Happy hump day, folks!

Apologies for the silence, but I have very good excuses for the week-long plus absence from my blog. My first chapter deadline for Moon Belize (2013)  is looming and now only just under two weeks away! In addition, I now have two deadlines for two other editors (great timing but not complaining). And, I’ve been busy in Belize – as you already know if you follow my Facebook Page – hitting the pavement visiting businesses, hotels, restaurants, bars and more (at least 200 a week I reckon); updating, researching, throwing out the old or bad, discovering new cool spots and taking new photographs for this first chapter. So busy I had to turn down a night dive invite – what a crime! Ha! But that’s part of this gig, as I’m learning – sticking to your schedule and being diligent, organized and occasionally having to say no thank you, albeit with a heavy heart.

I thought the chapter writing portion would be grueling given how much I have to put on paper and how much I’ve reorganized. Yes, it’s time intensive and I am literally swamped, but it’s super exciting to >> include my recommendations and ideas of all things great in this first part of Belize I’m writing about. In the midst of all the drafting, it hit me yesterday –this is now MY guidebook! And with each visit, each resort stay, each conversation with locals, I think about my readers. I sample, I ask, I test, I probe and I make sure every single thing in that chapter (and the entire book)  I can stand behind. Ooh, the barbeques, bakeries and street foods I tasted just for you all – if my thighs could talk!

In any case, what better way to get back on the weekly blogging train than to share some photos of today’s spectacular weather. The hurricane season is coming to an end, and I’m looking forward to glimpses of these colors during my super short writing breaks. That said, I will also begin a brief, weekly Belize Jewel Series where I’ll highlight a particular attraction, hotel, eatery, gallery or anything I think is above and beyond phenomenal and a must-not-miss, as I go along. So stay tuned for my first post in that series, coming by next week– time permitting until my chapter and my two assignments are completed! Thanks for bearing with me.

Lebawit Lily Girma

Lily Girma is a published Travel writer, Photographer and Guidebook author who has lived and studied in Africa, Europe and the Americas. In 2008, she left behind a prestigious law career to follow her passion. Her work has appeared in various outlets, including CNN Travel and BBC Travel, and her photography commissioned by tourism boards. Her first edition of "MOON BELIZE" travel guidebook is due for publication this Fall 2013 (10th edition, Moon Handbooks by Avalon Travel/Perseus Books). Lily's work reflects a deep love for culture and adventure in all its forms.

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