9/28/2006

Reason # 371


Reason # 371 of why I love Honduras.

Amazing off-brand knock-offs.....like this one.

9/22/2006

What I Really Did in San Salvador

Jen and I knew the bus left from the Mariott Hotel at 6:15, and yet we thought that yeah, we could leave at 5:30, even though we usually take 45 minutes to get there, and yet
we still had to check in, check our passports, and get in the bus. So we sit out in front of the gates, after waking up at 4:30 a.m., waiting for our friend to pick us up to take us down the mountain since no buses or taxis can be found anywhere near us at that time(By the way, this is what we look like at daybreak.)Our friend is 15 minutes late. We are definitely feeling the stress, but somehow we managed to get there in 15 minutes, which was amazing. There was no traffic, no cows in the road, and needless to say we were pretty much flying down the mountain. I probably would have been more nervous about driving, but our driver grew up here and so I just went with it.

We got on the bus with time to spare, and about 4 hours later we arrived at the border. One of the excitements about this trip was the thought of getting another stamp on my passport, but when the immigration official just barely glanced at my passport, I asked him why I didn't get a stamp. For some reason, you don't receive a stamp between Honduras and El Salvador, but you do if you're from Guatemala, Belize, Nicaragua, or any other country for that matter. I think its because where we crossed over the residents are given dual-citizenship that resulted from a land settlement in a peace agreement. El Salvador gave over part of its land to Honduras, so it means that I don't have another stamp. What I do have though, is a stamp that says "Please sign here" that's used for letters to parents, which is now in my passport with the name El Salvador on the line.

Through the drive I could tell we were descending in height because it began to get more and more humid as well as more and more tropical. After checking into our AMAZING hotel (hard life I live, right?) Jen and I walked to a restaurant and had a great little meal, and were able to pay for it in dollars. About 4 years ago, El Salvador adopted the dollar as their national currency, probably to increase tourism and money from the U.S., so I felt like I was reacquainted with old friends, George and Lincoln.

Part of the nervousness and excitement in this trip had to deal with the fact that I was doing it on my own. I feel like I have done quite a bit so far in my life, but up until this point I feel like this trip was probably my most adventurous. Since I have been in Honduras, I have done quite a bit with my roommate, who has been here for awhile and is fluent. True, I can do quite a bit myself, but I've pretty much had her as a crutch. When people speak too fast, she can translate. When we're walking around and I have no idea where I am, she knows. But on this trip, it was only my friend Jen and I going, and we both have about the same language skills. So, I suppose it could have been a really bad idea, but fortunately we were given the names of several people who were related to friends we have here, so if we got into a bind we could always call them. I must say though, that I am feeling so great about the skills and my ability to make it on my own.

After being in Tegus for awhile now, Jen and I couldn't help but notice the lack of people and cars out on the street. In fact, it was almost eerily empty, so Jen and I figured that all the people must be in El Centro with some kind of big Dia de Independencia celebration. So we whipped out our map, found out which street we were on (which is also a new concept because none of the streets in Tegus are named) and started walking. We were quite a distance from El Centro, but the area of town we were in was pretty snazzy, and since we were white we did not want to catch a taxi there because we would be ripped off. We saw a park not too far away, and figured we could catch one there. We got to the park, and thought that we should keep walking because not too far away there was a really cool looking cathedral. We got to the cathedral and kept on walking, and 6 miles later we arrived in El Centro.

So, I was feeling pretty good about that, not getting lost and all. Then, Jen and I bought hammocks after haggling with street vendors in Spanish (major proud moment), and we managed to ask someone in spanish where to catch a taxi back to our hotel (once again, in Spanish). We found out that you can't just hop into a taxi and tell the driver where to go like you can in Honduras, because supposedly there are a lot of "fake" taxis in San Salvador. We then asked where to catch a bus, and we found that without any hang-ups, got on the right one, and made our way back to the hotel. By ourselves. Without a bi-lingual crutch. I was so stinkin' proud of myself.

The next day we laid out by this pool (amazing) and had lunch at this really cute taco place. We then got ready for the beach, and hired a driver to take us to Costa del Sol, this really pretty beach about 45 minutes away from our hotel. You can see all the pictures from that on the posts below, so I will spare the repetition. But I will say though that I was also impressed by my Spanish abilities when I was able to have conversations with our driver about such things as government, political parties, the far-left contra party that hosted the civil war during the 80's, and topics like that. A long way from my spanish when I first got here, which consisted of "Where is the bathroom" and "Today is Monday." Now granted, a lot of our conversation was him talking and me understanding enough to utter back a few grammatically incorrect comments and questions to keep the conversation going, but this is still a huge accomplishment for me. I think it was because I got to sleep in that day until 8:00, since my body is now incapable of sleeping any longer than that.

The next day we met up with Jen's friend Juan, who lives in San Salvador. Juan was totally amazing, and fluent in English, and he took us to Lago de Coatepeque, which you can also see in the posts below. Between the bus ride, the car ride to the beach, and the car ride with Juan, we were able to see probably 80% of the country. Not too shabby for a 3 day weekend.

Summary of this post: El Salvador is amazing, I love traveling, and I need to keep practicing my Spanish so that next time I can talk about things like philosophy and other deep thoughts to whoever I hire to chauffeur me around.

Lago de Coatepeque






















This amazing moment, brought to you by the makers of Coca Cola.















This picture was taken at Lake Coatepeque, which is about 45 minutes outside of San Salvador. It was amazingly beautiful, and the water is pristine. The lake was actually formed within the collapsed crater of the Coatepeque Volcano, and the mountains here are pretty high. This area was inhabited by the Pipils, who were a sort of branch of the Mayans.

La Playa en El Salvador





Jen and I at Costa Del Sol, a black sand beach in El Salvador.


















Nice tropical setting. Quite nice.










The beach here is really refreshingly nice since it is not overwhelmed with money. This beach had much more of a laidback feel to it, and I just loved this shot.








I think this picture is fantastic. I remembered thinking when I took it that is has the most incredible layout--palm trees, tropical beach, palm thatch beach shack, fishing boat, and cow. I'm not sure what cows can really eat at the beach though...not much vegetation.






Jen and I....dos adventuradoras
Wouldn't you love to eat fresh hot tortillas from this awesome little restaurant shack? You can't see it, but inside these shacks are nothing but hammocks and sidetables for drinks and snacks.



My first time at the Pacific Ocean

9/20/2006

A couple of pukers, several pants-wetters, and numerous scraped knees later, I am loving my job. Sometimes I wonder "Did I really receive a degree from an institution of higher education to be a glorified swing pusher?" But I love it. I can't help but adore those kids, which comes in handy when I don't get to sit down for hours, I never get a lunch break, and I am constantly having to do the "1, 2, 3, Freeze!" countdown. But for some reason, those things seem to melt away when my kids greet me with hugs every morning or when they laugh at the stories I read or the silly songs we sing. Teachers here are treated wonderfully also, which will be so hard to come back to the states where we are so underappreciated and constantly seen as those to blame for the state of the kids today. I feel like I am actually good at my job too, which seems strange because all I've ever heard from teachers is how hard their first year was. I get to be fun and creative, yet I am organized and can maintain control of my students, and I really feel so proud when I see them learning and using the things they have learned. So, basically I love what I do. Enough said.

9/19/2006

Dia de Independencia

Since our Independence Day falls in July in the U.S., we do not have the opportunity to celebrate real patriotism during the school year. However, Honduras along with the rest of Central America celebrate their independence from Spain on September 15th. Since an entire region of the world was given independence on this day, it is a big deal here! At Los Pinares, students prepare for about a month for all of the festivities that the day brings. Traditional foods are cooked and served, older students give presentations to the younger students about traditional art, customs, holidays, etc. I thoroughly enjoyed the day, and I even got to here a live marimba band and see traditional dancers. Not to mention that the kids were adorable!

The picture on bottom is of Victor, one of my kindergarten students. Only in Honduras can you allow children to bring machetes to school all in the name of patriotism. It wasn't a real machete, just a wooden one in a real holster...However, coming from the states when you can practically get expelled for drawing a gun or even thinking the word "knife" this was quite the change. Vive Honduras!

The other students are not from my class, but they were so cute that I couldn't help but take their picture.






9/06/2006

Finalmente....las picturas!


These veggies are at the local market, which is only open on Saturday mornings. The market is probably 2 acres big, and the food is so inexpensive. I have literally packed my entire army back-pack full of lettuce, onions, carrots, potatoes, mangos, avocados etc. for less than $6. The market is pretty much the only place where I feel competent with my spanish. I can wander off by myself, without the aid of a translator, and buy what I need without the sellers even straining to understand my spanish. But then again, how hard is it to say "How much is the leechee fruit?" or "I'd like 2 lbs. of bananas please."





How darling is this picture? I couldn't help but snap this shot...even if I did look like a tourist.



















Isn't this amazing? This is the catedral in El Centro, and its so beautiful against the blue sky and palm trees.





















Okay, this next one was altered a little bit with the sepia function on my camara, but what a beautiful picture. Its of nothing in particular, and I probably couldn't find it again if I tried, but I still loved it.

Yo necessito practicar mi espanol...

Well, it seems that from the many concerned e-mails that I have gotten that I should clarify exactly what it is that I am doing here in Honduras. Besides my full-time teaching job, I have also been attending this church that is smack in the middle of El Centro (main city park) that has amazing outreach opportunities by being right in the middle of everything. I have really been wanting to get involved in other areas of life besides the school, so I have the opportunity to help with their “after school program” for lack of a better term. They have this whole section of the building open for kids to just come and hang out at all times of the day, and they have food, internet, music equipment, foosball tables, and other stuff to entertain kids to keep them out of trouble. Some of those kids happen to be street kids, and this is the part that maybe I didn’t quite explain well enough. I will not be going out into random alleys to seek these kids out. Rather, I will be part of a church that tries to help them and tries to provide for them out of love. These are not hardened criminals…they are kids that have needs that are so beyond what we can comprehend. I have been told that the reason they start inhaling glue is because it helps relieve hunger pains, and it’s a cheaper alternative than buying a meal, which is so hard for me to understand because you literally can get a plateful of food for about $1 from street vendors. So, the doors of the church are open to them and they try to help feed these kids and keep them out of doorways for at least part of the day. Will I personally be tending to their needs? Who knows….but I would guess not because I figure they probably won’t even be able to understand me very much, and I highly doubt I would be able to understand them. More than likely I will be hanging out with kids, helping them with homework, maybe even leading a bible study. So, no fear. I’m just happy to be part of something that is working to change the city, not that I will personally be doing it myself…at least not yet

So, now that that is out of the way, I can fill you in on regular life. I start very early in the morning, and we have teacher devotions at 6:50. I teach my darling kindergarten babes, and I pretty much do not sit down or eat until the kids leave at 2:20. I try to put all my work onto certain days, so that I will really only have to do major planning or grading on Wednesdays and Sundays after church. That way, I am able to ride the Pinares bus down to El Centro, and either do some shopping for random items (which I will explain in a second) or just get a licuado and people watch on the steps of the cathedral. I have made friends with this totally cool Honduran who has shown my friends and I a cute little Bohemian book café on one of the side streets downtown. They show free independent movies every Tuesday night, so last week I watched an Israeli movie with Spanish subtitles. I feel like I got the majority of the message…mas o menos. All down the street from the book café are incredible little restaurants, so my friends and I have now dedicated Tuesdays as downtown days, and we make a good time of it. Our Honduran friend knows some English and wants to practice it, and those of us who are not fluent (i.e. anybody in my circle of friends who is not my roommate) want to practice Spanish , so we have decided to give each other free language lessons over dinner. I think we may also start our own little book club, which would also be amazing.

I am getting much more used to the pace of things, which does take a little getting used to. Like I’ve said before, it’s a little hard coming from the U.S. where I have had my own personal transportation to go and get the things that I need. So…about the stores. Quite different than I was expecting. They all seem to have just a little bit of everything, and they really aren’t all that big to begin with. For example, the grocery store will have regular food (but maybe only one or two brands or flavors per item) and they may be sharing an aisle with suitcases, lamps, and perhaps CD’s or 8 cans of spray paint. So, if you have anything specific in mind, it could take a long time to find it. Also, for a lot of items, they must be imported from the U.S. so they will definitely be more expensive, like lamps. I bring up lamps because I was looking for one for so long, and it took forever because each store would have maybe 1 or 2 styles, they would be expensive because they are imported from the U.S. (even though you can tell they have a Wal-Mart sticker that may read $19.97 and end up costing the equivalent to $25 dollars in lempiras.), and more often than not they would be very highly decorated with gilded gold and ruffled lampshades. I looked around during my first week or so in Tegus, and I had one day where I just officially felt overwhelmed with everything. I did not understand Spanish, all the salespeople were coming up and asking me for help and could not understand what I was trying to say, and I did not have hardly any money for everything because it is difficult to get to the one bank in the city that could exchange my dollars (which I had plenty of) into Lempiras (which I did not have much of). I was with a group of teachers in this shopping center, and one of the other ones saw me sitting on a bench with I guess a look on my face that read something like “My brain is ceasing all functions immediately,” and as kindly and sweetly as possible she said that she had heard I was looking for a lamp and told me she had an extra one in her apartment that she would give me. And it is not gold, and does not have ruffles, lace, or tassels on the lampshade. I think God knew I needed some sort of angel at that moment so that I wouldn’t hide in my room and stare at my wall.

Other than that one short lived moment, I have loved every second here. Even when the busitos break down halfway up the mountain and we have to get transferred to another one that will be there in 30 minutes, or when you cannot use the money you have because nobody can make change for you, even when all you have is the equivalent to a $10 or $20 bill. Because even though things like that might be frustrating, they are so small on the scale of life and I am able to experience things everyday that just make me smile…like my 5 year olds coming up to me and saying things in English that they wouldn‘t have been able to the previous day, or finding those picture perfect moments on the streets like children and puppies in the market or totally awesome buildings. Even though the air is dirty in the city, you can’t help but take deep breaths and draw in those cityscapes with the green mountain backdrops.

Another thing that is so funny that I absolutely love is the lack of Muzak in any buildings. For those of you not familiar with Muzak, I think it was first thought up as a torture device by the Russians that consisted of terrible elevator music put on a loop to be played repeatedly throughout the day in dentist offices and malls. However, nothing in Honduras is quiet and not over the top, so the stores will either have huge boom boxes playing salsa or meringue music, and many of them will even have DJ’s (popular in larger stores) that will play salsa or random songs that you have not heard in years (i.e. vintage Madonna or random Styx…like Mr. Roboto playing while you’re shopping for your toothpaste) at very loud volumes. Some even hire dancers for the doorway. It really cracks me up.

I was able to go to a huge Christian music festival, and I will use this to illustrate what I mean by over the top. Not only were there like 15 bands performing, but they also had tons of dancers everywhere, a marching band that would randomly start playing with the band on stage, guys walking around and dancing on stilts, an army of motorcycles that would randomly circle the stage, and a laser light show. Now, I have been to plenty of concerts where they have tons of things going on, like rock climbing walls and do-it-yourself Jackson Pollock-esque art areas, but these sort of things were designated for different areas of the concert fairgrounds. For this concert, everyone was definitely in one sitting area looking at one stage and looking at the other 7 things that were going on simultaneously. This seems to carry on through all areas of life, whether it be concerts, lamps, clothing, shoes,….the minimalist movement has not made it here yet, and will probably be highly rejected when and if it ever does come.

One thing that is very exciting is that I can see myself making progress and becoming bolder with my Spanish. I have found a couple of people that I can feel comfortable practicing around, and it means putting your pride aside and just going for it, even if you do use the wrong word and end up saying “I am pregnant” instead of “I am embarrassed,” which was my intention. (That was even more embarrassing because just previous to the pregnant statement I had said something dumb and was trying to recover with “I am embarrassed”…that didn’t go as planned either). I am also understanding quite a bit…much more than I can speak, which is nice. I can go to church now and understand the basics of the message. I can listen to stories and get humor and jokes, which is good, because I used to just laugh when people were talking to me as some sort of a nervous reaction and now the laughing is actually appropriate and timely.

Things are going well. Tomorrow will mark 1 month since I’ve been here, and the time has flown by. It does not feel like it has been any more than 2 weeks, and I am having a great time. I will be going to El Salvador on the 15th because we have a three-day weekend for Central American independence day. Another stamp on the passport, and a chance to swim in an ocean I have never been to before. I’ll let you know how that goes when I get back. I should hopefully be able to get my internet working soon, but in the meanwhile I have saved everyone’s emails they have sent and I do promise to reply to them. Really. But to leave you on this, here are some pictures that I have taken of just random stuff.

I love you all, and your words of encouragement make my day.

One Person's Trash...

I’ve just completed my third day of school, and I am loving it so much! My kids are absolute darlings, and for the meantime they are very sweet, eager to learn, and eager to please. I am also very surprised at how quickly they are learning to understand English. After only one day of full translation by my aide, I didn’t need hardly any translation today except during story times. Speaking English is entirely different however, so I still send my kids to talk to Ana if they have any questions that go beyond my personal 5-year old Spanish capabilities. I wish I could have had a video camera to record my kids as I was reading them their story today. I read them There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly, and this book has awesome, hilarious illustrations. It is a Caldecott Medal winner (for my non-Education major friends and family it is a highly coveted award given to books with original and award-worthy artwork) and really is a very funny book. Well, I didn’t quite anticipate this, but these kids have never been exposed to the nursery rhyme before, so they thought it was just the funniest thing they had ever heard. When it got to the part where the old lady swallowed a cow, they absolutely lost it. Precious. Tomorrow will be my first full length day, so I’m sure I’ll be getting a little bit of a break since the kids will be all tuckered out and will sleep solid during naptime so that I can do all of my paperwork.
All last week was spent cleaning out and arranging the class, which was really quite the feat. There is no air conditioning in the school, and since it is really humid where I am at cloud level, things have a tendency to get moldy rather quickly, so a lot of time was spent just wiping down and cleaning the existing materials. I also discovered a small family of mice who made their home in my cabinet, so after coming upon this I totally cleaned out every cabinet, shelf, box, etc. We have a wonderful view of the pine forest from inside our classroom, and the kids and I love seeing all of the birds that rest on the fence just outside the window.
I don’t remember if I’ve shared this or not, but I feel like I’m really getting the best of both worlds from where I’m at in Tegucigalpa. I’m at about 6,000 feet above sea level on one of the mountains that surround the city, while the rest of Teguc lies in the valley. One wouldn’t think that it would be all that different atmospherically, but it really is. At any given time, El Hatillo, which is my neighborhood, can be 10 degrees cooler than the rest of the city, making it completely temperate to live here. I have never yet complained of the heat while in Honduras, and I have not been in AC for the past two weeks. It gets cool enough at night where I sleep under a blanket and shut my windows to keep my room warm. A little different than what I was expecting. In preparing to move down here, I’d check the weather all the time for Teguc thinking that I was so on top of things, but I can see that it hasn’t done me that much good. Anybody who has been here through the winter says that it gets pretty darn cold…cold enough where the school usually cancels 2-3 days per year because its too cold for class. That also has to do with the fact that none of the buildings are insulated, and while it may be only in the upper 40’s outside, there’s really not that much of a relief when you’re inside a building.


Everything here is so lush and green that I just can’t get over it. Banana trees everywhere, palm trees, bamboo, bougainvilleas, azaleas, birds of paradise, pine forest, lilies, and all kinds of other plants and flowers that I do not know the names of. One of my favorites though is actually considered a weed, and you can usually see it in any kind of patches of grass up in El Hatillo. It has these little variegated leaves, and whenever you touch it the whole plant closes up instantly. Call it simple, but I think its so cool, especially when you’re walking through a field and you can see your footsteps behind you, and then slowly disappear as the plant opens back up.


El Hatillo is also sort of an asylum from the city. The city is full of all sorts of noise, crowds, and liveliness, and El Hatillo is very quiet and pretty peaceful. It also has a very interesting mixture of rich and poor--Several former presidents as well as the wealthiest families in the country live here, and then almost right next door there could be a one room shack that a family of 5 live in with chickens running around, clothes hanging up everywhere, and food cooking outside since many of the poorer homes do not have kitchens. And yet, they both could have amazing, million dollar panoramic views of the city in their backyard. The road going up to El Hatillo has amazing stretches of panoramic views of the mountains in the distance with the city down below, and even in all of its poverty it looks beautiful. Most homes are made from scrap materials and are only accessible by really ragged dirt roads that are so steep that you really need to have 4-wheel drive to navigate them, yet buses and taxis seem to do it all the time.


One thing that is seen on all buildings and homes, regardless of income, are exterior walls topped razor wire and a sort of nail-strip (or even sometimes broken glass) that rests just below the razor wire. All doors and windows have bars on them, and all homes and businesses of any value have a hired guard who will possess a weapon that is in direct proportion to the value of the home. I’ve seen guards who are in their 80’s who don’t have anything more than sticks to defend the property, and I’ve seen men in full camo with semi-automatic weapons. I know all of this sounds pretty dreary and depressing, but somehow it isn’t. It really is just a way of life, and the people here do not act like they dread their circumstances, so its hard for me to. Who am I to say that their standards of living and loving life are below mine? They are different, but I really do not feel like they are beneath me. There is something to be said that no matter what a family’s circumstances may be, they seem to make the best with what they have. Yards are not covered with junk and broken down cars, homes are not dirty and disgusting inside, and even though many of their clothes may have made their way through 5 different previous owners, most men wear shirts that are nicely pressed and tucked in with belts while most women wear neck-breaking stiletto heels all the time…walking up and down steep clay roads, riding the bus, walking over sewer grates….it really amazes me.


Personal space is also something that gets tweaked with Central American interpretations. Actually, I take that back. Space in general, not just personal. The streets are all very narrow, with very narrow sidewalks that might give you about a 2 foot buffer between the side of a building and an old school bus roaring down the mountain. By the way, on a side note, have any of you ever seen a junk yard full of old school busses? Me neither, and here’s why. They all get shipped down to South and Central America to be used as city travel. Some of them might still possess things like “Leon County School District” on the side, and some might be completely modified to have purple flames, huge mufflers, and glitter writing all over it. I don’t know why some make the “Pimp my Ride” cut and others do not, but it makes it interesting. Now, back to space. On these school busses, sometimes you’ll see funny things like “Maximum Capacity: 50”….I think the bus company was selling itself short, because down here you can get double that. Many of the seats will have 3 people sitting in them, in addition to fitting as many people in the aisle as possible….but at this point you’re probably only ¾ of the way done with the collection route, so many hang out of the doors, and a lot of busses provide railings on the top for people to sit on the roof. It is impossible to be sitting and touching no one….many times you’re pinned right up against someone else, and my immediate reaction is discomfort and embarrassment for having to be pressed right up against somebody or having to stand where your butt or armpit is in someone’s face, but once again it is just a way of life, so who am I to judge? So what does one of these amazing bus rides cost? 6.5 Lempiras, which equals roughly $.35 , which will take you quite a ways into town. Taxi rides are quite a bit more, but go much faster. It takes about 20-25 minutes to get from El Hatillo into the center of town, and a taxi one-way will cost 150 Lempiras, or about $7, but when split by 3-4 people it isn’t bad considering that you’re paying for speed and personal space. Most taxi drivers try to overcharge us gringas, but my roommate is a pro at negotiation.


Tonight I went into El Centro with a couple of friends to meet another friend of mine who is in Honduras with the Peace Corps. El Centro has the National Cathedral, as well as pretty unique street vendors selling everything from mangos to underwear to ripped-off DVD’s and off brand electronics. Its not quite the street market finds I was originally hoping for, like ceramics, embroidered cloth, hammocks, and baskets, but those can definitely be found in the more rural areas outside of Tegucigalpa. We went and got licuados, which are AMAZING homemade smoothies that equal about $.50 each. You pick out which fresh fruit you’d like, and they throw it in the blender with a little milk and sugar, pour it in a bag, and voila--a licuado! (By the way, ask me about the interesting ways they package things sometime…). We sat on the steps of the cathedral, caused much attention as any groups of gringos do within the city, especially when gringas outnumber gringos, and had an amazing time. We finished up the night eating from this amazing street vendor who you could smell blocks away, sitting at what we could best call our “sidewalk café” which was nothing more than a plastic table and buckets next to the street vendor. All we were missing was espresso served in little demicups and you would think we were in Paris. Or not. Maybe the stray dogs and car exhaust take a little more imagination to overcome…..
Well, I feel like I have been rambling on for quite sometime. But the whole reason I even sat down to write this came after we ate at our street vendor. After we were finished, we walked over to a trashcan to throw our plates away, and there was a woman digging in the trash. She turned and looked at me, and I could see that she was at least 8 months pregnant. I completely did not know what to do. She had a black banana in one hand, and I could see that she was eyeing my plate, which had some vegetables still on it. I looked at her, handed her my plate, walked away, and was instantly ashamed. I had done nothing for her. I mean, I could have bought her the same plate of food I was eating, which would be good and filling as well as nutritious, but I didn’t. I didn’t do anything. It’s a general rule of thumb to ignore the kids who come up to you trying to sell you gum because they think you’re rich by simply being American (and we are by the way), and you definitely ignore all of the piroppos, or cat calls that happen when you walk anywhere, and somehow I was able to totally ignore this woman, who was so desperate that she was digging through the trash so that she could feed both herself and her baby. I know that guilt is not a feeling that comes from God, but I feel nothing but guilt right now. If I could take a bus down there to go see her again so that I could make it right, I would. I feel like my first pop quiz for my Christian life in Honduras came up and I failed it. Its easy to talk the talk when you’re around others who feel the same way, yet when it came time to put it to action I screwed up. I don’t want to mess it up again though…there’s nothing else I can do about it right now, but I know that I will come across other opportunities like that again, and its my hope that I can actually do something about it next time.
Please continue to pray for me that I’ll be able to find something else to get involved in besides school. I want to, and I need to do something in which I am able to live out those things that God tells us to do, like loving our neighbor as ourselves. I sure know that I would never want to get to the same point that that woman was…


Please also pray as I continue to adjust to all sorts of new stuff. In particular, it feels a little strange having to be completely dependent on others for ANYTHING that I need to get or to do. I have always seemed to take pride in my independence, like never having to have my parents pay for college or flying off to a foreign country by myself, but here there is nothing I can do on my own. I cannot really speak Spanish, I can only understand slightly more than I can speak, I cannot drive, I do not know my way around on the busses, I have to ask teachers all the time when things are due or how to fill out certain forms…I am not competent at hardly anything right now, and its difficult. However, I am learning from my surroundings that independence is a luxury that not many others have, and that it can many times work to your detriment. Here, everyone seems to take on an attitude of “we’re all in this together” and so leaning on someone or having them lean on you (both physically on the busses or figuratively) can actually provide comfort. God also needs you to be at this point, when you realize that you really can’t do much on your own, and even those things you can do you’re probably pretty lousy at unless you give up your independence and learn to trust in him.

So please, continue to pray for me, and continue to write me e-mails, even if I’m not so quick at returning them. They really help to lift me up and make me feel not quite so far away. I love you all, and I’m really hoping that maybe a group from church can come down and visit me for a mission trip….let me know and I will plan one all out for you. Who knows, maybe you could come across that woman from the park….

Serving Gladly,
Macayla

Having it Maid

Hello once again from Tegucigalpa! Things are finally beginning to get settled around here...at this point I am waiting for the boxes I shipped off about a month ago to arrive. I have been able to meet the returning teachers and see my classroom, and I am really looking forward to the school year, although it seems like it will be very different from what I had imagined.

For anyone who has known me for awhile, I suppose you know that I am a "cause" girl. I always have something or someone that I am fighting for, and poverty and injustice have always been at the top of my list. Ever since I have been able to go on mission trips and serve some of the poorest of the poor, I have felt this huge calling to go out and do something about it, hence my decision to move to Honduras. Honduras is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere, and Tegucigalpa literally has millions of people living in extreme poverty. So, I think to myself that I will be amongst the poor, eating crumbs off the table along with them and living very humbly, but needless to say I have been very surprised by my surroundings. First, let me preface this by saying that I am not complaining by any means...just trying to adjust to differences.

My apartment is much bigger than anticipated, and it also comes with a full time maid. Yes, a full time maid. This whole concept is so foreign to me----I know that by having a maid I am providing a person with a way to put food on the table, so I can deal with that. I mean, who wouldn't want someone to help around the house and have the satisfaction of being able to help feed a family with the money you give them? Rosie works for us for about 110 lempiras a day, which roughly translates to about $5.15 total for approximately 7 hours worth of work. I am more than happy to pay that, especially split between 3 roommates, but I had a question in the back of my mind..."How can I possibly come up with 7 hours worth of work 3 days a week for this maid to do?" Finally i asked someone, and since maids are so common here, I guess some people forget that there are people not used to having maids. When I was told of all of the things she does around here, I was shocked. Rosie does dishes, cleaning, laundry, ironing, sewing, cooking...anything really. She will press and fold all of your clothes, put them in the drawer for you, make your bed...anything. I am afraid now that when I come back to the U.S. I will be completely spoiled and unable to do anything for myself. I am very excited about having her cook though, because she is known for making fantastic homemade tortillas, tamales, paella, and refried beans. (Sidenote: The refried beans here are the best in the entire world. I could literally make them for every meal.)

Another thing I was surprised about are the types of students here at Los Pinares. Although I knew that the students would need to be a little more well off than just the average Honduran since they pay tuition, I wasn't really expecting it to be to the degree that it is. Most students are wealthy, and many have been raised by nannies and maids. There are some students for whom it is a struggle for their parents to pay, but they value their child's education so much that they make the sacrifice. There is also a small mission kid population at the school, but the overwhelming majority are very rich. As I was saying earlier, I have always seen myself as somewhat of a crusader for the poor and downtrodden, so to find myself in this situation feels a little strange. As I have gone through the various school meetings and such, I have begun to see a bit of the big picture that lays before me.

The students that attend Los Pinares will undoubtedly be the future leaders of this country. It is known as the best school in Honduras, so former presidents have sent their children here, politicians send their children here, and these are the people with the connections and resources necessary for these children to enter into government positions. By teaching them in a Christian atmosphere, they will perhaps be the biggest influence in this country to move forward instead of perpetuating the corruption from high up. It has been stressed many times that there are people out there to help and serve the poor in Honduras. In the week that I have been here I have seen 3 work groups already from the States--the poor are not an invisible people group here. Don't get me wrong; there is still overwhelming amount of need amongst Hondurans, but the upper class are one of the least reached groups in the country, and yet they hold the most power.

This is all ironic to me, because I was able to have some of these things revealed to me this past summer. I was having a conversation with somebody, and I began to go on one of my rants about the rich and excessive lifestyles that so many people lead, and I felt convicted about it. I began to feel sorry for the wealthy in our country, because so many of them are just surrounded by people that will only tell them what they want to hear for fear that they might be fired or what not. The rich churches do not challenge them, fearing that the pastor will be asked to leave or that the money will leave the church, and the closes that most of these people are allowed to get to poverty is a big fancy benefit celebrating the money that was given. In a way, we are protecting this bubble around "big money" and shooing away anything that might poke and upset the bubble. I am finding this out for myself, and I am seeing a glimpse of just how empty it can be at the top. Especially in Latin American cultures, family means everything. Even if you are super poor, you have the love of your family surrounding you, but many of these kids hardly see their parents anre are used to people serving them because they are paid to, not out of love.
So I suppose that God does work like that---completely changing your views and allowing you to be put in a situation where you have to confront your judgments and prejudices. I have been hoping for growth in my walk with God, and I think it will come here.


I have been able to leave my little compound up here in the mountains and venture down into the city quite a bit. Some friends and i the other night caught a ride with one of the secretaries from the school into the city, and we caught a movie, had some dinner, and walked around quite a bit through some markets around the national cathedral and national theatre. While walking around, we were able to catch this awesome raggaeton concert, and it was so funny to look around and be as tall as if not taller than half of the audience, even with their heels on. I also got up at 6:00 on Saturday to take a trip to the farmer's market, which was just a sea of fresh fruits and vegetables that were so delicious and dirt cheap. Everything is so new and different that I just want to soak it all in. Life up on my mountain (which is about a 20 minute drive from the city....very steep twisting roads with no guard rails that offer panaramic views of the city in the valley) is so calm and laid back with a different tempterature and even different flora, and life in the city is so different. Tegucigalpa is so alive and bustling, and probably chaotic would be appropriate. There are taxis and buses and people everywhere, and I feel like my senses almost go on overload: the sites and bright colors of the buildings, the sounds of traffic/music/street vendors, and combined smell of car exhaust and fresh tortillas from the local comidas--all new and exciting.

Alright--i suppose i should wrap this up so yours eyes don't start bleeding. Continue to pray for me as I get ready for my students to come on the 21st. I just want to be effective for both my students and the people of Honduras. If nothing else, even if I am a lousy teacher, I just want people to be able to see God's love through me, even if it means that I may be away from family, friends, and a sense of normalcy. Until next time, Dios te Bendiga!

First arrival...

Hello to everyone from Honduras! I'm sorry that it has taken me a little while to give everyone an update, but here it goes.

Its been so amazing just seeing how God has worked in this whole thing and how he's continuing to do so. Even at the airport, I was so worried about whether my bags would make it within the weight limit, so I prayed about it right before they were going to be checked and they were exactly at the weight they were supposed to be at. While that is amazing in itself, it seems even more so because many of the teachers who arrived the same day that I did had to leave much of their stuff behind because Honduras recently decided again to change their embargo laws, and as the laws stood I got away with bringing in 40 lbs. more than I should have been able to. Another thing Honduras decided to change that I was completely unaware of was the time zone they affiliated themselves with. Not too long ago for Daylight Savings Time, the government decided to change with the western ways and spring forward an hour. Well, it appears on Sunday that the government decided they didn't like it and they changed back, which was interesting because nobody really knew what time it would be when my flight landed....not even the pilot. THey even had different times printed on the airline tickets, but somehow I was able to get picked up by the school on time and we now are officially on mountain time, at least for the time being.


The weather here has been truly amazing, and I'm sure everyone reading this will be insanely jealous. It has been no hotter than 75 degrees my entire time up here and the climate in really different up on my mountain than it is down in the city. I actually live in what is considered a rain forest, not because it rains so much but rather because we are right at cloud level. The other morning when I woke up I was almost freaked out because as I looked around it looked like the room was filled with smoke, but in my panicked state I noticed that it didn't smell like smoke, and it was then that I realized that I was actually breathing in cloud, which by the way smells so fresh and clean.

The flowers here are also so beautiful, and everything is so lush and green. Outside my window I have a view of El Tigre national forest, which is completely pristine jungle that has not been touched since the late 1800's. I also have lots of hummingbirds that fly around my window in the morning and I have not seen one hissing cockroach yet! The school is amazing, my apartment is amazing, and if anyone wants to visit I have a whole other room in my apartment that is going unused that could really fit quite a few people.

Well, I must go for now, but if everyone could pray for me for a few things that would be great.

*First, there is an issue with teachers and the Honduran government that has arisen with some violence the past few days, and though the riots seem to be under control, they completely disrupt the city because the military has to be called in and roads are shut down.
*Next, please pray that I will be able to venture outside of Los Pinares. It seems like it can be pretty easy to be in your own little north american bubble here on top of the mountain, and I really don't want that.
*Please pray that I continue to adjust okay. Its been a little difficult not being independent at all since I don't know my way around the city and I don't speak that much Spanish. I don't know any of the bus routes yet, so I'm really just kind of stuck here for the meanwhile.
*Last, please pray for our students that we would be able to create meaningful relationships with them and really share God's love with them. There is a lot of skepticism there since many of the teachers only stay for a year or two, so many kids don't want to get attached.



I better be wrapping it up now. I will try to keep everyone posted, and please feel free to e-mail me and let me know how all of you are doing.