That's a Moray
"When you dive on the reef,
Always check underneath.
For a moray.
When you try to swim by
But it’s jaws open wide
That’s a moray
When the jaws open wide,
And there's more jaws inside,
That's a moray" ~ The Barefoot Man
Roatan
​
With the mainland in Honduras facing internal challenges and strife, we decided to directly fly to Coxen Hole in Roatan. A bigger island, Roatan, has more of a city feel to it, with the highlights being the West End & West Bay. Hands down, I preferred Utila as a beach town for a long-term stay.
Nevertheless, on the west bay beach, sunsets are mesmerizing as one witnesses the sun dip in the water leaving behind its many glorious remnants, while kicking back on the sand and sipping on cocktails.
The west end stretch at night is alive and kicking with great music, steamy dancing and rum & coke seems to be the drink of the hood. Delicious and unique to the region are corn tortillas called Baleadas. At a neighborhood restaurant called Yahongreh? Lol (a twist on you got it right, you hungry ;) made by local folks it melted in our mouth, definitely the best that I had while in Honduras! Similar to pupusas in El Salvador and Arepas in Colombia and Venezuela, corn-based tortillas are immensely characteristic of Central & South America. One of my personal favorites is a baleada with egg, avocado, beans, cheese with a variation of meat / seafood.
$1000 per person
10 days
07/20/19-07/29/19
Getting there and around
​
Flight from New York to Coxen Hole, Roatan
Airline: United Airlines
Cost: 35000 points
Duration: 6 hours
​
Taxis from Coxen Hole Airport to Centro
-
Cost: 25 - 50 Lempiras / $1-2 per person
-
Distance: 2 kilometeres
​
Collectivos from Coxen Hole to West End
-
Cost: Cost: 25 - 50 Lempiras / $1-2 per person
-
Distance: 12 kilometres
​
Ferry from Roatan - Utila - Roatan
Company: Utila Dream
Cost: $56 return
Time: One ferry a day;
Departs Roatan at 2:15 PM
Departs Utila at 10:15 AM
Duration: 1 hour
​
Stay
​
Roatan
-
Airbnb: $56/night
-
Location: West End
-
Rating: 4 out of 5
-
Special feature: Infinity Pool
​
Utila
-
Dorms or private room with fans included with diving courses
-
Extra $40 per night for a private room with air conditioning
​
Scuba Diving
Open Water Certification
-
Company: Underwater Vision
-
Cost: $285 per person​
-
Duration: 3.5 - 4 days​
-
Scuba Gear included
​
Advanced Open Water Certification
-
Company: Underwater Vision
-
Cost: $270 per person​
-
Duration: 2 days; 5 dives​
-
Scuba Gear included ​
​
Food Much
Roatan
​
Yahongreh?
-
Baleadas - Corn-based tortillas stuffed with beans, cheese, avocado, meat.
-
Honduran Tipico - Beans, sausage, eggs, avocado
Vacilando Recommended*
​
Utila
​
Mermaid
-
For the yummy smoothies
-
Cost: 40-50 Lempiras aka $2
​
Currency
-
Lempiras
​
Sim Cards
​
Tigo / Claro
-
Cost of sim card: ​$6
​
Sightings
​
-
Whale Shark [ From the ferry] Moray Eel; Baracuda; Sting Ray; Butterfly fish; Angelfish; Cromies; Trumpet fish; Sea horse;
Utila
​
A tiny island, Utila has a fantastic vibe, I can imagine staying for months!
Filled with diving schools, dive instructors, dive masters and aspiring new diver bees seem to make up a considerable part of the population. Our primary goal this trip was to complete an open water scuba diving certification at Underwater Vision, a PADI development center in the town of Utila.
​
Within Underwater Vision is a super fun bar, with trivia, karaoke nights and the like, which brings the place alive till 10:00 PM. Folks usually turn in early since, mornings at dive centers typically begin at 6:30 AM. The bar had deliciosa specials daily, with my favorite being a tuna-based salad!
Scuba Diving
​
Ever made a vision board? A couple of years ago, I put together a collage of all the things I would like to experience that our mysterious universe has to offer - one of them was scuba diving! After some extensive research I found that Honduras, specifically Utila islands, have the best deals! Also, the fact that it's the Caribbean, the conditions are calm and warm, and quite ideal to get initiated into a new unfamiliar possibly overwhelming sport. Little did we know that our trip would coincide with Utila's biggest carnival of the year. Several shops made floats - our included - spreading environmental awareness accompanied with costumes, festivity and larger than life celebrations!
Open Water Certification (OW)
Day 1 So, in late July, I arrived at Utila with the aim of completing the open water scuba diving certification. With tons of video watching and theoretical know-how, I was introduced to the intricacies and dynamics of a world that constitutes 70% of our planet.
​
Day 2 constituted a bunch of skills in a shallow 5 meters confined space. Skills such as equalizing that is popping one’s ear to adjust the ear pressure; removing the mask inside water and getting used to feeling the water in one’s nose (one never really gets used to it); letting go off the regulator (one’s sole lifeline inside the ocean) and exhaling out bubbles; preparing for emergency exits if one is out of air, basically the works to make sure that one not only survives but thrives in this initially unfamiliar yet beyond magnificent treasure.
It’s on the third day that I took the one giant stride right into the big blue ocean going 12 meters deep. Preparation of skills included removing one’s oxygen tank, bcd (buoyancy control device) and weight belts in moderate surging water and wearing it back on...The choppy waves at the surface just made it that much harder and at some point, I wasn’t sure how I’m going to make it through! But digging deep into my ovaries and reserve energy, I powered through never permitting myself to give up! So much more learning entailed basic navigation with a compass as one figured out the lubber line, index marks, bezel and magnetic north needle! At the end of the dives, however, I had never felt exhaustion before as the way I did that day. With all the nitrogen in my body, all I wanted to do was sleep! Luckily hammocks were in profusion ;)
On the fourth and final day, we went 18 meters deep officially popping our scuba amateur cherries to become certified divers. I felt exhilarated with a huge sense of accomplishment as I self-congratulated myself on my effort, perseverance and courage! This feeling was different from the emotions I had felt in the past few days, which had included a roller coaster of imagined worst scenarios, a feeling that I would get all the possible symptoms of decompression sickness that I was reading about and a heart that felt closed because I was genuinely scared of the unknown, magnanimous and wild! But if there’s one thing that scuba diving re-enforces is that it is about EACH breath as one simply relaxes into every moment. And if any situation does arise, it’s crucial to stop, think and then act!
Feeling on top of the world at having completed this initial milestone, the temptation arose to go one step further, to take on the next challenge and back roll into the advanced open water certification. In contrast to the open water certification that enables one to dive maximum to a depth of 18 meters, the advanced open water certification opens up a depth of 30 meters / 100 feet, with 40 meters being the maximum that is possible for recreational diving. So, with the advanced certification one can dive at any underwater site in the world! Hard to resist, given that I was in Utila surrounded by all the amazing instructors and in the flow, I decide to take the plunge and go all in!
Advanced Open Water Certification (AOW)
The requisites for the advanced course include two deep dives to 30 meters / 100 feet, dives focused on navigation skills such as finding one’s way back to the boat and buoyancy peak performance, in addition to adventure dives.
Wreck Diving (Utila has many wrecks at different depths)
A deep and adventure dive tied into one was a dive to a shipwreck out in the middle of the ocean! With a moderate surge resulting in choppy water on the surface, getting to the front of the boat to use the reference line as a way of descending, was supremely challenging! Constantly being drifted away, the waves and wind did everything they could to keep me from getting to my destination, which tired me out. On a separate note, in drift diving, another option for an adventure dive in the AOW, one learns how to swim into the current to prevent fighting the surge. Nevertheless, with long kicks using my fins and a snorkel to prevent the water going into my mouth, I made it to the front of the boat to commence the descent. A descent, symbolized by SORTED signifies a Signal that one is ready to go diving, Orient oneself to the surroundings, plug in the Regulator, keep a track of Time in and Elevate the bcd to begin the Descent. For the very first time as I looked deep inside the ocean, there was nothing around us, no sand bottom, no corals, no marine life, just the blue big deep ocean. With sand particles in profusion, the visibility was low. My mind wondered what on earth I had gotten myself into?! And everything I had learnt in my training didn’t seem within reach anymore! For instance, instead of letting my body relax and descend calmly, my legs were unconsciously kicking, which only ascended my body back to the surface. My instructor in this moment swam towards me, guiding my descent slowly but surely. Even though one can’t speak underwater, every form of communication through eye contact, signals and touch furthered a connection that enabled me to find comfort in the new unfamiliar overwhelming space. I began to let go, stopped the involuntary kicking and started descending. It was a long way down to 30 meters / 100 feet but as I reached the bottom, I saw the massive ship that had sunk in the 1990’s. The wreck lay still and silent, while echoing the lost but unforgotten story. On board remained a poster stating, love doesn’t pay the bills 💔. Fish had found a new home and groupers, cromies all peeped their head out in intrigue.
Every body reacts differently and at 30 meters deep, there is a chance of some body types experiencing gas narcosis, which means feeling loopy, light-headed, almost drunk enough to want to do something silly!
The protocol in this scenario is to ascend a few meters above to let the looniness pass.
​
As we slowly swam around the wreck, I wondered what that day/night had entailed, who the folks on board were, the families waiting, where had they been headed, had pirates come on-board, had there been a chance for that story to end differently?...So many questions and no answers, only wonderings.
​
In the midst of all this, the crucial bit was constantly keeping a check on our air supply. The deeper we descend, the higher the air density and increased air intake. For example, at a depth of 30 meters, the air volume of air is 1/4 times the surface and thus, we breathe in 4 times the air. We slowly made our way up, this time coming up closer to the back of the boat so that we could climb in with far more ease.
The experience was unlike any other, and I just sat stunned, silent and beyond exhausted.
Peak buoyancy performance and Navigation
To gain further comfort with one’s own body in the underwater world, the AOW focuses on facets of buoyancy, which is holding and moving one’s body in water solely with one’s breath. With minimal hand and feet movement, the idea is to be calmly buoyant so that the marine life remains unfettered by our presence. We had some fun underwater knocking down bricks solely with our regulators as we breathed our way to the floor and away. Another activity entailed swimming through a box followed by a flip and returning upside down. Buoyancy sure takes some practice and I am yet to perfect the art of stillness.
​
Using a compass with a buddy involved me navigating the direction while my buddy counted our kicks, maintaining our level and distance in each direction. Indicators of natural navigation include noticing the shadows, sunlight, array of corals as we swim so that we can find our way back with ease. I was so excited to lead my team back to the boat that I speed frog kicked all the way back! Though as long as one has an eye on the air supply and time, the idea is to lazily glide through enjoying all the marvelous sights possible!
Adventures Dives - Fish Identification
One can choose which adventure dives to complete as part of the AOW, especially if the dive center and instructors are flexible. I decided to select identifying fish in my dive as opposed to going for a night dive, which is a unique experience in its own right! However, a night dive in these initial stages was a bit much for me, since, I was just getting used to the water, gear, continually blocked ears and post-dive exhaustion. I was understanding my body and the fact that I found comfort in the sun, warmth and light. Moreover, I was aware that I was putting my body through an extremely intense experience and was cognizant of embracing where I was at and ensuring that I enjoy each experience. These moments are surely about overcoming fears and irrational speculations, and yet, it’s crucial to optimize, self-hug & self-love so that with each step, one grows, pushes oneself out of one’s comfort zone while having tons of fun. As part of the fish identification dive, one gets to read about the 12 categories of fish in the tropical climate and then write down the names on a slate underwater as one observes the fascinating marine world. All in all, it was one of the most incredible, scary, intense, overwhelming and fantabulous experiences I’ve ever had!!!
The open sky, blowing winds, the boat in the middle of the ocean, rocking vigorously from side to side, me letting go and enjoying each rocky bumpy ride, sitting on the deck between dives, feeling the warmth of the sun on my post-dive drenched skin, leaning back, closing my eyes, barely hearing the chit chat on the boat all thanks to my blocked ears, wondering how is it we barely know the planet we claim is ours?! There’s so much undiscovered, mysteriously concealed away, and every time I find something new, I’m more lost than I was before, there are only more questions, more wonderings - for instance, how can we advertently or nonchalantly partake in destroying this majestic beauty! How are we not doing everything and I mean everything it takes to prevent the ruin and destruction of a place we call our own very home, in co-existence with these beautiful species, who are relying on us, to step up, to resist, to be angered and to nurture?!
​
Scuba divers are considered the natural ambassadors of the underworld, participating in clean-ups, removing plastics that not only kill but mercilessly torture innocent beings, but the idea is that there shouldn’t be a need to save in the first place, how about if it began with, I care. I carry a steal / wooden straw. My own non-plastic grocery bag. I recycle. And the question remains, is that even enough? If systematically profits are being driven by callous self-centeredness, non-renewable ways of being, unchecked practices, corporations and industries will be responsible for the armageddon that is lurking in the shadows only looming closer and darker. And yet, corporations too are made up of humans. Wherever you are, your voice matters. Do you believe that you can impact your immediate surrounding? Do you believe that you can influence, re-shape and enable the re-creation based on a different set of values and priorities? If you believe, you can. I believe, I will.
