Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The past few days have been literally to escape the military coup of the mainland and retreat to the island of Utila. We had previously planned to spend our last weekend celebrating the work that we had accomplished during our time in Honduras relaxing on the beaches of Utila. We were to leave the island this morning, but since the president of Honduras has been kidnapped and forced to resign, we are unsure if the roads are open and safe; therefore, we have decided to stay an extra day. Last we heard from our brave UVA friends, public transportation is at a halt, there are protests in La Ceiba, and the ex-president is in the process of forming a rally in Tegucigalpa later this week. We’ve done our best to relax given the circumstances, but it is quite strange that on this island hardly anyone speaks Spanish. There is a mixture of English/British/African/Spanish/Pirate languages. The first day we walked the island and investigated what adventures we could procure the next day. We’ve been swimming numerous times and gone snorkeling at the most beautiful reef of the island; so, today we choose to conquer our need for speed…We rented a golf cart! $30 divided by four people for 24 hours of dodging people and dogs, and venturing to the unknown parts of the island (which in fact are quite lovely I must say). We started as a group of twenty; two left Monday; four this morning; hopefully, we will be next tomorrow morning. I was not anticipating that this “relaxing get-away weekend” would be as dramatic as it has been, but I suppose that’s to be expected when the country’s president has just been kidnapped and forced to resign. If nothing else, from this experience I have attained a greater appreciation for the safety and liberty I have as a U.S. citizen, and for the stability of our government run by the people. When I return home and am able to celebrate Independence in the U.S. I am sure going to celebrate with a whole new perspective as I have seen and heard the cries of those who face political instability.