Jain Day 5

Dear Blog

Tuesday Nov. 3^rd Roatan

 

Jay finally remembered how to get pics in my stories.

Today we’re in Roatán, Honduras — which has confused several passengers who are wandering around saying things like, “How did we get from Mexico to Honduras overnight?” The answer is simple: the ship moved. People really need to look at a map.

 

Roatán sits about 40 miles off Honduras, tropical and calm, noticeably safer and more prosperous than the mainland thanks to cruise money. It’s gorgeous, but you have to dodge the cruise‑port chaos and tourist traps. We headed straight to Sol y Mar Beach Club, a quiet little pocket wrapped around a shallow, calm lagoon. Best part: no aggressive vendors doing the “You buy from me?” ambush. Bliss.

 

We spent the day in our floaty recliners — inflatable tubes with a soft net sling that basically turn the ocean into an 86‑degree armchair. Perfect in calm water.

 

We skipped lunch. Island dishes lean heavily on bananas and coconuts, which land firmly in our “no, thanks” category. I’m anti‑banana because a former coworker used to toss her peel into her trash can and let it perfume the entire office. Another coworker would retrieve it and drop it on the floor beside her desk as payback. Workplace enrichment at its finest.

 

Jay isn’t into coconuts. After a few childhood years in the Philippines, coconuts weren’t a treat — they were the everything. There’s an ad that says, “people are cuckoo for coconuts;” Jay simply is not.

 

While we floated, plenty of passengers went off to find Roatán’s sloths, monkeys, iguanas, parrots, and whatever else is out there living its best life. Sloths are cute, slow, very “namaste, I live in a tree.” Monkeys?

 

Absolutely not. After Africa, I’ve completed the monkey portion of my life. They’re fast, chaotic, and will swipe your food or your bag before you blink.

 

Back on the ship, we cleaned up and headed to Cagney’s — the usual ritual. Big steak, big potato, the cruise‑world shrine. We skipped the Monkey La La (fresh banana, coconut cream, vodka, Kahlúa, Baileys, chocolate) and went with pinot gris instead.

 

Overall, a good day. Tomorrow is Belize. As they used to say on Days of Our Lives: “Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.”