Gringos In Paradise
Our Honduran Odyssey
By: Malana Ashlie
Published: January 17, 2007
Format: Paperback: 170 pages
ISBN-10: 1419657526
ISBN-13: 978-1419657528
Publisher: BookSurge Publishing
"We decided to move to Honduras. Why we chose that portion, or even any portion, of Central America has no firm answer", writes ex-pat American and current resident of Honduras Malana Ashlie, in her heartfelt book Gringos In Paradise: Our Honduran Odyssey. The author tells the story of how she and her husband make the dramatic and life changing move to live permanently in Honduras.
Malana Ashlie and her husband are baby boomers who share a sense of wonder about the world, and a willingness to travel and live in many places. The author is open about her own personal wanderlust and how her childhood involved many moves from one home to another. Thinking that putting down roots in one place would create a sense of home. Marlana Ashlie discovered the secret that home is in the heart, and that paradise is where one finds it. Paradise is as much a state of mind, for the author and her husband, as it is a geographic location. As a result, the book chronicles the couples' move from one paradise in Hawaii, to another different paradise in the Central American country of Honduras. Through it all, the couple maintains their sense of discovery, and of adventure, along with a steadfast confidence that the land would provide for their needs.
Malana Ashlie (photo left) describes the move in detail, from the initial decision to seek a home in Honduras, to moving the family calico cat Puen, to the sudden culture shock and language barrier of their adopted land. Combining a strong sense of spirituality with good humor, the story of the transition from newcomers to part of the social fabric of the country, is told with humor and sensitivity. A genuine love of the people and geography of Honduras spills through every page of this deeply personal narrative. The author who had always sought a home and paradise, found both in the constantly amazing land of Honduras.
For me, the power of the book is how the story of two baby boomer Americans, along with their wonderful cat, find happiness and inner peace in a new land. Written in a very effective journal style, Malana Ashlie and her husband meet the challenges offered by an unfamiliar culture with good spirit and optimism. Whether they are seeking to purchase a car, buying household necessities, or working with the local people, the stories convey a strong love of the country and its wonderful inhabitants. The couple are transformed spiritually, and in the end, the author is able to write proudly that Honduras is her home.
I highly recommend the often humorous, and always fascinating book Gringos In Paradise: Our Honduran Odyssey by Malana Ashlie, to anyone seeking a story of finding home and paradise both within the heart and in the physical world. This book travels both the spiritual and literal route to true happiness and belonging in the world.
Read the heartfelt book Gringos In Paradise: Our Honduran Odyssey by Malana Ashlie, and share in the sense of wonder and adventure as Marlana, her husband Ordin, and their cat Puen set off on the voyage of a lifetime. In the end, they find their sense of home, and discover their own personal paradise.
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