Click the link below to see what I see when I stand at my front door. This is basically the scene I see when I eat all my meals also from my porch. Not too shabby if you ask me.
MY VIEW
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Friday, April 27, 2007
Typical Day
I wake up about 5:30 nearly every morning. There is so much light coming into my apartment that I just can’t sleep. I usually just sit on the porch watching the ocean for a several minutes before really getting the day started. About 6 I start thinking about breakfast. I have cereal or toast and some yogurt most mornings. Once in a while I cook some eggs or pancakes. Breakfast is always on the porch again. I rarely eat inside.
About 7:00 am each morning I wonder up to the top deck to check the waves on the reef and sometimes say a quick hello to the guests. After that, it’s off to the dive shop to set up gear for the divers. We set everything up everyday so the guests are always ready to go. We are almost always finished getting ready by 7:45 or so we just sit around and talk until the guests arrive.
Lately, Jim and I have worked on the boat everyday. It’s finally up on the dry dock. We broke a support, a chain and a chain host but we made it. Actually it’s still partially held up by a second chain host because the support under the boat bends when we try to sit the boat onto it. We have 2 rough sawn 4 x 8’s in the front and only one in the back. I have to buy another on Monday to support the back end. Jim is a great worker and has sanded the entire boat. On Sunday we’ll launch a little boat under our boat and Jim will clean the bottom of the dive boat. We’ll inspect for leaks and problems and make repairs as required. Later in the week we’ll epoxy paint the entire boat from top to bottom. We use a special anti-fouling paint for the bottom.
Since we broke our new hoist I had to get another from La Ceiba. There were none on Roatan. Luckily one of the owners was there and picked it up for us and brought it back on the ferry.
We have to move the straps and chain holding the boat so we can repair the damage done when the chain crushed the sides of the boat. This boat is really heavy.
The owner is having a new engine head sent from the Florida via air and it is costing a fortune. Hopefully it will arrive before Friday so we’ll have a boat when Joe and his family arrive along with Gerri. The motor is going to San Pedro and then being trucked to La Ceiba. From there is will be put onto a ferry where I’ll go pick it up and hopefully get someone to install it.
We break for lunch after the morning dives usually about 12:30. The crew goes to a local place to eat and Ben and I eat at the resort. We eat the local food prepared for the staff however. It is always beans and rice and some sort of meat or salad. It’s simple but usually pretty good.
We usually work until about 4:00 or 4:30. If we’ve had a hard day and lately they’ve all been hard, we have a few beers on my porch. Jim needs to catch a ride by 5:00 pm or he has a 70 minute walk home.
I try to eat dinner about 6:30 and I keep it simple. I often have a sandwich or spaghetti or something similar. I sit on the porch once again and have a beer or glass of wine and I’m usually in bed no later than 9:00 pm and often earlier. I have no TV yet. About once a week I eat with the guests and that’s a lot of fun. I wish I could do that every night.
About 7:00 am each morning I wonder up to the top deck to check the waves on the reef and sometimes say a quick hello to the guests. After that, it’s off to the dive shop to set up gear for the divers. We set everything up everyday so the guests are always ready to go. We are almost always finished getting ready by 7:45 or so we just sit around and talk until the guests arrive.
Lately, Jim and I have worked on the boat everyday. It’s finally up on the dry dock. We broke a support, a chain and a chain host but we made it. Actually it’s still partially held up by a second chain host because the support under the boat bends when we try to sit the boat onto it. We have 2 rough sawn 4 x 8’s in the front and only one in the back. I have to buy another on Monday to support the back end. Jim is a great worker and has sanded the entire boat. On Sunday we’ll launch a little boat under our boat and Jim will clean the bottom of the dive boat. We’ll inspect for leaks and problems and make repairs as required. Later in the week we’ll epoxy paint the entire boat from top to bottom. We use a special anti-fouling paint for the bottom.
Since we broke our new hoist I had to get another from La Ceiba. There were none on Roatan. Luckily one of the owners was there and picked it up for us and brought it back on the ferry.
We have to move the straps and chain holding the boat so we can repair the damage done when the chain crushed the sides of the boat. This boat is really heavy.
The owner is having a new engine head sent from the Florida via air and it is costing a fortune. Hopefully it will arrive before Friday so we’ll have a boat when Joe and his family arrive along with Gerri. The motor is going to San Pedro and then being trucked to La Ceiba. From there is will be put onto a ferry where I’ll go pick it up and hopefully get someone to install it.
We break for lunch after the morning dives usually about 12:30. The crew goes to a local place to eat and Ben and I eat at the resort. We eat the local food prepared for the staff however. It is always beans and rice and some sort of meat or salad. It’s simple but usually pretty good.
We usually work until about 4:00 or 4:30. If we’ve had a hard day and lately they’ve all been hard, we have a few beers on my porch. Jim needs to catch a ride by 5:00 pm or he has a 70 minute walk home.
I try to eat dinner about 6:30 and I keep it simple. I often have a sandwich or spaghetti or something similar. I sit on the porch once again and have a beer or glass of wine and I’m usually in bed no later than 9:00 pm and often earlier. I have no TV yet. About once a week I eat with the guests and that’s a lot of fun. I wish I could do that every night.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Fire Fighting - Really
This place is just full of surprises. Jim, one of the boat captains, and I were coming back from town the other day when a lady flagged us down on the dirt road. She was frantic and said something about throwing water on a fire. We jumped out of the truck and she led us to her home. We could here the roar and crackle of a fire as we approached.
Jimmy and I climbed through a hole in a barbed wire fence and went toward the fire. Sugar cane was burning and it burns really loud. It pops and hisses and it was a bit scary. The fire was probably 30 yards from the house and the lady asked us to throw water on it. She had a 55 gallon drum of rain water and a few buckets so Jimmy and I grabbed a bucket and started running back and forth. It was crazy. Throwing tiny buckets of water on flames 15 feet high seemed futile. Jimmy had no shoes and I had flip flops and we were in the jungle fighting a fire with buckets. We managed to calm the fire nearest the house and it seemed to be headed the other way. I offered to call someone but the lady said she's be dead before anyone help would arrive. We used all the water and that was all we could do. The fire was still burning but there was nothing else we could do. We left.
Later in the day I passed the place again and the fire was out and the house was safe. We didn't really do much but maybe we did save the ladies home. It was strange indeed and something I don't care to repeat.
It has been very dry and we really need some rain.
Jimmy and I climbed through a hole in a barbed wire fence and went toward the fire. Sugar cane was burning and it burns really loud. It pops and hisses and it was a bit scary. The fire was probably 30 yards from the house and the lady asked us to throw water on it. She had a 55 gallon drum of rain water and a few buckets so Jimmy and I grabbed a bucket and started running back and forth. It was crazy. Throwing tiny buckets of water on flames 15 feet high seemed futile. Jimmy had no shoes and I had flip flops and we were in the jungle fighting a fire with buckets. We managed to calm the fire nearest the house and it seemed to be headed the other way. I offered to call someone but the lady said she's be dead before anyone help would arrive. We used all the water and that was all we could do. The fire was still burning but there was nothing else we could do. We left.
Later in the day I passed the place again and the fire was out and the house was safe. We didn't really do much but maybe we did save the ladies home. It was strange indeed and something I don't care to repeat.
It has been very dry and we really need some rain.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Unique Showroom
We need a new motor for our boat or at least a spare so we can get ours fixed. Several locals have approached me about motors for sale and I asked the boss if I could go look at them. He said sure and gave me an amount to spend.
I contacted one of the guys (Paul) and asked him to show me the motor. We had a 5pm appointment. About 5:30 I called him and he claimed he was on his way. I finally called again and determined that he was walking from about 4 miles away. We drove down and picked him up. We came back toward the resort and stopped at a soccer field to pick up another guy that was helping sell this motor.
We continued back toward the resort until we were about 10 feet from the entrance to the property. They had me turn down a dirt path so I stopped the truck. We didn't think the road was good enough so we started walking. About 300 yards down the path and within 200 yards of our dive shop we came across a field of 4 to 5 foot high grass. Paul pointed into the grass and said there's the motor. The grass was very buggy and had sharp edges but we waded into it about 20 feet only to discover this 200 HP motor laying there. I quickly decided this was an unusual showroom.
The stories about it are very vague but it was likely used to run drugs and was abondoned. Someone grabbed it and hid it from the police or drug enforcement agency assuming there is such a thing. We never got a straight answer on who claimed ownership of the motor or who we were buying it from. These guys just said we should pay them. I decided to talk to my boss about this purchase before going further.
We may actually purchase this motor but we are going to ask to have it mounted on our boat first to test it. We will also offer considerably less than the asking price since we don't think they have any cost involved at all and we'd be taking some amount of risk.
I've had a few strange things happen since I've been here but this is at the top for weird.
I contacted one of the guys (Paul) and asked him to show me the motor. We had a 5pm appointment. About 5:30 I called him and he claimed he was on his way. I finally called again and determined that he was walking from about 4 miles away. We drove down and picked him up. We came back toward the resort and stopped at a soccer field to pick up another guy that was helping sell this motor.
We continued back toward the resort until we were about 10 feet from the entrance to the property. They had me turn down a dirt path so I stopped the truck. We didn't think the road was good enough so we started walking. About 300 yards down the path and within 200 yards of our dive shop we came across a field of 4 to 5 foot high grass. Paul pointed into the grass and said there's the motor. The grass was very buggy and had sharp edges but we waded into it about 20 feet only to discover this 200 HP motor laying there. I quickly decided this was an unusual showroom.
The stories about it are very vague but it was likely used to run drugs and was abondoned. Someone grabbed it and hid it from the police or drug enforcement agency assuming there is such a thing. We never got a straight answer on who claimed ownership of the motor or who we were buying it from. These guys just said we should pay them. I decided to talk to my boss about this purchase before going further.
We may actually purchase this motor but we are going to ask to have it mounted on our boat first to test it. We will also offer considerably less than the asking price since we don't think they have any cost involved at all and we'd be taking some amount of risk.
I've had a few strange things happen since I've been here but this is at the top for weird.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Jealousy
Paya Bay has two different kitchen crews that rotate each week. They work from 6:30 am until 9:00 pm 7 days in a row and then get a week off. The 2 crews don't really get along that well. I like most of the people on both crews and try to be friends with all of them since they sometimes provide me with meals. I ran into a problem this week however with Madlin's crew. The other chef is Charles.
I have chosen to help out one family just a little bit. Many of the staff think that I'm some rich white guy and they ask for things all the time. This one family has never asked for anything. The girl that works in the kitchen is only 20 and has a 4 year son(Oliver). No one in the entire extended family speaks a word of English. I have someone translate on occasion buy mostly we don't talk. I bought a cheap foam pad for the boy to sleep on and some shoes. The other crew is trying to turn this into some big story. They are so jealous that they can't think straight.
I have given everyone rides in the truck before and I always invite them to sit inside if there is room. In this instance I gave the family a ride and most of them were able to fit into the truck. The jealous crew however said "they should ride in the back like cattle". I was shocked and couldn't believe my ears. I can't believe that these wonderful people could be so mean to each other. I'm very disappointed and a bit shaken by all this. It's such a small island and so many people live together that everyone knows everything. Unfortunately they rarely know the whole story so they fill in the blanks with their own ideas of life. Many have had such hard lives and had so many problems they think everyone is mean and unkind and out to get something. They think everyone is out to get them and take advantage of them. They don't trust each other or any of us Americans when it really gets down to the truth. All this seems to be very deeply rooted and won't change for a very long time.
I have another little boy that is only 15 that is supporting a large family. Apparently his father beats him and doesn't work. The kid has been unable to attend school but he speaks both English and Spanish. He works odd jobs around the resort and is very shy. I'm not sure how to help him and if it's worth while. Who knows what they will do if I help someone else. I'm very discouraged at this point about trying to help anyone.
Everyone has warned my about people taking advantage of me and I've tried to be very careful. I may just stop helping everyone all together though that seems so strange that I should have to do that.
I have chosen to help out one family just a little bit. Many of the staff think that I'm some rich white guy and they ask for things all the time. This one family has never asked for anything. The girl that works in the kitchen is only 20 and has a 4 year son(Oliver). No one in the entire extended family speaks a word of English. I have someone translate on occasion buy mostly we don't talk. I bought a cheap foam pad for the boy to sleep on and some shoes. The other crew is trying to turn this into some big story. They are so jealous that they can't think straight.
I have given everyone rides in the truck before and I always invite them to sit inside if there is room. In this instance I gave the family a ride and most of them were able to fit into the truck. The jealous crew however said "they should ride in the back like cattle". I was shocked and couldn't believe my ears. I can't believe that these wonderful people could be so mean to each other. I'm very disappointed and a bit shaken by all this. It's such a small island and so many people live together that everyone knows everything. Unfortunately they rarely know the whole story so they fill in the blanks with their own ideas of life. Many have had such hard lives and had so many problems they think everyone is mean and unkind and out to get something. They think everyone is out to get them and take advantage of them. They don't trust each other or any of us Americans when it really gets down to the truth. All this seems to be very deeply rooted and won't change for a very long time.
I have another little boy that is only 15 that is supporting a large family. Apparently his father beats him and doesn't work. The kid has been unable to attend school but he speaks both English and Spanish. He works odd jobs around the resort and is very shy. I'm not sure how to help him and if it's worth while. Who knows what they will do if I help someone else. I'm very discouraged at this point about trying to help anyone.
Everyone has warned my about people taking advantage of me and I've tried to be very careful. I may just stop helping everyone all together though that seems so strange that I should have to do that.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Some Fixed - More Broken
The truck is much better. The rebuilt brakes but pull to the left so you really have to hold onto the wheel when you stop.
The boat is worse. It now appears that the boat is taking on water. The bildge pump is running several times a day and the boat is just sitting next to the dock. There must be a hole under the boat. We have to put it up into dry dock soon to take a look.
I'm not sure what we are doing about the engine yet. We blew the middle port piston. We are going to order parts from Miami or La Ceiba but I need a mechanic to tell me what parts to order. Hopefully I can get in touch with him today.
We also had a radio go out last week but that's a minor problem compared to the boat.
I can hardly believe the payroll I had to pay this week. I paid a bunch of double times for Easter week and more for working 6 days in a row. The guys love it but we are quickly going broke. We really need some more customers and none appear to be booking at this point. No one knows what is wrong.
I had no phone service part of this week. We ran out of bandwidth again. My phone is all IP based so when we have no or limited Internet the phone doesn't work either. The electric has been working great for about 2 weeks however.
The boat is worse. It now appears that the boat is taking on water. The bildge pump is running several times a day and the boat is just sitting next to the dock. There must be a hole under the boat. We have to put it up into dry dock soon to take a look.
I'm not sure what we are doing about the engine yet. We blew the middle port piston. We are going to order parts from Miami or La Ceiba but I need a mechanic to tell me what parts to order. Hopefully I can get in touch with him today.
We also had a radio go out last week but that's a minor problem compared to the boat.
I can hardly believe the payroll I had to pay this week. I paid a bunch of double times for Easter week and more for working 6 days in a row. The guys love it but we are quickly going broke. We really need some more customers and none appear to be booking at this point. No one knows what is wrong.
I had no phone service part of this week. We ran out of bandwidth again. My phone is all IP based so when we have no or limited Internet the phone doesn't work either. The electric has been working great for about 2 weeks however.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Stuff Happens - but all at one time?
It's been a fun week so far. Ben took our truck in for service and they found out one wheel was about to fall off and the brakes were totally gone. Typical of Roatan, there are no replacment brakes on the Island. Ben was able to get some sent from La Ceiba but they take at least a day to get here. In the meantime, we found a place that rebonds new pads but the electric was off so they couldn't do anything. Ben spend mucho dollars running around in taxi's trying to get this straightened out but ended up home in frustration.
On top of that, all our gas cans were on the broken down truck so we had no boat gas. Luckily, Henry my dive master, offered to go get the cans and gas. I gave him $20 for his trouble but we were unloading gas late last night.
Today was even more fun. I have been trying to teach scuba diving to a lady and her 11 year old child. They are very challenging especially the mom. She is more scared of the water than anyone I've ever seen. The boy doesn't pay attention but seems to do everything well anyway. He's very tiny however and has a really hard time with his weight belt. They should have finished part of the class by Monday morning but we didn't finish until very late on Tuesday.
I used the small resort boat to take out my students and a couple of snorklers joined us. Were were in the water about 30 minutes when the boat captain motioned for me. I swam back to the boat to find out our big dive boat had broken down out in the water. We had to recall everyone and take them back to Paya Bay. We then went and towed the large boat back. It would barely run and it sounded like it was all broken up inside.
I called a mechanic and he arrived about 7:30 pm. He looked at the problem and determined that we blew a piston. They suspect water in the gas caused the problem.
I have another boat rented until we can sort out this problem but it's costing us a fortune and we are loosing money daily.
Right now I have no truck and no boat. Life in paradise isn't always what it's cracked up to be.
On top of that, all our gas cans were on the broken down truck so we had no boat gas. Luckily, Henry my dive master, offered to go get the cans and gas. I gave him $20 for his trouble but we were unloading gas late last night.
Today was even more fun. I have been trying to teach scuba diving to a lady and her 11 year old child. They are very challenging especially the mom. She is more scared of the water than anyone I've ever seen. The boy doesn't pay attention but seems to do everything well anyway. He's very tiny however and has a really hard time with his weight belt. They should have finished part of the class by Monday morning but we didn't finish until very late on Tuesday.
I used the small resort boat to take out my students and a couple of snorklers joined us. Were were in the water about 30 minutes when the boat captain motioned for me. I swam back to the boat to find out our big dive boat had broken down out in the water. We had to recall everyone and take them back to Paya Bay. We then went and towed the large boat back. It would barely run and it sounded like it was all broken up inside.
I called a mechanic and he arrived about 7:30 pm. He looked at the problem and determined that we blew a piston. They suspect water in the gas caused the problem.
I have another boat rented until we can sort out this problem but it's costing us a fortune and we are loosing money daily.
Right now I have no truck and no boat. Life in paradise isn't always what it's cracked up to be.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
PARTY, PARTY, PARTY
This week is the biggest holiday in Honduras. Over 1.8 million visitor were here this week and lot of them came to Roatan. The public beaches have thousands of people on them. There are parties everywhere.
Paya Bay is having a 4 day party that started on Thursday and continues through Sunday. They have a DJ playing music on the beach from about noon to 1:00am every night. It seem most people start arriving a little after 9:00 each night. They serve food and lots and lots of beer until everyone goes home. There is little chance of sleeping if you don't want to party because the music is very loud.
I had a great week this week. The guests were terrific and very easy going. We had 2 school teachers from New York and a family from Chicago I think. They loved every minute and keep complimenting the entire staff that works with me. We all feel really good about it.
Ben and I had 4 students this week that took the Open Water Scuba Diver class. One lady, Polly, dropped out on the first day because she didn't like it. Her husband and 2 older boys enjoyed it however and were all great students. Polly took all the test and actually scored better than everyone. By the end of the week, Ben convinced her to give it another try and she did very well. She didn't get certified but she only needs 4 dives to complete the certification so she'll certainly make it too.
I went for a short walk today which is something I've not done before. I just walked up to the tiny local bar to pay the lady that cooks the crew food. She wasn't there buy the walk was interesting. I couldn't believe all the sounds I heard. I could here the ocean waves for a long time. Later I heard dozens of birds, all differnt kinds, all around me. When I got to a small village I could here crying babies and kids having fun. I could here party music at one house. You walk very slowly as it's warm and humid. When a car drives by you close your eyes to avoid all the dust but you still get dirty and breathing is a challenge. I don't know how the locals do it every single day.
Paya Bay is having a 4 day party that started on Thursday and continues through Sunday. They have a DJ playing music on the beach from about noon to 1:00am every night. It seem most people start arriving a little after 9:00 each night. They serve food and lots and lots of beer until everyone goes home. There is little chance of sleeping if you don't want to party because the music is very loud.
I had a great week this week. The guests were terrific and very easy going. We had 2 school teachers from New York and a family from Chicago I think. They loved every minute and keep complimenting the entire staff that works with me. We all feel really good about it.
Ben and I had 4 students this week that took the Open Water Scuba Diver class. One lady, Polly, dropped out on the first day because she didn't like it. Her husband and 2 older boys enjoyed it however and were all great students. Polly took all the test and actually scored better than everyone. By the end of the week, Ben convinced her to give it another try and she did very well. She didn't get certified but she only needs 4 dives to complete the certification so she'll certainly make it too.
I went for a short walk today which is something I've not done before. I just walked up to the tiny local bar to pay the lady that cooks the crew food. She wasn't there buy the walk was interesting. I couldn't believe all the sounds I heard. I could here the ocean waves for a long time. Later I heard dozens of birds, all differnt kinds, all around me. When I got to a small village I could here crying babies and kids having fun. I could here party music at one house. You walk very slowly as it's warm and humid. When a car drives by you close your eyes to avoid all the dust but you still get dirty and breathing is a challenge. I don't know how the locals do it every single day.
Monday, April 02, 2007
Almost Trouble
I almost forgot one of my most terrifying moments. Last week I was driving one of my crew members, Jim, home because we worked until after dark. We got stopped just a few hundred yards up the road by some clean up crews. They are clearing the brush from the side of the road. They started backing up toward me and I don't have a horn. I immediately jammed the truck in reverse and started to back up. Jim suddenly started screaming to stop.
A little boy about 8 to 10 years old was attempting to use the truck to pull his bicycle along and I had not noticed him in the dark. I had run over his bike and mangled the front wheel. Luckily the boy was not hurt but he was crying and upset. He kept saying his mother would kill him. Lucky for me, Jim knew the boy and his mother. We loaded the bike into the truck and took the kid home. Jim went and spoke to his mom and I offered them about 25 to fix the bike. Jim offered to get the wheel and install it. Everyone ended up happy I think.
Even more interesting, the boy's grandfather came out to talk with me. It ends up that he knows my boss very well and they are good friends. He introduced himself to me and we a had nice conversation as if nothing had even happened. I was so relieved.
Jim was suppose to fix the wheel on Sunday but he ended up in Jail. Apparantly he's lost some Honduran papers and was picked up for not having them. I suspect he was pretty drunk Saturday night and may have ended up somewhere he shouldn't have been. Anyway, he missed work on Sunday and didn't get the wheel fixed yet.
We had some divers last week that hated everything I did. I made an embarrasing mistake in the handling of some tips (party my dive masters fault). Because of that 2 people just laid into me personally and listed everything I did that they didn't like. I had some personal snacks on the boat and they thought I should have shared with them. They didn't realize I start work before they even eat breakfast and often don't get lunch. They were also told the bring snacks but didn't. They didn't think I acted like a divemaster and they were clearly told I didn't perform that role. Henry, the divemaster, explained it on every dive but they chose not to hear it. Other divers clearly understood everything and had no problems. One even came and talked to me because he overhood the personally bashing I took. It was my worst week but I survived and have learned some good lessons.
A little boy about 8 to 10 years old was attempting to use the truck to pull his bicycle along and I had not noticed him in the dark. I had run over his bike and mangled the front wheel. Luckily the boy was not hurt but he was crying and upset. He kept saying his mother would kill him. Lucky for me, Jim knew the boy and his mother. We loaded the bike into the truck and took the kid home. Jim went and spoke to his mom and I offered them about 25 to fix the bike. Jim offered to get the wheel and install it. Everyone ended up happy I think.
Even more interesting, the boy's grandfather came out to talk with me. It ends up that he knows my boss very well and they are good friends. He introduced himself to me and we a had nice conversation as if nothing had even happened. I was so relieved.
Jim was suppose to fix the wheel on Sunday but he ended up in Jail. Apparantly he's lost some Honduran papers and was picked up for not having them. I suspect he was pretty drunk Saturday night and may have ended up somewhere he shouldn't have been. Anyway, he missed work on Sunday and didn't get the wheel fixed yet.
We had some divers last week that hated everything I did. I made an embarrasing mistake in the handling of some tips (party my dive masters fault). Because of that 2 people just laid into me personally and listed everything I did that they didn't like. I had some personal snacks on the boat and they thought I should have shared with them. They didn't realize I start work before they even eat breakfast and often don't get lunch. They were also told the bring snacks but didn't. They didn't think I acted like a divemaster and they were clearly told I didn't perform that role. Henry, the divemaster, explained it on every dive but they chose not to hear it. Other divers clearly understood everything and had no problems. One even came and talked to me because he overhood the personally bashing I took. It was my worst week but I survived and have learned some good lessons.
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