After a solid 7 hours sleep yesterday morning, we awoke at about 4pm. It hadn’t necessarily mattered that we had slept the day away as the crappy weather seemed to have followed us down to Belize. Oh wait…we are exploring the Central American countries during their rainy seasons 😂!
We showered in our relatively good shower, locked up our belongings and headed out to find somewhere to eat. I had read reviews about The Riverside Tavern which was literally just up the road so we went there.
It didn’t disappoint. Whilst it might not look like much from the outside, inside there were plenty of tables to eat at including a bar area and a terrace. The menu was huge!
Our waiter, Carlos, was very good and the service speed was just right. Nathan had a burger whilst I had the BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad. It was delicious. And so filling!
We may have had some cheeky mozzarella sticks to start with though too! We washed it all down with a few cokes and ginger beers before trying to locate a shop as we needed toothpaste and water. First up was an ATM that we queued at only to find it only catered for Atlantic Bank customers. Luckily there was a gas station not far away so we walked there, withdrew some cash, got some toothpaste and 3 gallons of water and walked back to the hotel as the sun had set and being out after dark isn’t the best idea round here.
Our evening consisted of looking at the depressing weather coming up in EVERY country, finishing up downloading our photos and videos from the USA, watching some films on our many cable channels on our box TV and just chilling listening as the storm rages on outside. We got back just in time. It’s quite nice to have a bit of time to chill out and take things much slower. I mean despite sleeping for 7 hours in the morning, we then promptly slept for another twelve hours last night, which resulted in missing breakfast.
The morning consisted of researching hotels and what to do in the city. I use the term city extremely loosely. Soon we were up and heading out the door. The idea was to walk down to the water taxi to see how far we would have to lug our bags tomorrow. Quite far in about 200% humidity. I was sweating before I left the hotel. 
Between all the shacks and broken-looking buildings there were the odd fully built buildings such as this church and a school opposite it. The roads weren’t great and the pavements had loose slabs in them which you didn’t realise until you stepped on them. There were also drainage runs next to the pavement which actually had fish and crabs in. We then just followed the road round to the sea. I don’t think I have ever said “no thank you” as much as I did when walking the three miles we did. Taxi drivers a plenty, honking and waving at you. People asking for money (there are so many homeless people) and then the guys outside the water taxi asking if we want tours or to take the taxi. It got exhausting after a while. 
Ok first rule when visiting Belize City? Never attempt to see anything on a Sunday. Everywhere is closed. And I mean everywhere. We couldn’t even find anywhere to eat! Not a shop to get a bag of crisps. Nada. We did come across the above memorial plaza though. The sky was dark and gloomy and every so often there were little downpours of rain. We carried on walking round the bay and stumbled upon the Belize statue.
We had come across the Radisson hotel and had no idea where to go so we started walking back the way we came. Getting more and more hungry.
Past the lighthouse, there was a small sign on the side of the road saying The Stone Grill.
The doors were open so because it was THE only place open to eat, in we went. Up the stairs and into The Fort George Bar and Tavern, part of the Radisson Hotel.
Another vast menu awaited us from soups to pizzas to burgers to good old English Fish n Chips. Chicken tenders for Nathan and a pizza for me, we ate. It was a nice respite from the humidity outside and the food was once again delicious. So far food and service has not disappointed us in Belize. 
We walked back past a children’s play park and colourful walls
in an attempt to locate the bridge to take us over to the other side of the city. We found it and crossed over only to walk a brief part and heading back. This part seemed more derelict and even more full of homeless people than the side we had come from. It didn’t feel unsafe, and I imagine in the sunshine when everything is open it looks better but the moody stormy skies added to the dreary drab look of the city. It wasn’t very inviting really. We managed to locate our hotel again and opted for another afternoon of films, poor wifi and research hoping for better weather over the next few days.
Until next time…