TRAVELS OF ANN

“WELCOME TO THE HOTEL CALIFORNIA…YOU CAN CHECK IN, BUT YOU CAN NEVER LEAVE”

Pleasant flight into Cancun in a Tropic Air 12 seater prop plane. Over lovely coastlines, we arrived into the terminal where the private jets enter. On arrival at the terminal, the pulled our our suitcases, and brought the dogs out to sniff. Cleared, we walked into beautiful modern facilities with our own customs and immigration person, no waiting.

Donnie and Sharon picked me up in their VW van, really cool, after a small miscommunication about arrival. We arrived into the Enchanted Villa, really named VILLA.  It is located on the outskirts of Puerto Morelos, between Cancun and Playa del Carmen. It is a 3 story Mediterranean style villa, with a pool in the front and the blue ocean in the back. My bedroom is on the second floor with 2 queen size beds, a walk in closet and a private bath. A veranda, off the bedroom runs the length of the house.

There are several resident iguanas that like to eat hibiscus flowers.

It was hard to leave Paradise. Was a wonderful visit to Placencia Belize for 2 weeks. At this time, the end of the trip, I would be thinking about home. It is hard to believe that I have 2 more weeks of vacation. I am going to Puerto Morelos, Mexico between Cancun and Playa delCarmen, on the Mexican Caribbean. I was invited by Donnie a former professor and his wife Sharon. They go frequently. Donnie makes documentary films in Mexico. They are both divers.

There are a couple of ways to get from Belize to Mexico, bus or small plane. I decided to fly.

Lobsterfest, a festival for the opening of the Lobster season, June28-30, 2013. It was one of my goals for visiting Belize. As always, looking for music for my radio show. I have arranged to meet, interview, and record 3 bands, as well as enjoy the festival.
It started on Fri evening. That morning the wind quit blowing, the ocean looked like glass, however, that made it so hot. It was really hot in my un a/c’d cabana with no breeze blowing. It least I had a fan.
That night I ate at De’ Thatched, on the beach, found out it was owned my the family of one of the Splash people. I had shrimp cooked in coconut milk with cilantro, with coconut rice and salad. Delicious! Had dessert of banana cream pie, Like a thin tart, had nice crust, bananas, and custard, not too sweet, oh so good. It was one of the few times I had dessert here, definitely the best. Would have nice to have a dinner partner, I was the only person dining alone.

The next day, no breeze and really hot. The opening ceremony was at 10 am, but did not start until 11. (Belize time) Due to meet my first band afterward, a steel drum band, the Panerrifx.

Was there about 4 hrs, really sweating the whole time. Met the Panerrifx, they are from a performing arts high school in Belize City, I am due to get their bio and will give more information. Many of the 20+ members of the band have been performing and playing steel drums since elementary school. I recorded a few songs.

I waked around Lobsterfest to see the sights, it was right on the beach and many were swimming, dancing under the tent to the music, were selling their local crafts and art, food vendors were cooking and serving.

Left and came back that evening to meet Silas’s band, Paranda Ambassadors. ate a lobster, one of the ones in the picture, but a smaller one. Talked to people, recorded a few station IDs.

The next day was Sunday, the last day for Lobsterfest and the last day I am in Belize. In the morning I leave. Spent my last day packing, tonight I am meeting the Persuaders band.

There are many good places to eat in Placencia. I mostly ate seafood the whole time. In the morning, at the dock by my hotel, Omar came to personally buy the fish and seafood. One morning, I watched him buy lovely red snapper.  In the afternoon, Omar posted the seafood for the day on a chalk board outside of the restaurant, Omar’s. That evening I went in and told Arilee, who took my order, that I wanted one of those snappers that I saw Omar purchase that day.  I went there several times, the seafood was delicious with a taste of right out of the sea. Other times, Sheldon, helped me with my dinner order.

It was a delight to find out that the boat captain at Splash, the group I am diving with, is also the lead and manager of the Persuaders, a local Placencia band. I got several chances to talk to Carlton Young, nickname of Patu. The band plays reggae with rock and roll to the reggae beat. I love both types of music, I was really looking forward to hearing them. Unfortunately, they did not have a recorded CD. I did get the opportunity of having dinner with Patu so that I could conduct an interview in a relaxed setting. I invited him and said “Don’t worry, its not a date” hehe. It was an enjoyable evening.
The band members are Carlton Young or Patu on bass, keyboard, and vocals. Carlton on guitar, Vincent Lopez on keyboard, George Eiley on drums, and Elsworth Eiley on percussion. Although, Carton does many of the vocals, They all have their own songs they do vocals on.
Carton/Patu music career started when his older brother, in a band and let him tag along. Once they were rehearsing, Patu had the mic. He started singing. His older brother said “where is that coming from?” A new band member was born. Patu started playing in a band. He told his father he wanted to be a musician, surprisingly, his father was supportive. To obtain musical instruments he needed, his father purchased them, but there was a little catch. Carlton had to work all summer for his father for Free. He formed his own band the “Inner Vibrations”. He performed and managed for this band14 yrs, 3 of the musicians are in his current band, The Persuaders.
Carlton is a scuba diver, started at age 13. He became a dive master and then a boat captain. We discussed the relation between diving and the creative process of music. He said that when he dove into the ocean, and swam weightless underwater, while observing all the beauty, new music came to him during those moments. As soon as he was underwater, new music filled his head. I found that fascinating

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Spent a lot of time the first week and a half, ocean gazing. Now I am getting down to the last week, and feel I must get busy. One of my plans is to cover Lobsterfest, do some interviews and get some reggae/Caribbean music for my radio show.  Have made contact with 3 bands.
One of the bands, Paranda Ambassadors, the manager/lead musician, Silas Sabal has a recording studio. He  invited me over to record some music of his band. It is located in a neighboring village, Seine Bight. I  went there at the arranged time. Unfortunately, the band was in another town.
We spent the time touring his studio, discussing his style of music, and his background as a musician.
His band consists of 4 musicians. Silas plays guitar, keyboard and does vocals.  Emilo Thomas, known as Leo, plays guitar.  Anthony and Robert Marin plays drums. Drums are not the usual drum kit we are all familiar with. The drums are hand played,  sounds a bit African style.
The style of music they play is Punta Rock, a very fast “bootie shaking” type with very fast drums. The main music they play is Paranda, a Garifuna reggae.
The history of the Garifuna is  when slavery was ended by the English in 1775, a group from the Caribbean island of St. Vincent,   migrated to Belize. Now called Garifuna people. They are almost the indigenous people.  Now many regional changes have been made to the music.
Silas is a songwriter. He won the 2010 first place in the Patriotic song contest.
Silas found music  at the age of 9. He heard a lady play piano. It was the beginning of his enchantment with music, and his career pursuit.  He took piano lessons but the teacher was mean (my own similar experience). He stopped the lessons and taught himself the piano, guitar and how to sing.
His lifelong passion was cemented, when once in school, the teacher asked if anyone could play piano? He raised is hand, went to the piano, and played  the one chord he knew, all through the national anthem.  The kids applauded and a musician was born.
On the night of Lobsterfest, I am supposed to record him. When I arrived, he handed me a CD, said they all stayed up late the night before, and recorded it for me and the listeners at KSYM radio.
for more information, see Silas Sabal or Sabal Studio Productions on Facebook.

Went diving today with Splash. The first dive was a wall. Swimming along with that weightless feeling that I love. Floating above the coral vegetation, and gazing out into the blue, the abyss, that drops off to the ocean floor.  You swim from mountain top to mountain top, then down the side to the wall with little crevices and caves – where creatures are hiding from the large unknown beings invading their sanctuary, us’ the human divers.   The first thing that came swimming out was a big grouper. It didn’t seem afraid, but wanted to get the hell outta there. I followed him, snapping pictures.

I really hope that my pictures capture the majesty of the wall and the drop off to the abyss, I don’t think it can. I saw a huge crab and lobster, but had to peek in their holes, like a voyeur. In a distance, the divemaster pointed to a large shark in a distance, I could clearly see the outline of his dorsal fin.. but the shark did not venture near.

Swimming on top of the wall, from peak to peak, down the side of the wall, always makes me think of space travel, that weightless feeling, flying around, discovering fabulous creatures and new vegetation. In the 60s, in the height of discovering space, walking on the moon, I really believed that by the time I am my age, we would all be driving/flying little air craft, as least some type of hover craft. Now I know it will probably never be in my lifetime.  Underwater is the closest I will ever be to that feeling of space.

When exiting the water, it had gotten really windy. I was approaching the ladder, a big wave came up and shoved my shin into the ladder- ouch, another bruise, to match my collection of bruises and bug bites. I got such a large bruise on my upper arm, deltoid area to be exact, that it looks like a tattoo ( the closest I will ever get to one), I wear it as a badge of courage for that bad weather dive.

After the first dive, we went to the Island: Silk Caye for lunch and surface interval time. I was there before, on my last visit to Belize.  The header picture at the top of this blog, of the palm tree, I took there. Went right back to that spot, but it did not look the same, savaged by storms and winds and weather, it took its toll on the palm tree. Its a reminder, that all things change.  But in that place, there were sea gulls resting on a fallen tree.

On the second dive, we swam through hills and valleys of the reef, with me hunting subjects to photograph. At the end of the dive, my battery ran out. Drats! Disappointed, because afterward we were going to snorkel and see the turtles.

The snorkel to see the turtles, we jumped in. I immediately there were 3 large nurse sharks swimming at me. They were gliding in formation, as I would want to position them for a photo or painting. Only one turtle came out, a grandpaw with barnacles on his back, slowly swimming around hoping for a treat, but none found.   This huge grey manta ray came flying forth, laid on the ocean floor right below were we were snorkeling, it had huge eyes, and just laid there the whole time his eyes moving around to follow our movements. I wonder what he was thinking?

Got a chance to meet some of the people on our boat, this time we were on the big state of the art boat.  We had snorkelers and divers. I was the only female diver, me and the boys again.

Met a nice couple, Tim and Katie Brown from Dallas, snorkelers for the first time, I think. Met a couple of British boys ( sorry, young men), Dan and Blair, having just graduated from medical school and residency, were young doctors. They were fun, we became buddies. I also found out that the boat captain was the leader of one of the bands I was trying to make contact with.

Planned to go diving today, but woke at at 6am and the skies were gray, some rain, winds are howling. No diving for me today. I continue to indulge in absorbing the coastline.  Listened to music, wrote on paper for my blog. Checked emails.  Late morning things seemed to clear and the sun came out.

Went to Cozy Corner for breakfast, had a fruit plate and a jack (like a sopopilla). The fruit was so good. Think I will go by the fruit stand and buy some for my room.

There are people sitting on the beach outside of Cozy Corner, this lovely beach, but they are all staring at their cell phones.  The are not even noticing the gorgeous surroundings. Not me, I am absorbed and mesmerized by the blue ocean, white sand, palm trees. It makes me feel a little guilty, like I am wasting time.  I should be doing something? Oh WTF, its vacation.

Its off season now, June, due to the heat. The cafes only have a few, the beaches are almost deserted, not that many people walking around. But for me, its just the way I like it.

Laying in a hammock, on my veranda, under the stars, swaying palm trees, the moonlight kissing and dancing over the silhouettes of the beach, as breezes blow across my body. Its luxury bordering on decadence.