A Jeanne in the Kitchen

Belize is a Central American country that borders both Mexico and Guatemala. It also has about 300+ islands or atolls that lie in the Caribbean Seas around the Gulf of Mexico. The culture is very diverse, with strong Mayan influences, as well as influences from England, Jamaica, Africa, Spain, and other parts of South and Central America. Up until about 41 years ago, Belize was part of the British Empire, but then it was granted its independence. It is still a British Provence, like Canada or Australia though. Today, Belize is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The structure of government is based on the British parliamentary system, and the legal system is modelled on the common law of England. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title Queen of Belize. The Queen lives in the United Kingdom, and is represented in Belize by the governor-general.  Both English and Spanish are spoken, though English is considered the official language.

The name “Belize” is said to have originated either from the Mayan word belix, meaning muddy water, or from the word belikin, which means the land facing the sea. Belikin is also the name of their local beer.

Belize is a very poor country, but they are making efforts to change that. Currently, the main industries are tourism, logging, fishing and agriculture. Most of the people barely graduate from high school, and fewer still go on to college. The current minimum wage is $1.65 per hour. They are pushing to raise that to $5.00 per hour. But just like anywhere, those who work hard succeed, and those who don’t, well … they don’t succeed. Despite the rampant poverty though, the Belizians seem to be very happy, content people.

On the island of San Pedro, the most popular means of transportation is by golf cart. There are very few private vehicles other than golf carts, motorcycles or bicycles. We too had our golf cart that took us all over the island. San Pedro is about 25 miles or 40 km from north to south and only about 1 mile or 1.6 km wide. We covered the whole island a few times.

For whatever reason, we got the expanded version of the golf cart. Even though it was just the two of us, they gave us a six-seater. If we knew the island better, we might have opened it up as a taxi service. 🙂

Home for the week was a real cute, very well-maintained hotel called Belize Budget Suites. It isn’t fancy, but it is very clean and very comfortable. We were very happy there indeed.

I felt like we were sleeping in the “jungle room”.

During our rest intervals from diving, we enjoyed dining al fresco in the garden for our lunches.

Jose, the manager, and his wife Mirian, take a lot of pride in keeping the hotel looking spectacular. They were so friendly and so helpful. There was a domestic violence incident that occurred in the room adjacent to ours, and Jose handled it very professionally. Unfortunately, the police were called in to help as well.

We went out and experienced as much of the local cuisine as we could for our dinners. Our first dinner on the island was a little Jamaican shack called Robin’s Kitchen. Robin is the nickname of the owner/operator John. He was very friendly and cooked a mean Jamaican jerk chicken. It was so tender and so flavorful.

John is cooking the chicken to perfection.

Here he is preparing all the side dishes.

And voila! Dinner is served. We had Jamaican jerk chicken, coconut rice, coleslaw and hush puppies. Everything was delicious.

We make friends wherever we go. This is Mitch, a local boy who was good friends with John. He too was very friendly and very enjoyable. We learned a lot about the island from Mitch.

We couldn’t leave without leaving our mark on the walls, like all those who came before us.

Larry scribbled our names into the walls. We are now a part of the fixtures.

This is the first of quite a few in my Life in Belize series. I hope you all enjoy it.

Belize and Mexico are very similar in many ways. Their climates and temperatures are among their similarities. Because of this, there a lot of the same tropical flowers found in both places. Most of them are very bright and add little splashes of color all around. I will share my Belizian flowers with you, as well as all of other experiences too. 🙂

Hibiscus were all around, in all colors and many different varieties.

Color your world with flowers everyday.

We are home from Belize. We got home Saturday night and then hit the ground running. We had a great time, doing mostly diving, but we did some other fun things too. Yes, you are going to hear about all of our adventures, and you will see a lot of it in pictures too. 🙂 I love photography, and take a lot of pictures. On this trip I took around 500 pictures. I am still editing them and going through them all. I will NOT be sharing ALL of them with you. I think you would get bored if I shared them all with you. But I will give you a good idea of what we did and what life is like in Belize.

We left the cold and snow of Colorado and headed to the tropical island of San Pedro, Belize, just off the mainland of Belize. We stayed in Ambergris Caye. It is “winter” in Belize too, but their winters are comfortable shorts weather for us.

We left this,

for this (flying in to Belize City),

and returned once again to the land of the ice and snow.

In between the departure and return from the land of the ice and snow, however, was a lot of sunshine and warm water diving. 🙂 We had to take a small ferry from Belize City to Ambergris Caye, on the island of San Pedro. We stayed on the island the whole time until it was time to go home.

The seas were a bit rough which made for big waves getting to the dive sites, but once we got underwater, it was smooth. I am like my dad and have the salt water running through my veins (as well as chlorine) so rough seas do not bother me in the slightest. Larry, on the other hand, does not, and he didn’t handle them as well. Because of the rough seas, I did not get in as many dives as I was hoping, but I still got to do 10. Some would say this is still a lot, but for me, I am only getting started. it’s like a teaser. Larry only did 8, but then he doesn’t usually dive near as much as I do anyway. Anytime I am underwater, it’s all good. 🙂

Last time we went to Belize, 5 years ago, I was dubbed “the Shark Whisperer” by our boat captain, because sharks always come right up to me. They always do. They know I LOVE them and am not afraid of them. This time was no different. We saw so many sharks on every dive. We saw a lot of nurse sharks and black tip reef sharks. Nurse sharks are called “the puppies of the sea” because they are very friendly and act a lot like puppies do. We saw one small nurse shark that allowed me to pet her and then rolled over and wanted me to rub her tummy, just like Juneau and Vinnie do.

The highlight though was we got to see our first hammerhead shark. He was a scalloped hammerhead, about 8 feet long. It only took me 360 dives before seeing one, but now I can say I have, and I definitely want to see plenty more. 🙂 Unfortunately, I do not have any underwater pictures since our main underwater camera died when we were in Cozumel in September. These I edited from videos from our secondary camera. The hammerhead was pretty far away and the videos did not come our great, but at least you get the idea. Our dive master was super excited too. You could hear him yelling excitedly through this regulator.

This is how I spent most of my time and days while in Belize. This is the first of many of my Belizian series. I hope you enjoy the trip as well. 🙂

One more before I leave you. I haven’t seen any fish or dolphins or turtles or sharks yet, but I did see a lot of ducks. We leave tomorrow. We will be leaving the snow for the tropics.

Today, the 4th lake/pond was full of ducks and geese. That was the only pond that was busy today. It had a bunch of different ducks and a lot of our Canadian geese.

Some of the ducks and geese were very friendly, trudging through the snow to come right up to talk to me. They loved being photographed too.

Frist he came.

Then she followed.

I also had a couple of friendly Canadians who came up to me just to say hi.

I see my Mallards and Canadians every day, but some of my other ducks were a bit more shy. They were happy just hanging out on the ice or swimming along in the cold water.

I saw a few ducks that haven’t been around for awhile too, like some Common Mergansers.

There were also some Ringnecks.

And one lone Common Goldeneye too.

It was definitely a good duck day out on the pond today. I hope your day is going along just ducky.

And we’re off. This time, we’re off to Belize, once again, for some more fabulous diving. You won’t hear from me again for a few days, as I will be underwater blowing bubbles in Belize. I am hoping to reconnect with my all buddies and friends, the sharks, turtles, eagle rays, eels and all the brightly colored fishies of the warm, tropical Caribbean waters.

Maybe I’ll be back. Maybe I won’t. You just never know when I am off diving. 🙂

We got together with Bruce and Julia http://retirementrvdream.wordpress.com/ last night before they embark on their new adventures with their life on the road. We all met up at a small local Cajun restaurant called The Lost Cajun. As you might guess by the name, it is a Cajun restaurant, specializing in Cajun foods. Julia and I both have some Cajun roots, whereas Bruce and Larry have been adopted into the culture through osmosis.

Everything was very clean and the atmosphere was full of Cajun fun.

The Lost Cajun was founded by the lost Cajuns Raymond and Belinda Griffin, who ventured west to Colorado from Barataria, LA, after hurricanes and loss in their home state of Louisiana. They first opened a little authentic gumbo shop in the mountain area of Frisco, CO in 2010. From Frisco, they decided to open yet another Cajun restaurant in another “little” Colorado mountain town called Breckenridge. Now, they are franchising their brand and their restaurants all over the country. “It’s not just the food people love, it’s our culture of courtesy and respect that we’ve created, along with some of the best service that you have ever experienced. Our gumbos take 4 to 6 hours to cook, as well as our special dishes such as red beans and rice, crawfish etouffee and lobster bisque. There are no short cuts, and it’s got to be cooked slowly, with a lot of care! Our seafood is like none that you have ever tasted, and the beignets are just like the ones you get in New Orleans – maybe just a wee bit better! Stop in and try some of our free samples and you’ll see what I’m talking about. As we say in Louisiana, “make a pass” and say hello, feel the down-home atmosphere and “pass a good time!”.

As always when we get together with Julia and Bruce, we have a great time and share great food together. This time was no different. We chose to eat inside, as the weather outside was a bit frightful.

Fortunately, it was warm and welcoming inside. The walls were decorated with all kinds of fun Cajun memorabilia.

The food was just as warm and inviting as were the walls. Bruce started things off with a cup of Cajun Gumbo. Based on his smile, I think he liked it.

Next came a basket of fried alligator with a spicy remoulade for all of us to share. I love good alligator. It was perfectly crispy and tender all at the same time.

Those were just the starters. Next came the meal. Bruce, Julia and Larry all ordered Po’ Boy sandwiches. They were all different and they all ordered different sides.

I went for something totally different and I ordered the fried fish. I know, surprise, surprise right?! Me being different, who would have thought? 🙂

Everything was delicious and disappeared quickly. The portions were just the right size so that we were able to save a little room to finish the evening off with some hot and fresh beignets too. They were just as good, if not better, as the ones I remember from Cafe du Monde, down on Bourbon Street, in New Orleans.

We all had a great time telling stories and sharing laughs, as well as sharing the delicious food, or as they say in Louisiana, we made a pass and passed a good time. As the sign says, “Good Food, Good Friends, Good Times”.

Until we meet again Bruce and Julia. Safe travels on the road with all your new and upcoming adventures that await you both. Laissez le bontemps roulez!

We went to the The Lost Cajun located in Westminster, Colorado, just a hop skip and a jump from our doorstep. They are located at 3013 West 104th Avenue, Suite 100, Westminster, Colorado. You can give them a call at (720) 772-7773 or visit them online at westminster@thelostcajun.com. So make a pass and pass a good time. Trust me, you will be very happy you did.

Most us see weather like this and we want to stay indoors, with a nice steaming hot cuppa and a good book. But NOT my crazy kids. Oh No! They see weather like this and they think it is just perfect. 🙂

Come out and play with us Mommy.

HUH????? What do you mean it’s to cold? It’s perfect!

Mommy is so mean. She is no fun at all. She made us come in.

We are off to dive again in just a couple of days, and we like to bring goodies with us, either as dive snacks during our rest intervals or as dessert snacks or even for breakfast. I made some pumpkin chocolate chip bars to take along with us. I will just pack these up in airtight container and off they go, and off we’ll go. Belize, here we come! 🙂

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

2 cups flour

3 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup or 2 sticks softened butter

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

powdered sugar for dusting, optional

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 180* C.

Spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray.

Combine all the dry ingredients and set aside.

Mix the butter and sugars together until creamy, then add the egg and the vanilla and mix again. Add the pumpkin and 1/2 the flour mixture and mix. Add the rest of the flour mixture and mix just until everything is combined. Fold in 1 cup of the chocolate chips. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish.

The recipe called for adding parchment paper to the dish, but I find that more troublesome than it is worth, so I removed it before adding the batter.

Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle.

Let cool before slicing, and let it cool again completely before dusting with powdered sugar, if using. Then it is time to eat them up, yum!

These are a fun treat anytime, anywhere. Enjoy.

Stay warm, stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

After the snows, it was so beautiful outside. We are in between snows, so i took advantage the break. There was a little crispness to the air, but the sun was shining brightly and the skies were vibrantly blue. The birds were out enjoying it too. I could hear a lot more than I saw, but I did get to see some House Finches and Chipping Sparrows who were out enjoying their day.

The House Finches

Chipping Sparrows

Make the most of your days. There is always something new to see and do.

I love making soups of all kinds. There is something very comforting about soups, especially on a cold, blustery, snowy day. Yesterday was a perfect day for soup too. The winds were blowing, the snow was falling and the outside temperature was frigid. So I stayed in and made a big pot of soup. It just hit the spot.

We are getting ready to leave for another diving trip so I threw in a bit of everything to help clear out the fridge too. This soup is full of stuff; chicken, sausage, onions, carrots, garlic, spinach, tomatoes, and white beans. YUM! it was a very hearty soup that was a meal. It definitely warmed us up from the inside out too.

My mis-en-place is all set, ready to go.

First step was to par cook the sausage so I could chop it for later.

I added the olive oil, carrots, onions and garlic to a hot soup pot and cooked them up for about 7 minutes, or until the onions and carrots were tender.

Next came the meats and seasonings. This took about 15 minutes. I needed to make sure both the chicken and sausage were completely cooked.

Then came about 8 cups of chicken broth.

I brought everything to a boil, then reduced the heat to a simmer and added the spinach, white beans and tomatoes. I simmered it all for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, and then it was time for soup.

It was a simple meal of soup, bread and wine. I used the last of my cheesy-mushroom pull apart bread, which was a perfect companion to the soup. Cheesy Mushroom Pull Apart Monkey Bread Sometimes simple meals are all we need. When we eat sim[le meals I can save more room for my favorite snack and dessert – POPCORN! And popcorn we ate too. AWWWW! My kind of meal.

Stay warm, stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.