Blogs from Central America Caribbean - page 1907

ok, truth is i'm no longer under blue honduran skies, but under the grey ones of brum. my last few weeks in honduras were crazy, had no time to waste in the internet cafe. so here's a quick update of what i did. UTILA ... i was lucky enough to get a long weekend off school so i took the advantage to go to Utila, one of the Bay Islands off Honduras, accessable by a 1hr boat trip from La Ceiba on the coast. Last year i had been to Roatan (the bigger Bay Island) twice so i decided to check out her little sister. Utila is a paradise for backpackers who like diving and partying. I spent my weekend doing exactly that, up at 7.30, roll down the stairs of my dirt cheap but beautiful ... read more

Sorry to say not much to report today. Apart from we visited probably the worst airport in the world. For an international airport catering for Americans (and there are a lot here due to the canal and the banking industry) we had high hopes. To start with it was just like any small airport with not a lot to do. Once through security we knew there would be restaurants and shops. However we were surprised to find several each of the following: Lacoste store, sunglass shop and perfume shop. And one very small restaurant - charging what it liked as it had no competition. It was like a market with each shop selling exactly the same as their neighbours. To cap it off there was not a single newsagent or any shop selling a book or ... read more

I'm thrilled about the subject-matter of this entry of what I call my "Island Lover's Guide to the Caribbean", because this is one of my all-time favorites--Antigua! In fact, I have so much awesome information that I want to share with you about this Caribbean hot spot, I'm probably going to break this down into a couple of entries! Even though most of my initial visits to the islands were during my days as a lawyer/lobbyist and considered "working trips", I quickly learned that each island has its own particular style. Now that I travel mainly for the purpose of experiencing what each island has to offer, I can tell you that the only way to get a real feel for the islands and their varied landscapes, exotic flora, bustling waterfront towns, and friendly laid-back ... read more

Montserrat, at 12 miles long and almost 7 miles wide, was once known as a 'haven of tranquility'. The island was most appropriately named "the Emerald isle of the Caribbean ". It was a slice of the old Caribbean with a smattering of beaches and hotels, and a lush, mountainous interior that invited exploration. The island's peaceful surroundings were shattered by the devastating eruption of the Soufriere (French for sulfur) Volcano, known by locals as Chance's Peak, in 1995. As ash, rocks, and lava rained down from the newly reactivated volcano, two-thirds of the population of 12,000, the entire southern portion of the island, was evacuated. In 1997, the increased volcanic activity destroyed the abandoned capital, Plymouth . At the present time, volcanologists constantly monitor the activity, and though they can predict the activity, they have ... read more

By the way, Shana Tova everyone. Although there are 2 synagogues in San Jose, we did not make it to services. Instead, we rang in the New Year by baking challah, eating apples with honey and having friends over for dinner. It was very nice and casual but we did miss everyone up north with whom we usually celebrate. Back to our lives here in Costa Rica - Way back in 1821, a Central American congress declared their independence from Spain, effective on September 15. Well, as you can imagine, here in Costa Rica - and as it is in the United States - Independence Day is a big holiday. Every town has a parade and, it seems, every school in every town has a band that marches in the parade. Unfortunately, it seems that every ... read more