cruise ship day!!

Wednesday is cruise ship day! It is the day the Valor comes into port.. that is one of the biggest Carnival Cruise Ships that come to the island. Outside the dock there are many different shops: the methodist market, as well as many little wooden 'shops' housing souvenirs, tshirts, lenca pottery, honduran hardwood products, shells, cigars.. you name it.. everyone is selling. As well there are people there who are looking to take people on tours.

I am grateful that many people know me on this island because I seldom get 'bothered' to go on a tour, get my hair braided, and to buy a cigar (do I look like a cigar smokin' gal??!!!)

So you may be wondering why I choose to go down there with all the mayhem and the tourists around. I go because it is one of the only days I get to visit with my friends who sell stuff and try to encourage tourists to buy from them. Now how would I do that?? Well it's easy. Being a gringo the tourist people are comfortable to speak to me. I smile and start chatting and find out what they are looking for and then I basically become a personal shopper to them.

Well today I was talking to Luma, a wonderful local artist who we met at Sonrise. He is the one who painted the mural on the church wall. So Luma and I are having a nice chat together and a lady walks by admiring his work. I smile, and says, Yes these are really nice aren't they? We talk about the ones we like. I introduce her to Luma, who is the local artist who made them. She likes that. Before long she decides on a couple of paintings that she likes, but along comes Mr. Grumpy pants (her husband) who says.. "I don't want to buy a painting. We are on a scooter and there isn't any room for that!!!!" She looks sad and slowly walks away. I just looked at Luma and said, Don't worry she'll be back. How do I know this?? Because it isn't really the painting she wants.. she wants to 'story' that goes with it .. about meeting the artist in a neat little shop in Roatan.

Sure enough she comes back .. just looking. I smile and says.. "You know what would be really great? I could take your picture with Luma and you could put it on the back of the painting" OH YEAH!! Had her hook, line and sinker!!

They buy two paintings. I take their picture. They are thrilled.. even the husband got into the whole 'encounter' at the market!! :-)

Luma is happy.
So I am.

Next stop: Ida's.

Now for those of you who have visited here you will have met Ida. Everyone who comes to Roatan gets to meet Ida.

this is an old picture when amy was visiting.. ida is the one in the middle with the obama tshirt on.. i wonder if she'd wear it now with all the stuff going politically! that is another story!

I met her at Christmas last year and she quoted me some prices for stuff and I looked her right in the eye and laughed saying: "hey how about island prices?!!" (that means the price for a local not a tourist) She burst out laughing and said, You got me! You got me! Ever since then she gives me the best prices. In fact today since it was slow I decided to buy some lenca pottery for myself and she looked at me and said, "Debi for you: FREE!!"



I laughed and said No WAY!! She said, Okay how about 100 Limpera (5 bucks) and I handed her double. The sad truth is this: these shops are only open when the cruise ships are in and right now there are maybe 2 times a week that they are open. Times are hard. For some of these woman what they make in a day depending on how much their family will eat, if their kids will get school supplies or the reco bill (electric) being paid.

So I go down to try to generate income and if I can't get any tourists to buy something then I will!

Here is a picture of some of the lenca pottery that I bought today.
I love them!!!

I need to polish up the big one.. that is the one ida wanted to give me for free.
the other two were from ingrid's shop next door. she wanted to give me a free one too. I think these woman are so grateful for the business that I bring them but still I am not there to get anything for free.

this is what we call 'small business in roatan' if you can carry it on your head it is small indeed!!