The View From The Balcony

Our house is basically a single level of living space raised up on 10 foot stilts as a precaution against storm surges (not needed so far!).  We have what we call a loft above the newer part of the house on the right of the photo below under the gable end roof.

The loft is under that gable roof just inside the little Juliette-style balcony.  The main living floor is fairly obscured by the trees.  The ground level is storage and workshop space between the stilts. 

There is a beautiful view of the sea from the little balcony.

There's our dock in the center of the photo leading to that incredible turquoise sea.

Inside, the loft is a large room that I use a yoga studio and gym.

Antique Nordic track on the left - I bought it used in 1994!  Yoga space in the center and Concept 2 indoor rower on the right.

Stairs down to the main living space are to left of white balisters.  Lots of storage space in the loft plus an office space that is not pictured.

The view from main level is also pretty awesome!

The front veranda connects the new and the original cabanas.  Seating and lounging on one end and dining and an outdoor cooking area on the other end.

Morning coffee in the hammock on the front veranda.

I use the oudoor cooking area for the air fryer and slow cooker so the kitchen doesn't collect the heat.  And also just extra counter space for processing mango, etc.

Mango puree! 

There is more square footage of outdoor space than indoor space, which makes perfect sense because unless it is super hot, you will find me outside.

A celestial image to close this post.

 Venus and Jupiter with the crescent moon.  February 22, 2023.

More than a year ago

Steve (of Shadows and Light fame) has motivated me to get off the "inactive blog" list and start writing posts again, so you can blame him!  But all the blame is with me for not having posted anything in well over a year!  How did that happen?  Well, it started like this . . .

In February of 2023, my lovely niece Becki came to visit us.  This was her second trip to Belize and, I am hopeful, the second in a long string of trips in the future.  This time, like the first time, she came to join me at a yoga retreat.  The first retreat, which was fabulous, was at Ray Caye and you can read about it here and here and here. In 2023, the retreat was at Sleeping Giant Rainforest Resort in Maya Mountains of Belize, also fabulous. 

But first!  Big change - cut off my long hair which had grown so much during covid! 

16 inches of braided, grey hair sent off to Locks of Love.

I was so relieved to have short hair again!  I felt pounds lighter.

My friend Melanie, who joined us on the yoga retreat, and I drove up to the Philip Goldston International Airport in Ladyville, Belize to pick up Becki.  Good tidings were foretold by the rainbow over the airport while we waited for Becki to clear customs and immigration.

Double rainbow for double goodness.

Rainbow in rearview, the three of drove to the stunning Sleeping Giant Rainforest Resort for the yoga retreat.  The grounds were so lush.

Resort grounds with path to the swimming pool.

The pool.

We were in a creekside suite which looked out across the Sibun River Valley.  In front of our suite was a koi pond fed by gurgling creek.  We were surrounded by beauty you could see, smell, and hear.

View from the private veranda of our room.

Koi pond in the rain

Also beauty you could taste - the food was as lovely as my companions!

Becki and Melanie at dinner.

Our yoga sessions were at various locations in the expansive resort.

Sunrise yoga at the riverside pavilion.

We also had sessions adjacent to a creek way back in the jungle and another on a deck overlooking the valley.  Everywhere the walking paths were lined with amazing plants that hosted multitudes of birds and other wildlife.  The paved paths between the resort buildings wound through beautifully tended, yet natural looking, gardens.

Ginger flowers.

Orchid.

The reddest hibiscus I have ever seen!

Rougher trails criss-crossed creeks over hammock bridges and climbed up mountains, sometimes with steps and other times with only rope handholds with which to pull yourself up the cliff sides.

Selaginella.

Limestone cliff behind those trees.

Catching my breath as I look down the steps I just climbed.

Flowers and ferns on the cliff face.

Becki, puling herself up the mountainside.

And contemplating how much further there is to go . . . .

View of the Sibun River Valley from the mountaintop gazebo.

Panoramic View.  All of the forested area is part of a national forest reserve.

After the hike

That was 13 months ago and so much has happened since then.  More to come.

Back to Englishtown

After two lovely yoga sessions separated by breakfast, it was time to pack up for the 2 boat trips taking us home to Englishtown.

At breakfast, we saw one of the commercial fishing boats anchored off Ray Caye.

The "mother boat" with 2 canoes. 

The 6 to 8 fishermen live on the mother boat for a week or so at a time.  Each day they go out in their little canoes to catch lobster, conch, and fish and then come home to mother for the night.  They sell their catch to restaurants such as the one at Ray Caye and to recreational/vacation boaters who sail between the cayes.  They also take their catches into Placencia to mainland restaurants.  What a tough life that must be.

After settling our bill, we had time for a fruit smoothie before boarding Our Devocean for the first leg of the trip home.

Shooting the breeze with Captain Sean on the way home.  He has had quite a few adventures on the sea!

Orington picked us up at the Wild Orchid dock in Placencia for the trip back to Englishtown.  It was coming up on dusk when we arrived with just enough time to walk the dogs before a light dinner.

Cheese board with a selection of delightful items from White Rock Farm - Chevre, Sage Derby, Chive Cheddar, Stilton, Red Leicester, Brie, and Lonzino.  Served with thin toasted slices of locally made whole wheat sourdough.  A feast!

Becki taught us the trick of cooling wine with a few frozen grapes.  

Planning ahead, I texted Dennis on our way home and asked him to please put some grapes in the freezer.  It works a treat!

Dennis and the pups were happy to have us back and we were happy to be home.  Yoga with Brice at Ray Caye had been wonderful, but best to leave before you get tired of it.

Welcome home cuddles with Clove.

Yoga at Ray Caye

Friday had a slightly more relaxed start - breakfast became brunch as we eased our way into the day.  I made an omelette with eggs we had picked up the day before at White Rock Farm, owned by our friends Chris and Sue.  They have quite an enterprise at their farm these days - chickens, ducks, geese, Guinea fowl, turkeys, goats, sheep, pigs, all kinds of fruit trees and vegetables.  They make delicious cheeses from their milk herds and from cow's milk they get from their Mennonite neighbors.  We stopped at the farm, which is on the Hummingbird Highway just south of Belmopan, to pick up our pre-ordered selection of cheeses, cured meat, bangers, marmalade, rum butter, lemons, and eggs.

multi-hued chicken eggs

We finished up all the fruit left over from the previous day's breakfast along with the omelette, toasted English muffins, rum butter, marmalade, accompanied by Belize grown coffee.

Then we headed up to the Ray Caye dock, a 35 minute boat ride from our dock.  Our transport to Ray Caye was on the boat pictured below.

"Our DevOcean"

The trip to Ray Caye was a little more than an hour going at 25 knots per hour.  Another health check upon arrival and then the welcoming rum punch.

Becki already looks relaxed in this beautiful, stress-free place.

The wind started picking up, so we were not able to have our pre- and post-dinner yoga sessions on the platform over the sea.

The slide into the sea.

Solar panels cover the dock walkway.

We had our session in the breezy yoga studio.  The class was only 15 people this time instead of 19, so there was more room to spread out.

Waiting for the first session to start.

We had 2 sessions the first day, 4 on Saturday, and 2 on Sunday morning before we departed.  That left a good chunk of Saturday open for a boating/snorkel trip.

Sunny Scenes From A Yoga Retreat on Ray Caye

Lots of photos today from a yoga retreat I went to back in May.  It was held on Ray Caye Private Island Resort and was real treat.  The retreat was led by the lovely Brice Dial, who owns Positive Vibrations Yoga in Placencia.  Brice made arrangements with the management at Ray Caye for an exceptionally good deal for the 20 of us who participated in the retreat - a sort of a post-lockdown soft-reopening for the resort.  We traveled on a large boat from Wild Orchid docks (Ray Caye's landside partner) on the Placencia Lagoon the 20 or so miles east out to Ray Caye.  The trip takes a little more than hour.

One of the Ray Caye boats.

All the Placencia businesses keep their big boats on the lagoon side of the Placencia Peninsula.

Departing from Wild Orchid Dock.

We arrived at Ray Caye, and did a quick temp scan and handwash before enjoying our welcome drinks.

Traditional Caribbean Rum Punch Welcome Drink.

Check out the cute garnish.

Then we checked into our rooms and got sorted before our first yoga practice.

View off the balcony of the room Melanie and I shared.

Most of the practices were held at the fitness studio, a nice open space that allowed us to forego masks for our sessions.

Plenty of room to spread out.

Brice had a lovely bag of goodies for us.

All kinds of Belizean treats in the bag.

Plus a scented candle.

After 2 yoga practices, we enjoyed our dinners at the open air restaurant.

Seafood pasta with clams.

Other practices were held on a platform above the sea.

Heading out to the platform for a practice.

The sunrise and sunset practices were especially wonderful out on the platform.  Note the solar panels that cover the walkway.

We also had time to explore the little caye and try out a kayak.  Other people went sailing, fishing, snorkeling, swimming, or just chilling by the pool.

Another view of the caye.

The food was delicious with many of the salad items grown right on the caye.  The head gardner gave me tour of the greenhouse, of which he is rightfully proud!

Arugula, tomatoes, basil, hot and sweet peppers in the greenhouse

Open air restaurant.

It was time depart before it seemed possible.

Casting off from the dock.

Incredible water

Farewell, Ray Caye.

It was an amazing time, not least because it was the first time I had socialized in over a year.  And the venue was perfect because we were outside most of the time in gorgeous surroundings.  I particularly enjoyed not having to cook!  I enjoyed it so much that I went another yoga retreat there in October (equally wonderful) and am signed up for the next one in January.