My boyfriend and I 
, along with five of my friends headed for a week of fun at Fantasy Island Beach Resort in Roatan
. Getting to the Island was no problem from LAX to Houston, then a connector to Honduras.
Arriving in Honduras, we were greeted with lush scenery filled with palm trees and green forests. The area surrounding the airport reminded me of TJ with little shacks that the people called home. Little make-shift shops dotted the road that led our way to our 'Island.'
As we approached our 'Island' we were greeted at a gate by a guard(?) that allowed us to pass through the gate onto a rickety bridge that took us over the water onto the resort property. We were greeted with smiles 
and tropical drinks when we reached the lobby area.
Once checked in, we made our way to our room. It was located to the south side near the Dive Shop and marina. On our way to our room, we noticed a strange looking creature that we had never seen before. 
It looked like a Guiney Pig with long legs, but the size of a large rabbit. I imagined it was in the Cavy family. We were told that it was a 'Watussi.' Now, if my memory serves me correctly, wasn't there a dance long ago called the Watussi??? I remember hearing it in a song or something like that. Anyway, this little creature was cute. Very shy, but not too shy for some photo ops. I can't post any photos yet, for I have over 800 pics to go through, but I promise, I will pics as soon as I can. Now if seeing a Watussi wasn't enough....as we continued to our room, we came across a very large Igauna! Once again, we had to stop for more photo ops....and our photo ops continued with Peacocks, Coconut Crabs, Ducks, Bats, and then......Spider Monkeys!!! We walked by a Cabana where there were about 8 Spider Monkeys playing and bouncing about and swinging from the rafters. Geesh, we barely just arrived, and the adventure already began!
We finally made it to our room. Nice COLD room. It felt good, for it was pretty warm and humid. We dropped off our carry on luggage and grabbed our cameras for more photo ops and to check out the grounds. Due to FIBR is on its own island, it was surrounded by three beautiful lagoons that were protected by the outer coral reefs. Reminded me of the movie with Leonardo DiCaprio 'The Beach.' Beautiful shades of blue and turquoise. Our 'checked' luggage hadn't arrived yet from the airport, so we had to hang around to wait for them to arrive. This was frustrating, for I wanted to DIVE right away! Instead, we made our way to the outside bar for Happy Hour to have a 'cold one.' As we sat having our beer
, Monkeys were everywhere! Hmmm...turns out that they too, like Happy Hour. The monkeys would attempt and at times succeed in stealing peoples tropical drinks and beers. As my boyfriend and I sat under a palm, ice was coming down from above. Turns out, a monkey was sitting in the palm right above me, throwing ice cubes. Other monkeys would run along the railing and frolic with each other, sometimes jumping onto people as well. The monkeys were cute at first, and maybe still are, but they became bothersome as the trip progressed.
Throughout the week, we had monkeys in front of our room, and at times, 5-6 monkeys on our balcony. Turns out, they are little thieves. They took one of my shirts and attempted to steal my boyfriends dive light. Fortunately, I saw the monkey just as he wrapped his paw around it to take it so I was able to scare him off. Needless to say, we got lots of monkey pics. Alot of them would pose for us too making for good photo ops.
Once our gear finally arrived, it was about time for dinner. We went to the main dining room which was buffet style. The resort offered a variety of food including chicken, pasta, beef, pork, fish, and seafood along with salads and fresh fruit (mango, pineapple, bananas, oranges, and apples). For dessert, they had ice cream and traditional pastries. Lunch was pretty much the same, with the exception of hamburgers and fries. For breakfast, there was an omlete bar; sausage and bacon; french toast and pancakes; fruits and juices; cereal; cold cuts and cheese; ect. The food for the most part was very good; the service~exceptional!
Onto the DIVING!!! Yeah! 
Due to the 2 hour time difference, my boyfriend and I missed the morning briefing. We were on our way to breakfast when one of our friends told us that it was time to go to the boat! Ugh! We quickly got our paper work turned in and got our weights. Whew! Got our gear from the room and made it back to the boat. Thank goodness our room was near the marina (which really looks like a lagoon). Our first dive was going to be the 'checkout' dive. The boat consisted of my boyfriend and I, our 5 friends; a couple and their daughter from Texas; and 5 people from Italy. We made the following dives:
Boat Dives:
5/21 Gold Chain: 97' for 52"
Valley of the King: 86' for 1 hour & 5"
Prince Albert Ship Wreck & Plane Wreck: 61' for 57"
Night Dive from FIBR Gazeebo: Prince Albert Plane Wreck: 57' for 27"
Boat Dives:
5/22 French Key Wall: 99' for 59"
Pirate Point: 84' for 48"
French Cut Wall: 85' for 55"
Beach Dive from FIBR Gazeebo: Coco View Wall: 52' for 1 hour & 16"
Boat Dives:
5/23 Doc's Dive: 92' for 52"
Anca's Dive: 77' for 1 hour & 8"
**Forfitted 3rd dive to go on a Zip Line Tour (details later).
Beach Dive from FIBR Gazeebo:
Coco View Wall: 96' for 1 hour and 27" *new record*
Boat Dives:
5/24 Collin's Crack: 88' for 59"
Mr. Bud: 69' for 1 hour & 8"
40 Foot Point: 81' for 1 hour
***These three sites were so far my favorite. Collin's Crack provided us two Chimneys that we swam up through and vast walls; Mr. Bud is an old shrimp boat wreck that was easy to penetrate. We found lots of fish here including a large Spotted Drum and Groupers. I also saw my first Bristle Worm. 40 Foot Point provided us with hundreds of BIG fish. We were surrounded by marine life. I might add that the point drops off to yet another beautiful wall covered with life.
Boat Night Dive- Doc's Place: 65' for 52"
***Night Dive was pretty uneventful. Saw pretty much the same species as on a day dive: Mini Drum, Coral Banded Shrimp, sleeping Parot fish, Arrow Crabs, and itty bitty Jellies.
Boat Dives:
5/25 Mary's Place: 98' for 54"
***This was a TOTALLY AWESOME DIVE!!! Two long swim throughs with steep cascading walls that opened out to blue water. Omg, I was in Heaven! The coolest part about this dive too, was that the videophotographer was tagging along with us. He filmed us coming out of one of the swim throughs in which I gave him a 'California' smile by removing my reg and nodding my head in sheer delight! Needless to say, I bought the DVD.
Connie's Dream: 91' for 1 hour & 6"
CocoView Wall & Prince Albert Wreck: 77' for 55"
Boat Dive from Resort Skiff: Coco View Wall and Prince Albert: 57' for 1 hour & 55"
*New Record*Ok, you must be wondering by now, why we have been diving Coco View Wall so much. Like Mary's Place, it's a SPECTACULAR dive with amazing walls and marine life. We saw three sting rays, two cow fish, three file fish, spotted lobster, groupers, drum fish, box fish, and a variety of wrasse. The first three times my boyfriend and I dove it, our group was not with us in which we dove it twice from the Gazeebo and once from the boat. Wanting to dive the wall, the group asked us to take them there since it's quite a distance from FIBR Gazeebo and uncertain of navigation. IF you are good on your air consumption, you can make it out there and back. If not, I suggest you take the Skiff out to drop you off. We had the Skiff drop us off this time, for we had just gotten back from our boat dive and met up with the gang on the dock. On our way back to FIBR Gazeebo, my boyfriend and I stopped off on the Prince Albert. There was the largest Moray Eel I had ever seen. He was in a good spot for lots of photo ops. I really enjoyed diving this wreck, for it's litterally coverd in tons of marine life. It was easy to penetrate as well. Not much growth on the inside however. Towards the bow of the ship, I spotted a very unusal sea anenome and itty bitty shrimp? with neon blue markings. Photos to be posted later once I get them uploaded from my IPod. From the ship, we took a 'West' heading and found the plane wreck. This must be fairly new? for there wasn't much growth on it yet. From the plane, we then continued west back to the Gazeebo where I played around for 12 minutes doing my deco stop. One hour and 55 minutes later, I exited with approximately 500psi. Whoohoo!!!!! Man, was I ready for a beer!
Boat Dives: Last day of diving....
5/26 French Key Bay: 85' for 1 hour & 2 minutes *Another Milestone~ Dive#400
This was a very pretty dive with remnants of a boat or ship wreck strewn about. There was what appeared to be the wheel house near the mooring. My friend Dave suprised me by creating '400' in coral pieces ontop. So if you by chance dive this site, and see '400' you will know why. LOL
Mr. Bud: 71' for 56"
Wreck/ wall dive. Found a giant Spotted Drum under the stern; a very active Bristle Worm at the Stern; a nice sized grouper ontop of the wheel house; and finally...Sponge Bob himself at the helm! On the wall, a nice sized crab in a crevice, another inside a Barrel Sponge, and a spotted eel.
Finally, a quick summary of all the dives. Water temp averaged 82 to 84 degrees Suunto. Viz on average was 100+ feet with the exception of near the Prince Albert and the Plane Wreck. Could be, because they are in a boat channel??? Not sure.
Our boat was called...believe it or not... the 'ISLAND TIME' from....believe it or not....Laguna Beach Resort, Utila. What a coincidence, huh??? LOL Those of you not familiar with Southern California diving, we have a boat out of Long Beach called the Island Time. My friends and I dive regularly off Laguna Beach almost every weekend, and during the week as well for late afternoon or night dives!
Marine life spotted by either myself or my friends: Sting Rays; Spotted Eagle Ray; Sea Turtle; Variety of Sea Horses (yellow, black, striped, ect); Groupers; Green Morays; Spotted Morays; Spotted Lobster; variety of crabs; Drums; Giant Drums; Box Fish; Trunk Fish; Cow Fish; File Fish; Trigger Fish; Tangs; Basket Sponges bigger than me (5'3"); Vase Sponges; vast Corals in every color imagineable; and the list goes on, and on, and on.
Zip Lining Adventure
The group decided to skip the third dive on the third day to go Zip Lining. There were two courses to choose from: one that was easy going and the other that was more challenging. Of course, they all chose the later.
Let's say, I felt as if I was trying out for Fear Factor or Survivor! LOL Upon arrival to the Jungle Canopy, we were fitted with safety harnesses, clips, and pulley.
We entered the Canopy hiking down a pathway of wooden steps that led us deep into the jungle terrain. Once we got to an area, we approached our first platform. The guide briefed us as to what to do. Four of my friends got to go first. The guide went first, then tapped on the cable for the rest of us to follow. The next group of four went, in which I was a part of. Somehow, my boyfriend and I got separated.
But needless to say, it worked out ok. Since I was the last in my group, they eventually made him the first in his group so that I could take photos of him as he approached the various platforms. There were various Zip Lines separated by a variety of challenging bridges to cross that were made up of cables (Fear Factor style); swinging wood planks (Survivor); wooden tunnel bridge made of planks and spaces (gotta watch your footing on this one!).
I will be honest to say, that I missed my footing on the wire cable bridge and ended up sitting on the cable. The guide had to come onto the cable to help me back up on my feet since I wasn't able to 'zip' to the other end. On some of the Zip Lines, we got to clown around and have some fun
by flipping upside down as we were flying through the canopy. At times though, the various platforms got a bit crowded 
due to the size. I did manage to trip over a cable that bruised my ankle as I was trying to get a picture of my boyfriend 'zipping' to the platform I was standing on. The overall experience was AWESOME, but it's probably safe to say that I should stick to diving! LOL Afterall, I'm not as young as I used to be and can't keep up with Jane of the Jungle.
Overall Impression: I would definitely recomend Fantasy Island Beach Resort. It's a great value for the price. The diving is spectacular with lots to see. Side note here: The DM was great, however, I was able to see more marine life than what even the DM pointed out. Be familiar with the marine life before you go diving; do your research. Unlike Coco View, FIBR has spectacular beaches (three lagoons). True, you can't dive off the beaches, but a short surface swim from the Gazeebo to Coco View, you get the same dive for a fraction of the cost. For Souveniers, buy them at the airport. They are definitely cheaper than the hotels gift shop! T-Shirts are half the cost. Wish I had known this before I went!!!
My favorite Dive Sites include: Coco View Wall (accessible from Gazeebo); Mary's Place; 40 Foot Point (go here if you want to see lots of big fish); Prince Albert Ship Wreck (accessible from Gazeebo); and Mr. Bud (wreck).
Pictures to follow....Stay Tuned.
Now...to plan my next vacation!
Live to Dive, Dive to Live!
~Diver_Jan
5/20-27/2006