Oh dear, oh dear – the time has come to say, “See you next year” to Belize. Our 30 day permit expires on the 29th and it would cost $50 B per person to renew it. The tide is right this week to get across the bar and into Livingston, Guatemala, and we have decided we want to be home in Halifax NS by the end of April. So … we faced up to it and got on with the process.

We took the Hokey Pokey Water Taxi from Placencia to Independence (formerly called Mango Creek) to do the paperwork and it was a great way to go. I don’t know where the name came from but we blew over there in less than 15 minutes – again a zoom zoom trip through the mangrove cays for $6B per person each way. We thought it went at half hour intervals and planned to catch the 10 am one, but we missed that and there wasn’t another till 11:30.

No worries, because that gave us time to buy a hotdog and a couple of cokes from a roadside stand and then have a good chat with Doug (Serendipity) while we waited. By 11:20, we were in the boat and on the way – so sometimes “start time” means “a little before that”. A couple of young women called a taxi and we shared it. (There is a list posted at the dock and we used Vick.) We knew we were running into lunch hour but hoped we could slide in there before hand but no such luck.

Vick drove us to the Immigration office but the door was locked (at 11:50) so we asked him to drive us back to town and find us a good place to have lunch. That he did – on a lovely shaded porch where we chose between fish and rice and beans, or pork and rice and vegetables. We picked one of each – both delicious – and also dined on the dukunu (tamale-like bundles) that Vick shared from his own lunch. How often does a cab driver share his meal just because he wants you to try a new taste of his country’s cuisine? Vick also shared his recipe for boil up and I hope to get a chance to try it before I have to pack up my galley for the year.

By 1:15 we were back in his taxi and off to Immigration once more. We handed over $15 B (exit tax is $7.50 B per person), got our passports stamped and the boat papers filed. Next stop was just across the street where the Customs office and Port Captain’s office are next door to each other in a brand new building. There weren’t any smiles at the Customs office and the female Customs officer even used what our kids have always called “the Mum voice” with Jim!

She requested our Ship’s Report, and when Jim looked puzzled, she said v e r y s l o w l y and c l e a r l y, “The … Ship’s … Report … that … you … got … when … you … entered.” No smile. He leafed through his sheaf of papers, found the one with that exact title and handed it over. Smile on his face. She handed him some more forms. Perhaps the barest hint of a smile. He started filling them in and when I anticipated that he would need my passport number and had it open even before he asked, she grinned. When he looked at his watch for the date to put on a form for the second time and it was still the 26th she laughed out loud. From there on it was clear sailing. She asked where we had visited, how did we like it, joked about missing pens and women who have to keep track of things, and we left Miss Victoria’s office on a happy note. (No fees to pay here.)

A similar thing happened once in Bimini – the officer was positively frosty at first but when we didn’t react to it, the mood changed just as if a switch had been pulled. I wonder if it’s a Customs Officer test of equanimity? I guess we passed. (The infamous USA officer Bedsworthy in Morehead City just got frostier and proceeded to antagonize us so much there was no going back – but she was just one bad apple in a barrel, thank goodness.)

Next stop was next door, where the very happy Mr Gary collected $5 B per person per day for the time we had been in Belize. We had paid for a few days back in San Pedro so we knew this was coming, and were pleased to see that it was the same rate. No extra fees were required, and the only thing Mr Gary wished for was a GST 650 motorbike if we could please find a used one for cheap and let him know! Jim took the receipt back to Customs, we hopped in Vick’s waiting taxi and returned to the dock for the 2:30 Hokey Pokey.

This time Carroll was also on board and he filled me in on how to make another typical Belizean dish. These men know how to cook!

As we waited for the boat, we bought lovely sweet oranges from two little girls. They handed over a little dish of something to sprinkle on them and watched as I licked my fingers after taking a pinch. I thought it was sugar but it turned out to be hot and salty! Everyone in the place laughed at my yelp of surprise! Carroll explained that it was roasted and ground hot peppers mixed with sea salt. Never heard of that combination on oranges before but it was actually quite good.

Once back in Placencia, we stopped at Wallens Grocery to pick up some chocolate, and at Tutti Fruitti for cones of lime and peanut butter gelato. We’ll have one last drink at Yoli’s and with luck one last Belizean meal and then we’ll set off for Guatemala.

The sign on the Hokey Pokey boat said “Have a bless day.” We have done just that.