Muy tranquilo

After having my camera stolen we headed off to Roatan to do some scuba diving. Carrying the theme of bad luck with me - I ended up getting sicker than I have ever been traveling. I was pissing out of my ass (as my dear friend Kristi James would say), and vomiting all night and into the next day. I had some tainted lettuce in my veggie burrito. I took me days to recover, as I was extremely dehydrated. Now I'm over the hump and things are on the up and up.

Dana and I ended up meeting some amazing friends while in Roaton, some that will last a lifetime. We ended up going on three dives - I would have loved to do more but I did not have the dinero. I ended up doing a class towards my advanced certification, they call them adventure dives. I can now go 120 feet deep. I wanted to go on a deep dive with Dana and our new friends so I ended up going for it. I basically read a chapter in a book and answered review questions on nitrogen narcosis and the "bends". Before the beginning of the dive my DM asked me to point out numbers 1-25 (that were all jumbled up on a plastic slate) while timing me, and then took me down to a 100 ft. to do the same thing. Essentially, this would show a person the slight effects of nitrogen narcosis. Often times people just get giddy and a little sure of themselves - I didn't feel much of a difference. Go figure, I was actually faster pointing out the numbers while down in the water. After that skill test I linked up with my buddy Dana, and we headed off into what was the most epic dives I've ever done (I think for her too). We did this site called "Texas" - which was a gigantic coral reef on one side and the deep blue abyss on the other. Another thing is that this was a drift dive - when we surfaced after the dive we had drifted about 2 miles. Not to mention, our Dive Master was so cool and knowledgeable. Overall, Roatan had incredible coral (the 2nd largest reef in the world), warm water and spectacular fish!

Dana and I are in Nicaragua together enjoying the beautiful beach, San Juan del Sur (it boarders Costa Rica). Dana decided to come to Nicaragua with me, because she too decided Honduras did not have much to offer outside of the Bay Islands. After I leave here in a couple of weeks she is going to give the jungles of Honduras a chance (we heard they are beautiful). Honduras ended up being kinda sketchy and not so safe - but the islands makeup for it! I also have satisfaction in knowing that the people who stole my camera are not going to get far with it after my rechargeable battery dies (you can not find it anywhere there). Sucks for me, but now I don't have to worry about it being stolen.

Today, Dana and I had our first surf lesson - it was AWESOME (not to mention our instructor a serious hottie)! Yes, we stood up and rode many waves - with his help of course. He basically told us what wave to take and when to stand up. Let's just say we will be doing this again - it was good fun! It is hard and I got worked (my board ended up hitting me in the head a couple of times). Dana is totally a natural at it. The water/waves here are amazing - many just decide to stay.

Tomorrow Dana and I start our first day of Spanish school - we will be doing it for two weeks. We found a really cool deal where we have a really cute place all to ourselves (so far), 3 good meals a day, 3 activities a week (salsa lessons, Nicaraguan cooking class, hiking...), 20 hours of Spanish a week and free laundry - pretty cool, eh?

So there it is...

Love - Lilz

Que lastima!

So far the cities of Honduras have left little to be desired in my opinion. At night the streets are unsafe, the men are crude, most people are not friendly, the service is SLOW and theft is an apparent problem. With that being said my new waterproof, shockproof, perfect for this trip of 6 months camera, has been stolen. Dana and I have been extremely carful and locked-up all of our stuff at this hostel. My camera was taken in a matter of moments right under our noses! We are off to Roatán today where we will do scuba diving for about a week. This will be beautiful and just what the doctor ordered. Lesson learned: sleep with one eye open!

Lilz

Que?

So, Dana and I started out our adventure in style flying first class to Honduras. Courtesy of her mother Dorothy. The dinner of glazed salmon was like the last supper, I savored every morsel! As a pescatarian, my diet is going to be a struggle in some of these countries. Even if I eat beans, you know they have lard. So beans it is!

We arrived in San Pedro Sula and let's just say we wanted to get out of there with a quickness! The men whistled at us like dogs as they followed after us. We were advised by about 10+ people to not go out on the streets at night and to take off all jewelry. We tried to go to two places recommended in the LP for some drinks and food, both places were completely shut down. As a matter of fact everything shuts down after dark. Yep, that kind of place. Oh, when Dana told me I should get a Spanish/English dictionary, she was right! They don't speak a word of English, not even hello. That's okay with me, it will help me learn faster.

The very next day we arrived in Copan. Copan is quaint and charming, definitely a place where one could pass some time. Today Dana and I went horseback riding, the fast galloping, hang on for dear life or you'll fall of the horse kind of riding. It was AWESOME, and our guide did not speak any English. Again, a great way to learn Spanish. I probably understood about 45 percent of what he was saying, the rest of the time I just shook my head. After that Dana and I visited some Mayan ruins which are a couple thousand years old, and did a nature walk. The ruins were beautiful but not too impressive, I guess Angkor Wat spoiled me a bit.

Tomorrow we leave for La Ceiba where we will do some whitewater rafting, I'm excited about that! Then off to one of the Islands, maybe Rotan for scuba.

Now, if I could only start asking the waiter for the check/la cuenta, and not his body/el cuerpo. Needless to say I'm very rusty!

Mucho Amore!

Lily

Mooving on...

So, after 3 and some odd years with my job at the League, I was laid-off in a rather tacky manner (upon my arrival home from vacation). I returned from SE Asia refreshed, and was told there was no longer money in the budget to keep me around. How's that for a welcome home. At first I was a bit crushed - then I realized it was one of the best things that could have happened to me...

Now I am about to embark on my journey through Central/South America (I leave this Tuesday). I'm a bit nervous, but in a good way. I am going to start in Honduras (with Dana, my house-mate) where I will scuba dive, beach dwell and check out some amazing ruins. After that - Nicaragua for some Spanish lessons on the beach & surfing. I have ideas of what I want to do: Patagonia - trekking, Machu Picchu, Galapagos, seeing the world's largest salt flat, seeing one of the world's largest advancing glaciers, and definitely volunteering in Pisco (aiding in rebuilding after the earthquake) with some friends (through Burner's without Borders - a pretty amazing operation!). Along the way I am excited about meeting up with friends in various countries. Who knows, maybe I will see all of these things or just some. Either way I am excited about the possibilities and I am open to anything!

For the first time in my life I feel completely free and confident with the unknown. Although I will be alone - I'm really not. Who knows, by simply locking my eyes with someone and smiling - I may meet friends for life, or learn valuable lessons unknown to me. I'm sure things won't be smiles all the time but that's part of it.

Next entry coming your way from Honduras!

Love,

Lily