Amapala... otra vez!

Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.  

~Mohammed Ali

pulling up to the island

If I could to become a fisherman, walk around barefoot all day, play beach soccer on a daily basis, and drive a boat for a living, then I would so move to Amapala...
After taking a day trip to this beautiful peaceful island with Mom, I knew I had to return. So last weekend, 13 of us headed down for the weekend. 

fishing canoes and beach-side huts

women preparing our yummy fish

It is the most secluded and tranquil island I have ever seen. It is so quiet and remote that you feel like you are worlds away from civilization... which is not inaccurate to say. The beaches are quiet and undeveloped, populated with a few simple huts and cabanas. Hammocks are an abundance. Boys play soccer on the dark sand. Men wheel in their fishing canoes on round blocks. Kids play in the water all day long, while their parents clean the in-coming fish in their beach-side mom-and-pop restaurants. We were treated like family when we stepped up to one of these restaurants- I wanted to show everyone the same place Mom and I had gone. After wading in the water and taking massive amounts of pictures, we all feasted on incredible fish, shrimp, and fried plantain chips. It was once again, the best seafood I have ever had- not an exaggeration!

freshest fish ever!

 

clothes drying on people's fence

After we ate, we walked along the beach, went swimming and explored some caves. We had enjoyed a trip around the island, standing in the bed of a truck... it was an experience. The island is so beautiful. The streets are all cobblestone. The houses that line the roads are not as poor-looking as those in the mainland but instead just simpler and the colors on the island are strikingly bright.

a shot from the back of the truck

I truly want to move here. Everything is so simple and everyone is so friendly- the children on the beach befriended us with no hesitation and they just loved our digital cameras! Emily and Christina met these two beautiful girls last time, Angie and Margery, and they remembered them and loved playing with all of us. They had a kitten, newborn puppies, and chicks at their home! I went swimming with the younger one who couldn't swim so I held her in the water and she was so brave!

Christina's great shot of Margery

It was really interesting to observe these girls' childhood. They entertain themselves each day on the beach all day long, playing with rocks and shells, swimming in the water with their friends, jumping off the anchored boats along the shore, all along with no adult supervision. In the States, we treat children as fragile little dolls that shouldn't be left alone-- especially around water-- and these girls got along just fine, never complaining about being bored or bothering their parents for something to do. When they were served lunch, they took their plates with gratitude and found their own place to sit within the little cabana restaurant. They ate in silence and though they were young, they fed themselves without any help and cleared their plates, without being picky about what they were given to eat.

These two little girls aren't needy like so many kids I have babysat for in the states. They didn't throw tantrums for not having enough Legos or beg to have one more piece of candy or complain that it was too hot to be outside... they make due with what they have and they enjoy the simplicity of their lives, and they taught us a thing or two about simple appreciation for the beautiful place in which they live and spend everyday of their lives. Of course they don't think about how they are playing on a beautiful secluded beach, surrounded by the mountainous islands of El Salvador and Nicaragua; this is their life and only us tourists are fascinated by the peaceful tranquility of the mountain island. For these little girls, this is everyday life...

The strolls around the island were so amazing, but the stroll home was not so enjoyable...

my first flat tire experience in Honduras

Our 3 hour trip back home turned into 9 after we endured three, yes THREE flat tires on the bus ride back! You see smooth roads in this country are about as common as hot water-- which is not at all! The first time we hit two pot holes in a row- and by pot holes I mean man holes (about 3 feet wide and 4 inches deep! Yes, we went back to look...) and this blew out that back two tires. Like most vehicles, we only had one spare on the bus so we had to wait for a friend to come meet us, pick up the tire, drive into town to get it repaired, and then bring it back to us... this took about 3 1/2 hours... oh and it was raining, obviously. In the midst of our waiting around on the side of a random road that looked like it was out of the movie Jeepers Creepers, we entertained ourselves by chasing down frogs, playing cards, and climbing trees to pick random fruit. A sweet Honduran family actually stopped to pass the time with us- they told it was a dangerous area for a bunch of white people to be hanging out alone. They stayed with us for over an hour while we waited and they had young children with them too! It was so sweet of them.

We thought all was fine and good once we finally got on the road again but within about another hour everyone woke back up to that all too familiar sound of driving on a rim... the repaired tire had blown out. This time we were stuck just after a nice bend in the road so we decided to stay in the bus. We passed another 2 hours telling each other brain teasers and riddles... it was great bonding actually!

We finally arrived back home at around 2am, starving, still wet, and beyond tired. I'd say the seafood was well worth it though!