Return to Mexico

This morning at 7, we took a boat to Corozal in Belize, which is close to the Mexican border. From there, we’ll head to Chetumal, the border town on the Mexican side. The boat ride cost 45 Belize dollars and lasted about 2 hours. Once we arrived on the mainland in Corozal, we found a taxi that we shared with some Australian guys heading in the same direction. It cost 12 Belize dollars per person to get to Chetumal in Mexico. The border crossing was super easy. Thankfully, there weren’t many people, so we breezed right through. It costs 30 Belize dollars to leave the country, plus 7.50 Belize dollars that goes to nature reserves. Flying from Belize City to Mexico City wasn’t an option without a layover in the USA, which is crazy expensive. So here we are in Mexico, where domestic flights are much cheaper. Now we can better compare the islands of Caye Caulker and Ambergris. We definitely prefer Caye Caulker over Ambergris. Caye Caulker is a lovely little island that’s easy to navigate. It’s not crowded at all. If you want to meet other travelers, it’s incredibly easy here. It feels like a small community where you often run into each other. There are several cozy restaurants and almost no beach boogies. We spent most of our time barefoot. There’s nothing city-like about this island :) It’s still really hot, so we checked into a slightly nicer hotel, Marlon, to cool off. They have air conditioning and a pool. It costs 440 pesos for a double room. We took a taxi (only 13 pesos) out to the big shopping center, Liverpool. You can really tell that Mexico is a much cheaper country than Belize. People from Belize often cross the border to Chetumal to shop for bargains. At Liverpool, we even caught a movie. A ticket cost 38 pesos. We watched Babel with Brad Pitt. It was good, but since it takes place in the USA, Mexico, Hong Kong, and Morocco, the languages weren’t always in English. The subtitles were in Spanish, so we had to really pay attention to keep up :) There’s a carnival tonight. It feels more like a town festival since there’s no parade. Stages have been set up in several places, and there are stalls along the street. It’s safe to walk around here, so we’ve really enjoyed that. There’s a big difference in how things are done in Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. Restaurants in Mexico are incredibly fast. They’re quick to serve you, but even quicker to clear your plate. As soon as you take your last bite, your plate disappears!