We couldn't find a more fitting place to spend it! Caye Caulker (aka where we have been looking forward to since we were in Cardiff, and not spelled Corker as the blog locator would have you belive!) is a small island off the coast of Belize. Are you guys beginning to spot the trend of small islands off the coast of places? Don't worry, there's more to come :D

Caulker takes less of its identity from Central American life and has much more of a Caribbean vibe. Jerk chicken and coconut shrimp are sold from barbecues in front of the water, the roads are just sandy paths and pretty much everyone has dreads. To top it off, Belize is an English speaking country, the money has Queenie on it and the $1 coin looks like a doubloon! Pirate money!!

Together with a group of people we met in Lanquin, we rented a house from a local called James, born and raised on Caulker who now acts as a local guide for the island and can sort out any hotel room, sailing trip or restaurant recommendation you should need! He hooked us up with a 2 bedroom house next to the only swimming beach on the island for a scandalously cheap price. This was a serious treat for some weary travellers - our house had a porch, kitchen, living room (with English speaking cable TV!!), it's almost like being a real person again!

We booked a sailing trip to the best snorkeling spots which included the infamous Shark and Ray Alley - where you're pretty much guaranteed to see some sharks! The morning of the trip came and with it brought a torrential storm. Feeling slightly relieved and more than a little bit hungover, the ship's Captain said it was okay if we wanted to wait a day for better weather.

The next day our prayers were answered - the day was BEAUTIFUL! Blue sky, bright sun and a ship to catch, it doesn't get any better! We gathered our fins and masks together and headed out to the boat. Cap'n Steve and his two crew men were more than hospitable. The first destination was at some pretty coral just to get used to our gear and goof around with one of the Aussie's underwater camera (pictures to follow - we're waiting for them to go up on facebook).

The next stop was the big one - the shark swim!! The moment we stopped we were surrounded by huge nursing sharks, the biggest groupers we've ever seen and graceful stingrays which were as big as me! Given the scene, we probably should have shown more restraint when jumping into shark infested waters, but nurse sharks are harmless and look more like giant catfish, so we donned our masks and climbed in! In all the diving we've done, we've never seen such a plethora of underwater life! Schools of fish glided between us and the coral, probably used to the snorkelers who travel from all over the world to come swim with them! The next spot was Hol Chan (meaning little channel) which is a small break in the reef leading out to deeper water. Here we had the pleasure of being joined by a Sea Turtle and we swam alongside it while it bobbed up to the surface to take a breath and descended back to the seabed. The guide also showed us a sea cucumber, a brittle starfish and loads of parrotfish and angel fish. The more adventurous had the chance to free dive down into a small swim-through cave, where they were met by (so they said…) the biggest red snapper any of them had ever seen. "It was THIS big!!"

With the snorkeling over, the crew opened up the unlimited rum punch and we slowly sailed in the late afternoon sun back to the island.

Undoubtedly, it was one of the highlights of the trip so far.