After two days on the island of Utila, we are back on Roatan! We departed Friday afternoon on The Utila Dream, which is a ferry that runs from Roatan to Utila (a 30 mile trek). Dubbed by the locals as the “Vomit Comet,” the ferry was a little rocky, but nothing as bad as it was rumored to be. The hour long boat ride took us to the dock at Utila, where we then were rushed onto small vehicles called “tuk tuks” and we were off to our hotel.
Although it was raining for most of the afternoon that we were there on Friday, we were able to explore a bit of Utila. It is a very small island and has a tiny population of 6,000-8,000 people compared to Roatan’s 50,000. We walked the narrow streets that were home to only bikes and the smallest of vehicles and checked out the local shops and restaurants. Something that several of us have noticed were the colors of the buildings on both Roatan and Utila. They are so brightly colored in pastel blues, pinks, and greens and this is rarely seen in the United States. It makes the homes seem so cheery and it is a very charming characteristic of the Bay Islands.
Friday evening was a little loud at our hotel mainly because it was full of divers looking to have a massive beer pong tournament. It was pretty indicative of the local dive culture there and although it wasn’t what we all expected, it was still very interesting to experience the dynamic of the island. The music was loud until around midnight, but several of us were (luckily) able to sleep without too much trouble.
On Saturday, we woke up to breakfast of traditional Honduran food, beans, tortillas, and mantequilla. A little later, we walked as a group to the local iguana conservatory on Utila. We were all excited to see the iguanas and learn more about them and their role on the island. We discovered that many locals see iguanas as a food source and love to eat pregnant females which exponentially reduces the population. The endangerment of the iguanas is also due to a reduction of mangroves which provide the iguanas’ natural habitats. Luckily, there are conservation efforts at work and they are slowly increasing the iguana population on the island. The conservatory was home to more than just iguanas, however. According to Silvia (our tour guide), there were hundreds of tarantulas that come out at night and make their way into buildings alongside boa constrictors that like the local birds! I loved visiting Utila, but I may have a hard time living there…
The rest of the day was spent snorkeling, or on one of the island’s many beaches. Cool sea creatures such as barricudas, sting rays, and parrot fish were spotted and everyone came back to the hotel exhausted and satisfied from the day’s adventures.
Unfortunately, we were forced to cut our trip short due to weather (and potential 7 foot waves), so we came back this morning around 11:30. The boat ride back was much rockier and sea sick inducing than the first, and I was personally very glad when it was over.
We’re back on Roatan though and ready to explore and immerse ourselves even more over the last full week we have here! It’s hard to believe we’ve only been here for two weeks, it feels like months. It will be hard to leave the island in a week and a half, but for now, we have more adventures to go on!
Until next time!
