Jax
Sign me up when you get that Liveaboard running in Arizonia. Not sure about the diving but we will have a good time anyway
All that beach and no Ocean.
I remember that! Quite humorous!
Well, I guess I could take a liveaboard around there . . . . oh, wait, that won't be spending any money locally, huh? :blinking:
I'm not saying I would
never go to Roatan; I'm saying I won't go soon. I'll watch how the case settles out, and do a lot more research before I consider it.
However, I'm an opinionated cuss, and not afraid to state it. How many people may have a reaction like mine, and simply never say so? Marketers have some sort of ratio . . .
For every customer that expresses an opinion, there are
x others that also hold it but won't state it.
Yep- that survey
was funny and telling.
We all have our fears and lines that we won't cross, it's in our DNA. Darwin and all of that.
When talking about any dive destination (and we go off for 5 weeks each year diving around this planet), I try to avoid sensationalism and being a purveyor of un-needed fear. I will say that
certain places, there is absolutely no reason to bother to expose yourself to them!
A great example is Bonaire. People fret endlessly over the property crime... the break-ins to your parked vehicle while on a shore dive. Just because Bonaire offers the
unique access to shore diving... they get the rap for
a crime that would occur anywhere else...
if there was shore diving on any other island. Bonaire diving has taken a huge hit from the long-ago hurricane, but is still appealing. If you go, all you have to do is leave your windows rolled down and don't leave anything valuable in the car. How hard is that? But people like to worry.
We all know about Aruba, right? Yes, there are people who still claim to go there for the marginal diving, but the real reason they go there is to dispose of their un-wanted brides or their cute blonde daughters.
I often mention Belize City being in that category, also quick to add the garden spots of Honduras which include SanPedro Sula and Tegucigalpa. The difference is that many, many more people are likely to consider going wandering in Belize City because of air connections. None of them are well advised. The Belize Zoo? That sounds interesting. It is dismal and depressing. However... The Barrier Islands, the islands that
we think of as "Belize"? No worries~ and great diving.
Galapagos divers often overnight in Quito or Guayaquil. Stay to the tourist areas, in the daylight, and be very alert. These are twitchy cities. Upon arrival in the Galapagos... all worries disappear, enjoy the Hammerheads... you might even notice the Mobulas, maybe not.
We used to dive Los Roques off of the Venezualan coast quite often. The overnight near the airport was a
really bad idea, the cab ride 20 miles to the isolated resort was in itself an interesting trip. Los Roques was an idyllic paradise... once you got there.
On Roatan, if you must worry about negative interactions with nasty people,
the rules are the same wherever you might go on this planet... Do not interact with locals in regards to drinking, dancing with their women, or in a business transaction other than buying a woven hammock or wooden monkey.
A few years ago, posters on SB went all looney over a shooting
on the street in front of AKR. It quickly evolved into a shooting
at AKR. Take a breath everybody. It was a long standing feud between two locals, one was an employee. Next? The sky-is-falling crowd enjoyed going into a tail-spin over everything from the earthquake to the "drug wars", and adding in a protest over the power company for a little "shock".
(sorry, I couldn't help it)
Random physical violence is very rare, even in New York City. As a wise man once told me, "Friends kill friends". There likely is a pre-established association that evolves into the altercation.
The Bogey Man is rarer than Sasquatch.
On Roatan, if this is your personal fear,
select an AI resort that is as far afield from the population centers as possible. These centers are West End, Coxen Hole and French Harbor. (in 2011) I would not walk around Coxen Hole or French Harbor after dark- why? There is nothing there for me or any tourist. You complete the equation.... If a tourist is there, he must be looking for ________. (And it is available)
You can find
fairly isolated AI's on West Bay (Henry Morgen, etc),
somewhat remote properties further East (Anthony Key, Fantasy, Turquoise and Media Luna). Understand that simply being off the main island of Roatan on a small islet does not security make. If the resorts allow non-guests to come and go, this can and has created issues, albeit minor.
Further afield would be Reef House Resort which is a very isolated property on a small shared cay where everyone who comes and goes is known. Then the
ultimate in isolation, the resorts that have their own 100% private island- that would be Barefoot Key (just offshore from French Harbour) and CoCoView.
Although I live in Chicago, I have spent a whole lot of time on Roatan, even having worked for their government upon occasion. I have spent a lot of time all over the Caribbean and worldwide dive resorts. Some locations lend themselves well to "island flavor" or "local color". Roatan, sorry to say, has as much heritage or soul (at least what is available to the tourist) as EPCOT center. Go there to relax and dive. There really is no "island culture", at least nothing with any DNA, heritage or traceable lineage past the introduction of cell-phones and a couple of FM radio stations. The place is quickly looking like Twitty City. Go there to dive.
Trouble may be found anywhere you go. You can be really smart and find trouble, you can really be stupid and find it as well.