Mishaps in Roatan

My savy travel skills have really been put to the test this weekend. My Korean friend, Miok, and I traveled to Roatan, but we had to stay a night in La Ceiba, Honduras because our bus got in after the last ferry. So I went to withdraw money and left my ATM visa card in the machine. I realized this within the hour, but of course it was no where to be found. Thank goodness for I always have 2 cards on me...

After that mishap we proceed to Roatan the next day and pass the weekend lounging on beautiful beaches, and realizing how good life can be in the Carribean.

On our way back we needed to spend one more day in La Ceiba...the armpit of the bay islands. But we were recommended a great hotel and it all feels very comfortable. 5am we hop in a taxi and at 5:05 we hope out. but i forgot my purse. damndamndamndandmadnandma. i dragged my sorry self back to the hotel as i ponder how to get out of this damned country without a passport, while my friend is comfortably on her way to Antigua. All my smart rules about different types of money to carry don´t work so well when they´re all in your purse and it´s lost.

But the hotel I was staying at was great. The little man who works in the hotel lobby, miraculously enough, remembered the number of the taxi. I now have a new rule and I advise you all to use it...When traveling in taxis, always remember the number of the taxi. This is my new montra. However, just the number of the taxi isn´t enough to actually DO anything. 3 people from the hotel and myself went to the main taxi office to find out the name and number of the taxi driver. but one phone call to the driver wasn´t enough to convince him to give my backpack back. he argued his point, that if something is left in his taxi then it´s his. I see where´s he´s coming from, but just didn´t agree with the sentiment. So the wonderful chica from the hotel had to get quite upfront with him, explaining that we knew all of his information and if he didn´t bring the backpack back we´d call the police and they´d come find it. I´m pretty sure this invoked a laugh as the thought of the police actually doing something was funny even to me. (we´d been calling them all morning, but they just weren´t answering) However, once I explained that there was no money in the backpack and that you needed a code to use my credit card...but that´d i could pay him once he brought it to me...he suddenly had a change of heart and decided to return my ´maleta´ to me in one piece.

Funnily enough, i couldn´t give him any money when he arrived...i had lost my visa, my mastercard wasn´t working because i use it just for purchases and i don´t even know the pin, and all my cash was with my friend who was comfortably sleeping in a bus on her way to Antigua. The man was angry. He yelled, he flailed his arms...and I hid behind the large security man from the hotel and pretended I couldn´t speak spanish. (not that big of a lie really)

So I had my bag back, but still no money...What was i to do without cash in Honduras? I pondered this as I ate a combo meal at wendy´s thanks to my trusty credit card. When you´re down and out it´s nice to know you can still get a frosty.

My fast food infusion reminded me of my secret travelers check stashed away! only after I had spent a good 4 hours waiting in different lines at different banks to no avail..but nonetheless, i regained confidence in my savy travelingness. So i was able to tip the hotel, leave some for the scary man so he doesn´t harass the hotel staff tomorrow, and travel safely back to antigua.

So all in all things have ended well. For the part of my family that worries...remember that despite all my misfortunes this weekend, things ended up just fine and I will now be more careful than ever when traveling around.

I leave for Peru on Tuesday and until then I will be just enjoying my last days in Antigua. Out for now...

ps- i know I should spell check this as i may be the worlds worst speller, but I just can´t figure out how to get the spell check language to english.