moon rise

The harvest moon rises above Wilkes Point and Paya Bay.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

blissful moment

Special guests David and Sara (of New York City) enjoy the convenient and delicious footwash on Bliss Beach. Awesomely, this has been their third visit to Paya Bay!

for what you are

It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.

- André Gide

layle late night

Layle's birthday bash at Paya continued late into the evening. After skillfully extinguishing the two-alarm fire atop her birthday cake...

 .... she did one of her favorite things: Get on stage to sing and perform with French musician Joaquim....

Good times, good times! Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

you are flying

The other day I read a little inspirational quote that went something like this: 'Some people hit an obstacle and ask for crutches; other people hit an obstacle and begin to fly.' Today -- with your decision -- you are flying, my son.

- my mother, earlier this week

lordy, lordy! layle's forty!

This past Sunday, a group of us friends assisted our sexy Australian friend Layle in celebrating her 40th birthday on Bliss Beach!

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

by a river

If you sit by a river long enough, you'll see the body of your enemy float by.

- Japanese Proverb

layle and charlie

My friend Layle plays with her dog Charlie on Bliss Beach.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

all its glory

Bliss beach was in all its glory yesterday afternoon. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

to create your tomorrow

To create your tomorrow, go over your day when you are in bed tonight just before you fall asleep, and feel gratitude for the good moments. If there was something you wanted to happen differently, replay it in your mind the way you wanted it to go. As you fall asleep, say, "I will sleep deeply and wake up full of energy. Tomorrow is going to be the most beautiful day of my life."

Good night!

- lessons from The Secret

kansas state in roatan

A group of Kansas State University Architecture students traveled to Roatan, Honduras earlier this month. Their mission is to design a much needed trauma center for the island. This video documents some of their travels while on the island of Roatan. It includes footage of Paya Bay's Ananda yoga pavilion and the resort's Tribal Beach Party.

photo of the day

Fragrant wildflowers in bloom near the Ananda Yoga Pavilion.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

david della vecchia, you rock!

Paya Bay's website is back up! Kudos and heartfelt thanks to my amazing friend David Della Vecchia (of Atlanta, GA) who saw us through the harrowing process of rescuing a multitude of code files from a broken server, transferring them to a new server, and then rebuilding a rather complex, database-driven website. David warned me from the outset that the success of this process wasn't guaranteed, but he took on the challenge and delivered big time!

You da man, Dave!

thank you, thank you, thank you

Begin your day by feeling grateful. Be grateful for the bed you just slept in, the roof over your head, the carpet or floor under your feet, the running water, the soap, your shower, your toothbrush, your clothes, your shoes, the refrigerator that keeps your food cold, the car that you drive, your job, your friends. Be grateful for the stores that make it so easy to buy the things you need, the restaurants, the utilities, services, and electrical appliances that make your life effortless. Be grateful for the magazines and the books that you read. Be grateful for the chair that you sit on, and the pavement that you walk on. Be grateful for the weather, the sun, the sky, the birds, the trees, the grass, the rain, and the flowers.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

- lessons from The Secret 

sunset yoga

Photos taken at this afternoon's sunset yoga session at the Ananda Pavilion.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

photo of the day

Lisa and the dogs (Ms. Foxy and Lucky) enjoy the view from a breezy point on the Paya Trail near Secret Cove. The dogs are wet because they've just taken spontaneous, cooling dips in the sea. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

a little fishing

Guests fish from atop a stone platform along the cliffside.

 Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

states of pure love

There is a difference between feeling gratitude and appreciation for something, and feeling attachment to something. Appreciation and gratitude are states of pure love, while attachment contains fear - fear of losing or not having what you are attached to. When it comes to something you want in your life, appreciation and gratitude attracts, and attachment pushes away. If you are feeling afraid that you will not get what you want, or losing what you have, then you have attachment.

To remove the attachment, keep shifting yourself into a state of appreciation and gratitude, until you can feel that the fear has gone.

- lessons from The Secret

welcoming

Yesterday's wine and cheese welcome reception at the Ananda Pavilion. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

madonna + obama

Madonna endorses Obama. Brilliant minds think alike. Once you go black, you don't go back...

wow! she's fired up!

dignity and decency

We learned about dignity and decency -- that how hard you work matters more than how much you make, that helping others means more than just getting ahead yourself. We learned about honesty and integrity; that the truth matters; that you don't take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules, and success doesn't count unless you earn it fair and square. We learned about gratitude and humility; that so many people had a hand in our success, from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who kept our school clean, and we were taught to value everyone's contribution and treat everyone with respect.

- Michelle Obama, [The Fabulous] First Lady of the United States

photo of the day

Stairs leading from the Paya Trail into Buccaneer Landing. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

serene scene

Local kids paddle their dugout cayuco in the lagoon near Secret Cove.

 Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

be happy now

You must be happy now to bring happiness into your life through the law of attraction. It's a simple formula. Happiness attracts happiness. Yet people use so many excuses as to why they can't be happy. They use excuses of debt, excuses of health, excuses of relationships, and excuses of all sorts of things as to why they can't use this simple formula. But the formula is the law.

No matter what the excuse, unless you begin to feel happy despite it, you cannot attract happiness. The law of attraction is saying to you, "Be happy now, and as long as you keep doing that, I will give you unlimited happiness."

- lessons from The Secret 

independence

During the month of September we Central Americans celebrate our independence from Spain. This weekend my brother, Tom, patriotically raised the Honduran flag here at Paya.

In 1821 a congress of Central American Criollos declared their independence from Spain, effective on 15 September of that year. That date is still marked as the independence day by most Central American nations. The Spanish Captain General, Gabino Gaínza, sympathized with the rebels and it was decided that he should stay on as interim leader until a new government could be formed. Independence was short-lived, for the conservative leaders in Guatemala welcomed annexation by the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide on 5 January 1822. Central American liberals objected to this, but an army from Mexico under General Vicente Filisola occupied Guatemala City and quelled dissent.

When Mexico became a republic the following year, it acknowledged Central America's right to determine its own destiny. On 1 July 1823, the congress of Central America declared absolute independence from Spain, Mexico, and any other foreign nation, including North America and a Republican system of government was established.

- Wikipedia