AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Talk Belize Trip Reports The Apparently Controversial Account of my Trip

Ernie,
I feel I need to make a comment about your post of 12/6 @ 03:04pm. I do not question your like and respect for the owners of MR. What I'd like to bring to your attention is that the OP noted that the owners were not on island. I believe the OP said something like the owners were off on their own vacation.

Ever heard the expression...while the cat's away the mice will play. By that I would surmise that despite how respected you are of the staff of MR, it is possible that since the owners were not there that some lax in customer service might have taken place.

In this next comment, I'm not bashing the OP but it seems to me that trying to fit in a cave tubing trip in the afternoon knowing the time restraints of the water taxi and the last plane back to AC was a bit naieve (sp).

Hope Dan and his GF don't write off AC after this first trip. I'd suggest try it again and learn and remember things from your first trip.

yat

Dan, thank you for sharing your story. I am exhausted from reading it - I can almost imagine how you and your girlfriend felt from the whole experience.

I have experienced minor inconveniences on vacations - nothing like what you went through, and I now feel very fortunate and won't complain so much in the future.

As I read about your backpack - I thought - ouch. I have left my purse places - but remembered quickly and recovered it. When I first arrive somewhere new, I am out of it, without a routine, etc. so I can understand how this could happen.

I can also relate to being misinformed. I have stayed at many places on AC and have been told inacurate information. Knowing the steps you have to take if you lose your passport in Belize is very important information. I think we all benefited from your experience here on this message board.

Other thoughts:

If you chose to return to Belize, consider not prearranging day trips and scope out/ask around before booking. There are so many reliable outfits/guides on the island and mainland.

I did the cave tubing thing - wasn't impressed - water was low, a very long walk they really don't tell you about prior to entering the water. To me, the best day trip I've taken in my 7 trips to AC and Belize mainland was the Lamanai trip.

I have learned that "island time" variance can be up to an hour. I've learned to relax and not worry about it. This seems to apply just about every tropical place I've been to but 1 - Panama. They are so prompt they are often early

I hope that your future adventures are stress free and enjoyable. You deserve a break and have learned many lessons from this experence.

Ciao

If anyone is still interested, I wrote a short analysis (back on my original link) of my take on the tendency of certain people to react a certain way to negative criticism of the island.

Personally I think a vacation should be an adventure from the normal, that's me. Under those terms there is no such thing as a bad vacation it's only a new experience in life.

I've stayed at some places in Belize that didn't even come close to meeting expectations but it was all part of the adventure. Sure I was unhappy at the time but I still came back, to stay. Hopefully you'll make you way back here again and have a much more enjoyable time (with plenty of adventure.)

I read the analysis you just posted, Dan. Guess what, I stupidly left an $800.00US digital camera in some check-in baggage on a flight to Cancun and, guess what, it got stolen.

I was a "victim" but I'll tell you right now, I asked for it, I was dumb for leaving the camera in the bag in the first place and I only blamed myself. I didn't even report the "crime" to the authorities at the airport I was so embarrassed.

(Of course, the loss of your passports would HAVE to be reported, no matter how much like stupid idiots it made you look to everyone who heard where you'd left them).

If stupd morons like ME didn't give opportunist thieves the chance to carry out impossible to solve crimes with such ease those crimes wouldn't happen as frequently, would they?

I wonder, when you first reported the theft of your backpack to the Mata Rocks staff what was your tone? When you really think about it was there not ANYTHING in your approach to them that might have made them feel threatened in any way?

And did the Mata Rocks staff REALLY tell you that you had to be at the U.S. Embassy at 5:00am? How would you have done that when the first flight doesn't leave the island until 7:00am and the first boat wouldn't reach Belize City until after 8:00am? And what use would 5:00am be when the U.S. embassy website http://usembassy.state.gov/belize/wwwhembassyinformation.html clearly states that office hours are " Monday through Friday, 8AM to 12PM and 1PM to 5PM"? It just took me 15 seconds to search Yahoo! for the embassy website AND to navigate to the information page. When you lost your passports did you temporarily lose your brains as well?

I personally think you're victims, yes, but you really don't take enough of the blame to justify your later analysis. The people who stole your backpack are obviously evil nasty thieving scum. But I don't see you blame them at all. You're too busy pointing fingers at everyone else but yourselves and the thieves.

I absolutely defend 100% your right to give your version of the events and your opinion of the people and their actions who you met during the subsequent days. But don't expect everyone living here on Ambergris to "take it on the chin" without some kind of comment. And don't imagine that there is "something wrong" with those of us who feel compelled to reply to your writings. Admit it, you love us really!

Yo! This guy is from NY (like I was). We eat insults for breakfast.

Obviusly his trip sucked and so will his report and everything in it, even though a little overly dramatized. We all agree that it could have been worse. And just think (you all knowing ones) how you felt at times when first arriving (recent for many of you) when you encountered problems.

I just wish he wouldn't spoil it for others when advising them of his woes.

And whoever said nothing compares to NYC (especially AC), you're absolutely right. :rolleyes: But you got it all wrong. I would rather have a ripped up shack on the beach than a townhouse on the upper end of CP. JMHO

SIN

I assure you that my tone wasn't the least bit antagonistic. As you say - it was an embarrassing moment and I felt like an idiot. So you can take that for what it's worth. I only became angry after repeated misinformation and a general apathetic attitude.

As for the 5am. That's what we were told. We were told that she had gone to the embassy for something in the past and had gotten there at 5 to be at the front of the line. We knew the earliest flight out wasn't until 7 but the thought was to get there as early as possible.

Obviously it is easy for you and I to do our yahoo searches sitting in the Starbucks with your WiFi connection - but we were told that the office was locked for the night and they couldn't get internet connection. No exceptions. And the next morning we just left assuming that the information we were given was accurate. More naivete I suppose.

FYI - Erica no longer works with MRR

It's pretty common knowledge among Belizeans that you have to get in line at 5-6am to obtain a US Visa. It does not apply to US citizens with passport emergencies. You will however get really dirty looks as you barge the line in front of people who have been waiting outside for 3 or 4 hours.

They stop administering to Belizeans around 12 though and only start serving Americans at 1. This is information that would have been useful as there is absolutely no reason to arrive in Belize City any time earlier than 1230.