Watching the world go by

1 January 2008

Roatan, Honduras

Sometimes there are real advantages to watching the world go by rather than becoming a part of it.

I found myself sitting on the balcony of a tiny restaurant this morning, above the street level, and watching the people of Coxen Hole, Roatan go about their business. I had already walked for an hour, following the coast along from the ship and eventually walking out of the “tourist area” and into the residential. It wasn’t a long walk, only an hour or so but the word slum came immediately to mind and the further I walked the more the word came to the forefront.

I hate to use the word slum, it gives an extremely negative connotation but it’s hard to find another that doesn’t sound condescending. Coxon Hole is where the ship docked and the port guide that you can pick up from the gangway does say that there are more “developed” parts of the island but I blew my budget on a nice little ceramic pot and a timber bowl that caught my eye and decided that a taxi or tour was more than I wanted to spend. I’m still trying to save my money for places like Venice and other parts of Europe.

It’s New Years day today and there was not much open or real activity as I walked through the town, something else that can colour your perspective on a place. The harbour side of the street has houses built on piles over the water and on the other side of the street they are built against a green hill. Dirt and rubbish are everywhere, piled in the yards of houses and in the gutters. I was followed by little kids who kept asking for money and there were some hungry looking dogs getting around. The further I got from the ship the more the houses seemed to be either scavenged timber and corrugated iron in a state of collapse or concrete shells in a state of partial construction.

I walked and looked and then turned around and walked back. I was ready to go back to the ship, take a shower and watch a little TV but then I heard a woman calling out to me from the balcony of what looked like another run down house. She was asking me if I wanted some local food and a beer and was pointing at a sign advertising food and beer. I was hungry, it was hot and I’m never averse to trying local food so I climbed the wooden stairs attached precariously to the outside of the building and found myself on a small balcony holding three tables and chairs and a bar.

The first option on the blackboard was “local dish” so I that’s what I ordered and I had a seat looking down at the street and through the houses opposite to the water. This was when I had time to watch the world rather than being a part of it. I didn’t look at the condition of the houses, the dirt and debris, I looked at the people going past, the kids playing in the streets. Okay, so I may have just tried to distance myself from something that made me slightly uncomfortable, giving myself a god like view down on it rather than being in it, but it also gave me time to observe it as being someone’s home rather than a place for my entertainment and that gave it a different slant. This is when you have to appreciate what you have rather than bemoan what you don’t.

I had a nice meal of stewed beef, fried conch, rice and peas, fried banana and a salad. I had a couple of iced teas and I left a tip.