The End

Our time on the island was to end on Good Friday, when our flights home started leaving from the mainland in the afternoon. Unfortunately, a lot of things shut down on Good Friday, such as the ferry that we were supposed to take to get off the island. So a few days before our departure, I went down to the local travel agent and chartered our own private plane (for not much more than it would have cost for two 1-way tickets off the island on a regular flight). It was pretty fun booking a plane, and I was giddy as a schoolboy for the flight.

We had an amazing time and amazing weather for our whole trip, but then a storm system settled in the day before we were supposed to leave. Unfortunately, this was also the night that the full moon beach party was supposed to have happened. They ended up postponing the party until Friday, meaning we would not get a chance to dance on the beach under a big night-time Caribbean sky. We were pretty bummed, but the weather on Friday was also bad, so I don't think that the party would have worked out as planned that night either. I really wanted to spin fire, too...

Oh well. Everything else about our trip worked out better than could be expected, so we really couldn't complain about missing a party.

This shack is the travel agency.

The airport.

Our plane. With room enough for 3.

"Hey Selin, can I fly?"

"NO!"

Just after take-off.

View of most of the town. Our house was on the right side of the horseshoe-shaped bay in the upper left hand part of the picture.

The beach and shore to the left of town in the above photo.

This shows how narrow and flat the island is.

Jenny looking cool in our private plane.

Not even 15 minutes later, the airport at La Ceiba on the mainland was visible.

Well, I guess this means that our honeymoon island adventure is over...

Until the next time.

Water Cay

Just off the west end of Utila Island, there are a group of little islands/cays (pronounced keys) with really nice sandy beaches. One in particular, Water Cay, is a popular day trip. So near the end of our vacation on a particularly calm and beautiful day, Jenny and I chartered a little boat to take us out there. We stopped at another island for lunch before being dropped off to hang out on a uninhabited island for the day. In total, there were about 20 or 30 other people there, so it was pretty easy to grab our own slice of seclusion.

This picture shows most of the island.

Jenny being a bikinied beach bum.

Jenny being a biologist.

When touched, the sea urchin spines moved about in all directions.

Step 1: lay in shade. Step 2: Swim or snorkel. Step 3: Repeat Step 1.

Is this the men's or women's washroom?

This is another little cay just across the way. Entire islands like this can be rented for less than $100/night (grocery delivery extra) and can hold up to a dozen people (in a cabin and camping).

Who's happy to be on a tropical island?

By the time Captain Ryan came to retrieve us, the winds had picked up, making for a wavy and crazy ride back to the mainland. There were a couple of screams from Jenny, and suggestion may have been made of several years being taken off of a life, but I won't mention who's.

Under The Sea...

The seascapes and worlds of underwater organisms are pretty amazing.

I dare you to touch it...

When the waves are strong, the seahorses anchor themselves with their tails.

These anemones suck their filter feeders in really fast when you wave water at them. I did it to every one I saw.

And seeing this guy made my entire trip. We were near the end of our last dive, and the whole group we were with (about 10 people) had already swam past this particular reef face. I went in a little closer and then this juvenile sea turtle popped out from underneath an overhang. He started cruising away over the reef, so I followed right along and swam over top of him. Jenny was the only other person on the dive that even saw it.

Finding this guy and swimming around with him really was a dream come true.

SCUBA!!!

Scuba diving was absolutely fantastic. I have wanted to dive for years, and for whatever reason, assumed it was something I wouldn't be able to do until later in my life. I was glad that everything worked out and I was able to have that experience. It is so surreal -- relaxedly gliding along, taking your time and exploring.

After seeing how small and cramped some other dive boats were, we realized that we lucked out with ours -- it was big and spacious and everybody had room to relax and walk around.

Let's dive!

Nice form, Jenny.
It's so peaceful under the sea...

The Pier

There are a dozen or so dive shops in Utila, so we wandered around and talked to a few to see who we wanted to dive with. Jenny earned her open water dive certificate in Thailand years ago, but I still needed to go through the 3 day-long course. We ended up choosing the Bay Islands College of Diving because it would be possible for Jenny and me to be together for part of my course (which wouldn't have been possible at other dive shops). My first day of the course was spent in the classroom, watching videos, going through a textbook and filling in worksheets -- not the best way to use a tropical day on your honeymoon, but it meant I'd be diving for the next 2 days. At the end of a day of diving, I would meet up with my instructor, Ben, to discuss the day, fill in the log book, go over any exams or quizzes, and have a beer. Jenny and I had to wait for Ben to finish cleaning up from the dive, but he directed us to a pier just off of the dive shop dock where there were a bunch of lounge chairs set up. This spot became one of our favourite places along the waterfront to relax and have a drink (it was only a 2 minute walk to a convenience store for cold beer).

Debriefing on the pier with the 20-year old Australian dive instructor, Ben. Yes, we are drinking Port Royal -- the girly beer.

Jenny looking amply chilled in a fish chair.

The pier had a great view of the harbour and waterfront. Sava, the dog, frantically ran around the pier, watching and chasing boats, and generally being very happy.

It also became our favourite place to catch the sunset and get that awesome golden-orange light.