A Day on South Water Caye

My name is Kim Balkcom and I have traveled to Belize with the law team.  I am writing this post on behalf of myself and my husband, who is here with the dental team.  Today was our second full day in Belize, and it was amazing.  This is our one and only beach day, so we made the most of it by going to South Water Caye.

Photo Courtesy of Erika Doll

We had to sleep with our windows open (because there is no air conditioning in the beachfront rooms); therefore, I woke up super early due to the humidity in our room from the ocean. But this was a good thing because I got to see the beautiful sunrise.  Just watching the sunrise alone made this trip worth it and it made me smile.  I have not been at or near the beach since last summer (yes, I am a beach bum), so this has been a wonderful hiatus from the tradition law school classes, which are very time consuming and stressful.  

After breakfast, we headed to a private island by boat. When we arrived, we saw palm trees, a volleyball court, kayaks, snorkel gear, and many unmanned hammocks and chairs for our lounging.  We relaxed on the north side of the island for the first half of the day, and played a round of volleyball. We realized we what “island time” really meant – time seems to go faster when you are having fun.

We ate lunch, which consisted of shrimp pasta, a roll, watermelon, and a cookie and we also celebrated Noor’s 21^st birthday.  I was able to talk with a few nursing majors at lunch, and we had an interesting conversation about their future schooling such as how one becomes a nurse anesthetist and why one would want to do so.  Since my mother was a nurse, I have respect for those that go into that profession.  I am always interested in hearing what they are currently learning, what they have to learn, and what they look forward to in their future career.  Props to them because I cannot stand blood.

After lunch we went snorkeling in what I consider one of the best coral reefs that I have ever seen.  I have been snorkeling many times in my life, and I have seen nothing that compares to this.  I had fun taking underwater pictures with friends, and Garrett really enjoyed seeing all the fish and coral (I’m sure he can name them all). 

In addition to seeing all the coral, my favorite part of the trip was jumping off the boat, which seemed to be the most exhilarating, youth on-setting moment of the trip so far.  My mind freely cleared when I decided to jump into the ocean with my friend Ashle.  We both enjoyed the moment that brought us back to our teenage years (since we are both 26). 

After we came back to our hotel, we relaxed for a little bit and ate dinner.  Then we met with our groups for the next day.  Tomorrow,  I am working with the dental team where I will be in-taking patient’s health histories and teaching an oral health seminar. Garrett will be working on dental patients.  I am excited about meeting and helping Belizeans with their dental care.  Since this is my husband’s vocation​, I am glad that I can see what he does at work and further understand his profession. In addition, it will be a wonderful experience to see Belizeans have a healthy smile.  

Kim Balkcom
Brandeis School of Law 

Garrett Balkcom
School of Dentistry