Independence Day

This 15th of September the noble citizens of the Republic of Honduras celebrate 199 years of our existence as an independent country.

Glorious, sunny morning

It's a calm, glorious, sunny morning at Paya Bay. I photographed these two local boys in their cayuco fishing in the bay.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

Coffee with the flavor of my land

New Honduran film: Coffee with the flavor of my land.

sea grape season

The beautiful sea grape trees (Coccoloba uvifera) are loaded with fruit this summer!

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

making hot sauce

At Paya Bay we make our own signature hot sauce using mutton peppers. In these photos, Ms. Winnie blends the flavorful yellow Caribbean peppers into a delicious, ultra-spicy sauce.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

Whitney and Britney 2019

My little neighbor friends, Whitney and Britney, are growing up fast.

the fruit and veggie truck

Bayron and his assistant, Onan, bring fresh fruits and vegetables to the resort every couple of days.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

annual camporee

A local church's youth program is having its anual camporee on the property's Big Beach this weekend.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

husking coconuts for organic coconut oil

This morning I spotted Gerson, a member of Team Paya, husking coconuts that will be used to make organic coconut oil for use in the resort's restaurant. Learn more about the traditional method of making coconut oil.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

This video explains why the coconut palm is considered the Tree of Life.

morazán

Honduran film-making is getting better and better all the the time. Check out this trailer for Morazán, a film about our national hero, Francisco Morazán.

island angels

It's cashew season, and the other day Whitney and Britney dropped by selling roasted cashews. The girls are neighbors, their home is adjacent to Paya Bay property.

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

golden yummy goodness

In the summer, during mango season, Ms. Winnie cooks down large batches of homemade mango jam for use at the resort's restaurant during the upcoming year. The slow-cooking technique she learned from her mother is so perfect that there is no need to add any preservatives to the delicious tropical fruit jam.
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Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

glimpses of bliss

Bliss Beach is like no other! You deserve this!

Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

some bay islands history

- London Times editorial published in The New York Times on July 10, 1860.

community meeting

This evening Paya Bay hosted a meeting of community leaders and activists from the two largest villages of Roatan's East End: Diamond Rock and Camp Bay. Laura Bodden, our senior community leader/activist, chaired the meeting. In mid-2016, the Honduran central government approved funding for the paving of the East End road (a mere 12 kilometers, the only remaining unpaved section of the island's main road). The road work is supposed to commence any moment now as the rainy season winds down. Funding for this key infrastructure project had already been approved a few years ago, only to later be redirected by corrupt politicians in Tegucigalpa looking out for their own personal interests, instead of the interests of the Bay Islanders. We Roatan East Enders are determined to not let such a travesty happen again. The consensus is that we must pressure our local government authorities and politicians to ensure the road paving project becomes a reality this time around. It was awesome to see many new, young community activists attend and participate. We're fired up! Ready to go!

Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

Map: Google Earth

yoga messiah

Tania Rozsypalova, the East End's amazing new "yoga messiah," continues to do beautiful work with the local Diamond Rock kids, introducing them to yoga and finding ways to enrich their life experiences. Great work, Tania!

Roatan, Bay Islands of Honduras.

Photos: Tania Rozsypalova