In terms of shopping, you'll be amazed by the number of small gift shops and makeshift souvenir stands lining the few streets here. As on Ambergris Caye, much of the shopping on Caye Caulker is typical tourist fare. Mostly what you'll be able to buy are T-shirts and jewelry made by local artisans. Chocolate's Boutique (tel. 226-0151) has slightly higher-quality goods, including reasonably priced Guatemalan and Indonesian textiles, as well as some lovely silver and stone jewelry. And yes, the Chocolate of this shop is the same Chocolate discussed in "Chocolate & the Manatee,", although he is almost never in the shop. His wife, Annie, almost always is.
A couple of good art galleries on the island include Caribbean Colors Art Gallery (tel. 206-0206; www.caribbean-colors.com), which features some interesting original artwork and hand-painted silk by artist Lee Vanderwalker-Kroll, and Cooper's Art Gallery (tel. 226-0330; www.debbiecooper.artspan.com), which features the work of local resident Debbie Cooper and other local artists.
As I recommend elsewhere in this guide, please avoid buying black coral jewelry. Black coral is extremely beautiful, but as with every endangered resource, increased demand just leads to increased harvesting of a slow-growing coral.
