FROM HONDURAS, WITH LOVE
Honduras. Actually, Roatan, Isla De La Bahia, Honduras (an island about 1.5 hrs away from the mainland). Before booking this cruise, I didn't even realize that I wanted to go to here. Well, it ended up being my absolute FAVORITE in the cruise lineup. A lot of times when you cruise, the places visited can all seem the same. Over the years, certain cruise ports have become more and more 'Americanized'. I did NOT feel this way when I got to Roatan. Sure, they had the touristy shops and people trying to sell you things at the port, but the charm of Roatan was found the second you left the port gates.
The island was pure beauty. My pictures didn't do it justice. I booked an excursion to go Zip Lining through a Honduran jungle. Lina was our AMAZING tour guide on the ride there and Alex was our driver. Lina gave us the history behind each neighborhood we drove through. She also broke out a bag that contained various plants, etc. that are native to Honduras. During the drive to the zip line site, I learned that Honduras is home to the 2nd largest coral barrier reef in the world, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. ​Totally missed an opportunity to snorkel and/or get scuba certified here. Next time I travel to Honduras, this will be the FIRST thing I do. South Shore-Zip Line Adventures was amazing. I definitely recommend them if you want to take shot at the zip line thing. My friends booked other excursions so I tackled this one solo. We had about 6 men that led the tour group through 9 zip lines. True to tradition, I was the first one to take the ride (when I went bungee jumping in NZ, I was the first jump of the day). I loved it! The second line was much longer with an even more amazing view. I got distracted and started spinning around LOL. Luckily, I remembered what to do from the briefing and was able to straighten out and land perfectly on the platform. This activity is awesome but it definitely requires a bit of a workout. A lot of stairs to climb and uneven terrain to navigate (My body was sore the following day for about 3 days). Anyway, at about 5 lines in, one of the instructors told the group, if you are feeling adventurous you can ride the longest zip line with one of us and we will let you flip upside down. Challenge accepted! I ended up flipping upside a second time with a different instructor. Amazing. I'm so glad I got to experience this! If you are ever in Roatan and need an adrenaline rush, look up South Shore Zip-Line Adventures!