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Belize Part 2; Caye Caulker
*All $ are in American currency
After 5 days on the mainland we headed to Caye Caulker for 10 days. My only change would have been to stay in the mainland a few more days and shorten the time on CC though we did relax and enjoy our time there.
12/6/23
Took ferry to Caye Caulker and got to our place by 1:30. Our lodging was Seremei Villas ($1500 for 10 nights included taxes and cleaning fee etc got on VRB0). It was on the S end of town a few blocks from the airport and not right down near the busy part of town. We loved the hosts and would recommend this to others.
12/8/23 Snorkeling; Sand Life Eco Tours; $90 pp They were okay, and recommended to us. Though they were locals they were sort of the island time partiers. Lunch was fine, but I am sure all tours are the same. Most the same price. We did see and swim with nurse sharks, spotted eagle rays and saw lots of nice coral and other tropical fish. They do send you pics from their go pro but there is nothing earth shattering with the pics. Not ‘professional’ by any stretch.
Entire time on Caye Caulker:
Beer in stores was $1.75 but only 9 0Z not 12!
Morning Fry Jacks were about $4.50-5
Dinners were often the same thing ranging from $15-25 plates
Stewed Chicken,
Jerk Chicken,
Snapper in different sauces,
Lobster ( more expensiver)
We ate out maybe ½ the nights and made things in room the other nights
The bakery in CC is yummy for cinnamon rolls
Don’t think I will ‘crave’ anything food wise from this trip except the fresh squeezed juices, orange, pineapple, melon,
Enjoyed an ice cream cone as a treat at nights
Took bicycles on the ferry to the N island ($7 RT for the 2 bikes). Maybe an 8 mile RT ride??? A good way to help pass a few hours.
Restaurants we’d suggest on CC:
Reina’s (one street back from main road),
Pasta Per Caso Anna (far end of main road)
Errolyn’s House of Fry Jack’s (grabbed one almost every morning, next door to it is a white building that has fresh squeezed juice).
Steve’s Grill (on corner attached to store on main street).
Yummy Yummy; Asian for that is a LOT we had left overs for days (across from police on main street).
Seems like every store in town is owned by Vietnamese which we found interesting! The stores remind me of shopping in rural Alaska. Not a lot of choice and random items are really high priced and other things are shockingly not expensive.
Rum is cheap and ‘rum punch’ is typical everywhere.
It rained more than normal for DEC during this visit, which was disappointing but we survived EXCEPT for the sand flies. They bit us so badly one day, we were covered in red bumps. You CAN NOT see them but you will feel them. I had to go to pharmacy to get an anti-itch cream the next day. The bites lasted for 5 days until the pain faded. Bring bug spray.
The ‘beaches’ are not really places to sit and relax like they might be in Hawaii. This is why I got a place with a pool and I was so happy I did.
12/16-12/17, 2023 Ferry back to Belize CityHotel Shuttle $25Hotel same as first night $107Shuttle to Airport $20
Arizona Motorcycle Trip fall 2020
Tues. Sept. 22, 2020
We left Juneau with masks and face shields ready for some fun on our motorcycles; however, the highlight of the flight south was that I hit my 1,000,000 (paid) miles Alaska Air. They flight crew was nice and celebrated this milestone with me!
We took a lyft from airport to our cycles, Harry’s needed a new battery and Michelle the owner of storage unit was already on it and picking a new one up for us. She’s an awesome business owner and we appreciate her so much for caring for our ‘babies.’
This was the first time for me on my new motorcycle and it felt good immediately. It is an automatic, which is odd to not have to ‘shift’, but I loved it. Overnighted in friends casita and prepped for the next days outing.
Wed. Sept. 23 Rode 150 miles
On way out of town stopped at GO AZ to have my mirrors looked at and fixed, then we were off! We rode N to Payson and stopped to grab some groceries before heading 30 miles E towards our campsite, at Woods Canyon Lake; Crooks Campsite. It was cooler up on the rim and an enjoyable night camping. Though I was sick (from the heat), Harry took care of me and we climbed into the tent and watched “The Peanut Butter Falcon”, what a great movie.
Thursday, Sept. 24 Rode 170 miles
Up and back on the road, off to Camp Verde, Cottonwood, and Jerome, before going up the mountain outside of Jerome headed to Mingus Mountain campground. We turned onto the road and went about ¼ mile but it was very steep and all gravel, not good for motorcycles. Hence we turned around and went across road to Potato Patch Campground, sadly it was full HOWEVER there was a road next to campground that allowed campers, so we went there instead. There was a toilet but no water and it was free! Camped there for 2 nights. For dinner rode down to Prescott and ate at a brewery, cute little town.
Friday, Sept. 25 Rode 80 miles
Up and going and rode to Sedona to go on a hike. Picked the Devil’s Arch Trail. On a ‘normal’ day it would have been EASY hike, but in the heat of this day and temps near 100, hiking in the beating sun was just too warm for me. We enjoyed the red rocks and the area, but the hike was HOT. Went into town and grabbed late lunch / early dinner, then back to our camp site. On the way realized I was low on gas, so backtracked for gas and suddenly it was dark, no fun getting to site after dark.
Saturday, Sept. 26 Rode 80 miles
Off to try another hike in Sedona, this trail we know and we love, West Folk Trail on the N side of Sedona. They limit the # of cars in the lot, but we only had to wait about 5 minutes to get in. It is an amazing trail, goes about 3.5 miles into the valley, it follows a river and is very wooded, hence it is not that hot even when sun in beating down. At one point I stopped and laid down on the side of the river and harry kept going, I actually fell asleep and enjoyed the rest in the heat of the day! Onward to Flagstaff and into a hotel! Took lyft to dinner and back and enjoyed another brewery meal!
Sunday, Sept. 27 Rode 220 miles
Off to the Grand Canyon, took 40 W and then N to the canyon. We entered the park and we were a bit disappointed that a huge van/suv holding 6-8 people cost $35 to enter, but ONE motorcycle with ONE person cost $30. The two cycles together only have 4 small tires and 2 people but we paid $25 more than the huge SUV that entered. Was a bit disappointing. HOWEVER the ride through the park was not disappointing. We had a great ride, about 50 miles RT inside the park. HOWEVER there was no camping anywhere in or near the park, so we headed back to Flagstaff. Got another night in a hotel and enjoyed dinner at the restaurant across the street from the hotel. It was great, Oregano’s.
Monday, Sept. 28 Rode 210 miles
Up and headed east towards Winslow, AZ, just to say we’d been there! Then headed back south on 87 to Pine and Payson. Doubled backed to our campsite from Wednesday night and enjoyed another evening up on the rim. I felt better this night and was able to go sit on the ledge of the rim and watch the sunset. We ate leftovers for dinner and listened to the elk bugle all night long with an almost full moon in the sky. The Woods Canyon Lake area is stunning and I am sure we will return her again.
Tuesday, Sept. 29 Rode 160 miles
Slow start to the day and decided instead of the ‘normal’ route back to Phoenix let’s go East and then turn back to the west. So we went to Globe, had an amazing lunch at a great Mexican restaurant before heading towards Phoenix. Wow the heat kicked my butt again, once we got to the desert floor. Was a bit longer of a ride in that heat than I had wanted, but we got back to friends safely and felt so good to cool down, shower and enjoy a relaxing evening before heading home!
Total miles ridden 1,176 miles!
Final Thoughts on Vietnam and Cambodia
Overall last thoughts and tips:
- Bring lots of American cash in clean, ‘big headed’ bills that are as new as possible. I used a lot of $1 for tips and they were well received in both countries.
- If you are not a person that enjoys being hot, I’d go in Dec. when it is in the 90’s because it gets hotter other times of the year!
- Flying with in Vietnam and Cambodia was cost effective and much more comfortable than their slow trains or a bus. Funniest thing about flying was how they board. No calling by groups, or rows, nope… just a long line where people act as if the plane will take off without them.
- If you are wanting clothes made for you, do that in Hoi An, seems to be the best place for material and garments.
- Vietnam $1= 23,000 Dong
- Cambodia $1= 4000 Riel
- HOWEVER Cambodia accepts American dollars and most prices are listed in dollars! Much easier to understand.
- Many places that we thought they’d offer tours, they did not, for example the Opera Houses, some of the Catholic Churches, and historical buildings.
- You probably could wait and find lodging upon arrival into cities, but for the most part VRBO and Bookings.com did not let us down. Only one time did we have troubles and that was fixed quickly.
- We got chewed out once by a lady selling books (in Vietnamese mind you) stating, “You never buy from me, You are mean, You need to buy from me.” We had variations of that statement while in markets etc. Just be prepared to walk away. As we were warned, ‘if you touch it for some reason they think you bought it.’
- Vietnamese food is significantly build around noodles, meat and broth, not often a lot of spices and certainly no curry. Once in Cambodia we at Indian food a lot as it was much more available.
- $10 room is just what you would think it would be, $20-25 typically pretty nice and $30> super nice. Usually at that rate breakfast was included. I’d recommend looking at the $25ish room rates.
- Sidewalks are NON existent. They are either full of parked scooters OR scooters use them as another road. Harry got hit on the sidewalk by a scooter (not going that fast but still). It is insane.
- There is certainly a lot to learn about ‘recent’ history while in these countries. Cambodia and the ‘killing fields’ stuck such a cord in my heart and then of course all the history of the Vietnam War while in Vietnam. Surprisingly, they are very open armed to Americans and happy to see us visit.
- Lastly we’d spend more time in smaller communities and less time in bigger cities (HCMC or Phnon Penh), we are just small town folks at heart.
this is how they grill most food on the street. Who needs a grill?
Ho Chi Minh City/ Saigon; In some ways just another big city
12/18-12/22
We flew to HCMC / Saigon arriving late in the afternoon. Took a Grab to our super nice apartment ($25/night) and simply walked around the area for dinner. Also found a pharmacy to get some medication because I was getting really sick (throat/sinus).
First full morning we took “Grab” into the city on the days we were in HCMC as we were out near airport in a more residential area. It was only 2-3 miles but took upwards of 30-45 minutes to get back and forth. Typically it took about $2-$4 for the ride.
I’d say if we had it to do over we would have stayed here less days and the rural areas more days. The city is just that a city. It is loud, it has a lot of eye pollution and just not that much worth seeing after a few days. We even took a day off and sat by the roof top pool at our apartment building.
In HCMC we visited:
1. Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon. It was under renovation so we could only see it from the area that was outside the gates. It was built in from 1863-1880 by the French colonists. About 10-15% of the population practices Catholicism.
2. Saigon Central Post Office. It too was built by the French and was built between 1886-1891. It is directly across the street from the Basilica. It seemed much more like a building in Europe than something in Asia, even though the hallways are full of trinkets from this region.
3. Gia Long Palace now the HCMC Museum. This is an overlooked museum by a lot of visitors (or so it seemed). Unlike the Independence Palace or the War Remnants Museum the foot traffic here is less. It actually is quite informative and covers a lot of the history of Saigon and how it’s growth to what is now a modern city. The ground have a lot of greenery and some war remnants, such as fighter planes, anti aircraft gun, canons etc. There is a special charge for wedding parties to enter and indeed there was one in there during our time, we guess is it a great place for photos! 
4. Ben Thanh Market is in District 1 and the most popular market in HCMC. It has been around since 1914 (and some of the trinkets may be that old too J). If you want something you can get it here. It is huge and when it closes down later in the day the streets take over and become the market.
5. Ben Thanh Street Market was near the market mentioned above. It was such a nice relief with options to eat. It was a nice balance between street food and restaurant food. It caters to tourists and that’s okay! We had Vietnamese food, Indian food and Thai food, all were good. It was a bit more pricy than street food, but not bad at all. We stopped here 2 times and enjoyed the food both times. 
6. Rex Hotel Roof Bar was where we had the most expensive drinks on the entire trip. I almost chocked when I saw the cost, but reminded myself it was about the experience NOT the bill! The drinks were okay and it was fun to sit atop the room of this historical hotel and look over the plaza. The hotel was built in 1927 for the French of course and was originally a car dealership and garage. It became a hotel in the late 50’s early 60’s. The hotel became most famous during the wary when it hosted the daily American news updates and the war correspondents stayed there. The rooftop bar was a favorite hangout for the correspondents.
Hoi An a MUST visit while in Vietnam
12/17-12/18
Will only say that our flight got in late to DaNang and then the hotel was NOT a 9* as Bookings.com had indicated. We would have walked out if it had been earlier. DaNang was a let down as well, and though we had always planned to go to Hoi An we went sooner that planned and we were glad we did! DaNang is equivalent to Las Vegas. We work up early 6 a.m. and were on our way to Hoi An by 7 and in a new hotel there by 8:30 a.m.! Turning lemons into lemonade.
Hoi An was probably one of my favorite places on this trip (along with Siem Reap in Cambodia). Quaint little town with just over 100,000 people. In 1999 it was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Our hotel was near old town which is a well preserved area where there is little motorized traffic and a lot of foot traffic, yet it was a street or two off that area and was quite quiet.
Hoi An actually means a ‘peaceful meeting place’ and it holds true to that reputation. We met back up with the mother/son, Penny and Tom from our cruise and enjoyed dinner with them at a Mediterranean restaurant that was a nice diversion from Vietnamese food.
The lanterns hanging along the street, the carless roads (still scooters), and the cobble stone streets made our visit here so enjoyable. We walked through the market a number of times, we snacked on fresh fruit simply enjoyed our time in Hoi An.
IF on your visit you want to get some clothing made this is the town to do that in. We did not, but our new friends did and they loved the craftsmanship!
Ha Long Bay Cruise
Dec. 14-16, 2019
We opted for the 2 night 3 day (though it is only 48 hours) cruise as there was more optional day trips with this, and we were not let down.
Again ride picked us up at 9:30 and we had about a 2 hour ride to the bay. By noon we were loaded on a small boat that took us out to our larger boat. The small boat was tied to the back of the larger boat the entire time and what was used to get us back and forth to our day trips.
Everyone on our boat (14 of us) had been upgraded from a 4 Star to a 5 Star cruise. Did any of us now what that meant, nope but we sure did like the small numbers. There were more staff than there were guests.
Our room was so nice, we were a bit taken aback. But we enjoyed it a lot. We laughed at the first meal however as the dining hall has room for 52 people to eat and again there were 14 of us, so the tables were set per group. Every long table with seating for 8 had 2 placemats and that was it. By day 2 we asked if we could move over with a mom/son from England that we had enjoyed chatting with, and of course it was no problem, but the segregation to start with was funny.
There are 1970 Islands in Ha Long Bay. On afternoon #1 we took small boat over to land where we were able to hike up about 100 steps and go into some caves.
Afterwards Happy Hour had 2:1 drinks (still high for Vietnam rates) and got demonstration on how to make fresh spring rolls, followed by dinner.
After breakfast on day 2 we went back on small boat to shore then rode bicycles for about 2 miles to a small rural village. The similarities to Rural Alaska were quite amazing. There is a lot of subsistence living and they do all they can to live off the land. The folks could (and some do) move to the bigger cities but the CHOSE to remain (or return) to the community where they were born and raised and where their families are located. There is a K-6 school in the community but after that if folks want schooling they need to go to the bigger community and live there to attend school, it is hard for them.
Families have small plots of land that they farm. We saw a demonstration on how to make rice wine and sampled a few different versions. Hibiscus, banana, honey, cobra (as in snake) but they all taste like pure raw alcohol.
After riding back to boat we then had a chance to go swimming…wasn’t too warm outside and the water wasn’t that warm but we went anyways. Once we were in it felt good. Kayaking was an option for the afternoon, but we opted to sit on our deck and read/enjoy the scenery. Food demonstration that night was fried egg rolls.
The last day morning was basically breakfast and packing before disembarking at noonish. Our van then took us back to Hanoi but since we were flying out that evening we had them drop us at a mall (I know odd ) that was not too far from airport, but a place we could waste a few hours of time.
All in all the cruise was a nice time and we enjoyed the folks on the boat with us, especially Tina who was the staff member who took care of us.
Ninh Binh, Vietnam a MUST visit area
12/13
We had decided to go on a one day tour to Ninh Binh today. We were picked up at 7:30 on the dot. It was a full 12 hour tour that included a general visit to the area, a boat float, a temple hike up a mountain and a bicycle ride followed by lunch.
Ninh Binh is a hidden gem in Vietnam just S of Hanoi (60 miles). We did not even read much about it in advance of our visit, but I would say DON’T miss this place.
It is full of 100’s of limestone monoliths. They rise out of the ground and surround you with such lush greenery. There are NOT a lot of tourists in this area and I could see us staying here a few days if we had known.
We learned the difference between a temple and a pagoda! A temple is for kings and heroes. Gifts given as blessings can be almost anything including alcohol. A pagoda is for a spiritual being and gifts must be vegetarian and you must take your shoes off to enter. Bai Dinh and Bich Dong were beautiful and worth the visit.
On our river ‘float’ we were rowed by a woman who used her legs to paddle, it was quite a talent. We went into caves and along a stunning river at the base of the limestone structures. We saw a lot of birds on the ride including a variety of king fishers and herons. To be honest the river float could have been shorter. It was 1.5 hours and 1 hour would have been plenty.
Once we arrived back to Hanoi we had an evening walk around the lake and the Friday night market that was certainly geared to locals. It was fun to see the lake come alive and see what the locals do for fun!
“Hanoi Hilton” and other Historical areas of Hanoi
Day 12/12
Started the morning by walking to the St. Joseph Cathedral, (15% of Vietnamese are Catholic). There were many young children on a field trip to the Cathedral. This was the only church we were able to enter during the trip, and so we lit a few candles for those that we’ve lost. 
and then continued onto the “Hanoi Hilton” or the Hỏa Lò Prison. The experience in there was very difficult to process. The French originally built this for Vietnamese political prisoners and first opened the prison in 1880’s. Later it became better known by Americans during the Vietnam War as many American POW’s were kept there including John McCain. Though prisoners reported much torture and interrogation techniques, in the museum today the Vietnam would have you believe that the prisoners loved their time there and enjoyed a happy social life while captivated including time playing cards, chess, shooting pool, and eating a lot of chicken, eggs and food.
Much of the propaganda in the museum currently would have you believe that it was like summer camp for the prisoners. I took photos of how the Vietnam highlighted how other countries helped them during the war and protested the Americans invasion. I showed some of these pics to friends from one of the countries highlighted and she laughed and replied that NONE of those pics were from a protest but rather from a parade for the New Year and one of the other pics didn’t even have the correct language on the store signs. More examples of propaganda on their part.
We then took at tuk tuk (motorcycle with a riding cart behind it) to Truc Bach Lake the lake that John McCain landed in when he was shot down in Hanoi. It is one of the largest lakes in the city. There is a beautiful pagoda on the lake called Tran Quoc and it is the oldest pagoda in Vietnam. It was built in the 6th century. It is built more like an Indian Stupa.
From here we walked to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, which was built in 1975. It reminded me of our Lincoln or Washington Memorials. It is a stand alone structure that is to honor the beloved Ho Chi Minh. There is a paved plaza out front that is long enough for a plane to land on.
Lastly we met our friends for dinner on “chicken street”, where every single stall had chicken and the most desired treat were chicken feet. Harry tried one, but I passed 🙂 My favorite item was the dessert… They took french baguette and smashed them flat then roasted them over an open fire. After they got a little grilled they put honey on it and roasted it some more! Yummy.
On our walk home we saw some street dancers inviting us into their restaurant! 
Hanoi, Vietnam first stop of our trip
The noise and the hustle bustle will be what I remember. The streets are packed with scooters and I mean packed. Everyone drives and rides them.
Day 12/11
We landed at 11 pm and took the advise from the person we rented our apartment from; arrange for a pick up, $20 for the two of us! Was so worth it, Dong our driver was there with a sign and got us straight to our apartment! It was a crazy night in Hanoi as they’d just won a huge Soccer championship and the streets were full on celebration.
We rented an apartment in Old Town and it’s perfect. We are right beside Hoan Kiem Lake and blocks from the Dong Xuan Market.
We started morning by getting cash, $2,000,000 or about $85. Crazy high bills! Then we stopped and got a SIM card. 15 G data and 15 minutes of calling for $14! We’re set.
We started out along Lake Hoan Kiem enjoying the nice park walkway along the edge. From one end we walked a few more blocks to visit the Opera House. Sadly no tours just open for operas in the evenings. Then headed over to Metrepole Hotel which was built in 1909 and survived the bombings during the war.
We continued back to the lake and around to the end where the Rising Sung Bridge takes you to the Ngoc Son Temple on Turtle Island. Entry fee $3 for the two of us.
Onward to the Dong Xuan Market and as warned in the guidebooks it’s basically a market where Vietnamese shop for clothes and accessories. Lots of knock off, nothing too appealing for us.
However outside of the market were lots of food for sale, fruit, corn, beans, vegetables, etc. we bought some apple bananas as we love them.
We then got a brilliant idea to walk across the bridge over Red River. The Long Bien Bridge was the longest in Asia when it was built. It’s a historic bridge for pedestrians and scooters only, no cars. It was longer than we thought; over 1 mile but was a fun walk. It was a great relic of the past. If you look close, you can still see the marks and pillsleft from American bombs.
We did bring a cab back over the bridge for < $1. Everything is so reasonable.
Lastly we had dinner with a former student and walked around the lake in the evening with an almost full moon!
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