We have settled into our apartment in San Pedro and have had our fill of breakfast burritos. We arrived to San Pedro on Sunday by Tropic Air and were pleasantly surprised by an unusually cool breeze when we landed. We spent the first day getting our bearings and marveling at how fast things have changed in such a short time (Superbuy now has air conditioning!). One of the first things we noticed was the piles and piles of Sargassum, a brown seaweed, on the beach. The increase in Sargassum is a recent phenomenon affecting beaches throughout the Caribbean, and definitely a topic we will address in camp this year.

This week we recruited at four schools; Ambergris Caye Elementary School, Isla Bonita School, New Horizons, and San Pedro Roman Catholic School. The kids loved this year’s skit, which starred Francine the Flounder (played by Aidan) trying to find a place to dispose of plastic waste while visiting her ocean-dwelling friends. Click here to see the San Pedro article written about our school visits. This skit was partially inspired by the new plastic bottle recycling initiative started in San Pedro this year.

We have also been working hard to fundraise this week. Armed with our brightly colored shirts and big smiles, we have been asking local businesses and resorts to support their community by donating to our camp. These donations will be used for field trips for the campers, such as the glass bottom boat trip we hold at the end of youth program.

In the middle of the day when things start to slow down in San Pedro because of the suffocating heat, the group has enjoyed snorkeling off the docks in front of our apartment. Even staying close to the shore, we have managed to spot parrotfish, nurse sharks, and of course, the infamous lionfish.

We are all very excited to get to know our island community and spend more time exploring the marine life over the next few weeks.