Utila Island- Gunter´s Dive School, fun people, sail boats, and stuff. [View Full Entry]

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On the morning of October 2nd, we took the ferry from La Ceiba to Utila, the westernmost Bay Island and the mecca of diving backpackers. Right off the ferry, we were accosted by many representatives from different dive shops handing us their flyers and telling us their specials. It would have been a bit overwhelming had we not had any idea of where to go. But luckily for us, George had been in communication with one of the dive centers, Underwater Vision, after being recommended by 2 separate individuals: Tony, the guy who we met at the guesthouse in La Ceiba, [View Full Entry]

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Bus after bus and sweat drenched bodies crammed in vans with no air conditioning or open windows we made it to the capital city Teguicigalpa, Honduras. We had no real plans to stay here for more than a night because of the said dangers, but we stretched one night into two and enjoyed our short time here. It was an expensive two days, but as we would find out shortly, Honduras became an expensive holiday across the board. We had to take taxis from place to place beause it was not safe to walk anywhere, but around the air conditioned mall. [View Full Entry]

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WHY WOULD I WANNA GO HOME...IF I CAN STAY HERE????? I asked myself this a couple of times and then decided to extend (again) my flight ticket, stay here a bit longer...go slowly to South America and just enjoy the rest of my trip... So YES...I am going back home in january 2010!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! love it! Time is flying here and I can not imagine myself going home now...it is just toooooo soon!!!!! We are here, on Utila for the past month and a half, working (!), diving, snorkling and having good time... A couple of weeks ago we had strong earhtquake [View Full Entry]

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We haven't done much worth writing about for the past couple of weeks. We're still on Utila and have moved houses from one in the little town to a nicer villa on the South beach for a week. There's snorkeling out our back door and blessed air conditioning. It's a mini vacation from our vacation. We have been diving about once a week, usually on Mondays, and this is where I must add a recommendation for Ecomarine dive center in Utila. It's part of a dive shop called "Gunther's" and is owned and operated by a wonderfully experienced German fellow named [View Full Entry]

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So from one Caribbean Coast to another - off to the Bay Islands in Honduras I go. Our arrival in Puerto Cortes, Honduras, was not without it's dramas. We arrived on the water ferry from Placencia to be 'detained' due to Swine Flu check ups. Yep, Michael Jackson masks and all! We had to sit on the boat until a Doctor rocked up and gave us the all clear by not physically examining us, just asking us a few simple questions - uhm hullo, even if I had symptoms, not like I'm going to tell you! However, due to this mind [View Full Entry]

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Local legend, as well as an enterprising entrepreneur or two, says that the island of Utila is the place of the fabled Robinson Crusoe, who shipwrecked on a tripical island, met a man he called Friday, and lived for 24 years marooned and seeking rescue. There is even a billboard or two offering Robinson Crusoe "tours" of the island, showing where he supposedly stayed, etc. based on the descriptions in Daniel Defoe's book. For those of us familiar with the literature, it's a key clue to the nature of the people on this island and their willingness to lie, smile, and [View Full Entry]

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Utila is a quiet little island just off the carribean coast of Honduras. It is perfect if you are looking for that undiscovered place that is so cool and off the beaten path before the tourist industry takes control and destroys its charm. Part of what keeps the island so peaceful is the relative difficulty of getting here. It's not an easy, packaged travel plan and requires some real intent, but it's worth it. There are really two options for reaching Utila. You can fly into the capital of Honduras, Tegucigalpa, on any major Airline. Tegucigalpa (don't worry, I can't pronounce [View Full Entry]

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Greetings All! Internet services are finally being restored on the island to the point I can post again. The 7.1 Temblor hit about 2:30 in the morning three nights ago and shook us all awake (yes, we were actually in bed by 3:00!). There is a window right by our bed and the 500 gallon watertank sits on a 10 foot high platform about fifteen feet from the house. Lights from the neighbors make it visible and I was most anxious for which direction it might tumble. Fortunately, only the 5 gallon waterjug sitting on our kitchen counter fell over. The [View Full Entry]

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Shake did the earth the night before last, when a 7.3 earthquake struck about 100 miles from here. Rattle do my lungs, filled with mucus. Swine flu? Shut your mouth. Roll do I about town on my purple Bacini with squeaky breaks, bought for 1000 lemps, or about $54US. I've been in Utila for 5 days now, and it's been quite an adventure so far. Things have not gone as planned, to say the least. When my flight finally left San Pedro Sula Monday afternoon, I had already become chummy with my seatmate from the Houston - SAP flight. Chris, from [View Full Entry]

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