December
18, 2000
...where flying is a pleasure?
We
left Copan at 8:30 and made it back to San Pedro Sula by
11:30 AM. We had a much better drive than on the way to
Copan. It was easy and uneventful. We turned in the car
and waited for our 2 PM flight. For lunch we had the only
food available, Wendy's, and got cash from the ATM.
I
had been nervous about flying on very small planes since
I began planning this trip and my fears were not disappointed.
The plane left at 2:15 and was a 22 seater on the new Honduran
airline, Atlantic Airlines. We sat right behind the pilot,
so close I could see the Russian writing on the control
panel. From San Pedro Sula we flew to la Ceiba and had to
get off the plane. We were back on plane at 3:00 PM for
our flight to Roatan, complete with free airline T-shirts.
One per passenger, the shirt read, "Donde volar es
un placer" - "Atlantic Airlines, where flying
is a pleasure"
Upon
arrival, Anthony's Key Resort (AKR) was there to pick us
up in their van. Fortunately, our luggage arrived with us.
Some people we met later weren't so lucky. We arrived at
the resort around 4pm and filled out our paperwork (passport
and dive info) and went to our room. The room is ok, but
not luxurious by any means. Ours was an A/C room on the
key which meant it had sealed windows, air conditioning
and was on a little island only accessible by boat from
the main island. The rom had 2 double beds and a decent
bathroom with shower only. This was a fairly new room, built
after Hurricane Mitch in 1998. Our room (room 17) looked
out over the dolphin pen and the resort proper. It might
have been better to be on other side toward Bailey's key,
in order to see the sunsets.
Dinner
that night was a BBQ on the Key, right outside our room.
It felt like the first day in a new school where everybody
knows everyone else. We sat alone and no one talked to us.
Our fault, I'm sure; we should have been more social.
Part
7:
Ever thought you were gonna die?
