roatán (the bay islands), honduras

Back at my base in Tegu, I wasn´t there long before catching another crack of dawn bus to Destination Somewhere Else. This time, I caught a bus to La Ceiba. It was nice to glimpse a new part of Honduras other than the gray capital. La Ceiba looks more liveable and pleasant.

From La Ceiba I took the afternoon ferry to one of the Bay Islands, Roatán. The ferry ride over was between and hour and an hour and a half, and it sure was a choppy ride. It felt like being on a broken ride at an amusement park. Seated people were vomiting all around me. One ferry worker kept going around the boat handing out plastic bags and paper towel.

I kept my eyes closed most of the time.

My original plan had been to fly from Tegu to the island, and I had the itinierary selected and was ready to pay when I saw that an online purchase would require the purchaser to present the credit card used for purchase. This however, would not work for me since I had my credit cards stolen earlier in my trip, and only had the credit card numbers to make online purchases - not the physical card.

OK, so this just means that I`m going to continue with my pattern of only taking buses on this trip (aside from the plane to Canaima, to get to Salto Angel in Venezuela - but there are no overland routes there). Some people ask why I`ve only been taking buses. One reason is that it is usually cheaper - though there are many very cheap flights when flying within a country down here - and another is that buses are a way to see more of a country in terms of scenery and to visit more places off the gringo trail. An added plus is that buses are much better for the environment than flights.

English is predominantly spoken on the Bay Islands - it feels strange! Almost all prices are listed in US dollars too, a testament to the dominance of tourism in this part of the country.

Water taxi time. This one took us to West Bay where the snorkeling is good.

Snorkeling with company. It´s my first time! Roatán is more famed for diving, but I need to ease my way into water sports. I would definitly put Roatán up high on places to re-visit to get my diving certification. Besides the beauty of the place, getting certified here is more affordable than many other places in the world. One dive shop quoted me at $300 for the 3-day course.

I tried my best not to touch the coral, but I found it a bit stressful at times, expecially since other snorkelers bumped crashed into me numerous times. Hello! Got eyes? Le sigh.

Time to snorkel! It`s even more fun with an underwater camera ;)

Took a bathroom break and passed by some of the waterfront hotel resorts. I get the feeling I was one of the few people to get out of the water to go to the bathroom.

Into the water, once more.

Underwater signs inform.

Spot the eel?

surrounded by a school

lobster in hiding

Glad to check snorkeling off the to-do list! It sure took me awhile to try it, but it was a great place to do it for the first time, even if it cost me a sunburnt butt.

One of the travelers at my hostel was a 71-year old man from L.A. and a retired school teacher who has been to 150 countries. I think the inspiring part about that has nothing to do with the number of countries he`s visited, but more that he continues to live his life at an age when most people have already resigned to society`s standards of how they should be living life.

An Argentinian woman at our hostel has a fever and spent the whole day resting. She guessed she had Dengue, but she lacked muscle aches. Other people were guessing that she`d caught Malaria which seems likely since Roatán has 5 strains of Malaria.

Ever wanted to travel inside a submarine? Here´s your chance.

Built by history enthusiast Karl Stanley who designed and built 2 submarines. Apparently he built 2, but sunk one of them purposely to ensure that it didn´t get into the wrong hands.

If you feel like going up to 2000 ft down into the deep blue of the Carribean, then this is your chance. Trips start at $400 US. Imagine the sea life you would see in the sea?

Dad?

As I headed back to the ferry to get to the mainland, I really wasn´t looking forward to the trip. It was completely fine, though, since the morning ride wasn´t choppy or unpleasant in the least. As a rule, morning boats seem to be the way to go!

 

Once in La Ceiba, I caught a taxi to bus company Hedman Alas by 9am, but I was literally one person behind from catching a but to Tegu departing at 10:30am. That translated into waiting around for the 2:45pm bus :/ I didn`t get back to Tegu until 10:30pm and I couldn`t sleep at my hotel, and just managed a few hours before waking up early for my bus to the next place in Honduras: Copán.