A few weeks ago Honduras was experiencing burning season, when fires fill the forests and fields(both man- and mother nature- created), and therefore fill our skies with smoke. So for about a month, the skies were full of smoke. It burned my eyes. And caused a major allergy flare-up. But then we got a few days of rain and it ceased. Finally.
But now, the skies are filled with something else. Bugs. Big, flying bugs. A fellow blogger wrote about these bugs in her town of Gracias, Honduras last week. I was praying we wouldn't experience them here. But here they are.
The sky is full of the palomillas (say pah-low-mEE-yahs). They are evidently a sign of the coming rainy season. They fly around until they land (not sure how long this takes) and their wings fall off and they cover everything as nasty, dying worms. Yuck. Thank God we have screens and they aren't covering my furniture like Faith's house!
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
the sweet things that husbands do
My husband is not romantic. But sometimes, on very rare occasions, he does something so thoughtful and unexpected that it just makes my heart melt.
On Tuesday when Paige and I left for our adventure, we had to be at the bus station at 5:00 am. I don't have a car. So Jose, who doesn't have to wake up until 7 to get ready for work, took us to the bus station. At 4:50 am. He dropped us off and said he would wait to make sure we could buy tickets. I told him he didn't have to wait and to go home and go back to sleep before he had to work. So he left. He called me 10 minutes later when he got home, "Did you get the tickets? Everything's ok?" I said yes, but I had just realized I left my pillow at home.
You really need a pillow on three 8 hour bus trips. He said not to worry that they would give me a pillow on the bus. I told him I hadn't realized that and ok, to go back to sleep and Paige and I were fine.
About 15 minutes later, he calls again. "Come outside." I go outside, and there he is, with pillow in hand. "I realized that you only get a pillow if you ride first class, and since you aren't, I brought you this."
Awwww.
On Tuesday when Paige and I left for our adventure, we had to be at the bus station at 5:00 am. I don't have a car. So Jose, who doesn't have to wake up until 7 to get ready for work, took us to the bus station. At 4:50 am. He dropped us off and said he would wait to make sure we could buy tickets. I told him he didn't have to wait and to go home and go back to sleep before he had to work. So he left. He called me 10 minutes later when he got home, "Did you get the tickets? Everything's ok?" I said yes, but I had just realized I left my pillow at home.
You really need a pillow on three 8 hour bus trips. He said not to worry that they would give me a pillow on the bus. I told him I hadn't realized that and ok, to go back to sleep and Paige and I were fine.
About 15 minutes later, he calls again. "Come outside." I go outside, and there he is, with pillow in hand. "I realized that you only get a pillow if you ride first class, and since you aren't, I brought you this."
Awwww.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Honduras, not a What but a Where
"I live in Honduras," I explained to the operator at Toyota Financial.
"Honduras? WHAT is that?" she asked.
"WHAT is it? It's a country...in Central America," I replied.
"Oh, do they, like, have a different kind of money over there?"
oh.my.gosh. I mean, really?
"Honduras? WHAT is that?" she asked.
"WHAT is it? It's a country...in Central America," I replied.
"Oh, do they, like, have a different kind of money over there?"
oh.my.gosh. I mean, really?
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Word of the Day Wednesday
Mochilero (say mOH-chee-lEH-rOH)
Translation: backpacker
For some reason, this word also makes me giggle. Backpack in Spanish is mochila, so it's literally translated into "backpack-er." I'm not sure why this is so amusing, since it's exactly the same in English. But, it is.
Translation: backpacker
For some reason, this word also makes me giggle. Backpack in Spanish is mochila, so it's literally translated into "backpack-er." I'm not sure why this is so amusing, since it's exactly the same in English. But, it is.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Paige & Hannah's Honduran Adventure
Paige came to visit last week. And we had so. much. fun.
She arrived on Saturday afternoon, and we spent the afternoon running a few errands and getting my house ready for my small birthday party. The party started around 8 or 9, and we socialized all night. The next morning we went on our first adventure, to the national basilica.
So we trekked to the basilica, walked through the cemetery, and then visited the inside of the basilica. But not before Paige got to try bagged water for the first time. !! She was just as excited as I was the first time I drank water from a bag, haha.
On Monday, we made a day trip to Comayagua because Jose had to go there for work. We visited the "oldest clock in the Americas," toured the museum, and then had a couple of beers while we waited for Jose to finish working.
Our original plan was to spend time going to the little towns around Tegus, like Valle de Angeles and Comayagua, until Thursday when we would Roatan for a few days. Well, we randomly changed our minds on Monday evening and I decided that she had to see Copan Ruinas while she was here.
So Tuesday morning, we caught the 5:45 am Hedman Alas bus to San Pedro Sula. We had a "layover" in the bus station for an hour, and then took the bus to Copan Ruinas. The whole trip, including the layover, was 8 hours. Cost: L. 475 ($25)
We stayed in one of the cutest hotels in Copan Ruinas. The original plan was to stay at Hacienda San Lucas, because my in-laws know the owner. But the hotel was closed and the owner recommended Yat B'alam. And boy am I glad she did! It was adorable. And better yet, had the BEST customer service I have ever experienced in Honduras. If you go to Copan Ruinas, you MUST stay at the Yat B'alam (around $75/night)! Tell Rina, the owner, that I sent you! :) She is one of the nicest people I've met here, and the customer service from her and all of her staff exceeded my expectations. She even made the reservation for us to go to the hot springs!!
We spent Tuesday afternoon exploring the little town. In the evening, we had a few too many rum teas, and then decided it was a good idea to buy some Salva Vidas (Honduran beer) to drink on the balcony of our hotel. After we drank those, we decided to go have some more at a little bar around the corner. Let's just say that the night ended with some strange pictures (like, of our feet and stuff), haha, and me threatening to stab someone with a broken beer bottle (I wasn't serious, though, haha) because he made fun of my accent. Ah, it was fun.
The next morning, we made it out of bed without a serious hangover, and headed to the ruins. We used a guide (worth every penny!) and finished in under 2 hours. THEN, we headed to the hot springs. This is the greatest part of Copan Ruinas (besides the Yat B'alam, of course).
You can pay a tour company to take you for around $30/pp. At first, I thought it was going to be a rip off. But in the end I learned why it costs so much...
The springs are about a 45 minute drive from Copan Ruinas, on a dirt road. Then to get into the "spa" portion of the springs, it costs $10. So you are basically paying $10 to get there, $10 to get in, and $10 to get back.
It's one of the coolest things in Honduras that I've seen so far. :) It's a natural hot spring, and someone, ingeniously, went in and built small pools and set up "spa" stations. There is a little area for a mineral mud bath, where you rub mud all over yourself and then soak in the warm water of the pool. Then you slowly move up the hill, as the pools get hotter and hotter (getting closer to the source of the hot water). There is a "hidro massage" area where the hot water pours from a small waterfall and you stand under it. And the whole thing is very secluded. It's like a spa treatment in the middle of the jungle. Ahhh, it was super relaxing.
Paige left the next day, :(, to go back to Kentucky. Even though her trip was short, it was so nice to have her here and go on an adventure with her. Come back again soon, Paige!!
She arrived on Saturday afternoon, and we spent the afternoon running a few errands and getting my house ready for my small birthday party. The party started around 8 or 9, and we socialized all night. The next morning we went on our first adventure, to the national basilica.
So we trekked to the basilica, walked through the cemetery, and then visited the inside of the basilica. But not before Paige got to try bagged water for the first time. !! She was just as excited as I was the first time I drank water from a bag, haha.
On Monday, we made a day trip to Comayagua because Jose had to go there for work. We visited the "oldest clock in the Americas," toured the museum, and then had a couple of beers while we waited for Jose to finish working.
Our original plan was to spend time going to the little towns around Tegus, like Valle de Angeles and Comayagua, until Thursday when we would Roatan for a few days. Well, we randomly changed our minds on Monday evening and I decided that she had to see Copan Ruinas while she was here.
So Tuesday morning, we caught the 5:45 am Hedman Alas bus to San Pedro Sula. We had a "layover" in the bus station for an hour, and then took the bus to Copan Ruinas. The whole trip, including the layover, was 8 hours. Cost: L. 475 ($25)
We stayed in one of the cutest hotels in Copan Ruinas. The original plan was to stay at Hacienda San Lucas, because my in-laws know the owner. But the hotel was closed and the owner recommended Yat B'alam. And boy am I glad she did! It was adorable. And better yet, had the BEST customer service I have ever experienced in Honduras. If you go to Copan Ruinas, you MUST stay at the Yat B'alam (around $75/night)! Tell Rina, the owner, that I sent you! :) She is one of the nicest people I've met here, and the customer service from her and all of her staff exceeded my expectations. She even made the reservation for us to go to the hot springs!!
We spent Tuesday afternoon exploring the little town. In the evening, we had a few too many rum teas, and then decided it was a good idea to buy some Salva Vidas (Honduran beer) to drink on the balcony of our hotel. After we drank those, we decided to go have some more at a little bar around the corner. Let's just say that the night ended with some strange pictures (like, of our feet and stuff), haha, and me threatening to stab someone with a broken beer bottle (I wasn't serious, though, haha) because he made fun of my accent. Ah, it was fun.
The next morning, we made it out of bed without a serious hangover, and headed to the ruins. We used a guide (worth every penny!) and finished in under 2 hours. THEN, we headed to the hot springs. This is the greatest part of Copan Ruinas (besides the Yat B'alam, of course).
You can pay a tour company to take you for around $30/pp. At first, I thought it was going to be a rip off. But in the end I learned why it costs so much...
The springs are about a 45 minute drive from Copan Ruinas, on a dirt road. Then to get into the "spa" portion of the springs, it costs $10. So you are basically paying $10 to get there, $10 to get in, and $10 to get back.
It's one of the coolest things in Honduras that I've seen so far. :) It's a natural hot spring, and someone, ingeniously, went in and built small pools and set up "spa" stations. There is a little area for a mineral mud bath, where you rub mud all over yourself and then soak in the warm water of the pool. Then you slowly move up the hill, as the pools get hotter and hotter (getting closer to the source of the hot water). There is a "hidro massage" area where the hot water pours from a small waterfall and you stand under it. And the whole thing is very secluded. It's like a spa treatment in the middle of the jungle. Ahhh, it was super relaxing.
After that was over, we went back to the Yat B'alan and relaxed for the evening.
The next day, we got up and took the 5:15 AM bus to La Ceiba. It was another 8 hour trip (with a 1-2 hour layover in San Pedro Sula). Total cost, L. 475. We arrived in La Ceiba and then took the 4:30 pm ferry to Roatan. By the time we arrived in Roatan, we were exhausted! (Ferry cost, L. 524.)
Nonetheless, we went out and had a drink with my friends that live on the island. Then we went back to their house and crashed. The next morning, we headed to the beaches early. My friends live in West End, so we took a water taxi to West Bay where the nicer beaches are.
It was paradise, as usual. We took the transparent canoes out to see the coral like Jose and I did last time, and we loved it. It was all fun and good, except for when we went home and realized we were extremely sunburnt. So we called it an early night again, and crashed.
The next day, we took the 7 am ferry back to La Ceiba (cost, L. 500), and then took the bus from Ceiba to San Pedro, and took another bus from San Pedro to Tegucigalpa (total cost, L. 475). It was a lot of exhausting travel, but so worth it for Paige to be able to see so much of Honduras!
The only bad part of the trip was when we were on our way back to Tegus. We got stuck in traffic, in the same spot, for 4 hours because of a wreck. We were both losing our minds what with the man next to us listening to the soccer game, without headphones, and the crying baby. Eventually some idiot gave the baby a whistle, so instead of crying we had to listen to it blow the effing whistle for hours on end. There were some threats by Paige to sacrifice the baby to the traffic gods. Thank goodness it didn't come to that. We made it back, safe and sane, in 8 hours on what should have been a 4 hour trip from SPS to Tegus.
Paige left the next day, :(, to go back to Kentucky. Even though her trip was short, it was so nice to have her here and go on an adventure with her. Come back again soon, Paige!!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Charlie's Adventure to Honduras
Charlie is here!
He left Kentucky on April 21st.
This is a picture of him checking in at the airport in Louisville, KY.
My mom said everyone with Continental at the airport was really nice and they seemed very concerned for Charlie's well being.
He left Louisville on a 2 hour flight to Houston, spent the night, and the next morning took another 2 hour flight to Tegucigalpa on April 22nd.
When I arrived at the airport, I was told to head to the baggage claim area. Since I wasn't a passenger, I couldn't enter the area. I found a security guard and explained my situation. He found a customs agent for me. He said, "Yes, your dog is there, and he's been so good! He's very tranquilo and is just laying down in his cage." I thought, "Did my parents send me the right dog? There's no way he's just chilling in his cage. He's probably growling at everyone." Haha. The agent told me I would have to wait outside the baggage claim area until all of the passengers had cleared out. Then they would bring Charlie to me. I waited patiently, almost crying I was so excited, for 20 minutes. The agent came back outside and chatted with me for a while. He was suuuper nice. He saw how anxious I was, and so he took me to the security office where they let me have a security pass for me to go into the baggage claim area. When I got into the baggage claim area, Charlie's cage was waiting by the carousel. I ran up to the cage, with tears streaming down my face, and squealed "Baaaaaby dog! Charlie dog!!!" He started going crazy and was crying to be let out of the cage. I wanted to let him out, but I could smell the urine from 10 feet away so I knew he was probably covered in it.
I had to sign some papers, and pay a L. 50 fee (about $2.50) and then one of the workers carried the cage out to the car for me on a dolly.
When we got to the apartment, I prepared everything to give him a bath before I took him out of the cage. I turned on the water, got the towels and shampoo. When everything was ready, I cut the zip ties on the cage, pulled him out, and ran to the shower with him. The whole bottom part of his body was covered in pee. Nasty. :-/ While we were in the shower, he started gulping the water from the floor of the shower. I swear I think he drank like 2 gallons of water. He acted like he hadn't had anything to drink all day.
When Charlie gets a bath, he generally likes to run all over the house rubbing his whole body on the area rugs (at my parent's house). But in our apartment, we didn't have any big area rugs. So he just rubbed his body all over the ceramic floor. Haha.
About 10 minutes later he found the small rug in the kitchen and rubbed his body all over that.
Then he found the welcome mat, and rubbed his body all over that.
There was wet dog hair everywhere. What a mess!
After he was done "drying" himself, he walked around the entire apartment sniffing of everything. And everytime he heard someone outside in the hallway, he would growl. You see, he had been living in the states with my parents for almost 9 months, and they live in the country where he didn't see a lot of cars or hear a lot of noise. So when he got to our apartment, he was so confused about all of the noise...the cars outside, the neighbors walking up and down the hallway.
He was so confused and nervous, that he followed me everywhere. He was always behind me no matter where I went or what I was doing, just looking at me, like, "Mom, where are we? What are these strange smells? What is that noise outside?" It was adorable. :)
After we had bonded for a little while, I "unpacked" his things. My mom had packed his leash and collar, puppy training pads, and a note in a plastic bag that was taped to the top of the cage. The note explained Charlie's personality, haha, and the times to feed him, etc. She also handwrote a message on the side, explaining to the workers, that Charlie would enter his cage if you just told him, "Bedtime Charlie."
So that's the story of his adventure. :)
He has been here for over 2 weeks now, and he seems very happy. We moved to a new house with a yard, so there is a place for him to go to the bathroom. He likes to guard the house too. He barks at all of the neighbors when they walk by the front of our house. Our neighbor has a guard dog outside, and they have chatted a few times with each other over the wall.
The first few days in the new house we had a few workers there finishing things up. Charlie did not like them, and followed them around growling and trying to bite their heels. It was very funny. :)
Last week I took Charlie to meet my in-law's guard dog Muñeca. I was really hoping they would be friends. But Muñeca is so crazy jealous of Charlie that she barks and growls and foams at the mouth when she sees him. And Charlie just stands there and looks at her through the fence and growls back. So I don't think they're going to be friends. :(
Sometimes I bring him to the store with me if I know I will be here all day. He likes to sit at the door and watch all of the people walk by. He's sort of famous in this commercial center now. ;) When I don't bring him to work with me, people ask me where he is. It's because he's so darn cute. That or it's because people think it's weird that I bring a dog to work with me. Haha.
On Sunday we went to the country house in Valle de Angeles so he could run around. He tried to kill one of the guard's chickens, and in the process, got tons of cockaburrs caught in his fur. The cockaburrs here are so big that I could not pull them out, so I had to cut big chunks of his fur out. Now one ear looks longer than the other, hehe, and he looks ridiculous. But I told him that's what he gets for chasing the chickens. ;)
So, that's what we've been doing the last couple of weeks. So far everything is great. He loves being here with his mommy ;), and I loved having him here with me!
He left Kentucky on April 21st.
This is a picture of him checking in at the airport in Louisville, KY.
My mom said everyone with Continental at the airport was really nice and they seemed very concerned for Charlie's well being.
He left Louisville on a 2 hour flight to Houston, spent the night, and the next morning took another 2 hour flight to Tegucigalpa on April 22nd.
When I arrived at the airport, I was told to head to the baggage claim area. Since I wasn't a passenger, I couldn't enter the area. I found a security guard and explained my situation. He found a customs agent for me. He said, "Yes, your dog is there, and he's been so good! He's very tranquilo and is just laying down in his cage." I thought, "Did my parents send me the right dog? There's no way he's just chilling in his cage. He's probably growling at everyone." Haha. The agent told me I would have to wait outside the baggage claim area until all of the passengers had cleared out. Then they would bring Charlie to me. I waited patiently, almost crying I was so excited, for 20 minutes. The agent came back outside and chatted with me for a while. He was suuuper nice. He saw how anxious I was, and so he took me to the security office where they let me have a security pass for me to go into the baggage claim area. When I got into the baggage claim area, Charlie's cage was waiting by the carousel. I ran up to the cage, with tears streaming down my face, and squealed "Baaaaaby dog! Charlie dog!!!" He started going crazy and was crying to be let out of the cage. I wanted to let him out, but I could smell the urine from 10 feet away so I knew he was probably covered in it.
I had to sign some papers, and pay a L. 50 fee (about $2.50) and then one of the workers carried the cage out to the car for me on a dolly.
When we got to the apartment, I prepared everything to give him a bath before I took him out of the cage. I turned on the water, got the towels and shampoo. When everything was ready, I cut the zip ties on the cage, pulled him out, and ran to the shower with him. The whole bottom part of his body was covered in pee. Nasty. :-/ While we were in the shower, he started gulping the water from the floor of the shower. I swear I think he drank like 2 gallons of water. He acted like he hadn't had anything to drink all day.
When Charlie gets a bath, he generally likes to run all over the house rubbing his whole body on the area rugs (at my parent's house). But in our apartment, we didn't have any big area rugs. So he just rubbed his body all over the ceramic floor. Haha.
About 10 minutes later he found the small rug in the kitchen and rubbed his body all over that.
Then he found the welcome mat, and rubbed his body all over that.
There was wet dog hair everywhere. What a mess!
After he was done "drying" himself, he walked around the entire apartment sniffing of everything. And everytime he heard someone outside in the hallway, he would growl. You see, he had been living in the states with my parents for almost 9 months, and they live in the country where he didn't see a lot of cars or hear a lot of noise. So when he got to our apartment, he was so confused about all of the noise...the cars outside, the neighbors walking up and down the hallway.
He was so confused and nervous, that he followed me everywhere. He was always behind me no matter where I went or what I was doing, just looking at me, like, "Mom, where are we? What are these strange smells? What is that noise outside?" It was adorable. :)
After we had bonded for a little while, I "unpacked" his things. My mom had packed his leash and collar, puppy training pads, and a note in a plastic bag that was taped to the top of the cage. The note explained Charlie's personality, haha, and the times to feed him, etc. She also handwrote a message on the side, explaining to the workers, that Charlie would enter his cage if you just told him, "Bedtime Charlie."
So that's the story of his adventure. :)
He has been here for over 2 weeks now, and he seems very happy. We moved to a new house with a yard, so there is a place for him to go to the bathroom. He likes to guard the house too. He barks at all of the neighbors when they walk by the front of our house. Our neighbor has a guard dog outside, and they have chatted a few times with each other over the wall.
The first few days in the new house we had a few workers there finishing things up. Charlie did not like them, and followed them around growling and trying to bite their heels. It was very funny. :)
Last week I took Charlie to meet my in-law's guard dog Muñeca. I was really hoping they would be friends. But Muñeca is so crazy jealous of Charlie that she barks and growls and foams at the mouth when she sees him. And Charlie just stands there and looks at her through the fence and growls back. So I don't think they're going to be friends. :(
Sometimes I bring him to the store with me if I know I will be here all day. He likes to sit at the door and watch all of the people walk by. He's sort of famous in this commercial center now. ;) When I don't bring him to work with me, people ask me where he is. It's because he's so darn cute. That or it's because people think it's weird that I bring a dog to work with me. Haha.
On Sunday we went to the country house in Valle de Angeles so he could run around. He tried to kill one of the guard's chickens, and in the process, got tons of cockaburrs caught in his fur. The cockaburrs here are so big that I could not pull them out, so I had to cut big chunks of his fur out. Now one ear looks longer than the other, hehe, and he looks ridiculous. But I told him that's what he gets for chasing the chickens. ;)
So, that's what we've been doing the last couple of weeks. So far everything is great. He loves being here with his mommy ;), and I loved having him here with me!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Word of the Day Wednesday
Feliz Dia de la Madre!
Happy Mother's day!
Let's break this one down:
(say
f-EH-leez
d-EE-ah
dEH
lAH
mAHd-rEH)
Mother's Day is coming up! Sadly, I won't get to spend it with my mom :( because she's experiencing her own adventure over in Costa Rica, where she's currently in language school learning Spanish.
So this post is for her. ;) Feliz Dia de la Madre, Mom!
Happy Mother's day!
Let's break this one down:
(say
f-EH-leez
d-EE-ah
dEH
lAH
mAHd-rEH)
Mother's Day is coming up! Sadly, I won't get to spend it with my mom :( because she's experiencing her own adventure over in Costa Rica, where she's currently in language school learning Spanish.
So this post is for her. ;) Feliz Dia de la Madre, Mom!
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