So this is Christmas?

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Beach, sun, tropical drinks and party. Does that sound like Christmas to you? Well, it sure doesn't to me. It's supposed to be dark, cold, snowy and the most magical time of the year. Most of you probably already know that I'm the biggest Christmas freak known to man, and after surviving my first Christmas away from home four years ago I said I would never do it again.

Yet here I am, on a Caribbean beach in Mexico. Drinking vodka orange instead of mulled wine. Turkey instead of Christmas ham. And working on my tan instead of on my Christmas rhymes. Without any trace of the always so present Christmas spirit...

Although I have been surrounded by lovely people, good weather and free drinks so I guess I've had a merry Christmas after all, just not the kind I'm used to. And it's not every Christmas you get to meet the real Santa!



Obligatory Christmas eve beer bong.

The real Santa!

Jesus disco! Untzuntzuntzuntz.

Medan ni at julbord...

PS. In case you wonder how many times I used the word 'Christmas' in this Christmas post the answer is 12. Merry Christmas! God Jul! Feliz Navidad!

OMG, lez go shoppin!

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

So... It seems I've been away from civilization far too long now. I just bought eleven pairs of earrings. And not only did I spend the whole day at a shopping mall, I probably also spent a whole week's worth of travel money. Even got a haircut - latino style of course - and yes, I look ridiculous. All that's missing now is leggings with diamonds along the sides and a matching bling-bling open-back-top that's too tight. Ay mamita.

And oh. Apparently we're watching football tonight... Yep.
Mexico - Honduras.
Thank god for Corona and hot sweaty latinos!

Hasta la vista, baby.

Back on track

Tulum, Mexico

After 11 days on Caye Caulker (Belize) I finally managed to leave. After a pretty late night out I woke up at 6:20 am (for some unexplainable reason) and felt like it was time to leave. As the only boat to Mexico leaves at 7am I rushed out of bed, still fully dressed from the night before, and literally shoved my stuff into my backpack. I hugged and thanked the lovely owner Jeff who couldn't believe I was actually leaving this time. Kissed the kittens goodbye and took off. I nearly cried when the boat left the dock. But I guess it was better to do it in a rush like that, like ripping off a bandaid real quickly. "Go slow" I thought to myself and took a deep breath as I watched my paradise island disappear into the horizon.

Now that I'm back in Mexico, enjoying a cold Corona with lime, I can't really complain. I haven't realized how much I've missed hearing Spanish everywhere and eating Mexican street food. Om nom nom. I took a shower the first thing I did when I got here and it was easily the best shower I've had so far on this trip, if not in my life. After having showered in salt water for almost two weeks a proper shower was pure luxury. I also dropped my clothes off at the laundry and organized everything in my packpack for the first time in three weeks. Plus slept in a proper bed with clean white sheets in a room with air-con. Heavenly!

After a good night's sleep and with clean clothes I'm looking forward to going out tonight and dance to some Latin music and maybe visit the Tulum ruins tomorrow.
I'm back on track.

"I have a dream..."

I found a kitten and a bar at the beach. Made my day.

Sun is shining and so is life!

Caye Caulker, Belize

"Go slow" is the motto and lifestyle on this incredibly beautiful paradise island off Belize. I've been here for ten days now and been planning on leaving for the last five. But the relaxing vibe here seems to make it impossible. It really doesn't take long to get used to this lazy beach life.

Days here consist of making as little effort as possible. For example; lie on the beach, lie in a hammock, lie in bed and go to the store when you're out of beer. We've also had some serious family dinners at the hostel and some great parties. So great that even people from the club next door came over to see what the fuss was about. I sincerely love this place.

Last week we went on a fullday snorkeling tour which was absolutely amazing. It's the second biggest reef in the world, still I was surprised by the variety of creatures we got to see. We spotted stingrays, nurse sharks, sea turtles, manatee (sea cow), baracudas, jelly fish, huge lobsters etc etc. Definitely the best snorkeling I've ever done. Included lunch and rum punch. 40 bucks well spent.

After my first crazy days in Hopkins (see previous post) I finally managed to leave. I went to Dangriga, one of the bigger (and less appealing) cities further north where I met some cool guys from Denver. They talked me into coming with them on a day trip to Tobaco Caye which normally would have been out of my budget. But I'm glad I decided to go. It's a really beautiful but tiny island dotted with palm trees, a couple of bars and a few places to stay. And there's literally nothing to do but relax. After we had walked around the island which didn't take more than five minutes, we spent the rest of the day drinking rum and coke and listening to reggae on the beach. We ended the trip with an hour of snorkeling (which was quite interesting after those drinks) before we headed back to Dangriga. We also got a taste of the Garífuna culture including Garífuna drumming and punta dancing. Wow, these women (and men!) know how to shake it!

Before I came here I though Belize was going to be very americanized with expensive resorts and hordes of tourists. I've definitely been proven wrong. Down south there were hardly any tourists at all and it's not that expensive. People are so friendly and have a special positive energy that is just wonderful to be around. When I was in Hopkins everyone I met said hello or good morning. Men, women, children and adults. In most latin american countries 95% of the people who greet you are men, and it's not always in a nice way. But in Belize I've mostly had good experiences with the people I've met. Here on the island it's a bit different though, probably because of the tourism. As a girl you get a lot of comments from sleazy guys such as "Hey baby, how you doin? Can I be your date tonight?" or "Damn mama you look hot tonight. Come talk to me for a sec, I ain't gonna hurt you" or my personal favorite: "Baby, I don't know what it is about you, but you special girl". Five minutes later you would hear them say the same thing to another girl. After ten days here you might see how that gets old. Sadly it has to work on some, otherwise they wouldn't do it. Most people are just trying to be friendly though. The problem is how to distinguish them.

I was lucky to meet two Swedes on The National Day of Sweden (6/6) and I probably celebrated more than most Swedes did. We don't celebrate our national day because apparently it's considered racist, soo... Jante law for the win? Actually most people just can't be bothered, because Swedes are generally pretty boring. Lovely, but boring. So I'm proud to tell you that I sang both the national anthem, Helan går and Små grodorna - including the dance moves.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to the hammock.

Seremei.

PS. I epically failed trying to choose just a few pictures.

Lovely Hopkins!

My homeboys

Chillin on the dock

Lovely Jessie who talked me into staying in Hopkins. He changed my whole Belize experience.

Eating the traditional dish hudut (paste made of plantain) and fish soup

Typical Caribbean house

Hopkins by night

Dancing to Punta music with the Denverians in Dangriga

Shake it, Granma!

This is Tobaco Caye

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Welcome to Caye Caulker. Beware of awesomeness and remember to go slow.

Snorkeling with nurse sharks. Just another normal day.

Stayed up til sunrise

Three kittens at the hostel. All I can say is...Mooschnimooo!

Family dinner at the hostel

Chris, Jacob and the owner Jeff. (And the kitten Whitesocks)

Me and Fat Rodger

Yah rasta man

Lobster season started today!

Seremei Belize. I will never forget you. Bless. ♥