Pump Shopping, The Alibi, Boat Rides and Champagne Brunch
Thursday, our water pump again had leaks, just slower, and in new spots. Nathan made a band-aid repair that has slowed the leak considerably, but we know it's just a matter of time before it has to be replaced. We ping-ponged to three different hardware stores, and probably my biggest frustration is that hardly anything has a price on it. Anywhere. In grocery stores most things are priced, but a hardware store? Good luck!
We were quoted $1,000-1,100BZE for 3/4 hp pumps, which is what we have now.
At our third stop, we were quoted $1,000BZE for a 1 hp pump, which will give us MORE POWER/better water pressure - I confirmed that it wouldn't blow up our system with too much power! After our "local discount" and 12.5% sales tax, we were out the door for $975BZE with a new pump in hand.
Friday, I ran out to get lunch and upon returning, Nathan informed me that Roxy caught a gecko in our home! At 2, she is our most spry cat, still a kitten at heart. She scared the bejesus out of it, but fortunately, he'll be fine and was released outside. Geckos eat all kinds of bugs, so we'd like to keep them alive and around! Roxy returned to her post (in our armchair, in her blanket-cave), where she thinks no one can see her.
I also reached Jhimel at Belize Freight - our goods have not left Houston yet, he is thinking they will depart in a week or two, and be to us in the 3rd or 4th week of September. Since we have a larger portion of the shipping container, our load will either be the first or last to be unloaded. Belize's Independence Day is Sept 21st, so I'm not expecting much to happen that week.
Friday night, we tried out a new (to us - they opened in January) restaurant, The Alibi. Joe Pate is the owner/bartender, he slung drinks for The Nauti Crab prior, and is a nationally recognized, award-winning bartender - and quite a welcoming fellow! He sat and chatted with us, as it was slow when we arrived. He hangs his hat on pouring delicious but STRONG drinks; it was stumping us as the past few years, mixed drinks have been weak. A bottle of local rum is $7-9U.S., but bartenders are held accountable by owners to pour lightly. With Joe opening his own spot, he has the freedom to make drinks the way he'd want to drink them. Their menu is value-priced - $15BZE for some of the best fried chicken Nathan has had, anywhere - and that's his favorite food! I don't believe any dish was over $18BZE. Don't miss The Alibi - it's right on Front Street across from El Patio!
Saturday we wanted to get some tasks knocked out at the villa, including removing the circa-1982 no-slip-shower stickers. Ugh. I should have pulled them up a long time ago! They came right up, and while our showers are now slippery, at least they look better.
RIP cheesy shower stickers...I bet you could tell some stories...!
In the afternoon, we met some friends in town to hop on their boat - to ride over to our west coast land. We've only been on a boat once before on that side of the island, back in 2015 - our agent at the time picked us up from the Grand Belizean Estates dock and took us a little ways north and south to look at other properties. This time, we left from near the gas station in town, and boated all the way north. I am so glad that we did! We learned about boats (good and bad) down here, routes to take, and it was only about 10 minutes until we had reached our property. We also chatted about dock strategy, as that may be the first thing we permit out there. The only bummer on the day was that it was overcast, so the water looked more like a lake than the neon-blue-green we are accustomed to.
Saturday evening we were watching TV and the power went out - we had time to find flashlights, and then it was back on...but not for long..! A few minutes later, it went out again. We scrambled to unplug major items just in case when restored, the power surged. I checked Facebook and reported to BEL (electric company) that we had no power in our community, finding that it was out a few miles south of us, all the way to at least 7 miles north - something big happened! And then I saw this post, from our friendly convenience store across the main road:
Hmmm...probably not going to be a quick fix! Fortunately, our portable phone chargers and USB fans were mostly charged up. After 15 minutes, we went to bed...and power was restored 2.5 hours later - we know, because the TV came back on! So we survived our first power outage.
Sunday was my birthday and Nathan wanted to take me out to a fancy dinner. I instead asked for a champagne brunch! Do it early, go home and relax. Rain was forecast for the full day, so I'd rather not venture out after dark. I had put feelers out on Facebook for champagne brunch spots, and was not disappointed - I received three solid recommendations, but in the end, we went with Red Ginger at The Phoenix Resort (one of the nicest on the island!) based on feedback and the fact they had indoor seating. I had a crappy umbrella, and Nathan had no umbrella - he showed up soaked, and their A/C kept him chilled during our visit. Great presentation on the food, it was delicious, and I was very pleasantly surprised by the pricing! Most entrees were in the $20-25BZE range. We ordered a bottle of Cava (Spanish version of champagne) that was incredibly smooth for $49BZE. They offer brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 7 AM to 2 PM, and on Wednesdays and Saturdays, they offer 50% off select bottles of wine and champagne - we'll DEFINITELY be back!
After brunch, we waited for the rain to die down a bit before driving home, then took hot showers and relaxed, finishing Season 2 of The Mole, then watching football games - with a blanket and intermittent cats on the sofa. All-in-all, just what I wanted - I'm past the point of wanting to go out all night and party, I'd rather be home and comfortable with those I love.