Vet Visit, Power Bills, Cheap Meat, and Christmas Abroad...
Last Thursday, I took Shadow to the only vet on the island, San Pedro Veterinarian Hospital, south of town. When I called, they were able to get us in the same day or the next day, which was a relief!
Unfortunately, it looked like rain was inbound as I loaded Shadow into his carrier and Nathan strapped him into the cart, so I grabbed a beach towel to drape over his carrier just in case. We put him in a hard-sided carrier since he's my Houdini, who opens and/or claws his way out of fabric carriers. He proceeded to yowl like he was being murdered for the 25-minute drive there - I was driving slowly over the bumps to try to keep him calm-ish, but we certainly garnered some strange looks!
Dr. Williams was on time(!) and very polite, as were the ladies who worked with her. Shadow's vitals were all fine, and she suspected that the hot sauce wrapper irritated his stomach so she prescribed two medications - one for nausea, and one that coats the stomach. My total bill with prescriptions was $116BZ, way more affordable than a vet visit in the US! I am relieved that care is available on the island now - up until a few years ago, there was not a full-time vet! And Dr. Williams is so kind.
As we packed back into the cart, the rain came, and with FORCE. My already crabby panther was infinitely more cranky with the rain, even with a towel and my torso sheltering his carrier. While there is a two-week moratorium on the big trucks coming through town, I managed to have one (without tail lights nor a license plate, naturally) pull out in front of me and creep through town, UGH. It took forever to get home, and I can't imagine how tough it will be to bring sick pets to the vet from Secret Beach once we move.
Here's a video if you're interested - Shadow the cat goes to the vet in San Pedro, Belize
He's now snoozing at home and I'm glad to report, no further barfs have occurred!
Sleepy panther resting at home...
When we arrived in early August, we noticed an "Opening Soon!" sign on a business just south of the bridge called Prime Stock. As with most things here, "Soon" is a relative term. They finally opened last week and I stopped in. Currently, they have beef and pork products, and at amazing prices! I grabbed a pound of ground steak for burritos and was shocked when they ground it to order, and it was fresh, not frozen! Normally all meats here are sold frozen, which makes meal planning a huge PITA. I should have looked to see if they sell bacon, I bet it would be amazing! I'll have to go back soon. They did have freezers with steaks and other cuts in them, so I am not sure the extent of fresh offerings, but I will find out!
Prices in BZ$! And the ground steak was fresh and delicious!
We also decided to tempt fate and try to apply (again) for a vehicle permit. $700US/mo to rent a cart in high season is painful.
Our first full month's electric bill with mini splits installed arrived - if you happen to have central air here, IMMEDIATELY install mini splits! Our HVAC unit was only eight years old, and a 13 SEER, so fairly efficient, but we put in 18 SEER inverter mini splits. Total cost was about $4,400US with parts, labor, etc for four units. Our bill last December (it was a rental and pretty booked, but not every day) was over $700. This year? $253.
(Fall of 2023 we blocked out bookings as our dock was built - that's why there was almost no useage Sept/Oct/Nov.) We're keeping our home more comfortable AND saving quite a bit of cash! Gotta take the wins when they do come!
This was our first Christmas abroad, and if you are a Christmas fan and worried about moving to a tropical island, know that Belize celebrates Christmas in a big way! We didn't do any decorating or exchange gifts - we've been shipping things down at a healthy clip and don't need anything. Almost all bars and restaurants are open but we opted to eat at home and not fight the crowds.
Christmas Eve we worked in the yard - wirebrushing the wood fence, repairing and cutting down sections, and slapping some paint on it. We want to use up partial cans in our bodega rather than send them to the dump, so we're slathering on any colors that should be coverable with the white paint we bought. Keeps paint out of the landfill, and gives us extra layers of protection on our rickety fence.
Christmas Day we watched a little football, then Nathan played video games while I cooked - I made homemade bread, homemade Caesar dressing and croutons, and ultimately, lobster tails and stone crab, which we hadn't had before! It is excellent, like a lobster/crab hybrid, but not the easiest to crack. I also donned my best Christmas pajamas. Both days were rainy, which was a bummer - we'd like to get out and enjoy some sun!
We tried to make the rounds to our favorite spots to wish the staff Happy Holidays - there are so many great folks and businesses here, we didn't make it nearly far enough, but did enjoy a brunch at Sammy's, where I customized their poutine to have bacon and a fried egg on top - you know, so it was acceptible to eat poutine at 10 am.
Sinai, their chef, excels at everything she makes, it was amazing!
Tomorrow we have to renew our Visas, mine expires on the 29th and it makes sense to both go at the same time, even though Nathan is covered through January 4th. He's off work the rest of the week, much easier to do it Friday.
Enjoy the rest of your week!