Honduras Travel

As the U.S. Dollar takes a pounding in some countries, Central Americans are still loving the greenbacks. Promoting these “third-world” destinations is daunting – but do-able. The advertising slogans concocted by many tourism boards sound forced and downright silly, but one that Honduras espouses in some of its materials is simple and rings true: “One small country, three big worlds.”

While the price of traveling through it may be a steal, in this small country you can do it all – from diving great reefs to exploring ancient history – in a nation that has roughly the same land area as Tennessee.

Sitting down at a local restaurant on the Island of Roatan, I shift my gaze past the waiter over the railing to the seashore. I see the moonlight reflecting over water leading my eye past the horizon up into the starry cosmos as it looks so relaxing. I sip my monkey la-la (a delicious island concoction named after a local lizard) and think, “That is my ‘to do’ list for the next few weeks: relax.”

Roatan, along with Utila and Guanaja, form the Bay Islands of Honduras. Roatan lies 65 kilometres off the northern coast of mainland Honduras.

I just had breakfast with a monkey.

Of course, that’s what my girlfriend says almost every morning. But in this case it’s a white-faced spider monkey, who has come down from his perch 10 metres above to join me.

It’s my last day on the island and the first time I had seen him, clambering from tree to tree, branch to branch, and, finally, on to the shaded patio table of the beach-front apartment I had rented.

COPAN RUINAS, Honduras – The three hour trip from the city of San Pedro Sula in the north coast of Honduras to Copan Ruins is like going into a time capsule.

Getting away from all the noise of a modern Honduran city and heading towards the land of the Mayan Indians. Here you see men cutting the grass with a machete on the road sides, women and children carrying firewood on their backs.

Faviole looks up at me with her big chestnut eyes. “¿Quiere usted un poco de agua?”

I smile sympathetically, “No comprendo . . . lo siento,” while gesturing to tell her that I am sorry, but I don’t understand her.

She laughs, used to this response, and mimes for me to come with her. At this, I follow my new Honduran friend across the field — my pasty-white, 17-year-old legs trying to keep up with her experienced seven-year-old ones.

I was a little worried as the young man lifted me up and hooked my harness to the cable. He smiled and warned me not to crash in to any trees.

He then let me go and all at once I was flying through the treetops at Gumba Limba Park in Roatan, Honduras. I really enjoyed this great adventure, even though, after my canopy tour, a very impolite monkey stole my water bottle out of my back pack.

There’s nothing better than learning something new while traveling, learning about ancient and unknown worlds, lose myself in nature and exercise, and be pampered in total relaxation. Honduras offers all of this and a lot more.