The Roatan Story

On June 4^th, 2008, I finally went to La Ceiba to purchase the lumber for the house. The flight was good and cab ride was fine.  We found the lumberyard, Maderas Osegueras, and met with the manager, Mr. German (pronounced airman).  

After talking about what we needed and looking at the lumber which included driving to the outskirts of La Ceiba to their lumber mill to see the posts we will use for the dock extension and Palapa, we returned and got down to business.  Of course not all the lumber was in stock.  Twenty-two and twenty-four foot lumber is special order (same as in the States), so we will have to wait for a week and then go back, supervise the selection and mark the lumber for delivery to the dock, and onto the Harmack III (the converted shrimp boat, now a cargo carrier) and to our dock here in Calabash Bight.  You didn’t really think this would be done in one trip did you?

I have some heartbreaking news from our family here.  On Thursday the 5^th of June, 2008, I made my way to the Turtlegrass Shack (guest house) as was my usual morning ritual, and started to call out to Harley (our Hahn’s Macaw).  

She usually replied “Hello Harley” with way too much enthusiasm for 4:00 am!  When I didn’t get a response, I walked over to her house and found her pulling herself across the bottom of the cage with her beak.  At this, my heart sank and I reached into the cage and gingerly pulled her out and started to assess the problem.  When I could find no external injury suggesting a cause, I went online and started researching symptoms until it was late enough in the morning to call a U.S. bird veterinarian who was luckily on the island.  Speaking with Dr. Baird, I quickly realized how complicated diagnosing Harley was going to be with the myriad of possible causes.  After seven days of “maybe it’s this” and treating for it, “maybe it’s that” and treating for it, cuddling her, hand feeding her, consoling her, and doing all Lori and I possibly could with Dr Baird’s advice and guidance, she finally succumbed to her ailment and passed away the morning of June 12^th, 2008.  We will miss her companionship greatly.  Harley was a big talker who also mimicked a phone ringing, a squeaky door, opening of a soda can, and many other sounds.   She taught me that friends and family do indeed come in strange and different forms.  Harley was a friend, sailor, backseat driver, watch bird, confidant, and one small powerful part of our family for many years. Would you believe that a fifty year old man could cry over this? I did, quite a lot actually and still do every once in a while, I miss her so much. I was very glad to have such a friend in my life that gave everything and asked for nothing but a snuggle in return.  And, I will forever carry with me the sound of her hearty and robust hello that signaled the start of the day and always made me smile.  Godspeed Harley, until we meet again my little friend.

During this “lull” in activity (waiting for the lumber delivery) we also started up a new website, www.bayislandsclassifieds.com 

as a way of hopefully creating one place to find items and services here in the Bay Islands.  Right now there is no such thing, not even a phone book or yellow pages.  There are other sites that boast to be “the” resource but most of the information is outdated and they have become static holes in the internet. This actually happens a lot more than you would think.  Anyway, this site should stay current since ads run for a maximum of 90 days and then expire.  At that point an email is automatically sent to the person who posted the ad so they can resubmit and edit if required.  I have also run around the island hanging flyers to help get the word out.  Oh I forgot to mention, it is free!  We do hope to get some customers to pay for banner ads to make up for the costs associated with running the site.  But placing classified ads (along with pictures) doesn’t cost a thing so we are hoping for a good response. 

 On July 3, 2008, I went to La Ceiba again since we finally had everything arranged (I hoped anyway!). The longer lumber pieces never did arrive so after a little substitution we counted and painted out stacks of lumber.  We have been working towards this for so long that it had become kind of surreal. But when I saw our house in the form of a pile of wood, I actually began to get excited about this Turtlegrass House project.  Seeing the stacks of lumber made it all very “real” again.  I also ordered the lumber and materials for the dock extension for the Turtlegrass Mini Marina project.

Here I will digress, and describe for you my trip to La Ceiba.  At 4:00 am, I rose from a deep comfy sleep, got a couple of cups of coffee in me, and lowered the Panga off the lift and rolled into Oak Ridge around 5:00 am.  I jumped into the trusty Blue Whale II (I had another vehicle by that name years ago) and went bouncing and dodging the potholes in the road towards Dixon Cove where the Catamaran high speed ferry awaits its start of the day. 

 I paid 500 Lempiras for my ticket and was scanned just like airport security and got aboard the Ferry for the 1.5 hour trip over 38 miles to La Ceiba. When I arrived in La Ceiba, I noticed that there were several boats anchored out.  It turns out that the Honduran Government increased the dock fees to around $120.00 USD a day. This created a strike against the Dock authority that has been going on for a month, leaving several protesting boats at anchor in the harbor which isn’t very big to start with!  I took a cab to the lumber yard in town for 80 Lempiras.  Then I rode with German to the mill outside of town.  I counted stacks, changed out bad pieces, and painted the ends for ID.  Afterwards, I had some other errands to attend to for myself and others.  In La Ceiba, a cab costs 20 Lempiras per person per destination as long as it is in town more or less. I usually get a dedicated driver for about $50.00 a day or 125 Lempiras an hour but when I have short runs it turns out to be more economical for the 20 Lempira cabs.

For my trip back to Roatan, I decided to go first class (ride in AC at the top of the ferry in reclining seats, watching a movie). The price was 600 Lempiras rather than 500.  But I figured I deserved it after a hot day in Ceiba.  When making the ticket purchase, I discovered two new additional charges. The first is 20 Lempiras per person to pay the Servicio Portuarios, or port service charge, and also a 19 Lempira Zolitur tax.  This tax is now in effect here and at the airports for passengers arriving into Roatan.  Many are slightly upset about the tax but tolerate it for the benefits of tourism into Roatan with the duty free zone status.  I am benefitting from the Zolitur as well, so I do not complain.  This brings me to another point.  There is a new ID card for those who live on Roatan that is required to legally work here.  There has been an uncontrolled influx of mainland citizens to Roatan for the higher pay than what can be earned on the coast, but it has also propagated an increase in crime as well.  So, the authorities have decided that an ID card for those who have lived on Roatan for at least three years (has to be proven) can obtain this ID.  Also employers are required to only hire individuals with this ID card and a police report or else they can fine the employer up to $50,000.00 USD! This is supposed to inhibit the flood of workers from the mainland.  Along with the Zolitur, the government is also attempting to clean things up with gun control.  It is illegal to carry or posses a firearm on this island unless you are on your own property, period. Is this good or bad? I tend to think it is a sound idea in a place where they used to shoot each other over bad calls during a ball game.  Getting guns out of those kinds of hands is beneficial for sure!  Oh yea, the ferry ride in the afternoons is usually a very wet and bumpy journey making most everyone sea sick. The prevailing winds are out of the East and seas build very quickly and bang into the starboard bow. This makes the big catamaran heave and toss about like a drunken cow on ice! I didn’t get sick because I knew it was going to be rough and not having my sea legs, I cheated and took a Dramamine.

Okay, so I went on a tangent, let me get back to the lumber story.  Finally, after all this waiting, it should be here either Friday or Saturday this week!  Is that ever great news!  Of course I will receive a call telling me that either all the lumber made it on board or only part.  If it is divided up during delivery, it could destroy all the careful work on the part of many people and become an instant nightmare. I cringe at the thought, but hope for the best.  This is the banana republic after all, and things operate differently here.

On July 5^th, 2008, the Bambino arrived in Calabash Bight with Captain Evans 

and a crew of 14 aboard along with about two thirds of our lumber. I will let Lori tell you the whole story.  But, I just wanted to let everyone know that Captain Evans, of Chapter 7 “Bambino Caper” fame, and I made amends.  I learned that when we ordered the barrels of fuel, it was his first time dealing with the boat and its crew.  If I had known that from the beginning it would have made things much easier to understand why it all went wrong!  It turns out that Captain Evans is a nice guy and I am glad we now consider each other friends. I actually was kind of sad when we led the Bambino out of Calabash Bight at nightfall as I will not see Captain Evans for at least three months. It is lobster season and he will take his boat out and try his luck along with the many other lobster fisherman from Roatan. Now the question is who will deliver the rest of our lumber?

July 6^th, 2008 marks a special day for me. It was one year ago today that I left Florida to come here and begin the new chapter of our life on Roatan.  As you can see by reading the story it has been fun, educational, and frustrating.  Looking back, it has been a remarkable experience and I am so glad to have made this move.  Time to post this update and Lori, try to be brief, unlike me!

Lori writes:

They say be careful what you wish for and we were down to only ten more flushes of the guesthouse toilet when it started raining and didn’t stop for a week.  The plants and weeds are growing like crazy and it is wonderful to have plenty of water again.  Spending most of my life in Florida, I am accustomed to frequent thunderstorms.  But, when a squall hits this island, it is quite a new experience.  I don’t know why, but lightning flashes constantly for several minutes, like a strobe light.  Thunder can make you jump right out of your skin and hurts your eardrums.  Mark says the thunder is much louder here because it travels unimpeded across the water.  It also bounces you right out of bed when a storm rolls through in the middle of the night, ouch!  Mark had the forethought to add an extra cistern tank to our rain catchment system for a total of 1200 gallons. 

So, when the rains came, we were ready to fill up.  He also drained what was left in the gravity tank up the hill and installed a pressure pump for the guesthouse.  Of course we have the big RO machine but it is not finished yet.  We also have the boat RO machine and plenty of water on board so we weren’t in dire straits.  But, rain water is free and will be used for watering the many plants and for washing down the boat(s) at the dock.

June was not a good month for the birds at Turtlegrass.  Just as we were beginning to get fresh eggs from our chickens, 

a neighbor’s dog killed our rooster.  Without a leader, the hens scattered.  They would show up occasionally for food and water but were no longer laying eggs here.  One morning, I awoke to a loud clucking and peeked out the companionway to find a hen perched on the staysail boom on the foredeck.  

Chicken of the sea

Before I could chase her off the boat, she left me a large pile of poop.  The plan now is to build a coop and keep the chickens contained at all times.  This will keep them safe from other animals, keep my plants safe from the chickens, and no more poop all over the yard, deck, and stairs!  More sadly, as Mark mentioned, was the loss of Harley.  Birds often bond most strongly with one person and Mark was definitely Harley’s favorite.  But over the years, she and I developed a mutual trust and understanding.  To this day, I am still amazed at her ability to speak appropriately.  I don’t know much about macaws, but always assumed they only mimicked words and sounds.  When my kids were young and I was driving them to school every day, we were always behind schedule.  Harley learned the phrase “get in the car” from me as I hollered it at Alex and Savannah every morning.  Later, what struck me as unusual was Harley sensed somehow when we were leaving and would repeat “get in the car” over and over.  At first, I thought the sight of my purse or keys triggered her.  But often times, any one of us would go out the kitchen door to the garage with nothing in hand and Harley would chant this phrase.  I still wonder how she knew the difference between our leaving in the car and just going to get something in the garage.  She was an intelligent and remarkable creature.  I grew quite attached to Harley and miss her every day.

We had a great deal of free time in June.  Mark and I referred to it as the “calm before the storm” but also took advantage and had some fun.  One beautiful morning, when the seas were unruffled and crystal clear, we followed Nomad, Alex and Kelly’s sailboat, out of Calabash bight. 

Nomad under spinnaker

I took several pictures of them from the Vista Cruiser, as they sailed along.  Afterward, we all piled in our boat and motored over to Port Royal.  We stopped at a fabulous resort called Royal Playa for lunch and Kelly introduced us to the owners. 

Kelly & Mark at Royal Playa

Then we donned snorkel gear and swam between two large rock islands named the “Cow” and “Calf”.  Mark captured some amazing pictures of the underwater life there. 

Lori in liquid air

Port Royal is absolutely gorgeous and I look forward to another visit very soon. Then, on June 26, 2008, we celebrated both Mark’s birthday and our one year wedding anniversary.  I had learned that Kelly’s birthday was June 27^th and with the help of Mike and Gail, threw a party for the combined occasions.  The following day, it was determined that fun was had by all as we stayed up until midnight which is about four hours past all our usual bed times.

Alex, Kelly, Mike & Mark

Kelly & Mark make a wish

Mark and I enjoy keeping in touch with family and often times find phone contact with businesses in the States necessary for our transactions here.  Our cell phones do not allow us to call toll free numbers in the U.S. (and many companies do not offer a direct number). So, we are always searching for inexpensive solutions to our communication dilemma. We recently downloaded Skype and have found it to work great, computer to computer.  Now we are able to conduct video calls with our families.  Skype also allows you to call a phone line from your computer but we have found this to be exasperating.  I walked up to the guesthouse one afternoon to find Mark screaming and spitting at his monitor.  He was attempting to communicate with our bank in the States but with the awful connection, every time he made it through the automated system to a live person, they would hang up.  He resorted to contacting his parents through a video call and had them call the bank.  But, the bank would not deal with them as they are not named on the account.  All I could do was to sit on the porch and laugh hysterically.  Lately, I have been referring to Roatan as “bizarro world”.  I don’t mean this in the negative sense; however, I do often feel that we now exist in some strange parallel universe.

I figure the lumber saga is boring people to tears, so I will keep my additions to the story at a minimum (I will try anyway!).  Mark failed to mention that just as the substitutions had been arranged and the lumberyard was ready to deliver to the dock in La Ceiba, our delivery boat, the Harmack III, backed out of the deal.  The captain claimed he wasn’t making a profit in cargo and was reverting back to fishing.  At the last minute, we reluctantly secured the Bambino (after our previous experience, I wasn’t enthused about entrusting this boat to delivering our expensive cargo).  Another point I think worthy of mentioning, is that many businesses here are not big on communication.  We were having difficulty reaching anyone in the Bambino office to find out the schedule for delivery.  So, the “coconut telegraph” became the best source of information.  On the fourth of July, someone spotted the boat in Coxen Hole and called us.  So, we sat tight, waiting and wondering.  Finally, on Saturday, the fifth, the boat was seen in Oak Ridge and it was heading our way.  Mark and I scrambled to move our sailboat to anchor in the middle of the bight so the Bambino could pull right up to our dock.  Mark then raced over to Diamond Rock landing in the Vista Cruiser to pick up the guys he had on standby to help offload the wood.  Just as he returned, the Bambino came into view and Mark ran out to lead them in.  I sat on the sailboat in the middle of the bight and watched all the activity through my binoculars.  Just after nightfall, the boat was unloaded and Mark led them back out of the bight.  We have counted what arrived and have determined that we received two thirds of our order. 

Now, we sit with eyes focused on the entrance to Calabash bight, and wait until word travels through the coconut telegraph and alerts us to re-enacting the fire drill.  I am glad that I love surprises because the happening of any major endeavor here comes upon you with little notice, but, hey, it’s bizarro world!