KRISTI: Hey folks! Tobacco caye is beautiful! We had a wonderful time snorkeling yesterday at Whale Shoal and the forereef after visiting Carrie Bow caye and the Smithsonian research center. Despite a little sea sickness from a few students and a little sunburn, we're all doing great and having a nice relaxing time on the caye. Half of us went on a local night snorkel - everything is so amazing here! (I'm using an island internet connection so I won't even attempt to upload photos until Friday when we return to the mainland - but we have a lot of good ones to share with you.)
Today we have a mangrove snorkel, a visit to a frigate bird colony and another reef snorkel planned. Beautiful weather, breezy and calm crystal clear waters - we couldn't have asked for better conditions. Later tonight, we'll try our hand at Garifuna drumming and dancing! Tomorrow, the class heads home.
Here are some student posts:
ESTRELLA - Tabacco caye is PARADISE. The water is clear and warm. The people here are friendly and have taught us a lot about the marine ecology here. We got to visit the Smithsonian for marine biology. We went snorkeling and saw a lot of biodiversity, ranging from Corals to Fish. We snorkeled above a grass sea patched reef, the outer reef and actually got to see the ocean drop off. My favorite part was swimming from the front reef, through a channel to the back reef. The fish are amazing, colorful and peaceful. We got a chance to snorkel at a red mangrove location. I was hoping to see a manatee or and crocodile, but I didn’t. I saw a seahorse and got to take a close look. At the drop off I also saw a Loggerhead Sea Turtle. It was amazing! It was really big. I conquered my fear of water these last two days here at Tobacco Caye. We got to pass by Bird Island which was full of Frigid birds, boobies, and sea gulls. I have enjoyed these two weeks in Belize. I got to experience four habitat types. I am still speechless about the sunset here at the Caye. The water is calm and the sky turns a pinkish, orange color.
VICKI - Hey everybody! We are nearing the end of our journey, and we couldn’t have come to a better place to relax and recuperate from the hard research. Tabacco Caye is absolutely beautiful. The entire island is only 5 acres, and it takes a total of ten minutes to walk around the whole island. Despite it’s size, however, the island is rich with culture and beauty, just like every other place we have visited in Belize. So far we have snorkeled along patch reefs, the front reef, back reef, and in the mangroves. Each new snorkeling trip shows us a new perspective to the overwhelming list of marine species. Unfortunately a few of us have sustained some pretty nasty sunburns, and we had a slight case of sea sickness, put for the most part everyone is doing well.
My favorite part of this island is the thunderstorms every night. It is absolutely breathtaking to sit out on the dock at night and watch the lightning light up the ocean. I am still amazed that this much beauty can be found on a five acre island. So overall, despite the heat, bugs, and non-stop sweating, this entire trip has been incredible.
JONI - Our journey is nearly complete, soon we will board those awful planes headed north back home. It feels surreal; I still think I’m tucked into some part of Arizona or New Mexico. However, I’m really enjoying this trip. It’s been amazing to see so many different types of locations in such a small area and small time frame. Let’s see, the bug bite count is down to 33 and the sizes have shrunk drastically, each bite was about the size of a quarter, some larger and now they are smaller than any American coin. Hurray! I’ve done quite a bit of snorkeling. Not my favorite activity but its cool being able to breathe under water. Unfortunately, I can no longer report that I don’t have a sun burn. :[ BUT! I do have one of the less severe burns among the group! Mom, you will be pleased to know that by the time we leave I will have used an entire giant bottle of sunscreen. I can honestly say I have lathered up more than the entire group combined these past few days and it is pretty darn obvious. I am a faint brownish-pink hue, which means I may have the onset of a tan. Yes, yes you read correctly, Joni may be getting a tan, arms AND legs. It has been odd wearing shorts, but I’m getting by. Also my knee has shown some improvement after feeling pretty darn awful for awhile. So all in all the trip has been good.
My highlight is… seeing a tailless spotted eagle ray, followed by another spotted eagle ray!!! The tail difference, pretty obvious when side by side! This really has been a once in a lifetime opportunity. Thank you everyone for your prayers and support.
Today we have a mangrove snorkel, a visit to a frigate bird colony and another reef snorkel planned. Beautiful weather, breezy and calm crystal clear waters - we couldn't have asked for better conditions. Later tonight, we'll try our hand at Garifuna drumming and dancing! Tomorrow, the class heads home.
Here are some student posts:
ESTRELLA - Tabacco caye is PARADISE. The water is clear and warm. The people here are friendly and have taught us a lot about the marine ecology here. We got to visit the Smithsonian for marine biology. We went snorkeling and saw a lot of biodiversity, ranging from Corals to Fish. We snorkeled above a grass sea patched reef, the outer reef and actually got to see the ocean drop off. My favorite part was swimming from the front reef, through a channel to the back reef. The fish are amazing, colorful and peaceful. We got a chance to snorkel at a red mangrove location. I was hoping to see a manatee or and crocodile, but I didn’t. I saw a seahorse and got to take a close look. At the drop off I also saw a Loggerhead Sea Turtle. It was amazing! It was really big. I conquered my fear of water these last two days here at Tobacco Caye. We got to pass by Bird Island which was full of Frigid birds, boobies, and sea gulls. I have enjoyed these two weeks in Belize. I got to experience four habitat types. I am still speechless about the sunset here at the Caye. The water is calm and the sky turns a pinkish, orange color.
VICKI - Hey everybody! We are nearing the end of our journey, and we couldn’t have come to a better place to relax and recuperate from the hard research. Tabacco Caye is absolutely beautiful. The entire island is only 5 acres, and it takes a total of ten minutes to walk around the whole island. Despite it’s size, however, the island is rich with culture and beauty, just like every other place we have visited in Belize. So far we have snorkeled along patch reefs, the front reef, back reef, and in the mangroves. Each new snorkeling trip shows us a new perspective to the overwhelming list of marine species. Unfortunately a few of us have sustained some pretty nasty sunburns, and we had a slight case of sea sickness, put for the most part everyone is doing well.
My favorite part of this island is the thunderstorms every night. It is absolutely breathtaking to sit out on the dock at night and watch the lightning light up the ocean. I am still amazed that this much beauty can be found on a five acre island. So overall, despite the heat, bugs, and non-stop sweating, this entire trip has been incredible.
JONI - Our journey is nearly complete, soon we will board those awful planes headed north back home. It feels surreal; I still think I’m tucked into some part of Arizona or New Mexico. However, I’m really enjoying this trip. It’s been amazing to see so many different types of locations in such a small area and small time frame. Let’s see, the bug bite count is down to 33 and the sizes have shrunk drastically, each bite was about the size of a quarter, some larger and now they are smaller than any American coin. Hurray! I’ve done quite a bit of snorkeling. Not my favorite activity but its cool being able to breathe under water. Unfortunately, I can no longer report that I don’t have a sun burn. :[ BUT! I do have one of the less severe burns among the group! Mom, you will be pleased to know that by the time we leave I will have used an entire giant bottle of sunscreen. I can honestly say I have lathered up more than the entire group combined these past few days and it is pretty darn obvious. I am a faint brownish-pink hue, which means I may have the onset of a tan. Yes, yes you read correctly, Joni may be getting a tan, arms AND legs. It has been odd wearing shorts, but I’m getting by. Also my knee has shown some improvement after feeling pretty darn awful for awhile. So all in all the trip has been good.
My highlight is… seeing a tailless spotted eagle ray, followed by another spotted eagle ray!!! The tail difference, pretty obvious when side by side! This really has been a once in a lifetime opportunity. Thank you everyone for your prayers and support.
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