Tela and the Garifuna Villages, Honduras

From Utila we rode the ferry back to La Ceiba and then shared a taxi to a bus station with a Canadian retiree who spends her winters in Honduras as part of her retirement plan. I found this retirement plan very appealing and was interested to learn that she spends her time in Honduras volunteering at a mandated day care for working mothers who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford daycare and would have to leave their children at home unattended.

At the bus station we found that the price to Tela had doubled and while we were ready to pay the exorbitant fee, the outraged Canadian retiree encouraged us to follow her to another, more reasonable bus station. Thank God for this woman. After the unexpected diving trip, we were already over budget for our trip and were relieved to have her guidance. Once we reached Tela, we again shared a taxi and Ryan and I were the first to be dropped off at Hotel Mango. We had read about this hotel in Lonely Planet and were disappointed that it didn't live up to the description in the now outdated guide. For $20/night, it was cheap by US standards, but in Honduras, it should have been nicer. The next morning, we switched to the cheaper (and nicer) La Posada del Sol hotel and fell in love with the family that runs it. I couldn't find a website for them, but the address is 8 Calle 3 Av NE, opposite Ejecutivos and only a block or two from Hotel Mango.


This is my reaction when we made it to Tela:
When you leave paradise, I guess it's hard to adjust back to the real world and the poverty in Tela quickly brings you back down to Earth. It is beautiful on the beach and there are beautiful parts to Tela, but I felt an overwhelming sadness when our taxi first entered the city. (It doesn't help that it was rainy)

What we found in Honduras, is that even though the people are poor, they seem to be happy. That's not to say that they wouldn't appreciate the luxuries we take for granted every day, but they seem to find happiness with what they have and I think that's something we could all learn from. And, as you can see from the photo below, it's not all sad and depressing...there is beauty everywhere, we just need to look for it.

After exploring Tela for a bit the first day we decided to venture to the neighboring Garifuna villages that we had seen on the Travel channel on the second day.

We arrived at the village closest to Tela and found that none of the restaurants or little shops were open because it was so early in the day. We walked around for maybe 20 minutes and then, rather than wait for another bus, we walked to the next village which was only about 2 miles away. (I say "only" now, but at the time, I'm pretty sure I was whining about the walk) I'm glad we made the walk, because we were able to see some cows and chickens, including this baby moo cow:

In the next Garifuna village, we discovered that the only open restaurants were out of gas to cook with and so, after witnessing a Garifuna funeral procession, we caught the next taxi back to Tela. The funeral procession is worth mentioning because it seemed that the entire village walked the casket to the cemetery while singing and it was so mesmerizing that I wanted to film it or take a picture but didn't, of course, out of respect for their loss.

Tela and the Garifuna villages were interesting because they seem so foreign but if you're looking for a thrilling adventure, you're not likely to find it here. Unless you're willing to spend the big bucks for eco-tours and things like that. I wouldn't skip it, but I would want to know that before going.

On a wall in San Pedro Sula. I think it says something like "Outsiders rob our forests/land. Assemble law"...this is a poor translation and I'd love to know what it really means.

The next day we caught the bus back to San Pedro Sula with the intention of spending the day exploring the city. After walking around the central park and eating lunch at an air-conditioned McDonald's we felt that we had exhausted our options in San Pedro Sula. If we had more time or more money, we may have been able to do more...but we didn't :)

View from McDonald's (I generally make it a point not to eat at places available to me at home while traveling, but without a hostel or hotel room to leave our giant backpacks we had to lug them around the city and it was hot!)

Thinking we could hang out in a restaurant or internet cafe at the airport, we made our way there to spend the 13 hours before our flight.
Note to those flying out of San Pedro Sula on Spirit: Spirit Airlines flies in and promptly flies out of San Pedro Sula each night. During the day, they do not staff their ticket counter. So if you get there early, you are unable to check in until they arrive roughly an hour or two before your flight. This means that you cannot go through security and you're stuck with Wendy's, a cigar lounge, a souvenir shop and Baleada Loco, a baleada shop. Here is Ryan demonstrating how loco those baleada's were:

This is an excrutiating way to spend 13 hours but somehow, between a drink at the cigar lounge, a baleada and later a combo from Wendy's...we made it.

Note to those flying out of Honduras: You must pay an exit fee of approximately $35 to leave the country. Did I mention we were over budget for our trip? We worriedly paid the exit fee of about $70total for both of us and debated whether or not it was worth the overdraft fee to eat. We decided it was.

By the time we could go through security, the shops and internet cafe by the gates had closed and we had hard plastic chairs with arms or a linoleum floor to sleep on until our plane arrived at 1 am. Why sleep on the floor you ask? Because we had a few towels that we could lay down and completely stretch out on. With two bulging backpacks as pillows, this was a livable situation for our weary bones.

We slept through the plane ride to Miami and when we walked into Miami International Airport, we felt like we were waking up from a very long, strange dream. You forget that in the real world, the bathrooms are modern and buildings are hospital clean and air conditioned. In the dream world, it's always hot and steamy no matter where you are and things look run down and often dirty. You definitely appreciate all the things you take for granted, like a cell phone that also surfs the net and let's you post photos on Facebook.

On our way through customs before we caught our flight to Orlando, we grabbed some Dunkin Donuts and then realized how nice it was to have all of these little conveniences at every turn. It's also nice to escape them from time to time and experience how the rest of the world lives. That's why we'll keep the travel bug and be itching to put our passports to use again soon...

La Ceiba and Utila, Honduras

The bus ride from Copan to La Ceiba was uneventful and we were glad when we made it to the Utila ferry. One problem: the next ferry didn't leave for hours! You'd think some young entrepreneur would have set up a food stand or entertainment or something at the ferry station, but aside from some questionable sandwiches at the neighboring Roatan ferry station, there was nothing. I guess that's why we chose Utila instead of Cancun,it's not your ordinary souvenir shop/Senor Frog's combo...but they still could have had a burrito stand or something :)

Once the ferry arrived, we were elated! We all got on board and prepared ourselves for a lovely ride to Utila. One more problem: we weren't going anywhere and the enclosed seating area was starting to suffocate it's passengers. It felt like there was no oxygen and the walls were closing in. Ryan would tell you that I'm exaggerating, but I still say I only had minutes left before I decided to wait outside for the crew to do their thing.

Eventually, we were on our way and falling asleep on the rocking ferry was pretty easy after another full day of traveling. You'd think a nap on a hard plastic booth would be uncomfortable, and it was, but aside from that minor detail, it was still sleep and it was wonderful.

When we arrived in Utila, the dock was filled with passengers trying to get their luggage from the ferry crew who decided that the most efficient and orderly way to unload our luggage was onto a giant pile. After spotting a dock spider the side of my head, I gently nudged Ryan towards the pile and casually ran as fast as I could to the other side of the dock.

The friend that Che was meeting in Utila, Dane, walked us to a hostel that he described as a "sweatbox but cheap", which is what all ladies dream of when they imagine romantic getaways, and we were formally introduced to Parrot's Dive Center/Hostel. (I wanted to include a link but they do not seem to have a website. If you're interested: from the ferry, turn left and walk about a block. Parrot's is on your left..Utila isn't very complicated!)The people who work at Parrot's are all extremely friendly and make you envious of their sweet island life.

We hadn't really considered going diving on our trip to Honduras, but after hearing about the elusive Whale Shark and how they were currently visiting Utila, we changed our mind. (Plus, diving in Honduras is super inexpensive compared to most places)
We had a room to ourselves for about $10/night and although it didn't have a/c, it did have a fan that we pointed directly at our bodies while sleeping and this worked pretty well. (On the days you dive, you stay at the hostel for free)

Since it was my first time diving and since Ryan didn't have his dive certification card with him, we both decided to do the one day intro course. I had surgery on my sinuses the year before, so to be safe, I had to see the local doctor for an ear exam to make sure I was fit for diving. (Kind of ridiculous but it's a liability thing) One of the Parrot's staff came with me as my interpreter and other than "build up in my ears"...even more embarrassing when told through an interpreter...I was good to go!

Ryan pretty much was left alone to explore, but I needed a bit more help so the instructor stayed with me and basically steered me around the reef by my tank :) They tell you not to touch the coral since you can hurt it so I was terrified to get close and basically kept my arms crossed and my legs motionless.

After a day in Utila, you pretty much know or recognize everyone on the island. It's amazing how quickly you feel like you've always been in Utila and you always will be. There are more than a few expats that have come for a few days and find that a few years later, they've become permanent residents. At the charming Cafe Mariposa(Mariposa is Spanish for butterfly)the owner informed us that she had come from Sweden (Or the Netherlands?) and loved it so much she decided to make it her permanent home and now raises her children there. (By the way, the Cafe Mariposa has an amazing breakfast, with an amazing view of the ocean...get there early and you'll have the place to yourself like we did. Excellent beignets and coffee!)


If you have some time between dives, I suggest renting a bicycle or walking, less than a mile away from the busy street by the dock, to a peaceful beach that is usually only populated by a handful of people. The water is so clear and beautiful that you could relax there all day. If you grow restless though, you can walk a bit further to The Coral View Beach Resort's bar. The bar is at the end of a dock that leads to the ocean and if you buy a drink for a few dollars, you can snorkel there and enjoy the drink when you've finished. (You can rent snorkels from the Coral View or if you're diving with Parrot's, they'll let you borrow fins and a mask) There is a huge drop off not far from the shore and plenty of coral and wildlife to keep you entertained. (Be careful not to touch the coral, as it is very sensitive and you may damage it by accident)

Between diving, snorkeling, biking, exploring and eating at the many unique restaurants, we had a blast. Parrot's dive shop is located in front of Tranquila Bar which overlooks the ocean and is a great way to unwind at the end of the day. One of the dive instructors from Parrot's befriended us and told us about how he had made it from Canada to Utila to become one of the many people who fell in love with the island and couldn't leave.


We ended up staying in Utila longer than we planned and after 3 days we decided to get back on the ferry before we too fell under the island's spell. Unfortunately, we didn't see any whale sharks while we were diving, but we still had an amazing time and I would love to make it back there some day.

San Pedro Sula and Copan Ruinas, Honduras

Hola! That's about the extent of my Spanish, but I managed to get by in Honduras with Ryan as my interpreter :) Being in this lovely country encouraged me to improve my Spanish but I don't know if I'll ever get past the basics unless we move to Central or South America! Pointing to things you want and saying "Quiero" may be adorable for a 3 year old, but for a 25 year old married woman, it doesn't quite have the same effect.

We started off our journey flying into San Pedro Sula at 1 am in the morning. Lucky for us La Posada B&B has a car to pick up guests from the airport(1 am in a developing country is an intimidating first impression). La Posada was by far the nicest place we stayed on our trip and the a/c in our room was a nice transition into the steamy sauna that is Honduras! The Cafe Maya coffee in the morning, along with the home cooked breakfast by the pool was very luxurious as well :)

The kind gentleman who picked us up from the airport was also our complimentary ride to the bus station, where for a few dollars we hopped on a "chicken bus" (old U.S. school bus) to Copan Ruinas. (We forgot to tip our lovely chaffeur and felt like terrible tourists, but we were able to redeem ourselves in La Ceiba when we saw him picking up La Posada guests from the ferry station...I like to think that took us off the "American jerks" list)

**IMPORTANT TIP** make sure you eat and drink water on long bus rides with no a/c. It is true that you won't have a bathroom break for a few hours, but you'll be sweating out all of your H2O, so bathroom breaks really aren't as much of an issue as you might think. I didn't know this important tip before our day started, so once we made it to Copan Ruinas, checked into Hostal La Manzana Verde and promptly took a moped taxi (known as tuk-tuks in Thailand, not sure what they're called in Central America) to the ruins that Copan Ruinas are named for....I discovered the hard way that a day in the heat, without adequate hydration and feeding, leads to dizziness and the distinct notion that one's death is near. Other than the brief time I spent thinking I wouldn't live out the week, I really enjoyed the ruins! It's amazing to imagine these ruins as the bustling cities they once were. Just try to picture people walking around, gossiping about their Mayan leaders and worrying about the quinoa harvest...

After the ruins, we decided to check out Twisted Tanya's for their "Backpacker's Special". The food was amazing and it was a great deal! The view from Twisted Tanya's is breathtaking and I highly recommend this as a must-see.

After we ate, we were both exhausted from the travel, heat and long day and decided to nap before heading out for drinks with our hostelmates.
(From left to right: Michael, 2 people I can't remember what their names are, Hillary, Che, Ryan)
At La Manzana Verde, we made friends with the 3 other people staying in our room as well as a few others from adjoining rooms. There was the very liberal and informative Hillary from Arizona who was making her way through Central America on the "Gringo Trail",Che, the dancer/charming Aussie from Vancouver on his way to visit a friend in Utila, and Michael from the UK, who was also making his way on the Gringo Trail and had some hilarious/disturbing jokes. We actually ended up traveling with Hillary and Che to Utila the next morning at 6 am to catch the cheapest bus to La Ceiba, from where we would catch the ferry to Utila.

Ryan and I were planning on staying in Copan for a few days, but after a few hours, we had pretty much had our fill and were anxious to see more! Having only 7 days to explore an entire country definitely gives you the itch to keep moving. On to La Ceiba!!