Blogs from Bay Islands, Honduras, Central America Caribbean - page 9

Open Water Divers! Well we did it, we are now PADI open water divers, certified with a card and everything. We did 2 more dives this morning one at Mandy's Eel Garden and the other at Sea Quest. Both were off the front of our hotel and down a little ways. At stop one we had to do this exercise where you fill your mask with water open your eyes then drain the water out. I hate it. And that sea water burns like anything. But I did it. We saw some hard to spot flounders on the sandy bottom. So amazing how they hide. The coral barrier reef out here is amazing. It is a whole other world down there with colorful fish and corals. I realize now if the fish are tiny, and there ... read more

Divers? We signed up to take the first part of being certified divers. Technically they call it scuba diver and it is one step below open water divers. We watched 3 videos and did the chapter tests and then were done for the morning. So, no pictures of that. In the afternoon we got in the pool to act like fools with scuba gear on to practice some things. Again, no pictures of that. And now we are ready to go on dives tomorrow! Hmmm...makes me wonder... We shall see how it goes tomorrow. Still Paradise We managed to get in a few hours of beach time and the view is still the same. Unbelievable.... read more

Coxen Hole We decided to head down to Coxen Hole, where the "main" part of town is and where the cruise ships come in. Let's just say it was an interesting journey on a "bus" that honked at people that were walking to see if they wanted to come on it. It was very strange. And HOT. My mexican sweat has kicked into overtime. Ridiculous. We caught this bus in West End and it took us about 45 min to go 11 km. Despite the nice hotel we are in, these people are very poor. It is incredible to see that they are still dealing with outhouses. And of course the animals, make me so sad. Rusty and Billy have very, very good lives. Supermercado Hit the supermercado in Coxen Hole, wandered around but not much ... read more

Vacation Time Again Up early to head to the airport, but not because we were going standby this time. Yes, we bought tickets, and on the competition. They were the only straight from Houston flight onto the island. Thanks to @coco_reid we will be spared the pain of returing from spending money to pay for 7 days of parking. Also for paying for a Rusty stay too. A was unimpressed with ABIA, especially when he heard there were no chain restaurants. So no mcgriddle to start the vacation. At Houston I got the pleasure of seening 4 grown people wearing ridiculously large clown sunglasses. why oh why, and wait for it, they got on our plane. Ask and You Shall Receive While sitting at the next to last row I told A we should be able ... read more

Sorry for the late entry. Grab a cup of tea and a comfy chair for this read, it's a long one. Rio Dulce, Guatemala (April 29/12) I spent the day and evening in Gautemala City with my friends Alejita, Pablo, Alan, Mario and Nathaly before venturing out on my own once again. Pablo offered me a place to stay for the night and then drove me to the bus station for my early morning ride to Rio Dulce. Rio Dulce is at the edge of a lake (Lago de Izabul) and is considered one of the safest places on the Western Caribbean Coast to dock boats during hurricane season. Upon arrival in Rio Dulce I was approached by the typical salesman trying to convince me to go to one of the hostels that he gets commission ... read more