Leo knew what they were going to see there, they were still amazed and thrilled.

http://www.pbase.com/sweetjane/image/103669397

I could see it in their faces as we got back onboard. Wide eyes and huge smiles, and we sped off to Hol Chan. Again, there was just one other boat there.

My hope was to see Spotted Eagle Rays - my favorites. Miguel took us out, and led us around. There was a bit of current, so he said to follow closely. We did, until we got around to the calmer side and then spread out a bit. Miguel and I pointed out some pretty, little butterfly fish and interesting things to the guys. He & I saw a very large and beautiful Black Angel, but the boys missed it. He pointed a smaller one out to them a minute later. We swam and hovered, seeing all sorts of small creatures in the cracks & crevices. Never any disappointments at Hol Chan; it’s a wonderful snorkel each and every time.

I still kept watching out of the corners of my eyes, and thought I saw an eagle ray, but it was only a small stingray. My hope was dwindling. Then I saw something.” BRUCE! HEY GUYS!! THERE’S A TURTLE OVER HERE!!” everyone swam over as fast as they could. Now, you should know Bruce (an animal lover anyway) has a thing for turtles. He wears a wooden one from Costa Rica around his neck. We had only ever seen 2 before - one on land, and one swimming. I knew he’d be absolutely delighted, and he was. Yay! This one seemed kinda small. Fascinating.

The boys and I went back to the reef while Bruce swam off following the turtle. Then Miguel saw another one! Wow! This one was also small, but so peaceful and graceful in the water. I called Bruce back over. He had followed the other one kind of far. He swam back, and as they were checking that one out, I saw yet another! 3 in one day! This was great! The boys were thrilled and Bruce was ecstatic! This was an easy swap for my hope of the kids seeing eagle rays.

We’d been out there for a while now, and hadn’t eaten in hours. The boys were getting tired, and we headed back to the boat. Later, Bruce told me that Miguel asked him not to follow the turtles; they get tired easily. We both sniffed and made puppy dog eyes, and he made a mental note not to do it again.

Ok, bbq time! You guys saw the pics. Capt Bobby chopped onions peppers & tomatoes, made a sauce of mayo, butter & seasonings, and threw the haul of the day into foil packets to steam over the fire.

http://www.pbase.com/image/103669403

On the side were tortillas, and potatoes in butter & herbs, also steamed in foil. A little Marie Sharp’s and OH MAN, it was soooooooooooooooooo good. OMG. Maybe we were just really hungry, but the flavor was just great. We scarfed it down, dribbling happily. We’d never had barracuda before, and we all agreed it was better than the snapper. Too bad Steve didn’t want his lobster tail, so I forced myself to have 2! Ha ha ha!

Now the other side: the bbq was at Lion’s Club Park down south, and the beach there was a mess. Busted up palapas and random trash all over. A family lived in a shack on the lot.

http://www.pbase.com/image/103669402

They had a dog tied up in the sun with no water, and just a broken billboard for shade. He looked very, very sad. Bruce grabbed a bottle of water and a small tub, and gave some to the dog – who slurped it up in one second. A young boy was watching, shyly.

http://www.pbase.com/image/103669404

Bruce quietly went over and told the boy that dogs need water just like people do, Bruce pet the dog and gave it some more, and came back to sit with me. I looked over and said ‘look’. The boy was gingerly carrying a larger bowl of water out to the dog. I put my arm on Bruce’s, smiled, and told him he did good. He then told me he just saw the captain take the leftovers to the family in the shack. Pay it forward – I hate that line, but I adore the idea.

by now it was after 4; we were stuffed and ready for naps. Back in the boat, and back to the Palms. Showers were in immediate order. We were all roasty-toasty and exhausted. We slept, woke up, snacked on leftover chicken & ceviche, stared at the ocean for a little, reviewed the day, and went back to bed. Tomorrow would be our last full day on this jewel of an island. (snif)

Bumping the link: http://www.pbase.com/sweetjane/ambergris_with_boys_aug_08

My mouth is watering thinking of the BBQ right now....

Sorry this is taking so long…anyone still with me here??

It’s now Friday, our last full day on the island. We had hopes of making it to La Perla today, but I wasn’t moving very fast. Bruce, Leo & I got up early and carted up to Ruby’s to bring back different breakfast goodies. Chicken patties, Johnny cakes (sorry, dc), flan, and egg-n-bacon biscuits for Steve. MMMM, that should be good with the left-over fresh fruit and coffee.

On the way back, we stopped by Barefoot Books to say our last goodbyes to Colette. We talked and talked and talked, and finally hugs all around and ‘definitely see you next time’, and back to the condo for a relaxing breakfast. We stuffed ourselves and stared off the balcony for a while. While Chris mentioned we could catch the La Perla boat up early, I knew we would miss it,and we did. I said that it was up to everyone what they would like to do, and if we didn’t get up north, I’d be okay. Leo asked politely if we could try to go, he really wanted to see La Perla (and Steve wanted to see Pooh Bear again). So I told them we could just expense it and catch a water taxi up, and went down to get the schedule from Ana. There was a 1 PM going, so I phoned Chris and that became the plan.

We flopped and digested until it was time to suit & lotion up to head to Fido’s Dock taxi terminal. I had never taken the water taxi up that far (past JE), and was stunned that it was not $8 per person, and ended up being over $60 US for the 4 of us to get up there. NOT EXPECTING THAT!!! Oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound, so we enjoyed the beautiful but very long ride, getting sunburned and stopping every few piers to let people on & off. Finally, it was our stop. We clamored off, and Chris was walking up the pier with his signature huge smile.

(to be continued)

Definitely see you next time! Big hugs to you and your gorgeous and adorable family.

(continued from above)

As I walked up the pier and toward the lushly landscaped pool area with Leo, I asked him what he thought. He was wide eyed and said its reaaallllly nice! We walked past the pool toward the house that Sari & Chris use as their office. At this point, we were all really hot. I told Steve to go ahead into the pool. Now, Leo is the kind of kid who thinks he would like to ‘live the good life’ when he grows up, rub elbows with glamor (keep up the honors grades in school, boy!). I was not sure if he’d ever been in a house quite like the ones at La Perla, which have been called shabby chic. I took him on the tour upstairs and down. The doors, furniture, and decor is of an Arabic/Turkish style, and the whole house feels very sexy and exotic. They were built and decorated by the people who built Mata Chica. All he could keep saying was ‘wow’.

We knew Chris and Sari had to work, so the rest of us joined Steve in the pool. Only one of the houses was occupied that week, and music was blaring out of their sliders enough for us to listen too. Chris had mentioned that the guests there were really cool. The pool is beautiful and tranquil. Between conversation we floated in the sun, the music enveloping us.

After a while, two very nice women came down to the pool, cocktails in hand. They were sisters renting the house for the week with their husband & boyfriend. They told us of their funny adventures of their trip until the men came to swim too. One was so proud to tell us of the HUGE fish he was catching right off the dock there, and how he was amazed they didn’t break his rod. we all agreed how yummy barracuda is. Sari came and sat with us all, showing off how Pooh bear can swim. More pleasant chat.

Time flew with the trade winds, and it was time to change out of our suits. While Bruce was changing, I saw Chris’ friend and fix-it-guy Alvin. We’d met before, and were happy to see each other again. Very nice guy, smart. We’d had a great conversation the last time we’d met, and this time a well. Interesting how people of different ages from different backgrounds and different countries can think so much alike.

Sounds like fun.

Ok�do you think I can get this thing finished already?? sheesh.

We had made tentative plans to head up to Portofino for snacks & smoothies, but time had slipped away (with the trade winds, remember?), and we really had to catch La Perla�s boat back to town. No way paying $60 more to get back via water taxi!! So we bagged Portofino, deciding to eat cheap in town.

Now this is funny. We were all tired and sunburned. Chatty all the way back, we weren�t paying attention to the docks as they flew by. As we slowed down and turned landward, I looked up to see we were docking at BC�s, near the Palms. We had totally neglected to tell them our cart was still parked at Fido�s! Bruce & Leo walked up the beach to retrieve it while Steve and I washed up and Chris and Sari got a drink at BC�s.

Although we planned to have dinner all together, and they politely tried not to show it, Chris & Sari were obviously preoccupied with a situation that had come up at work. In addition, we wanted something local for our last dinner and they wanted Indian. I leaned over and told them that it was really ok, not to worry - we�ll do it next time. We all hugged and said our goodbyes, and the West Family piled in the cart for our last dinner in SP.

We had asked Chris for the name of a place that served local food that was cheap and tasty. He told us Genie�s, next to the Super Buy market. We�ve driven past there a dozen times, but I couldn�t recall ever seeing it. So, off we went. Sure enough, Genie�s is right there, but if you would have blinked you would have missed it. Two tables with mismatched chairs and vinyl tablecloths outside, and I think one inside. The menu was a small blackboard with about 7 items on it�all in Spanish.

We could feel a lot of eyes on us. I think not too many tourists eat there. A pleasant woman came out right away and wiped the table, big smile, asking what we wanted � in Spanish. We don�t speak Spanish (oh we keep saying we�re going to learn it, but, well, you know). She sent out the other very pleasant woman who explained (in the most basic English, while also smiling enormously) how each dish was served, and took our order. We ended up with one chicken burrito, 2 plates of stew chicken, a carne something-or-other that was really good, the best refried beans I EVER had (no rice available there), still-warm homemade tortillas, and great slaw. We were starving and ate like it was our last meal. It was SOOO good. And the ladies could not have been nicer. I fed 2 very skinny kittens most of a chicken thigh when no one was looking.

The boys and I got up to stretch our legs and rub our stuffed bellies while Bruce went in to pay. People were still looking at us, as they continued to throughout our meal. Each time someone did, we smiled at them and said hi. Faces relaxed.

We were all stuffed and happy - that was exactly what we were looking for in a meal. On the way back to the condo, I asked Bruce out of curiosity what the meal cost. He glanced and me and said �you�re not going to believe it.� All that food and 4 juices was only $15 US, including the tip. I totally cracked up. I love this place.