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Today was another early start (need to get used to these before Sandhurst) the boat arrived promptly and we were on board and having a breakfast of sweet bread and watermelon before 7 o'clock on our way to the Blue Hole. We had a 2 and a bit hour journey which was fairly calm, however Kat got a little queasy after we went over the reef. There were about 30 of us in total, 10 snorkelers and the rest divers, plus 4 crew members.
The first snorkelling location was above the coral around the edge of the Blue Hole, we were in the water less than 2 minutes before we saw a 7-8 ft shark swimming beneath us! The divers went in the middle of the Hole. The different fish and coral we saw were incredible and the guide was extremely knowledgeable, he knew the name of every type of coral and fish! Amongst others we saw yellowtail snapper fish, parrot fish, grey angel fish, sponge coral and finger coral. He guided us around the edge for around 40 minutes with a life buoy in tow, before the divers emerged and we all had to re-embark the boat.
For the second stop we snorkelled to an island, this time we saw more incredible coral formations as well as blue angel fish, puffer fish and barracudas. There was also a spotted ray but neither of us saw it! The beaches on the island were stunning, when we arrived we left our snorkelling stuff and went for a walk through the palm trees and white mangroves, we saw large iguanas which were lighter coloured and much more active than the ones we have seen before and some massive hermit crabs. We walked up to a bird viewing point where there were red footed boobies and frigate birds. However because we were barefooted we couldn't stay long on the platform as our feet were burning from the heat! We waked about 10 minutes to some benches where the divers met us for lunch, which was rice, beans, chicken and pasta salad. They told us to tip the leftovers out for the birds - including the chicken bones - which we thought was a bit strange!
Back on the boat we sailed for about 15 minutes before our final stop, 'the Aquarium'. This was easily the best of the three stops, the guide was feeding the fish with leftover rice so a huge school of fish about 1 1/2 ft were following us around. The best part was swimming above a sea turtle which was hovering above the coral for ages. For this stop we could see the divers below us so we saw the same things, although they didn't see the turtle! On the journey back Kat didn't give herself the opportunity to feel queasy as her eyes shut as soon as the watermelon was finished and the engine started!
After a long day of snorkelling we had a good shower and went out for dinner, we absolutely love the food in Belize, every meal has been amazing! Kat had breaded chicken with cheese, baked potato, garlic bread and salad and I had chicken stuffed with beef and mushrooms in a cream sauce with the same sides. We definitely haven't been let down by any meals yet.
We then went to a local sports bar (Kat a little more reluctant than me) but when we got inside we realised a quiz was about to start. We decided to enter as a pair as it was only 12 questions. We were in 3rd place for the first four rounds, however dropped to fourth on the bonus question where you could gamble up to 10 points. It was a fun evening and made a change to playing cards!
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