After living here five years, some opinions about being on a tropical island in the far Western Caribbean have changed and some haven’t. When people ask how I find life living full time on Roatan island, I still find myself telling them that their happiness is as unlimited as their creativity.
When I first arrived, it soon became apparent to me that the area was in need of so much. An advantage people have from an industrialized region is that whatever products or services that may be missing on the islands has been in use in other parts of the world for ages. I saw that there was no need to re-create the wheel because the same wheel has already been in use for decades elsewhere.
One example of this is my own experience discovering the area. When my wife and I first came down to Roatan, there was no one speaking English on the radio. Thousands of people had English music to listen to, but there was no talk, information, community news or even weather reports. The different English speaking communities were not connected or associating with each other.
If a storm was coming, maybe the lobster and shrimp fishermen knew it and then their family and friends, but many times, that is where the information stopped. In most instances, no one knew if a storm or even a hurricane was on the way until the weather hit.
Another example of using my own experience was noticing that there was very little advertising to the abundant English speaking market. I saw that there was a need to connect businesses such as construction, building parts, shipping and much more with customers. At the time, there was no consistent way for businesses to inform the new visitors and residents what products or services they had to offer.
I not only saw a need for English speaking radio, but because there were so many foreigners coming to the island to build homes, develop condominium projects, purchase cars or eat in restaurants, this was clearly the perfect opportunity to use my twenty years of expertise in sales and marketing to fill two needs at once. One was to be a Roatan talk show host and another was to be able to sell advertising on the show to keep a show on the air.
The ways to create a wonderful life for yourself on The Bay Islands
are as unlimited as the imagination.
Even in real estate, the sky is the limit. If you are the kind of person that can see potential rather than follow in another creative persons footsteps, land that might otherwise stay unbuilt upon for years could instead be made into a resort, a condo complex with an unusual theme or niche market, or a marina.
For instance, there is a property out in the eastern part of the island that backs up into an incredible national reserve. One person might see it as isolated and unexciting while another could see the location as the ideal place on a white sandy beach to put an exotic, exclusive and secluded private resort complete with excellent diving, nature and wildlife for a Western Caribbean version of a “Club Med.”
Another example of being creative and thinking outside the typical real estate box is a property I have seen that is closer to the central part of the island. It is presently a hill with excellent views and flatland that is next to a deep water bite. Instead of building a few homes on a hill, it would be a perfect location for a south shore dive resort and marina.
There are so many more examples of how to live life large on a tropical island. All you need to do is be a bit adventuresome and inspired. If living in a place with crystal clear clean water on a reef system second to none in the entire world isn’t enough to make you think harder about what you have to offer, perhaps you could volunteer the rest of your days to helping others not so fortunate.
What is nearly impossible to directly help people elsewhere, is easy down here. The area is just now starting to begin the process of catching up to the rest of the world as far as health care and education is concerned. Are you health care savvy? You could help tens of thousands down here with your efforts, contacts and experience.
Are you looking for just the right place to share your education expertise and background? The Bay Islands and most of Honduras are in dire need of a revamped school system. The one in place now is barely serving 25% of the children’s needs. Are you a teacher looking for an incredible adventure rather than just spending the rest of your working days…working away? Are you retired and want to help people with your unlimited experience? Come on down and join others who are already working to improve education so that everyone will be able to enjoy island life equally for decades to come.
The Bay Islands has something for everyone. You can be as creative as you want to build the exact type of life you have always wanted. The one problem is, once you come down here, there will be no overbearing government, community or boss to complain about who has stopped you from achieving your goals. You are your boss! You are your creative resource! If you can relate to these words, come on down and create a life, not only for yourself, but for your neighbors and community.
Tags: advertising, dive shops, education, exotic resorts, marina, medical care, resort developers, talk radio, Volunteering
