Author: dax

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Chocolate museum in Granada, Nicaragua

How to make chocolate at Chocomuseo:

First, you pick the cacao from the tree. The color must be yellow to be ripe. Next, you have to ferment the pod and pulp. The pulp is where the flavor is. Then you have to dry the seeds. You know if it is ready or not by the sound it makes when you shake it. You also know it is ready by the color of the seed. The inside should be brown. Then you have to roast the seeds. You roast the seeds on top of fire. When they are ready you will hear a popping sound like popcorn. Then you have to peel the seeds. You either smash the seeds with your hand or peel them fast because the seeds are really hot. After that, you have to grind the seeds. The Mayan used a stone pestle and mortar. It takes hard work to make paste. Last, you put seven cups of paste and seven cups of sugar to make sweet chocolate. You have to spin it for fifteen hours. That is how you make chocolate.  – Riley

Roasting:

Peeling:

Grinding:

Mixing:

Finished Product:

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Getting to San Pedro and Caye Caulker, Belize from Chetumal, Mexico

     

    Travel to San Pedro, Belize or Caye Caulker, Belize from Chetumal, Mexico is quite easy to do by using one of the water taxis available in Chetumal. The other slighlty cheaper option is to travel over land but this is going to take a couple more hours of travel so it won’t be discussed here. The marine terminal is located at the southern most point in the city off Bahia Blvd near Independencia Avenue. The Maritime Terminal of Chetumal can actually be seen on Google maps and distinguished by the long dock if you zoom in. At the end of this dock you will find the ticket counters on the right for the two companies that offer services. These companies are Water Jets International (which we have used) or Belize Express. Only one of the taxis run on any given day so which company you use will depend on your day of travel. They both offer the option to purchase/reserve online and also recommend getting your tickets in advance. We purchased the day before at the terminal and did not use the online option, however, we did travel in the low season of mid September. The cost is $55 USD on the websites but we were charged $60 USD by Belize Express and Riley (7 years old) was charged $50 USD to go to Caye Caulker. The trip ending in San Pedro is about $5 USD cheaper. They do not take credit cards at the terminal so be sure to have enough cash on hand.   They will give you the necessary custom and arrival forms for Belizean Immigration when you purchase your tickets. You should also make note of the vessel number and company which will be required for your Belize Arrival Form. This was in the window of the ticket counter.

    On your day of travel, you will need to go through Mexican immigration. The window opens at 2pm so it is recommended to get there at that time to begin the process. The immigration officer will then process  and take your Mexican tourist card which was given to you upon arrival to the country. You will also be asked to pay the tourist tax of 500 pesos per person. They do not accept credit cards either so be sure to  have cash for this fee. It is possible you have already paid this tax if you took a flight into Mexico so it is best to check. I have read that an itemized flight receipt will have a UK code that you will need to show the immigration officer to prove you paid. If you can’t prove that you paid the tax (like us) then you will have to pay. Please note there is an ATM at the white judicial building (up the steps) to the left as you exit the dock if you need more pesos.

    Each person will be required to pay 500MXN to leave the country so be sure to have this cash before going through Mexican immigration.

    You will be waiting to board your taxi now but luckily there is free wifi at the terminal. There is also a shop there to buy drinks and snacks. The departure time for Water Jets is 3:00pm and Belize Express is 3:30pm. Around the time of boarding, the taxi service will take your checked luggage and place it on the boat for you. Passengers will be asked to place their carry-on belongings in the middle of the immigration waiting area where an armed officer from the marina security team will have a dog scan the luggage. There are clear warnings in the bathrooms regarding transport of illegal drugs so I can only assume this security check is not for explosives. Once the dog is finished, everyone picks up their carry-on luggage. The boarding process will now begin you a line will form in front on the boat. Since there aren’t assigned seats, I would recommend getting to the front of the line so you have your choice seat and possibly sitting in a seat with a comfy fan right above  your head. The 90 minute ride to San Pedro will be loud from the three outboard engines so consider having your headphones or earplugs handy. Our particular trip was very smooth but I am sure it can be choppy depending on the weather. The landing in San Pedro is on the west side of the island. You will exit the boat and your luggage will be handed to you on the dock.

    At this point, you will go through a three step process. The first desk will be the immigration officer who will stamp your passport and process the Belize Arrival Form. Please be sure this form is filled out in entirety including the vessel number and company. The next desk (5 feet away) is the customs officer who will take the customs form (1 per family) given to you by the taxi company. The last step is at the desk across the room is where you will be entered in to the immigration database and pay your fee to enter the country. I can’t find any posts regarding this small fee or why we were charged so we paid it and went on our way.

    The fee to enter Belize is $3 BZD and must be paid in cash.

    They take other currencies. We paid $3 USD (Riley was free)  for both of us and a group of 6 in front of us paid $8 USD. If you don’t have any money, they will take your passport and allow you to go to the ATM a few blocks away.  If San Pedro is your final destination then you are finished with immigration and your Belizian vacation can begin.  Going to Caye Caulker requires one more boat ride. After you pay your fee, you will be redirected back to the dock where you arrived to board a different vessel going to Caye Caulker. The trip takes about 30 minutes and will land you on the west side of the island. There are golf cart taxis waiting to take passengers to their final destinations on the island.

    Arriving in Caye Caulker around 7pm after some delays in the trip.

     

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    Lionfish hunting in Mahahual, Mexico

    After spending a few days hanging out in Mahahual, I knew I had to do at least a few dives.  One of the main reasons I put Mahahual on our trip plan was because I wanted to visit the Barro Chinchorro but also knew the ride was long and expensive. There are several dive shops all along the beach so I asked around to determine my options. Everything changed when the folks at Pepe told me they were doing a lionfish hunt with two other divers from Mexico City. For the same cost of the trip to BC, I was able to get 3 tanks and dive all day. To be honest, I was sold at the idea of hunting lionfish alone but why not get some value out of the transaction too. The dives were a lot deeper than I expected with the second dive reaching a max depth of 85 feet but the average was around 50 feet for the day. The reef was gorgeous with many walls and hiding spots for the lionfish. I spotted a turtle cruise by me and another diver saw a ray and large Barracuda cross his path. The views alone would have made for a fantastic day of diving but there was more to this trip Each dives consisted of 4 hunters and one person holding the stringer. Once a fish was on a spear, the fish was transferred to the stringer and the hunter went back to work. After three dives, there were over 15 fish in the boat and smiles on every face. That count doesn’t include a couple of really small fish that were killed but fell off the stringer. Since the dive sites were only about 10 minutes from the beach, we were back to the dive shop in short order. The restaurant next to the dive shop was able to cook up some fantastic ceviche that everyone from the boat enjoyed. It was so much fun that is a highlight of my diving experiences.

    I might have missed out by not visiting Banco Chinchorro but this is what happens when you have a budget. I will say from speaking with others, the diving in Xcalak was fantastic at the reserve. That dive is only an hour away by boat and Pepe offered that trip as well. More than one shop said that the diving was not exceptionally better at BC than the local sites. However, one of the fellow divers made a great point that, “Not diving Banco Chinchorro when in Mahahual is like not visiting the Eiffel Tower when in Paris.” For the record, we did climb the Eiffel tower when we were in France. We took a cheaper ballon trip to get the city view.

    Here are the lionfish filets before and after being transformed into a delicious ceviche.

                 

     

     

     

     

    *Many people don’t realize that the Lionfish is actually an non-native species in the Carribean, Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean. They are and very bad for the reefs they live on. They have no predators and kill anything they can get their mouth around.

    Many thanks to the folks at Pepe Dive Mahahual for one great day of diving: http://pepedivemahahual.com/