Roatán, Honduras—a small island off the coast of Central America in the Caribbean. Pleasant, right? For what it’s worth, it certainly was relaxing, or as relaxing as a two day port where about a day and a half of it was raining. Not just sprinkling, either. It was stormy, to say the least. Well, weather the wheater (ha) was good or bad, it was still a relaxing final port, free of worry from academic affairs on the ship having now completed finals, projects, programs, and papers.
Our final port has been up in the air since I applied for SAS. A big selling point for this particular semester was the possibility of docking in Havana, Cuba for three days. The itinerary said we would only be going if we received confirmation from the US State Department. Didn’t happen. Thanks, non-students on board (because student visas for Cuba are much easier to obtain than other forms). I was really looking forward to a cigar. The next plan of action, as described to us on the day of the Sea Olympics: Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala. Mayan ruins sounded exciting, but I couldn’t help feeling disappointed that Cuba didn’t work out. Then, during the Pacific Ocean crossing, we awoke one morning to an announcement from the Voice aka Dean Laurie that increasing drug-related violence in eastern Central America, particularly in Guatemala, Belize, Mexic, and, oddly enough, Honduras, were a source of concern for ISE, the State Department, and OSAC, so we were going to have to be rerouted again to Roatán, a tourist destination off the coast, away from all the violence. Run-on sentence? I think. And would you believe it? I saw Mayan ruins and artifacts and smoked a cigar. Okay, I didn’t actually smoke a cigar, though some people did. I was only planning on doing that if we went to Cuba. Okay, background information aside, let’s talk about two days in rainy Roatán.
I awoke to watch the entry into port with Valleria. It was cloudy, so we weren’t able to see much. I went back to bed, only to be interrupted at 7:20 A.M. with an announcement that we could get off the ship 40 minutes earlier than expected. I was signed up for a trip, though, so I didn’t take advatnage. When the time came, I stepped off into the Port of Roatán in Coxen Hole. Ali, Jake, Linda, Nick, Ionna, Rachael, Dina, and a handful of others and I were on an orphanage visit that was combined with an underwater museum snorkeling adventure. Great combo, right? Save the world a little bit and then swim around in the silver-blue Caribbean water while looking at ancient Mayan artifacts and treasures? Let’s do it! The most special part of it to me was that Ali, Ionna, and I were together on the first trip we went on in Morocco and now the last one in Honduras. Great little circle completion, right? Anyway, the kids were fun, but there weren’t that many since most of them were with grandparents for the holidays. We mostly played soccer and blew bubbles and drew on the sidewalk with chalk with them. As far as the snorkeling went, the water was perfect temperature and we got to see quite a bit of coral. The Mesoamerican Reef in the Caribbean is the second largest coral reef in the world, following the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, so underwater was all sorts of red, green, purple, green, yellow, and more. There were a ton of fish, too. We hung out on the beach afterwards and had delicious pizza and some beer. Preparation for America?
When we done snorkeling, the weather turned. It started to rain. A lot. Outdoor activities weren’t really an option anymore. Ali, Ionna, Nick, and I decided to get food. We walked into Coxen Hole and ate conch soup and some kind of delicious tortilla with meat and beans at a local restaurant. It was fantastic. We took a taxi after that to a place called Bananarama in West Bay. There were a ton of SAS folks drinking and having a good time. The rest of the day was spent between there, back at the ship for dinner and a shower, and in West End bar hopping. The roads weren’t in the best condition, so everything was wet and muddy, but nobody seemed to care; it was an excellent last night out with my friends being able to legally drink. Bars, clubs, lounges, and liquor stores, see you in five months!
The second day was raining even harder, so we couldn’t do much once again. Ali, Nick, Sara, and I had lunch at a Mexican place in the port. Speaking of the port, it was similar to Cape Town in that it was commercial, but it was not anywhere near as upscale. When we left, we ventured back into Coxen Hole to walk around in the pouring rain. We each bought a few souvenirs throughout town. As the day came to a close, the Barcelona vs. Real Madrid futbol match began, so we sat and watched the first half hour of it—it was 1-1 when we left.
As our journey is spindling away to its bittersweet end, I wanted my last experience in port to be special. So, I celebrated by jumping into the 7th Deck pool with Gina and Bailey in the rain. We swam some laps and tread some water as the rain poured down onto our faces. I was reminded of the beautiful things and people I have met on my journey about the world, but I’ll cover that once I’m back in America. For now, I will close my last international blog post by saying that while Honduras may have been wet and slightly chilly, I am glad it was our final port experience. I got to relax, swim in warm water, spend time with some of my favorite people on the ship, and think about what this voyage has meant to me. I may not have been able to go to Cuba or Guatemala, so I’ll just have to return to them later!
America tomorrow. Still need to finish packing. I have more to put in than when I left, but somehow, someway, it will fit.
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