Happy Anniversary...

...to me!  It's been one month since I bought my motorcycle, so to celebrate, I went for a nice long ride on Saturday, which was, coincidentally, my six-month anniversary of arriving here.
 
And, now, we interrupt this blog to give you some breaking news ~~ This just in:  I have received a 60-day extension of my visa!!!  That's right.  Ana Rut and the OIM seem to have come through for me.  The 60-day extension will take me up to April 20, and when questioned about the 8 days from then until I head back to the States on April 28, Ana Rut said that we'll have my carnet by then.  So, now all I need is to have my passport back in my hands and then wait for more news of my carnet.

We now return to your regularly scheduled blog...

So, Saturday was a fantastic day.  I started out by going to breakfast with Jenny.  We chose La Princesita's Super Baleadas.  I mean, any time you can get a great breakfast for 32 Lempiras (18 for the baleada and another 14 for a bottle of pop), is a good day!!  Oh yeah, 32 Lempiras equals $1.69, based on an exchange rate of 18.895 Lempiras to the dollar.

After breakfast, I dropped off Jenny at the mall so that she could print out some stuff.  Yes, we went on my moto.  Jenny trusted me enough, even though I haven't purchased a second helmet yet.  I think we did just fine on the bike, especially considering it was my first time having a passenger.

Then I was off to La Libertad.  It's about 40km away.  I had been on that road for a short while about two weeks ago, but turned back before long since I didn't know where it would take me, or how safe it was.  Finding out that it was a safe road and incredibly beautiful, I quickly put a trip to La Libertad on my 'to do' list.  I was going to go last week, but a bit of a nasty sunburn on my lower back put a damper on those plans.  The thought of the sun hitting my back, even through a t-shirt just was not pleasant.

Besides, as it turns out, going to La Libertad on Saturday was so much more symbolic.  Not only was it the one-month anniversary of my moto purchase, it was also the six-month anniversary of my arriving in Honduras.  The drive out there was breathtaking.  Truly.

Comayagua sits in a valley (called the Comayagua Valley, as it happens) so no matter which way you drive, you quickly hit the mountains.  The road to La Liber, as I heard it called today, was no different.  I was only a few short kilometers outside of town when I began ascending, twisting and turning.  And around each curve there appeared a view even more gorgeous than the one before.  So, I just kept right on driving.  My mind was wandering and all of my senses seemed on heightened enjoyment: the mountain views, the somewhat scraggly fields, the smell of the earth, the warmth of the sun on my arms and legs, the sound of the wind.  It was glorious.

I was lost in my own thoughts when suddenly I saw something unexpected heading down the highway toward me, coming from the opposite direction.  What?  Two guys on road bikes?  Really?  Then, three more.  Hmmm... I realized they were all gringos and then thought that they might be from the base.  Slowing down quite a bit, I raised the visor on my helmet and asked the next two guys, "Hey, where are you all from?"  Somewhat startled, the guy looked back and said, "Soto Cano."  Yeah, I was right.  Within seconds I saw the last few guys, followed by a military van.  But, oh, the lust and longing that stirred within me: those sleek road bikes, such skinny tires, helmets, gloves, spandex shorts, lycra jerseys, and cycling shoes.  When I finally roused myself from my cycling induced fantasy, I had an epiphany, an aha! moment.  There was absolutely no reason why I can't use that same road and do some Cottonwood training on that very same road.  Yeah, it'll be on my 75 lb. mountain bike, but, it's doable.  Even without clipless pedals, helmet or padded shorts.  I doubt I'll ride all that way to La Libertad, at least not at first, but I'm gonna head out that way on my bike next weekend.  I think.

A woman on a  moto is definitely somewhat new here, but a gringa on a moto?  Now that's almost scandalous. Almost.  Actually, here in town, there are a decent number of ladies who are riding motos or scooters, but it was obvious to me that most of them don't ride to La Liber.  As I passed by people on the roadside or in their yards or fields, they stared.  All of them.  I tried to wave to as many as I could, and most of them waved back or at least smiled.

I arrived in La Libertad and rode around just a little.  There are lots of one way streets and the town is on the side of a mountain, so there are some steep grades on several of the roads.  A few of them were easily 14 or 15% grades.  They would have been killer on a bike.  I wondered if the military guys had ridden all the way out there.

After making it to the parque central in front of the church, I relaxed for a minute while deciding what to do.  I drove across the way to a little pulperia, took off my helmet, trying to pretend I didn't see everyone staring at me, and walked inside.  They had Diet Coke in the cooler, but it was in plastic bottles so I opted for a glass bottle of Fresca, even though Fresca here is not sugar free.  The woman asked if I wanted it in a bolsita, which would have been 'to go', but I told her I was going to drink it here.  I paid my 8 Lemps and walked back outside.  All eyes were back on me.  It wasn't unsettling, though.  To my right was a small table, but it was occupied by a young woman, her baby and her mother or grandmother (sometimes it's nearly impossible to tell).  I started talking to them, and after a few minutes, they asked me to please sit down and join them.

Even with my limited Spanish, I love trying to talk to people.  I guess I'm not quite as limited as I think I am, but, yes, my lack still frustrates me.

When I finished my drink, I said my good-byes, put my empty bottle in the rack on the floor and was back on my moto.  I drove around the town just a little more and then made my way back to the highway.

Unfortunately, the ride back to Comayagua seemed to be over much quicker than the ride out.  Isn't it always like that?  At one point, though, as I was riding, I saw some people ahead of me at a little roadside eatery.  They were furiously waving at me as I passed.  I smiled and waved back, realizing that I had first waved to them on my way out.  They must have seen me coming from quite a ways and started waving.  Maybe it was the most exciting part of their day to see the gringa on the moto.  Twice.

As I left the country air and attitude behind me, I made my way through the crowded, noisy streets of Comayagua.  I opened the front gate of Enlaces, and by the time I had my moto through, the guard was right there, ready to lock the gate behind me.

All in all, a beautiful day, and it wasn't even noon yet!

Where Things Stand...

...for now, anyway.

In the ever frustrating, ongoing, and even possibly humorous saga of 'Susan and her carnet' or 'Susan and her visa extension', today I write a new episode:

Yesterday morning, Sandi tried to call Ana Rut.  It was 10:30ish, but Ana wasn't there.  Later that afternoon, Sandi called and even made contact.  In fact, Ana knew exactly who Sandi was and why she was calling within about a half second of recognizing her voice.

A short while later, I was in the school and Sandi came to talk to me.  "Well, I've got news, but I'm not sure you're going to want to hear it" was Sandi's greeting to me.  Hmmm, I immediately had images of packing my bags and hopping a bus to Costa Rica.  Thankfully, it was nothing that drastic.  I'm still not convinced that I like our interim solution, but, it is what it is.

Ana Rut, in talking to her boss about my situation and the limbo that I find myself in, told Sandi that if I would send them my passport and $40US, Ana would personally take my passport to Immigrations and get me another extension of my visa.  Sandi mention that I'm flying back to the States on April 28 for a visit and asked her if she could get my extension until that date.  "No problem" was the response.  

So, I went to my house and got my passport and $40US.  I was getting ready to go to the FedEx-equivalent office to express my passport to Ana Rut and the OIM.  We got the address, but it was a PO box, meaning that my passport would be sitting there until someone went to the post office.  

Now, I was already greatly suspect at even sending my passport.  I mean, you hear it all the time: Don't give anyone your passport.  Don't let it out of your sight or control.  And these folks want me to send/give them my passport for an indeterminate length of time?  Plus, the OIM needs to leave my passport with Immigrations for 3 days.  That would be the same Immigrations who lost the passport of an Enlaces intern a while back, only to have it show up a day or so before she was set to leave the country.  So, yes, I was more than a bit apprehensive about sending my passport to Ana Rut.

As it turns out, Erica, one of our school administrators, is heading to Tegucigalpa today and will be in the same neighborhood as the OIM office, which has moved and is now located inside the United Nations building.  She offered to bring my passport and money and hand deliver it to Ana Rut.  Whew!  That's a huge relief, especially since Erica knows how much and how long we've been dealing with this whole mess.

Sandi wrote a note to include in the envelope, reminding Ana Rut that the extension needs to be until April 28.  She even told Ana Rut that we would be willing to drive to Teguc to pick it up when she gets it back.  We'll see how that goes.  I'm hoping it will be next week, but, who knows?

If ever there was a time to say...  "I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore."

Tick, Tick, Tick...

That ominous sound is the passing of time.  A daily reminder that, now, my current visa expires in three days and we are STILL waiting for an answer.  If something doesn't change soon, as in, right away, I will need to leave the country on Saturday and spend three days somewhere else.  The really bad part of that is that I can't get any good airline deals at this time.  The bus?  To Costa Rica?  I've done it before.

On Monday, Sandi called Ana Rut at the OIM and was told that she (Ana Rut) would have an answer by Tuesday.  Sandi was also told not to call back, that Ana Rut would call her.  Oh, there are times I wish I was a betting woman.  I could have cleaned up had I only bet against a phone call.  No, of course Ana Rut didn't call.  So, I'm still waiting.

It can get pretty frustrating: inconsistencies, laws that change with no notice, indecision, mucho corrupción, etc.  That has been one of the hardest things to get used to here, especially for a take-charge kind-of-person like me who is used to having all her ducks in a row.  Hopefully, we'll get some answers, positive answers, when Sandi calls Ana Rut this morning.

But, for now, I wait.

New School Year...

Well, the new school year started today.  I think it actually started yesterday for public schools and most other private schools who keep to the Honduran calendar.  But, our school week is only 4 days long for kinder through 5th grade.  It's not until they're in 6th grade that our students start for 5-day weeks.  Plus, this week, they only have half days.

I'm going to be teaching a Language Arts class to the 6th - 10th graders.  I'll have three separate classes, which meet twice a week each.  That should work pretty well.  I'm also planning to help the upper grades with their English PACEs, as needed.

We had opening exercises this morning and I saw quite a few new faces, not just among the kinder and prepa kids, but in the upper grades as well.  I know that we've had an influx of students from other schools.  After opening exercises, I spent some time in the Center, talking to many of the children as they ate their merienda.  I met a family of 3 kids who are from Saginaw, TX.  Their father is a contractor on the base.  English is their first language, but they also speak Spanish.

Last weekend, we were in San Pedro Sula for a teachers' convention.  It was held on the grounds of an incredible bilingual school in the north part of San Pedro Sula.  Heck, if it was any further north, it would have been ON the mountain.  The campus was just gorgeous.

On our way back to Comayagua on Saturday, Sandi and I stopped near the lake to buy some beans.  We ended up with a 110 lb. sack of red beans and a 5 lb. sack of black beans.  The only area I've seen actually use black beans is the Taulabe area.  Everyone else seems to use the red ones.  In fact, while I was walking through the mercado today, I was paying attention to the beans.  The shops that sold beans had 5 or 6 big sacks of red beans and only 1 sack of black beans.

After the beans, we went to Luis' house to pick up some coffee.  Both Sandi & I were getting low.  We got 5 more pounds and are hoping to get some coffee from Sandi's friend, Pam.  If that coffee is as good as Pam says, I'll be bringing some of it back to the States on my trip.  The proceeds of Pam's coffee goes to support the orphanage there, so that would be a great thing.

If I Could Save Time in a Bottle...

I know.  I know.  It's wishful thinking.  But, seriously... where does the time go?  I really do have very good intentions of keeping this blog somewhat current, but then the day to day stuff just happens.  Plus, I often think, "Who really wants to read about my life here, or about us painting or whatever?"  No, I'm not having a pity party -- had one of those the other day and I was the only one who showed up!!  

Well, it's been super busy since I posted last week about Grey's Anatomy.  Yes, we watched the show.  Yes, it was a new one.  Unfortunately, I probably won't get to watch tonight's episode because we're having a parents' meeting for school and I don't know if we'll be done before 8pm.

School starts next week and the teachers have been here getting their classrooms ready.  I just went around and took photos of many of them.  I'll be posting them on Facebook, on the Bridge Ministries - Enlaces con Cristo - Honduras page.  So, if you're on FB, feel free to mosey on over and take a gander.

Last Sunday, I rode up to San Pedro Sula with Currie, Sandi & Samuel.  Currie & Samuel were heading back to the States and I didn't want Sandi to drive home alone.  Plus, a trip to the city = a trip to PriceSmart!!  We got to the airport in plenty of time and the boys got checked in and even paid their departure tax (which has gone up to almost $37/person).  Then we all got some baleadas for a bit of a merienda.  After a while, Sandi & I left the airport and headed toward PriceSmart, with a planned stop at Diunsa first.  

Diunsa was having an incredible sale!  A LOT of the sporting goods were 50% off.  In fact, just two days earlier Hermes and I were at the Diunsa in Tegucigalpa, saw some really awesome ping pong tables (which we desperately need), called Currie & Sandi, and ended up buying two of them.  But I digress... While at Diunsa, we found some fútbol nets which were also 50% off.  Sandi made some calls to Charley and found out that it looked like the nets were good ones.  The normal price was more than 50% less than what we usually pay for the nets, and we were able to get TWO complete sets of nets for the price of one.  It was awesome!

Before we could check out, however, everyday life in Honduras took over.  Sandi got a call from Currie saying that they (Honduran officials) weren't going to let Samuel leave the country without permission from his mother.  Excuse me??? He has a US passport, not a Honduran one.  Sandi tried talking to the officials, but it was to no avail.  She ended up leaving me at Diunsa, so as not to take the time to check out, heading back to the airport, talking to the officials, who wrote a quick note saying it was okay for Samuel to leave, signed the note, and then came back to Diunsa.  I mean, really, was all that necessary?  Samuel has traveled with just one parent before; this is not new -- but the president is.  And, it looks like any/everything that can change will.

Back at Diunsa, we also ended up buying two basketball backboards.  Yup.  50% off on them, too.  So, over the course of the weekend, Diunsa made quite a bit of money from Enlaces: two each on ping pong tables, basketball backboards and fútbol nets, plus the fútbol uniforms Hermes bought for the school on Friday.  Then there were the personal purchases that he and I each made.


After Diunsa, we made it over to PriceSmart and were able to get in and out of there in probably record time.  We really didn't have a lot to get there.  Tomorrow will probably be different since school starts next week and they need lots of food.


We're leaving at about 4am tomorrow to make it up to San Pedro Sula for a teachers' conference.  Most of the teachers are going and we'll stay overnight in Villa Nuria, which is a pretty nice ApartHotel.  Basically, they are residence hotels.  Each unit has two bedrooms, a small living room and a small kitchenette.  They're located very close to the airport, which works really well if we have late evening or early morning flights.  They even have shuttle over to the airport.  And, the pool's very nice, too!!


Well, that's about it for today, but I'm going to do a better job of updating.  I promise.  Or, I promise to try.

Grey's Thursdays...

Yes, even here in Honduras, we watch Grey's Anatomy.  Thankfully, our cable company rebroadcasts WABC from New York City.  So we've made Thursday night "Girls Night".  Sandi comes over, and then she, Jenny and I watch it together.  I'm glad that we're finally back to new episodes.

This week, we've spent a lot of time searching for ceramic tiles for the counter top in the Center.  You would not believe how hard (impossible, really) it is to get black and white tiles in the same size.  We've tried to get 15x15(cm), 20x20, and 20x30.  It should be simple, really.  White tiles and black tiles.  But it seems that if we find black tiles, we can't get the same size in white and vice versa.  Yes, of course we've tried to buy the black from one place and white from another.  It's just not working.  Believe me, if we could find a way, we would.  So, we've settled for white tiles and black grout.  It should look pretty cool.

If all goes as planned, I'm heading in to Tegucigalpa tomorrow morning.  I need to get a few things done for my motorcycle.  Hermes needs to pick up more of our curriculum and also buy some chairs.  It looks like a trip to PriceSmart is in our future!

The weather here is starting to get pretty hot.  Most days it get up into the upper 80s or lower 90s.  Shortly, however, it will get much hotter.  And, we're in the dry season now so any rain showers will be few and far between.  Already, I can see how the grass is starting to dry out.  The up side of all of that is that it's almost mango season!!  Yes, I love mangos!  I'm already planning to buy enough to peel and freeze so that we have some later in the year.

Well, that's about it for tonight.  

On the Road Again...

Yesterday morning I went for a fairly long ride on the motorcycle.  When all was said and done, I had put just over 50 kilometers on the bike.  That's 31 miles.  My motorcycle only has kilometers for speed and distance, so I'll be doing lots of conversions.

Anyway, to start out, I went out on the road I rode last weekend and followed it until I ran out of pavement.  I stayed on the hardpack for just a little longer before turning around and heading back into town.  Then, I rode on the old boulevard, past Mang Ying, past the Incessa pool and just kept going.  I'd never been that far on that road before and it was just gorgeous.  I started winding my way up a mountain and at one point pulled over to the shoulder to look.  Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking.  After riding a little bit further, I turned around and headed back toward town.  Again.  I was a bit hesitant to keep traveling on that road because since I don't know the road, I don't know where it leads and I don't know how safe it is.  Later in the day when I was telling Sandi where I went, she told me that it gets even prettier and that it's safe to just keep going.  Good.  I'll try that another day.

So, after I got back to town, I headed out toward Siguatepeque.  I wasn't going to go to Siguat, just in that direction.  I ended up taking the road to Ajuterique.  It was there that I saw something I've never, ever seen before.  As I was driving, I saw what looked like a cow or bull ahead of me and on the side of the road.  No big deal; I see those all the time.  As I got closer, I realized that it was a bull.  A dead bull.  Standing.  On three legs.  Really.  I didn't slow down too much as I passed it, because I knew that I'd be passing it on my return trip.

Further down the road, I passed a field of what I thought were cucumber vines.  But then I thought that they might be pataste.  No, they were cukes.  Within a quarter mile, I passed a fenced in area where a cow was munching on a huge pile of discarded cucumbers.  I guess that's what happens if the farmer can't sell all his produce.  I hope the cukes don't effect that cow like they do me...

Back to the bull.  You know, the dead one.  Approaching it from the other side, I was able to slow down and actually pull over in front of it.  It had obviously been dead for a while.  Part of its snout had been eaten away, exposing the bone.  It still had horns, but I could tell that the vultures had been picking away at it.  Oh yeah, it only had three legs.  One had been removed.  No, I didn't get close enough to see if the leg had been cut off or eaten off.  The whole thing was just pretty freaky.  Actually, it was kind of surreal.  It reminded me of TV shows or movies with scenes in the desert -- the ones where an animal skull or snake skin is used as some kind of a 'keep away' sign.  Oh how I wished I had my camera with me.  I took a picture with my phone, but don't think I can transfer it to here.  

All in all, it was a great day.  I was only out there for an hour and a half, but that was plenty of time to just think, ponder, muse and soak in the sunshine.

2-for-2 and a Moto...

Last week was a good week: I went 2-for-2 at the post office.  Both of my trips down there resulted in a card or letter for me.  It really is amazing how uplifting a card or note from the States is.  It makes me feel remembered and a part of things.

Yes, last week was a good week: I bought a motorcycle.  I am the proud owner of a 2009 Honda V-men.  It's a 125cc bike, which is pretty small by US standards, but is actually a very common size of bike here.  I would have rather purchased a 150, but Honda doesn't make one in this style.  While shopping, I was determined to find a chopper-style moto because it gives a more upright, comfortable ride.  

What do you think?

Yeah, I like it, too!

 

Sensory Overload...

Well, my trip to Immigrations today, to get my visa renewed while I (not so) patiently await the final approval and arrival of my residency carnet went okay.  Not good, but okay.  Actually, I guess it wasn't even okay.  They only gave me a 30-day extension and then told me that I can't get another extension without making some kind of forward progress on my paperwork.  When I said that all of my paperwork is in, and that I'm waiting for things on their end, I was told that I'm missing some papers.  Of course, no one could tell me what I'm missing.  After standing in another line, then waiting in that same line, we still had no answers.  Then a call to OIM (the organization supposedly helping) revealed that the person we needed to talk to was in a meeting.  Her voice mailbox was full.  

Hmmm, Sandi decided that we would just drive on over to the OIM office and talk to Ana Rut in person.  So, we drive over there, past the American Embassy, sit at the most bizarre traffic light, get honked at, park, and then walk up the stairs to the OIM office.  Um, what's going on here?  The office is... gone.  That's right, the office that was there just a few months ago is not there.  No sign on the door informing us of their new location.  Just... gone.

During our lunch at TGIFriday's, Sandi called the OIM again to find out where their new location is.  Apparently they moved somewhere near the Panama Embassy.  We have no idea where that is, but I'm sure we'll find out.  Unfortunately, in the midst of all of this, I'm still waiting on my residency carnet and only have 30 more days on my visa.

After lunch, we went to PriceSmart and then to HiperPaiz.  HiperPaiz is the Honduran WalMart.  Not just 'like' a WalMart.  It IS WalMart.  Right down to the Great Value and Equate house brands.  Yes, it's pretty cool.  The store is not nearly as large as most WalMarts in the US, but it's still a dizzying experience.

I truly experienced sensory overload while we were in there.  So many varieties of produce.  Fresh herbs, just like in the States, but instead of being $3-4 for a small bag of basil, that same bag of fresh basil was about 35¢.  Not all the prices were less than in the States though.  All of the imported goods were definitely more than US prices, but still less than buying them here in Comayagua ~ if they can even be found here.

Cream cheese.  At least five different brands of cream cheese.  Not only that, but they had Philadelpha brand Cream Cheese,  Reduced Fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese, tubs of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, tubs of WHIPPED Philadelphia Cream Cheese, and tubs of Salmon, Pineapple and Strawberry Philadelphia Cream Cheese.  That's not one flavor, but three, of course.

What about peanut butter?  They've got it:  Peter Pan (smooth and crunchy), Skippy, and 3 different off brands.  I'm used to going into the grocery store and seeing peanut butter.  One brand.  If you want peanut butter, you take what's on the shelf.

Two full aisles of back to school supplies.  TWO.  And, end caps with more school supplies.

Seriously, I went into sensory overload and it got me wondering what it's going to be like when I head back to the States at the end of April.  How will I deal with so much variety.  Too many choices may not be such a good thing.

My biggest disappointment was while I was looking for toothpaste.  Now, I'm a Crest kind of gal. Do you think that they had Crest toothpaste?  Nope.  Not one variety.  Not one tube.  Sure, they had row upon row of Colgate.  Gel, non-gel.  Whitening. Mouthwash enhanced.  Colgate toothpaste for as far as the eye could see.  They even had several varieties of Sensodyne, plus several other brands.  But Crest?  I guess I was getting greedy to think they might have it.  I'm glad I've got enough to last until April!!

I've Got Mail...

I have to admit it: days when there is a card or letter in the PO box for me are much better than days when there aren't.  Today's journey to the post office was rewarded by a Christmas card from Doris.  It really brought a smile to my face!  Yes, I communicate electronically with lots of people, but, if we're all honest, every one of us enjoys getting something personal in the mail. That doesn't include bills, of course.

Right now, we're doing a bit of a face lift on the Center, so I've spent part of today painting.  Thankfully, I didn't get any paint on my clothes; I don't have any old jeans here that are really appropriate for painting in.  I think we've got most of the trim work done on the walls, and Charley is making good progress on rolling them out.  It's a big job.  It's a big Center.  Once the walls are done, we'll work on painting all of the metal railings and such.  They are currently blue, but will soon be black.  The walls are gray and will have purple and blue accents.  I don't think anyone here knows that the whole gray and purple thing reminds me way too much of K-State, but we put together a small committee to select colors and that's what they chose.  I'd much rather have accents of crimson and blue, of course...

On Friday, we're going to head to Tegucigalpa to get another extension of my visa since my carnet still hasn't arrived.  Sandi talked to one of the ladies about it last week and found out that I'm not missing any paperwork or anything.  It's just that no one wants to do anything official until the new president comes in.  So, it looks like I'm stuck spending another $40 for another 60-day extension, even after paying $600 toward my carnet.  Ah, ya gotta love it!  OK, you don't really have to love it, but that's the way things seem to work around here.

A New First for Me...

Yesterday was definitely a first... I broke into a cemetery.  Yes.  Really.  Autumn wanted to visit her father's grave, so she bought a flower and we headed that way.  The cemetery is on the road out of town that leads up the mountain to the Oki, for those of you who have been here (and been to the Oki).

In the US, when you think of a cemetery, it's normally a fairly pretty place with lots of nice green, immaculately manicured lawns, properly cleared walkways and paths, an occasional bench, etc.  Not so here.  Way not so.  Basically, it was a field with a fence/rock wall around it.  Three quarters of it was fence, but in the front, it had a half-height brick wall and then barb-wire up to about the 10 foot point.   Immaculately manicured lawn?  Think again.  There was no lawn.  There was some grass, but it was more like what we would call native grass, the kind good for grazing cattle.  Paths?  What paths?


As we pulled up to the cemetery, it was pretty obvious to see that there is construction going on pretty much all around the area.  And, of course, there were some cows grazing IN the cemetery.  We got out of the truck and walked up to the gate.  It was barb-wired shut.  I guess, in the past they had the gate closed, but you could still get in by unlatching the barb-wire. Not yesterday.  They had lots of barb-wire securing the gate, and large stones in place so that the gate won't open.  Hmmm, that's interesting.  We walked about 25 yards away from the gate, to a place where the brick wall was about waist high, and there was about a 2 foot gap between the brick and the barb-wire.  Well, we pulled up on the barb-wire enough so that each of us could climb between the wall and the wire, being careful to clear the barb-wire before standing up.

There aren't that many people buried in this particular cemetery because it's private and costs more than the public cemetery.  Although it's fairly a fairly large property, I'd estimate the number of graves at  maybe 30.  I did notice that a few of the other graves had somewhat fresh flowers on them, as well.  And there was even evidence that someone had been buried within the last few months.  So, we know that people are getting in somehow.

Then, of course, there are the cows.  We had to dodge large piles of cow plop while walking.

Autumn put the flower on her dad's site, and we walked around looking at some of the other markers.  Then, we saw a young kid start to make his way over to where we had been.  We knew that he was zeroing in on the fresh flower.  Perhaps he thought it might make a good snack for the cows.  Sandi talked to the little guy, letting him know that Autumn had put a flower on her father's grave, and taking it would be wrong.  As we walked back toward the road, we pretty much resigned ourselves to the fact that the kid would probably take the flower anyway.

We dodged more cow plop on the way back to the car.

We climbed back over the fence again, being careful to avoid the barb-wire.  Since there is obvious construction in the area, we wondered what they're going to do about the cemetery.  Are they going to leave it as is?  Are they going to try to relocate the people buried there?  I mean, it seems odd to have buildings or homes going up, and they have a cemetery as their front yard.  I guess time will tell.

Awesome Day at the Post Office...

What a great day to go to the post office.  I got two more Christmas cards AND a huge package.  OK, the package wasn't just for me, but it was HUGE.  As I was waiting in line to get my package, a little boy wanted to see the picture that was in one of my cards.  I told him that the little boy in the picture was 4 years old and was quickly told that the boy I was talking to was 7.  I then found out that he's in second grade and loves playing video games.  I really felt like I had struck gold when, while retrieving my package was told to walk through the door behind me.  That led to the 'inner sanctum' of the post office and I was soon on the other side of the window.  While I was walking down the corridor, I was thinking how something like this would never happen in the US: a customer would not be allowed behind the counter to get their own package.  But there I was, behind the counter, getting my own package.

After the post office, I walked around the corner, with my cards and package, to the souvenir shop.  The last of the carteras de churros (hand bags/purses made from chips bags) that Sandi and I ordered were in. They are made by some ladies, single moms and widows, in one of the surrounding mountain villages of Comayagua.  We ordered 125 total, and when the lady found out about the ordered, she cried, saying that "now her kids will get to have Christmas."

Basically, these bags are made out of empty chips bags.  They are an awesome example of the ingenuity of people to make a treasure out of trash.  And, they are the primary means of support for a group of single moms and widows here.  I am planning to bring some back to the States to sell, if people are interested.  They would make a great gift and are definitely a conversation piece.  I use one as a pencil case.  See what you think...


From this:

To this:

 

 

 

Lively House...

I got up at 6am this morning because I wanted to get my laundry washed and on the line before Jenny even got up.  Well, that didn't quite work.  I had started my laundry and was back in my room about 6:20 and heard Jenny get up.  She went back to her room and I went out to the kitchen to put away the dry dishes.  A few minutes later Jenny was also in the kitchen.

It's a big day today: New Year's Eve.  There are eggs to boil. Corn casserole to prepare.  An old man to make.  Etc. Etc.  And, we've got the easy part.  Sandi is making the turkey and ham, plus lots more side dishes.  Char is making the cheesecake, but she did that last night.  And, Autumn made a batch of chocobananos.


Jenny's got the eggs already hard boiled and cooling so that she can make deviled eggs.  Plus, the old man is pretty well stuffed.  And it's only 7:30am.  My laundry was on the line by 7:00 and last night I got out most of the ingredients I'll need for the corn casserole.  I'm going to make two pans of it: one with salsa verde and a little kick of hot sauce and the other one plain.  I'm also going to make a batch of punch and need to walk down to the supe (grocery store, short for supermercado) to get a few more ingredients.

Poor Autumn!  I'm sure she's wishing we weren't up and around so early this morning.  But, actually, this is pretty much normal for us; the past two weeks have been the aberration where we didn't really get going until 7:00 or later.

Later this morning, we're all going to La Princesita for baleadas.  Yum.  I'll bet I could eat baleadas there every morning and not get sick of them.  The comical part will be loading 11 of us into the pickup truck.  We've been doing quite a bit of that the last week or so and we draw a bit of attention to ourselves since we're a T.L.O.G. ~~ Truck Load Of Gringos.  Heck, I even have a T-shirt to prove it.  (Thanks, Luda!)

Full Week...

We've had a full week of celebrating Christmas with friends and family.  Most of Sandi's children are able to be here this week, so Currie and Sandi definitely have a full house.  Last night, we celebrated our Christmas, opening the mountain of gifts that had accumulated under the tree in Currie and Sandi's house.  That took quite a while, but there were lots of laughs and lots of photos involved!!

Late in the evening, some friends called.  They had been planning to stop here at Enlaces and visit on their way through to Tegucigalpa.  Well, they got stuck in pretty much every one of the construction stops on the highway, for a total of about 4-5 hours.  By the time they (3 cars full) made it to Comayagua, they decided to stop at Pollo Campero, which is just "three houses away" from us.  So, we walked over there to see everyone.  We ended up standing around outside Pollo Campero for over an hour, just laughing, talking and taking more pictures. There must have been 25-30 of us, all speaking Spanish and English.  I'm sure it made for quite a sight to the employees inside.  Yes, a few people went in to get some food and drink for the rest of the drive (and construction stops) to Tegus.

This morning I got up early and, after having my quiet time, decided that I needed some tamales for breakfast.  Yum.  I ended up eating two since mine weren't nearly as large as the ones I bought at Fincas El Carmen.  Later this morning we're off to the pool for a few hours.  I'm bringing my bathing suit, but if it doesn't warm up substantially, I doubt I'll dive in.  However, just being out there, at Campo de Golf, is very relaxing.  I'm going to bring a book and some note cards. 

 

Now, we get to celebrate the New Year.  We're planning to have a party tomorrow.  First, we're starting with dinner for some members of the team and some close friends.  The menu is going to be a great mix if Honduran and North American food.  Then, we've decided to take the party to the streets.  We're going to build un hombre viejo -- an old man.  The old man is kind of like a scarecrow, except that you also stuff him with firecrackers... LOTS of firecrackers!  At midnight, as fireworks and firecrackers go off everywhere, you light up the old man and watch him explode, as well.  If, after all the fireworks in him go off, there's anything left of him, you douse him with gasoline or kerosene and add a match.  It's a way of totally letting go of the old year.  I've been told that some years there's even a theme to the old man.  For instance, one year everyone did Osama bin Laden.  I don't think there's a theme this year, but Sandi and I have joked that we should make the old man be Mel.  The problem with that, is that we want to reach out to our neighbors and don't want to offend them if they happen to be Mel supporters.  We're also planning on having lots of cookies available to share with our neighbors as we all bring in the New Year.

Ist Die Post Offen?...

Sorry for the German, but that's what came to mind as I saw that the post office is closed today.  Next door, a man was cleaning the wrought iron on his pharmacy gate, so I asked him if the post office would be open today.  Nope.  Oh, well.  I guess I'll wait until Monday.

Before heading back home, I walked to another store that someone told me might have the type of motorcycle I'm looking for.  They didn't, but I did find out that, in addition to free registration, they also give TWO free helmets when you buy a bike there.  Most of the other places that I've been to all give one helmet.  One place only does the free registration, but does not give helmets.  I've already scratched that place off my list.

Walking through the market today was such a pleasure.  I'm not sure if the lack of huge crowds was because it's the day after Christmas or that it was fairly early.  My guess is 'fairly early', since as I walked back toward home, it was much busier.  I stopped to say hello to my friend, Walter, at his fruit stand and ask him about his Christmas.  He told me it was not a good day because he was missing his mother, who recently passed away.  I felt bad for him, but appreciated the fact that he was so willing to share with me.

Then, when I was near the mall, I saw one of our teachers and talked to her for a few minutes.  I like being out and seeing people I know.  Sometimes when I'm walking by somewhere or riding in the back of the truck, I'll hear, "Hello, Miss Susan!" coming from somewhere.  Usually, I don't see who it is, but assume that it's a student, so I just call out, "Hello!"  Although, it was pretty cool the night I was riding on the back of Hector's moto, heading toward the cathedral and saw Omar and his family driving in their truck.  We waved and said hello to each other from the road.

It's only 10:30am, and it's already 80°, so it looks like it's going to be a pretty warm day!!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot...

Yes, it looks like Christmas here in Comayagua, Honduras.  Of course, Christmas is celebrated differently here than in the States.  The biggest difference is that Christmas isn't so completely commercialized here (yet).  There is much more emphasis on family and friends, less on gifts and going into deeper debt trying to buy those gifts.

Food... Yes, much of the Christmas celebration centers around food ~~ both the making and the eating.  Two days ago, Sandi and Jenny made 60 or so tamales.  Since I missed out on that because of a dentist's appointment, I made some yesterday, under Sandi's tutelage.  My batch was another 39, so I think we're set on tamales.  Sandi also taught Jenny how to make torrejas.  There are two types of torrejas: the french toast type and the pancake type.  I've had both and they're both good.  Basically, the special bread or special pancake is soaked in a syrup of dulce and spices, then eaten.  I won't go into all the details of making the bread or the pancake, since it's pretty similar to making them anywhere.  It's just that different ingredients are used.

The majority of the Christmas celebration takes place on Christmas Eve.  Most families will have dinner together at 7:00 or 8:00pm.  Then, starting around 9:00 or 10:00pm, people will begin to 'pass from house to house', visiting each other.  You are usually offered food at each house you visit, especially tamales and torrejas.   At midnight, there will be a huge round of fireworks and firecrackers set off.  The firecrackers will last well into the early morning hours, but that's okay because you are still out visiting others.  Generally, you don't get home until 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning.  There are still lots of firecrackers going off, but that will continue for days anyway.  Yes, everyone sleeps in on Christmas day.  Christmas day itself is much more low key.

Another tradition here that I really like are the nativity scenes.  Putting up a nativity scene can be a really big deal for families.  Some families will even clear out their entire living room to convert it to a stable, suitable for the birth of Christ.  In addition to the usual nativity figures of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, wise men, shepherds, angels and assorted animals, nativities here also include a slice of daily life.  They're more like a huge diorama.  I've seen nativities that include the cathedral downtown, the mercado, schools, mountain villages, etc. It's very cool to see.

So, with all of that said, I hope that each of you reading this has an incredibly blessed Christmas!  May each of you celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, remembering His supreme sacrifice for each of us!

No Jayhawk Basketball Today...

I thought I might be able to watch the Jayhawks play Michigan in basketball today.  The game was on ESPN, and since we get ESPN, I was hopeful.  Alas, my hopes have been dashed.  Thankfully, I was able to follow the game on the Journal World website.  Even more thankfully, the Jayhawks beat the Wolverines!  I'm still hopeful that somehow there will be a programming glitch and I'll be able to catch one of the games.  Maybe against MU?  K-State?  A girl can dream, can't she?

Earlier today, I walked to the mercado with Sandi and Autumn.  Autumn was trying to find a pair of shoes to wear this evening to a wedding.  She found a pair in Carrion's, in the mall, but we still decided to check out the mercado to see if they had any that she liked better.  They didn't.

Since it's Saturday, the mercado is particularly packed.  This meant that we had to dodge cars and bikes, swim upstream through the sea of people, and just generally stay on our toes while walking -- lest our toes get trampled on.  But it was fun, at least for me.  I always enjoy being out in the mercado.  Sometimes I see someone (or several someones) I know; sometimes not.  Today was 'not', but that doesn't take away from my enjoyment.

After I got back home and after I realized that I wasn't going to get to watch the Jayhawks game, I made a makeshift practice mute from a kitchen towel and elastic band.  I've been practicing the cornet a bit since I'm going to play a few songs in church tomorrow.  Yes, all these years later, I still play trumpet!  Well, I'll play trumpet once mine gets here, but in the meantime, the cornet that was left behind by one of the interns does quite nicely.  The valve action is good, which is important.  Hopefully tomorrow will go well.  I'm even going to try to get some pics of me playing.

 

What a Day...

This morning started out with me, Currie, Sandi, Samuel and Autumn going to La Princesita for baleadas.  I ordered the baleada sencilla, which is basically a large homemade flour tortilla filled with refried beans, mantequilla (sour cream-like product), and grated queso (parmesan style cheese). You can also get them with scrambled eggs, chicken or sausage added.

After breakfast, we did a  little shopping at the hardware store.  When we parked at the hardware store, Sandi and I walked about two blocks away to try to book some dentist appointments.  On Monday I'll be getting my teeth cleaned, for 400 Lempiras ($21.17).  I'll let you know how it turns out.  We also stopped by the post office so that Autumn could mail some post cards.  I found out that post card stamps are 15 Lps (79¢) each.  Plus, at the post office, you affix the stamps with a little container of glue and a popsicle stick.  

We came back home and a few minutes later Sandi, Autumn and I went out to see if another friend was home.  She wasn't, so we came back, then Sandi & I started to walk down to the mercado.  We stopped in a few shops, looking around and checking some prices.  We weren't really looking for anything in particular, just window shopping.  We made it down to the parque central and stopped in a store for a couple bottles of water.  As we went to sit down on one of the benches, Sandi recognized a friend, so we talked to her for a few minutes.  

Back at Enlaces, we left again, this time headed to the 'zoo'.  Samuel's friend, Adán is spending a few days, so we loaded the truck up and zipped down the highway.  Well, to call it the zoo is such a misnomer.  Actually, it's a slice of Honduran culture.  It's a place to get corn food products: atol, elote, tamalitos, etc., etc.  They also have a small menagerie of caged animals out back.  The ASPCA would have a field day in that place: cages are way too small, there are too many animals in several of the cages, etc.  But, it's still fun.

After our time at the zoo, we drove the short distance to Fincas del Carmen, mainly to buy nacatamales.  Fincas del Carmen has 'borrowed' the Famous Dave's logo.  All of it: pig, ribs, font.  I think it's pretty funny.  I bought 12 tamales and even a half-pound of chicharonnes.  The tamales are in the fridge until they are cold enough to freeze, but the chicharonnes did not last long at all.

She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain...

Driving here is quite an adventure.  Always.  Yesterday I went with Sandi to the airport in San Pedro Sula to pick up her daughter, Autumn.  We left Comayagua about 7:15am or so because we wanted to stop at PriceSmart first.   Thankfully, we didn't get caught in construction traffic for nearly as long as Hermes did just two days earlier.  He was stopped and waiting for almost two hours in the one-way construction zone in between Siguatepeque and Taulabé.  Two hours, just sitting there.  Waiting.  In your car.  No thanks.  And that was just on the way there.


On our way up to San Pedro, we had to wait for maybe 10 minutes.  On the way back, it was more like 20 or 25 minutes, but we still considered ourselves lucky.

From Comayagua, no matter which direction you drive, you are shortly in the mountains, since we sit in a valley.  Driving in the mountains, here, is so much different than in the States.  First, there's no guard rail.  Well, almost never.  Then, there's passing other vehicles.  Here, you pass on blind curves, just because you can.  Never mind if you can't see and it's only a two-lane highway, and there are big trucks and buses on the road, or that when you can see, two cars are coming straight at you.  You pass.  Never mind that you're in a construction zone and you have an eight inch drop off on one side of you, with no guard rail and a long way down the mountain. You pass.  Never mind that on the other side of the lane you have re-bar spikes sticking out of the raised lane, kind of like the chariot in "Ben Hur", ready to tear your tire and car to shreds. You pass.  Never mind that if the re-bar isn't sticking straight out from the concrete slab, it's sticking straight up like a villainous stop stick.  You pass.

Two-lane highway?  No such thing.  We all know that if there happen to be any lane markings on the highway, they are merely a suggestion and if 5 vehicles can all fit in that space, then so be it.  It's all about proving the laws of physics obsolete!  Two solid objects CAN, indeed, occupy the same space at the same time.  At least until such a time as one of them goes 'crunch'.  Yes, that happens a lot here, too.


So, yesterday we got to trust God to get us to San Pedro Sula and back.  Today, I got to learn more about trust by going to Tegucigalpa with Hermes.  More mountains, more turns, more twists, more physics-defying car passing!  But, apparently it all had a happy ending, because here I am, sitting home and writing about it.


 

Fresh Fruit Rulz...

Currie and Sandi (Samuel, too, of course) returned to Honduras yesterday.  They got back home to Comayagua just before 6pm.  Jenny and I were just finishing up our dinner, so we went out to greet them, help them unload about a million suitcases and just sit and talk.  It's amazing; they left here 6 1/2 weeks ago, with suitcases loaded with coffee and other things for friends and family in the States.  They returned with one more suitcase than they left with, and their suitcases were filled with food, gifts, and requested items for people here.  I think they even packed some clothes, but I can't be sure.

This morning I went over there about 9am or so and talked with Sandi for a while.  I was getting ready to walk down to the post office and wanted to see if she needed me to pick up anything while I was in the mercado.  Well, she needs lots of groceries, so she decided not to load me down with stuff since I would be en pie (on foot).  Then I had a great idea: I asked Sandi if Samuel might want to go with me.  I thought that would have a double benefit: get Samuel out of the house for a while while Sandi continued to unpack and get the family settled, plus, it would get Samuel a little exercise and fresh(?) air.

Within less than 200 yards of our walking, Samuel said, "Wow!  I think we're going to be walking for miles and miles today."  I told him that it would probably be about 3 miles, round trip.  When I told him that the post office was behind the cathedral, he thought we should be driving instead of walking.  But, I convinced him that the walk would be fun. I learned today that while I love to do it, Samuel thinks walking through the mercado is boring.


We arrived at Parque Central and looked at the Christmas tree that's been put up, then we went to go get something cold to drink.  Even at 10am it was pretty warm (80° or more) and very, very sunny.  So, I got us some drinks and then we went outside to sit at a table in the shade for a bit.  When we started to walk behind the cathedral toward the post office, we decided to go into the cathedral for a few minutes.  Then we were on our way.


I'm so glad I went to the post office today.  I got THREE Christmas cards, from the ladies in the Monday night Bible study in Lawrence, AND a package from Sharon.  That was so cool!  Samuel and I sat on the step outside the post office so that I could open my cards.  I decided not to open the package until we were back home.


On our way home, we stopped for some fruit at my friend Walter's stand.  I bought two sandias (watermelons) and some uvas (grapes).  Samuel started carrying one of the watermelons, but I knew that wouldn't last long.  It didn't.  Soon, I was carrying both sandias and the uvas, but I did have Samuel carry my package, since it wasn't too heavy.


Having such incredible fresh fruits and vegetables available is wonderful.  This afternoon, I devoured two mandarinas (tangerines).  Later tonight, fresh green beans are on the menu.  I don't know what's going with them, but I'll figure something out.  The sandias I bought?  I gave one to Sandi and have the other one here in the house.  I'm thinking, if it makes it that long, it might end up as jugo (juice).  That's if it doesn't get eaten before I get around to throwing it in the blender.  I had every intention of making licuados (smoothies) out of the cantelopes I've been buying.  Care to venture a guess as to how many cantelope licuados I've made?  That's right: exactly zero.  Somehow, the cantelope just doesn't seem to last that long.  Oh, I can hardly wait until mango season!!

I Wonder While I Walk...

OK, not really, but it kind of sounds like a Christmas Carol, right?

This morning, after my student didn't show up for our last day of class, I walked down to the post office.  I've been waiting for a letter from Mom.  It arrived sometime between my last visit on Friday and today.  It's amazing how exciting a letter can be.  Especially when it's got photos and even $5 in it.  Thanks, Mom!!

I always love walking through the mercado.  When the merchants see a gringa coming they seem to get more excitement and animation in their voices as they hawk their wares.  But, let's face it, just how exciting can they make cubitos (bullion cubes) or cinturóns (belts) sound?  After getting the mail, I stopped to buy some fruit.  I picked up a couple of mandarinas (tangerines) for 2 Lps each and then bought 3 minimos (bananas) for 1 Lp each.  From there I stopped by Walter's booth and bought 3 melones (cantelopes) for a total of 40 Lps.  So, for just less than $2.50 I have a nice pile of fruit for a day or two.

While walking back, I saw that one of my neighbors is doing some kind of addition to his house.  He had about 5 kids helping him.  I recognized one of them as a regular at the Center, so as I was walking by I stopped and commented that he had lots of assistants to help.  He said, "Yes, lots of help."  The boy who I recognized saw that I had a bag of melones and asked me for one.  Well, I decided I could part with a cantalope and asked him if he would share.  He said, "yes" and then started to take the melon.  The other kids started clamoring for one as well, and I told them that it was to share.  Then I cupped my hand to my ear, as if I was waiting to hear something.  The boy said, "thank you", and the man, who I think might be the boy's father, nodded approvingly at me for wanting a 'thank you'.  I think all the kids were pretty shocked that I would give them a melon.

Giving away the fruit may have been a mistake that will haunt me later.  It's entirely possible that every time I walk by with groceries the kids will ask me for something.  Still, I like to think that I was just being nice to the neighborhood kids.  Time will tell.

More Musings From the Road...

Out for another ride today... Ah, it really does feel good.  I saw more farm animals today than I have in a while.  On my first lap, toward the top of the boulevard, there was a cow in the road.  Some cars were honking at her and  I wondered if she was going to get hit.  Before I reached her, she made her way to the side of the road and was heading near some bags of what appeared to be trash.  So, a guy standing near the trash decided it would be best to keep her away from the trash.  He started waving her back out into the road.  Brilliant.  As I passed her, I thought she looked mighty uncomfortable.  She looked like her udders might burst at any second.  She was gone by my second lap.

Ah, the second lap.  It started out okay, but as I was returning, about halfway down the boulevard, I head a huge *BAM*.  Startled, I realized that I was the offender.  I had a rear blowout.  So, I started walking the bike because I knew that 'my mechanic' was a short way ahead.  I brought my bike in and when they started to work on it I saw that my back tire was completely torn apart.  OK, I guess I need to replace more than just the tube.  I picked out a tire, found out the cost of it and a tube, and then explained to the guy that I only had 60 Lps with me, but I could quickly return from Enlaces with the rest.  He seemed fine with that.  The total cost of repairs?  138 Lempiras, or $7.30.  So, with that, I came away with a new tire and tube.

I decided to keep on riding and I'm glad I did.  There were more farm animals to be seen.  On that third lap I looked up one side road and saw three horses, just standing there.  As I was on the backside of the loop, I had to slow down a bit to allow an oxen-drawn cart to cross the boulevard.  Yep, just an average day in Honduras.

Today I also realized why I had never noticed the old shack before:  at that point in each lap, I am usually looking up at a mountain ahead, mesmerized by the village that seemingly hangs on the side of it, hypnotized by the stark beauty of dirt roads that beg cars to defy gravity.  But today, I checked out the shack on three of my four laps.

In addition to garland around the door, there is an artificial tree on the porch.  Yes, it looks just barely better than Charlie Brown's tree, but it's out there with such pride, how can anyone not see how beautiful it is?  Today was also wash day for the woman of the house.  The laundry is all hung, inside out of course, on the line.  She even had four or five clothes pins available to hold some of the smaller items in place.  Yes, I like the shack.  Very much.

For the first time today, I noticed that there is a wooden cover over one of the sewer manholes.  I thought it was interesting that I hadn't seen it before.  So, then I started to look and see if there were any more.  Not that I've noticed so far, but let's see.

As I was riding, I saw beautiful coconut palms in front of dilapidated homes and thought of something Jenny told me this weekend.  She said that when her mom first visited Honduras, she said, "Um, this isn't quite the paradise that I pictured it would be from your description."  Yeah, I get it.  I'm sure it would be difficult for many to see the beauty through the trash, the richness through the poverty, the abundance through the need.  But, mark my words, it's there. 

Random Thoughts From a Bike Ride...

Today's post is a somewhat random collection of thoughts and musings that came to me while I was out riding this morning...  

Let me begin by saying that it's been a while (quite a while, if I'm totally honest) since I was out on my bike.  I was afraid that I would really suck wind today, but thankfully, I didn't.  In fact, the ride felt amazing and I fell in love with riding all over again!

On my very first lap I saw a dilapidated shack, someone's home, that was decorated with garland for Christmas.  How have I missed seeing that shack?  Yet, there it was, decorated and even the dirt in front of it was swept clean of trash.

I saw a group of about 8-10 vultures in the median and knew that they were gnawing on something.  That something turned out to be a dead dog.  My guess is that it got hit by a car.  It hadn't been there too long, but it was long enough for rigor to set in.  Is rigor a prerequisite for the vultures?

Fireworks stands are starting to appear.  This morning there were three of them set up in the lot that had the carnival about 6 or 7 weeks ago.  They'll be there until after the New Year, since Christmas and New Year's are two of the biggest nights for fireworks and firecrackers here.  Although, there are LOTS of lesser holidays and celebrations that call for firecrackers.  That also explains why I'm hearing so many more firecrackers being shot off by the neighborhood kids.

While riding I saw two ladies burning trash in front of their homes.  I guess they wanted to get it done early in the morning.

I was once again struck by the incredible beauty of this country.  The mountains are stark, harsh, unforgiving, but majestic.  And the people who eek out a living while living on those mountains are strong and proud.

Rules of the road are really just suggestions and mainly for sissies.  People on bikes ride wherever they want.  It doesn't really matter in which direction the cars are traveling, when you're on a bike, you ride: with traffic, against traffic, through traffic.  It's all good.

Cars are not much better.  Lane markings, if they exist, are followed optionally, as well.  Two lane roads often become three, sometimes four lanes. 

I noticed several Hondurans out jogging this morning, both men and women.  Perhaps that's because there's a gym at the end of the boulevard.

Then I saw a couple walking together, holding hands.  Not odd at all to see young people like that, but this couple was older, perhaps in their forties.  (Determining age is particularly difficult here because the hard lives they lead causes many to age prematurely.)

All in all, it was a good morning.  I'm glad I didn't succumb to the call of the snooze alarm (too much).  At noon, I'm meeting Hermes, Eunice, and a few others for lunch.  We're going to a Chinese restaurant that is right on the boulevard.  I'll walk over there and then after lunch, go talk to the folks in the shop next door.  I've been seriously thinking about buying a motorcycle, but just yesterday added a motor scooter to the mix.  There's a shop next to where we're having lunch that sells scooters and 4-wheelers.  I'll go check into the prices.

No Caves for Us...

Jenny, Mariel, her two boys and I tried to go to las cuevas de Taulabé yesterday.  I guess it wasn't meant to be, but we had a good day, anyway.  I told Mariel that we would be at her house at 8:30am to pick them up.  They were all waiting for us because Mariel said "They are North Americans and they will be on time."  HA!  I guess I'm becoming a good Honduran.  It was closer to 9:00am by the time we got there.  I had been on the phone, and the call took a little longer than I thought it would.  Oh well.  We weren't on any type of tight schedule.  We just needed to be back in Comayagua around 2:00pm so that Mariel could teach at 3:00.

After getting some gas, we were on our way.  The construction on the highway is really making good progress.  Shortly outside of Siguatepeque we ran into our first time to sit and wait while cars went through in the opposite direction.  That didn't really bother us.  Jenny had brought a Christmas CD and by that time we were rocking out to "Feliz Navidad".  It was a lot of fun. 

When we got to the caves, there was no one there and the place was all locked up.  We kept yelling for someone, but the only person who heard us was an old man who had been across the highway selling his wares.  He came over and told us that there was no one there.  That they "were voting".  Um, hello?  The elections were on Sunday, not Monday.  Anyway, we thanked the guy and continued to talk about breaking in.  None of us were serious, but it did make for some fun.

Back in the truck, Kevin (Mariel's 10-year-old son) said that we needed a sad song.  It just so happens that the CD Jenny had brought had Barbra Streisand's version of "My Favorite Things".  It's pretty sad in its own rite, but with my crying along with it, well, it was an absolute tearjerker.

Before reaching Siguat again, we stopped and bought a big sack of oranges.  The guy said there were 90 in each sack and the cost was 80 Lps., which is about  $4.25US.  We also stopped and had lunch at Wendy's in Siguat, which was a huge hit with Saul (3-years-old) and Kevin.  After lunch, on our way back to Comayagua, we played "I spy" with Kevin, in English.  It was a great chance for him to have fun and practice his English at the same time.

So, even though we didn't actually get IN to the caves, here are two pics NEAR the caves... 

Is my sad face convincing?  Next time, we're going to bring a ladder in case we need to jump the fence.

Elections...

Honduras held its elections today.  The day has been peaceful and violence-free, which is a tremendous answer to prayer.  Mel Zelaya, the former (ousted) president, had been trying to stir up his supporters, to boycott the elections and inciting them to violence.  It looks like his efforts failed.  According to early results, Pepe Lobo, the guy from the Nationalist party, is leading so far.  Final results won't be in until Wednesday -- or so I'm told.

This afternoon I needed to go over to the Esso for some Coca Cola.  The highway was quite empty.  Not as completely empty as during the toque de queda, though.  I was very aware of the peaceful feeling of the nation.  It was palpable as I walked back across the street to Enlaces.

Because of the elections, groups were not allowed to meet.  That meant churches as well as university classes that are usually held on Sundays.  So, instead of church, the pastor and his family came over here for lunch after they voted.  Antonio and Esperanza are Jenny's future in-laws, too.  We all had a great time, and a great meal of fish, baked potatoes, and green beans.  Brownies and ice cream for dessert rounded out the meal.

Jenny doesn't have school tomorrow, because of today's elections, so we're going to visit las cuevas de Taulabe (the caves of Taulabe). Mariel and her boys are going to join us.  It should be a lot of fun.  It's been about 13 years since I've been to the caves.  I'm also going to show them the mission there where I first came, back in 1995.  Yes, I'll have the camera with me.

Christmas. Celebrate Different©...

First, for all of you grammar buffs, you and I both know that it should be 'celebrate differently', but that's my wink and nod to Apple and their brilliant marketing campaign of several years ago.  Hence, the copyright symbol.

Now, the Christmas season is upon us.  It never ceases to amaze me how Christmas items make their way to store shelves earlier and earlier each year.  When I was very young, Christmas didn't arrive in the stores until the day after Thanksgiving, and that day wasn't yet called Black Friday.  Then a few years later, Christmas was on the shelves a week or two before Thanksgiving.  Fast forward a few years and Christmas made its entrance immediately after Halloween.  Now, Christmas arrives before Halloween.  I'm sure that, soon, we'll be able to do our Back to School and Christmas shopping all in one trip.  I mean, surely that will save time, no?  

This will be the second Christmas that I've spent in Honduras.  I love the way Honduras celebrate the holiday because it focuses so much more on family and friends than gifts and overspending.  And, frankly, since I no longer have a job that would allow me to overspend, I'm grateful!  I'm already looking forward to finding ways that I can bless my friends here.  Perhaps invite them over for a meal.  Maybe some homemade bread or a pot of soup?  I'm praying for creativity, that's for sure!

One of my Facebook friends posted this link...  http://tiny.cc/wearepregnant  Watch it and be challenged to perhaps change some (or even just one) of the ways that you celebrate Christmas.  Really, the HolyDay is all about Jesus, anyway. Right?

So, with that, I say Celebrate Different©

Julio...

Tonight I met Julio.  He works with Jenny and drove her home after a meeting at their school.  Nice guy!  He speaks English quite well.  I'm glad he does because, boy, did he tell us quite a story.  It seems that about 4 years ago, Julio decided that he would go to the United States to get a job.  Nope, he didn't plan on going there legally.  He figured he'd do what so many others have done: go wetback.

As Julio continued his story, Jenny and I were both intrigued.  He told us how he left a note in his room, knowing that his friends would find it long before his mother would know he was missing.  Julio told us about walking through the mountains, across the Honduras/Guatemala and then the Guatemala/Mexico borders.  They walked through torrential downpours so hard that you had to hold on to the person in front of you or you'd quickly get lost.  Julio told us about walking day after day for 20 hours each day, just to make progress.

Jenny and I sat at the table in rapt attention as Julio told us the story of a young girl from San Pedro Sula who joined them on their journey.  The girl was 17 years old and 6+ months pregnant when they started out.  It turns out that this girl's baby was fathered by a gang member who told her to get an abortion and that if she had the baby, he'd kill her.  So she did the only thing she thought she could: leave the country.  Julio told us that once they were in Mexico, they had been walking for several of their 20-hour days with no breaks.  They came upon a small village and found an abandoned shack where they decided to get some sleep for a while.  Julio said that most of the others fell asleep right away, but he couldn't, because of the thickness of the mosquitoes.

After a while, he heard that the girl was crying and rubbing her belly.  Julio knew that wasn't good, so he sat next to her and started to talk to her to try to help take her mind off of the pain.  When it was light enough, Julio and the girl's brother, who was also traveling with her, went out to look for someone who might be able to help.  They happened upon an old woman, living with "many animals; many, many animals", as Julio said.  They told the old woman what was happening to the girl and were instructed to bring her to the old woman's home, which they did.

Yes, you probably guessed it: the girl had gone into premature labor.  Julio and the girl's brother got to assist in the baby boy's delivery, which freaked out Julio so much that he bolted during the delivery.  When he finally went back inside, after the screaming subsided and he decided that it was safe, Julio was soundly insulted by the old woman for "being such a wuss".  (That's my paraphrase, as I don't want to write the truly colorful words that Julio used.)  Since the baby arrived roughly two months early, the old woman rigged up a type of incubator and told the girl and her brother that "her work was done, and now they needed to find someone who could take care of the baby."

The old woman, it turns out, was 98 years old, and well known in her small village as being the only one who could have helped in this situation.  Wow!  Talk about God's mercy!  After that, the brother found some sort of social service agency that was going to help with the baby and his care.  Julio didn't see them again, as he continued on with the group while the girl, her baby, and her brother stayed behind in Mexico.

While they were in Mexico, they jumped trains several times.  Julio told us of the banditos who would rob them, or try to rob them.  He also told of one village which, as the train was passing through, people from the village would come out and give food to the people who had jumped the train, encouraging them on in their journey to the U.S.

For the sake of brevity, I'll jump to the end:  Yes, Julio was caught.  He was in Texas and had been without food or water for almost a full day.  Most of his traveling companions had been caught the day before, but somehow Julio had managed to outrun his pursuers.  When he came out of hiding, he was turned in by someone who had seemingly befriended him.

To hear Julio tell it, he was treated quite well by the police and INS. He tried to pass himself off as Mexican, so that he would only be sent back to the town he was claiming to be from.  He had even spent quite a bit of time while still in Honduras doing his homework: he knew many of the Mexican presidents, knew about the various Mexican states, learned regional words and phrases, and even learned to sing the Mexican national anthem.

During his time in custody, Julio was interviewed by a Mexican to determine if he was really from Mexico.  The guy told Julio that he had all the right answers, but he still didn't believe that Julio was from Mexico. It was only while they were searching through his backpack that the officials found a piece of clothing that linked him to Honduras.  Looks like it's "game over".  So, Julio was eventually flown back to Tegucigalpa, Honduras.  He once again lives here in Comayagua with his family.  Julio has a good job as a teacher, has a small side business repairing computers and has even been able to buy a car for himself.  It looks like even without getting to the U.S., Julio is doing alright.

But, wow, it was a crazy story to hear.  I suspect that Julio will come for dinner again.  In fact, we'll probably make sure of it.

Sunday, Again...

Wow!  Has it really been a whole week since I've written?  I've GOT to do a better job at updating this or no one will read it... not that I know how many are actually reading it now.  But, I like to write, so I'll continue.

Friday was graduation for the school.  It was incredible!  We had it at the Campo de Golf (golf course), so they took care of most of the decorations and such.  I'm sure that was a huge help to so many of the teachers!  Graduation was for prepa (kindergarten) and 6th grade.  For graduation, everyone dresses to the nines.  I mean, really, really dresses up.  Seeing formal gowns on both parents and students is not at all unusual -- for the females, at least.  Many of the men are in suits and ties.  It's really a big deal here.

Here's one proud family...

See what I mean?  All dressed up!!

The prepa children sang "I Am a Promise" in English, and here they are while they're getting ready to sing...

After the ceremony, we had a wonderful dinner.  It was fantastic to see all the proud parents, and all the smiles!

I left the Campo a little before 9pm and all was going well until I got stopped by the police on the boulevard.  I was only about 1/2 mile from home.  Road blocks and routine checks are, well, pretty routine here.  Although, with the election being a week away, it seems that there are a lot more of them set up lately.  I asked Hermes about that, and he confirmed that there are defnitely more right now.  I think the government is really stepping up to make sure that things stay on the up and up for the election. 

Anyway, I got pulled over... So, the guy who stepped up to my window wasn't a policeman, but Honduran military.  "Documentos, por favor," he said.  I reached into my purse, got out my wallet and gave the guy my Kansas driver's license.  I've learned that during these stops it's important to not show how much Spanish you know, so I struggled through saying, "This is my driver's license."  Then I apologized, slowly, and with some purposeful mistakes, that I don't speak Spanish very well.  Yeah, I know... Weak.  But, it's seemed to alleviate problems in the past, and I so no reason to discontinue the practice now.

Then the guy asked for my registro, and I looked in the glove box, but only found some cables for phones or something.  I told the guy that I live at "Enlaces, enfrente de Pizza Hut."  But he said he needed my documents.  I told him that the car wasn't mine, but belonged to the ministry.  About that time, Hector & Sandra went by me, slowed down when they saw me talking to the military guy, and pulled a bit further in front of me.  It was then that they got pulled over for a check as well.  As Hector & Sandra passed, I said, "I work with them  at Enlaces."

Well, I guess the guy realized that I'm not much of a threat to national security, because he gave me my license back, to which I replied, "¿Todo está bien? (Is everything okay?)"  "Sí.  Todo está bien.  (Yes.  Everything's fine.)"  Sometimes it's a good thing to not let on how much of the language you know or understand!!

As I passed Hector & Sandra, I gave them a 'thumbs up' and then I pulled a little bit ahead of them, to wait and make sure they were fine.

While driving the last little way home, it dawned on me how natural the whole transaction seemed.  No, I don't necessarily like being pulled over, but it's just something that happens here.  A lot.  Heck, I've even learned how to bribe police, I mean, "pay the ticket today, to you, so that I don't have to come back later."

Thank you, Lord, for your continued, ongoing protection!!