I had one little thing on my to-do list during these few months I've been in Canada, and that was visit my friend Sarah in Portland before I left for Japan. We had been talking about this for ages - I first met Sarah in Roatan (she arrived shortly after me) and we were soon neighbors and friends. When she moved back to Portland last year, she left the island and I promised the next time I was in Canada that I would come see her. So I did! I only had a short weekend, so we decided to make the ...
Friends
A Daytrip to Old Port Royal
One thing I find both terrible and embarrassing is that on a tiny island like Roatan, it has taken me YEARS to get to some of the destinations around here. To be fair, for most of the year, I spend 6 days a week, 9+ hours a day at a dive shop or on a dive boat or underwater, so I don't have a lot of free time. But lately I have been graced with plenty of it, so when my friends put together a motorcycle day trip to Old Port Royal, or 'the end of the road' (literally), I jumped at the chance to ...
The Snorkeling Trip That Changed My Life
Kind of a bold title, isn't it?It's 100% true.That blurry photo is me. It's me during the second time I ever snorkeled in my life. (The first being a very sketchy set up off a catamaran in Cuba in 2005. Now that I think about it, I'm surprised I made it out alive.) I know it's hard to see, but my face is full of joy. I am at home in the ocean!I even know what day this was - February 5, 2012. I was on my very first trip to Roatan with my friend Steph, and it was our second day on the ...
Turning 30, Island-Style
Well, some people celebrate turning 30 by drinks out with friends, or maybe a fancy dinner. As you might have guessed, I am not 'some people'.When I realized that I would be celebrating my fourth birthday in a row on Roatan (wait, what?? how and when did that happen!?) and it was my big 3-0, I decided I might as well make it one to remember.So how does one celebrate turning 30 in a memorable way?Island-style, of course:Full pig roast with all the fixins.Reef-themed birthday ...
Vancouver Review: Food Cart Fest
I'm back in Vancouver, BC and making the most of my last week and a bit in Canada. Today I hit up the 2nd Annual Vancouver Food Cart Fest (are you surprised I went to something all about food?) which was a great way to spend a Sunday. For anyone looking for something to do on a Sunday afternoon in the summer, go check this out.It's located between the Cambie Street Bridge and Olympic Village, over at 215 West 1st Avenue. My friend and I walked over from Commercial Drive, but ...
Hi from Canada, eh?
Bad news = my Canadian accent is back with a vengeance.I'm on day 14 of 25 of my great Canadian summer holiday. I'm still hanging out with my family in the vast prairie of Saskatchewan, where the sky is never-ending, the nights are chilly and the mosquitoes are giving Roatan's a run for their money.I only had 10 days here in Saskatchewan and I spent 3 of them in the neighboring province of Alberta at my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary, and another 2 to the 'big ...
When you’re up, you’re up.
I've written many times on here about the weird roller coaster that is Roatan. Longfellow was right when he said, "when she was good, she was very good indeed but when she was bad she was horrid". There isn't much middle ground here. It seems like things are either awesome or shitty. I'm on the upswing at the moment!The first awesome news is that I'm moving to my own place! I will miss my super nice apartment and my roommates, but I'm moving into town which is way more convenient ...
Million dollar toilet paper folding.
Another week, another course down. I'm now a certified junior yacht stewardess, or so my many pieces of paper say. I've spent the last week doing all kinds of things I never thought I'd do, like learning how to fold the end of toilet paper into diamonds. Because apparently rich people who own yachts enjoy their toilet paper being folded into diamonds.I also arranged flowers...And got a little tipsy during the wine & cocktail seminar...And I learned how to fold towels, iron, ...
100 Days of Summer
So technically way more than 100 days of endless summer now from Vancouver to Roatan to Belize to Mexico to Miami... but 100 posts on Cubicle Throwdown! I've had this blog for nearly a year now and this is my hundredth post. Yay me!What's new in Miami?Not much actually. I'm still hanging around waiting for the yacht to get here with my dive gear.I'm starting my STCW-95 safety course next week so that will keep me busy. After that I'm planning to do ...
Never let your fear decide your fate.
I'm still working on my post for tipping etiquette guide for diving in Roatan, so in the meantime I would love for you to watch this amazing video some friends of mine made. And since we all know I'm an egotistical camera whore, you will be pleased to see me in this video several times! (Watch closely in the shark dive, other diving footage, and on the yacht. Also, the last frame in the video is a green moray eel attacking me!) Thanks so much to Devin and Mark who made this ...