Sumo Arigato

Having celebrated with Vegas, bowling and karaoke for past birthdays, we decided to throw down a different kind of party for Maureen this year. Who knew grunting could be so much fun.

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Lazing on La Isla

The Ghunnies dropped down to Central America to spend a lazy week in San Pedro ("La Isla Bonita"), Ambergris Caye, Belize. Only there was nothing lazy about it, with zip lining high above the jungle canopy, cave tubing with bats, dancing with blue butterflies, carrying baby raccoons and, did I mention holding sharks with our bare hands? We barely had enough time to get in a couple games of beach volleyball. On Ambergris Caye our home base was the Victoria House, a small beach resort with a cluster of casitas with thatched roofs and plantation rooms with private verandas. We enjoyed beautiful grounds, great views, helpful staff and complimentary bike rental.
Our second home on the island turned out to be Aqua Dives, a dive shop outfit we stumbled upon while bicyling through town. Once we got used to their unique island manner (one of the staff insisted on calling me "Blackie Chan") and knowledge of the best dive sites, we were hooked and wound up going out diving with them almost every day. Belize has one of the largest barrier reefs in the world (second only to Australia) with amazing corals, swim throughs and a variety of fish. Our favorite dive sites were Esmeralda (at 60 feet, we got to play with nurse sharks) and the Blue Hole (at 135 feet, swimming through age-old stalactites and stalagmites and trying not to succumb to nitrogen narcosis).
Belize has a lot to offer as a vacation spot and we highly recommend it for the adventure, the friendly people, the good food, the weather and of course, the pure laziness of it all.

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