Roatan, Honduras September 18, 2012 to October 16, 2012

I love this island.  It has everything, fantastic palm lined beaches, beautiful lush green hills, great diving and snorkeling in crystal clear water, great food, internet, marinas, shopping, friendly people, easy going government officials, low to zero crime rate.  What more could a boater ask for.  We arrived at West End Bay around 5:30 pm after 56 hours passage from Isla Mujeres.  We had originally intended to go from Mexico straight to Panama to get out of the hurricane belt.  Things change, that’s the way of sailing.  We justified it with the memories of our previous visit to Roatan and the fact we did not feel like another long 5 day passage to get to Panama.

We were greeted by a fellow boater named Paul.  He had been to take his dog to shore when he spotted us coming in and could not resist coming to find out what kind of boat Limbo is.   She is a presence when entering an anchorage.  Anyway, his name is Paul girlfriend named Twyla.  She was in Canada visiting for 2 months.  They do video photography. I had to ask what kind after the last Canadians we had met in Mexico.  They too were photographers, skin shots, Paul and Twyla film sea life.   After we anchored he came back for a very long visit.  We ate and went to bed with the generator going all night.  At this point I still love air conditioning!

The next day up bright and early to take a cab to Coxen Hole and do our check-in with the Port Captain and Immigration.  What a difference from Mexico.  This was less than an hour for both port captain and immigration and only 20 US dollars.  We went to bank used ATM machine which was a little different.  There were armed guards at the door of the bank, a stand of lockers next to them.  They do not allow you to take any type of bag inside.  They give you a key to place all your belongings in the locker before entering the bank.  They then scan your person with a metal detector before opening the door.   (Maybe this is why they have a low crime rate?)  Afterward, we walked around absorbing our surroundings, the smells and sights.   This is the beginning of our cruising.  We had spent a month or so here some 15 years ago and it almost felt like home.

We were a bit lazy, taking two full days to put the sail cover back on the main sail.   (Having sloppy sails, lines all over the deck, bumpers hanging out on the side all give a bad impression of sailors, like an unkempt yard).  We put up awning, did some snorkeling off the boat and discovered a bit of anchor drag, a lot of sea grass here makes anchoring more challenging so we moved to a mooring in same bay.  We went back to snorkeling, what a fantastic time, so nice to get back in the water.   Took our dinghy to the town of West Bay walked around, had beer at Infinity Resort,  & learned how the other folks live, wow what a resort (pictures posted).  Then lunch at Bannarama Pizzeria.  Went back to the local internet café, Skype family and caught up on emails.  What a huge day.  We usually do not do so much in a day.  A boat project one day or general maintenance, snorkeling one day, then town the next.  When you grocery shop and do laundry in the same day, that’s a big day.  There needs to always be time for a nap and sundowners (cocktail hour).   Even if you don’t drink, boaters take the time to sit in the evening sipping a beverage relishing the sights and blessings of where they are.

We spent a month here getting our cruiser physic fine tuned.  Recently retired, we needed to learn to let go of always having to be doing something and the need of having the internet at our finger tips.  I did not realize how dependent I had become on that little “www”.   I had to also relearn my cooking preferences, Captain Don and our kids would use the word “learn”. (Most boaters make everything from scratch, when you want a lemon pie you squeeze the lemons and make the crust!)  Packaged foods are not available and when they are they are expensive.  

You also have to be diligent in boat maintenance developing a routine for checking all your boat systems.  We are a self contained floating condo.  We generate our own electricity and make our own water and ice!  Our navigation system is capable of traveling around the globe with a communications center to match.  (We use radios on board and a smart phone which provides GPS / map services while on land.  Who needs Atlas or the yellow pages?)  Internet cafes are readily available everywhere but can be costly, as much as $6 an hour.  The unlocked smart phone is the way to go for most places.  You can buy a local SIM card for as little as $3 and minutes for as little as $2.  The internet is $15 for 3GB a month.  No contract, no hassles.  If you want a USB stick for your computer, it is $45 for the stick and then $15 a month for 3GB of 4G service.  Most of the smart phones can also be used as a wifi hot spot if you did not want the additional expense of the stick.  Go to any local retailer that has a sign posted, drug stores, grocery stores, gift shops.  No waiting, all automated, fast and friendly.  You can also make calls using Skype, but then again you have to have some consistency in the connection, which is not always prime.  So far our calls to the states have been anywhere from 2 cents a minute to 11 cents a minute.  The other internet option a lot of boaters use is a repeater antenna that picks up open /unlocked connections from distances as great as 5 miles. 

While here we rented a car for two days traveling the exterior and interior of Roatan. Every turn was another panoramic photo op.  The island like everything has changed from our last visit.  They now have 3 to 4 cruise ships a week coming here each landing 500 to 2000 people on shore.  This is the primary economy for Roatan, all restaurants, resorts, retail; everything is geared towards the 1 day visit of 2000 people.  A friend of ours owns a daiquiri bar at one of the preferred stops so we paid him a visit.  It was New Orleans all over, throngs of people dancing, drinking, taking pictures.  What happens in Roatan should stay in Roatan for most of those pictures.  It was exciting and the daiquiris where delicious.

Unfortunately, Captain Don contracted dengue fever which lasted several days.  The virus has a 4 to 7 day incubation period so we know he was bitten by an infected mosquito in Isla Mujeres.  We moved from West End Bay to French Harbor into Fantasy Island Resort Marina so we could have air conditioning without running the generator 24/7.  Lugging jerry cans of diesel from a fuel station into a cab into the dinghy and out to the boat was half a days chore.  On the other hand I was forced to learn how to drive the dinghy which was a good thing.  Once there, the marina called a local doctor who came out with his nurse on a Sunday to the boat to examine him.  He gave him a muscle relaxer to help with his back ache which can be caused by dengue.  He told him to drink lots of fluids, take Tylenol, and rest.  It’s basically a bad case of flu with a super headache.  That visit was less than $100.  Can you even imagine the states if service was like that!  His name was Dr Brito but everyone called him the singing doctor.  He loves karaoke and sings a lot of Frank Sinatra songs.  Before we left we joined he and his wife for a night of singing at one of the local establishments.  Great time, he will forever be in our memories for his service and dedicating the song “I Did It My Way” to us.  He is pretty good and has a CD coming out next year.

A few more days of rest for Captain Don and a few days of full resort amenities for me, yeah!  I kayaked, snorkeled, and basically frolicked in the sun watching the resorts’ monkeys torment the locals with antics.  They like to run through the lobby and take things off of tables, sunglasses, phones, cameras, goggles, anything they could snatch and carry.  It was fun to watch the employees try to chase them down and return the items. 

 A month of lazy days, Captain Don on the mend, and a full moon approaching it would be time to  sail for our next port of call, Providencia, Columbia.  An island off the coast of Nicaragua but owned and governed by Columbia.  This would be the first port we had not been to in our last cruising adventures.  Exciting Columbia, movies portray this country as dangerous as though the drug cartels hang out in the streets.  Some portray it as very seductive and romantic.  I’ll let you know.