Welcome!

We'll be posting a blog entry at least once a week for the duration of our stay at Wildtracks in Corozol, Belize. Our goal is to give you an idea of what an "average joe" can do to help save and rehabilitate animals - while having a lot of fun. Enjoy!

Access Link: http://www.offexploring.com/emtodd-abroad

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manateehelper


This is the first official blog entry of our digial travel journal!

Todd and I are very excited to have such an amazing opportunity... and the chance to share it with so many of our colleagues, friends, and family. As I am sitting in the airport and reflecting on how we got here, it strongly occurs to me that anyone... ANYONE... that wants to help animals, work hard, and have fun can do the very same thing we are!

Anxiety and excitement is high and time is slow right now... it is nice to be done, packed, and ready to go. Finding the funding for things like this is always the hardest part... and it was... but now it is time for our one and only focus: TO HELP WILDTRACKS HELP MANATEES!

More introductions will have to wait. As eager as we are to get talking about the manatees, we don't know much about them yet! We do know there are three of them at the rehabilitation center, and 2-3 of them are currently in intensive care. By the end of the week, we'll have so much more information to share with you!

In a few hours, Todd and I will begin to make our way through airport security. This is my first time going international, and my first passport. Todd has much more travel experience than I do, but it has been a long time since he's had an opportunity to travel. Luckily, it seems to be a lot like riding a bike... only it evolves much quicker!

Our flight with Jetblue from Orlando International Airport will arrive in Cancun around 9:37am Central Time (UTC -6). From there, we'll be off to the bus terminal to purchase our tickets. The bus will be bringing us to the Mexican border at Chetumal, Mexico, where we'll be going through customs and immigration into Belize. Luckily, we'll have some time to explore Cancun before the bus ride... and I plan to take lots of pictures!

After reaching Belize around 7:00am Tuesday, September 3rd we'll be boarding the Thunderbolt Watertaxi to Saratenja, where members of the Wildtracks team plan to meet us.

Then comes something very, very important. SLEEP! Yes, we're going to be tired after a long night at the airport, day in Cancun, bus ride, and boat ride! Hopefully, our orientation will be quick and painless, but we'll have to wait and see what they have in store for us when we arrive.

Much more information to come as we travel to our destination and get to know it better. Stay tuned for an introduction to the amazing Wildtracks team, the rehabilitating animals, and how this extraordinary experience came to be!

Thank you for reading! (:3)