Honeymoon in Belize

Tiffany and I were married Saturday, February 20th, an unseasonably warm and beautiful day in Nashville. We stayed at the Union Station hotel and headed to Belize, a bit weary from the railroad noises all night long (seemed there was a train passing by every hour on the hour). The hotel gets great reviews all the time, but no one mentions the rail yard noise. Of course, everyone knows they are staying at a hotel called "Union Station" and perhaps expect the noises when they check in. Maybe the hotel is popular with rail aficionados?

After a full day of flying, we arrived at our resort, Turtle Inn. The resort was wonderful and we had kayaks, bikes and a tri-maran sailboat at our disposal. The kayaks were great...sit on-top models and there was a nice coast to paddle around. The tri-maran would have been nice, but years of rough use by guests (non-sailors, I presume), rendered a vessel with ripped sails and broken rudder controls. This did not deter me, but it did make for a frustrating cruise (I had to use my hands to control the rudder and find some way to hold it while I adjusted the sail). The bikes were useful, the main village of Placencia was just a mile or so away. These bikes are nothing like my mountain bikes...I would have loved to have a 29er down there. We had a wonderful week at Turtle Inn and since I am just now getting to writing a blog, I will keep this as short as possible.

Here are some pieces of gear that I was very thankful I had include:

1. Olympus Stylus Tough 6000 waterproof camera - this took some great shots while we were snorkeling, kayaking and just hanging out on the beach. Nice not having to worry about dropping the camera or getting it wet. Unlike the Titanic, the camera is not "unsinkable," so it is nice to get a floating strap like this one.

2. Long-sleeved rash guard (pic below...I am ready to snorkel!!!) - helped keep my fair skin from getting burned to a crisp. This was probably the last thing I packed...thought the water might be a bit chilly in Belize. I was wrong, but so glad to have this as the 30SPF sunscreen seemed to wear off in the salt water.

3. REI zip travel daypack - useful for holding everything from towels to water bottles, cameras and the like. This daypack compresses into a small pouch, which makes it great for packing...it also features a top cover that will keep out rain (with a compartment for easy camera access). I highly recommend this pack.

4. Salomon Techamphibian water shoes - very nice for activities. While I wanted to make it a "no-socks honeymoon," these were quite versatile (you can wear them with socks, for when you are heading back to 20 degree weather).