Don’t worry, we weren’t really hunting!  Francesco and I joined a snorkeling/boat trip with the Whale Shark & Oceanic Research Center (WSORC) to see some of the enormous creatures that Utila is famous for.

Keeping with the theme of this trip, luck was not with us for our excursion.  No whale sharks to be found!  In addition, the waves that were with us for our ferry trip to the island were still as big as ever.  This time, it was Francesco with his head buried between his legs.

After snorkeling, we docked at Pigeon Caye, a tiny nearby island.  It was fun wandering around taking pictures.  Once again, I entrusted Francesco with my camera:

And we found a puppy!  I am definitely not a dog person, but this little guy even tugged at the strings of my stone cold heart.

I also snorkeled a second time.  There were tons of fish on the reef next to the island and once I got done there was a lot of gesturing and “It was this big!” as I tried to explain to a skeptical Francesco what I saw.

I know, I make snorkeling look good:

Arrival to Utila, Honduras marked the end of traveling and the beginning of five whole days in one spot!  Utila is a budget island, full of backpackers and is known for offering some of the cheapest PADI diving courses in the world. It’s also known for being home to many whale sharks during certain months of the year.

Francesco and I checked into Cooper’s Inn, a budget place that has bare bones accommodations (bed, fan, shared bath for $6/person) but was clean and secure.  There was definitely a relaxed feel and the owner went out of her way to make us feel welcome.

The guidebook warned us in advance about tension between the locals and the tourists/expats that have invaded the country and turned it from a fishing community to a tourist destination.  There is also a lot of worry about the environmental impact of tourism and all but one of the dive schools and many restaurants are foreign-run.  Two years ago, rental scooters and ATVs made their island debut.  There is one main road along the waterfront and walking it leaves you constantly in fear of being run over by a tourist who couldn’t be bothered to do a 10 minute walk to their destination.  It definitely made things a bit more stressful than I was expecting!

I did notice the tension and animosity on the island, and so did many other travelers that I talked to while there.  I’m used to the occasional catcall or comment and even though I never felt unsafe, this attention had a completely different feel.  I had some experiences where people where rude and outright vulgar and was definitely thankful that Francesco was by my side walking around, especially late at night.

Luckily, nothing too serious happened and the majority of our time in Utila was wonderful!  We met some great people, enjoyed the sun, got some great running in and Francesco even got a rad new haircut.

Catching the ferry to Utila, one of the Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras, marked the last bit of travel before a five day much-needed rest.  While waiting to board, I noticed a Rutgers Track & Field tag on the backpack of the guy sitting next to me.  When I asked him about it he told me he was originally from Honduras and was going to school in the US.  He also told me he and his brother had both qualified to represent Honduras in the Long Jump event at the next Olympics!  I definitely geeked out a little bit when I learned this!  He explained to me a bit about his training and told me the Honduran National team practices at altitude in Mexico at an amazing training facility.

I had hoped the ferry ride would be uneventful as we settled into our first class seats for a showing of 2012, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be.  Storms up in the Yucatan meant rough waters for most of the trip.  I started to feel a bit nauseous and began to regret the granola bar I’d had for breakfast.  I made my way to the deck and found myself surrounded by other seasick passengers.  This sort of thing seems to be standard – a crew member calmly made his way around handing out small plastic trash bags for our barfing convenience.  I fought it as long as I could I really was no match for the power of the sea.  Luckily, after depositing the granola bar discretely into the trash bag in my lap, I began to feel much better.  I’d estimate that 50% of the boat’s passengers lost their breakfast along with me.

All’s well that ends well though!  Now we’re settled in for a few days of rest and relaxation!

The ride from Santa Rosa de Copán to La Ceiba was fairly uneventful.  We did have to change buses in San Pedro Sula, where you can grab a firearm in the bus station while you wait!  How convenient!

At La Ceiba, we checked into Amsterdam 2001.  I didn’t know what to expect, given that the name sounded more like a scrapbook album than a hostel, but I ended up feeling right at home!  Green Bay Packers sheets!  In Honduras!  Who would have guessed!?

For dinner, I ordered grilled chicken and was served what appeared to be nearly an entire bird.  I did my best to eat what I could and washed it down with a SalvaVida, per the recommendation of one of my med school classmates who spent time working in Honduras.

Now, we’re finally in Santa Rosa de Copán.  We checked into a budget hostel, Hotel Rosalia, which has to be one of the worst budget spots I’ve ever stayed in.  Despite being 300 Lempiras (expensive by Honduran budget hotel standards), the $18 didn’t even get us seats on our toilets!  We also had bumpy, thin mattresses and a dingy shared bathroom.  Good thing we’re moving on tomorrow!  As of yet, I haven’t spent more than a single night in any city or more than two nights in any country!  Ah, the life of a budget traveler!

Luckily, we were able to save money on dinner.  Street food grilled right in front of us hit the spot:

Santa Rosa de Copán is built on a slope about 3,600 feet high up in the mountains.  While Francesco wanders the city tomorrow morning before we catch a bus the the coast (the beach!) I’m going to torture myself with as many hill runs (staggers?) as I can handle.