Friday 1st February

20.48: Belize. We have gained an hour as we crossed the border, playing with my body clock a little. I changed my plans at the last minute to come to Sarteneja as the lovely Irish Paula convinced me it was a good idea. I figured travelling to Belize alone could be a little sketchy and that travelling as a trio could be fun! I didn’t know anything about where they were heading, I had just read a tiny paragraph in a Lonely Planet guide which sounded great so I postponed my solo jaunt for a few days. We are sat in a cabin at the backpackers paradise, I am thinking for what must be the hundreth time already how funny it is that life turns out in such ways. Paula was a stranger 24 hours ago and now I feel like we have been friends for weeks. She reminds me of one of my neighbours which deepens the sense of familiarity. We had to get 2 buses here, it was a much longer trip than I had apprehended. We bought naff slices of pizza in Bacalar at the bus station, the other two bought the most bizarre pizza/dessert hybrid of pastry, ham, cheese and crystalised sugar. So odd. Everything has sugar in out here! Crossing the border was an absolute joke, I am lucky that Paula was at the offical window next to me because I couldn’t remember the name of the place we were headed to, thankfully the lady at the desk was forgiving.... It could have been a very different story otherwise! I thought Paula had been questioned further as she didn’t reappear on the other side for about fifteen minutes, had it have been any longer i’d have begun to worry but it turns out she was just scoffing the left over fruit in her bag!

We had a two hours stop over in Orange Walk, a funny little town. It is so odd to be in a place which looks so Jamaican yet everybody speaks in English, I can’t quite get used to it. I felt a little uneasy for the first time as we were walking about because we were so obviously tourists, our skin colour and huge backpacks were an obvious giveaway! I was very pleased to have company. There were lots of second hand clothes shops, not so many eateries so we asked a lady walking by if she could recommend a place. She happily walked us across the square with her, very adorable, little boy in hand, taking us to an underwhelming fried chicken shop. We all ordered a beer each and some food, I asked for a veggie chow mein as I wasn’t too hopeful about the cleanliness of this place. A ridiculous thought in hindsight as I had eaten in much grottier places along the way so far! It turned out to be much nicer food than it looked so I was silently relieved. Of course, in the travelling world, it probably seems like no surprise at all but the three English boys who had left the day before walked right past us. It was a real pleasure to see them again. They stopped for a catch up, ate my leftovers (yes... For once I had leftovers, it was the largest portion of noodles i’ve ever had!) One of them in particular has eyes that look like magic. Maybe somewhere down the line we’ll all be drawn back to each other!

Saturday 2nd February

15.51: I didn’t really concentrate on writing last night because we were all in the same room. It is quite cosy having a little cabin with the three of us as opposed to 8+ in a doorm room. We are like a weird foster family right now!

When we were en route here I had the most exhilerating feeling so far of freedom. It was dark at this point, Spanish music blaring out, bumping about on a rocky road, having in depth chats about human connection and how electric some can be right from the moment you lock eyes, and how others can be slow burners. I’ve only met one person so far that I felt some weird energy exchange going on (I know, I know, it sounds ridiculous but I really felt it) a fleeting reminder that it does exist. I was really thinking about how alive I felt on the bus, and how people at home would think it insane to get on a bus with no exact idea if it is going to the right place and no accommodation booked for when you arrive! If I had bounced that thought around too much I could have frightened myself but it, in fact, had the opposite effect.

This morning was just lovely. The birds woke me up numerous times in the night and became impossible to ignore by 6am. I was desperate for a pee and was having strange dreams (no change there) so decided to get up. Waking up to the surprise of the jungle ranch in the daylight was quite an experience, it has many elements of Puerto Viejo in Costa Rica. It also had elements of the first place I stayed in Ibiza so I felt immediately comfortable and connected. There are numerous varieties of tree, horses and dogs roaming around, a very sweet little white bird that is always by the side of the black horse! The place was alive with sound when I woke up.

I took myself for a run and with the advice from the French lady who runs the hostel I turned right and ran away from the town into some farm land. It was absolutely stunning, the morning light here seems etherial. I turned back on myself and ran towards the sea, if I weren’t alone I would have said ‘wow’ out loud a massive amount. I stopped to take photos enough times that it began to feel less like a run and more like a journalistic challenge! Each picture looks worthy of being a desktop background, it is literally impossible to take a bad photo here. The graveyard astounded me, the entire village did actually, sort of left behind by time. So quiet. Locals opening up their stores which were just the front room of their houses. I ordered a smoothie which arrived as a bowl of fruit, I laughed, it couldn’t have been more accidentally perfect. I came back to the ranch to cook some eggs, no salt, no pepper; teaching me to appreciate things for the way they naturally taste. It got me thinking of the huge diversity of choice we have back home and how lucky we are!

I rushed my shower because I was told the fruit man was about to arrive, this was my biggest downfall to date. I scrambled to get my leggings on as quickly as I could and DIDN’T bug spray my legs. I naively thought that they wouldn’t get me through my clothes. Sprayed my bare skin and off we went. Fresh fruit, packed lunch, sun screen, water and we were ready for the jungle hike.

I wasn’t as blown away as I had hoped by the hike, my legs hurt from running too and it was swelteringly hot. We climbed a huge watch tower to see the jungle from above which was pretty cool.

Tonight we are going to eat at the only actual restaurant in town. Crabbies. I have to say that the name alone doesn’t paint a wonderful picture....

Sunday 3rd February

09.26: I am sat listening to RY X having a slow Sunday morning. I lay in until 07.30, my bites put me off getting up and doing anything active today. I look like I have a mountain range on each leg. I shall drown them in aloe and take myself down to the sea.

I can feel the urge to be alone again, tomorrow I shall move on but first I shall fulfil a long awaited childhood dream; horseriding.

20.02: I just ate two boiled eggs and a tomato for dinner, somtimes it is nice to just really push the boat out and spoil yourself. I had the world renowned speciality dessert of sliced pineapple. Today I shall sleep knowing I treated myself like a queen. All joking aside, I had a brilliant ride around the town on Luna the hostel horse. I think I was probably a little tall for her but she soldiered on. Much like riding a bike, everything I was taught as a child came back instantly. We got chased by a randy escapee horse which was a little scary but I handled it like a boss. I am about to turn of the light to sleep, I love an early night!

Monday 4th February

06.53: I awoke almost every hour last night. I fell asleep at half past eight and woke up at 10, 12, 1, 2, 5 and then 5.40 when I thought i’d just get up. I am catching the ferry to Caye Caulker today, I have a vague idea of what to expect as both Hannah and Charlotte advised I should go so I am eager to get there.

I love being up early. The sound of the morning, in whichever country I am in, is my favourite sound. There is a peaceful sense of hope and joy, it makes me happy that I didn’t just roll over and go back to sleep.