Tela to San Pedro
Today was sadly our last day in Tela because we had to head back to San Pedro. Our friends were flying out tomorrow, so we needed to be in town to make it to the airport. I spent the morning sleeping, eating breakfast on our beachside restaurant, and getting some last minute rays. I even got to try some coconut milk during breakfast, straight from a coconut. Tela was really busy today because it was so close to the weekend and of course it was beautiful the day we left. Before we checked out, we took advantage of our balcony at the hotel and took a bunch of group pictures with the gorgeous oceanfront in the background…paradise I tell you! We made our way to the streets to get a quick lunch of pupusas before we got a taxi to take us to the place where direct buses go to San Pedro. We were waiting for the bus and then Steve realized he had forgotten his phone back at the hotel. So Tad, Steve, and Mike quickly got a taxi back to the hotel to find it. Meanwhile, we girls were waiting, hoping they’d be back in time when the next bus came. One came and it stood waiting for a few minutes; I had almost lost hope that we’d have to wait another half hour when the boys rounded the corner in a taxi. I ran to the bus to ask it to wait (not necessary as I found out later), and we all boarded just in the nick of time. The bus was great; it was really direct this time and didn’t cram a whole bunch of people into the aisle.
We arrived in SPS about two hours later and had our hotel pick us up at the bus terminal. I had used this hotel (Villa Nuria) before for its convenience and all it offers for the price; the rest of the group agreed it was money well spent. Since we were in San Pedro, the Americans who were living in Honduras (LB, Mike, Tad and I) especially wanted to eat some American food; so we took the shuttle to the city all where there was an Applebees restaurant. A burger has never tasted so good when you haven’t had a good one in over 2 months! We relished our meals and then headed back the hotel. We girls just hung out and went to bed early to bed to be ready for tomorrow.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Semana Santa
Tela 2
Kayaks today!! We left at 8; I can’t remember our guide’s name, but I do remember he said we could call him cowboy. He was really nice and pretty knowledgeable about the wildlife we saw on our trip. We took a short ride to the Garifuna village of Triunfo de la Cruz and put out on a freshwater/saltwater river. This river had mangroves growing in it, so we went into all these little outlets off the river to explore. Now I’m not an experienced kayaker; thank goodness they were doubles and my partner knew how to direct a kayak. We saw small alligators, beautiful flowers, birds, and and beautiful mangroves. At the end of the trip we tied all our kayaks together and dragged them back to our launching spot and made our way to the restaurant where our lunch was. This was by far the best part of our excursion; we ate lunch on the beach under a grass hut with the ocean several feet from us. We ordered fish and out came two whole fried fish, bones and all. It was delicious and such a perfect place to enjoy it.
After lunch we enjoyed swimming and jumping around in paradise. We didn’t want to leave, but it was clouding up. When we got back to the hotel, we relaxed, took naps, chilled. For dinner, the other girls had found this place that had a variety of food nearby, so we went there. The service was slow and the guy got kinda confused on our orders, but it all ended up alright and we got to watch some soccer. Tela was starting to get busier since it was getting closer to the weekend, so there were a lot more people out and about. All along the beachfront there were people selling things; I decided I wanted a henna tattoo. So I spent the next 15 minutes getting that done and people watching while I sat. We decided to go out and enjoy the nightlife and dancing with the locals, which ended up being a blast and a great way to spend our last night in Tela.
Kayaks today!! We left at 8; I can’t remember our guide’s name, but I do remember he said we could call him cowboy. He was really nice and pretty knowledgeable about the wildlife we saw on our trip. We took a short ride to the Garifuna village of Triunfo de la Cruz and put out on a freshwater/saltwater river. This river had mangroves growing in it, so we went into all these little outlets off the river to explore. Now I’m not an experienced kayaker; thank goodness they were doubles and my partner knew how to direct a kayak. We saw small alligators, beautiful flowers, birds, and and beautiful mangroves. At the end of the trip we tied all our kayaks together and dragged them back to our launching spot and made our way to the restaurant where our lunch was. This was by far the best part of our excursion; we ate lunch on the beach under a grass hut with the ocean several feet from us. We ordered fish and out came two whole fried fish, bones and all. It was delicious and such a perfect place to enjoy it.
After lunch we enjoyed swimming and jumping around in paradise. We didn’t want to leave, but it was clouding up. When we got back to the hotel, we relaxed, took naps, chilled. For dinner, the other girls had found this place that had a variety of food nearby, so we went there. The service was slow and the guy got kinda confused on our orders, but it all ended up alright and we got to watch some soccer. Tela was starting to get busier since it was getting closer to the weekend, so there were a lot more people out and about. All along the beachfront there were people selling things; I decided I wanted a henna tattoo. So I spent the next 15 minutes getting that done and people watching while I sat. We decided to go out and enjoy the nightlife and dancing with the locals, which ended up being a blast and a great way to spend our last night in Tela.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Semana Santa
Tela 1
Unfortunately it was rainy and cloudy our first day in Tela. We were all pretty bummed, but got to sleep in, have breakfast and then the girls decided to go shopping while the guys stayed back and played cards. So the girls (Mandi, Amy, Laura Beth, and I) went shopping around Tela in the drizzle rain. Amy and Mandi both wanted to find hammocks and we all had fun looking at all the little trinkets and souvenirs we could buy. They had some really nice stuff and I wish I could’ve bought more: picture frames, candle holders, paintings, jewelry. After shopping we had a snack and came back to the hotel to play cards for a little while before we had lunch. The guys left and did their look around town. We had a chill afternoon and then got ready to go to dinner. We had a few options; one was on the other side of town and we didn’t know exactly where it was. We started wandering and asked for directions, but still couldn’t find it; plus we were getting into a shady part of town.
We turned back and headed back to one of the first places we saw called Casa Azul. It had a great atmosphere; while we were there they had to turn the power off for a bit, so we even got some candlelight dinner for a bit! The owner was very hospitable; he gave us a free appetizer and made sure we had everything we needed. We heard about places to kayak and visiting Garifuna villages around Tela and decided to set it up that night to do the next day. I was really excited because I had wanted to see a Garifuna village for a while, as well as kayak in the mangroves. The Garifuna people here in Honduras are black; their ancestors were slaves who were brought to the Caribbean during colonial times. They’ve developed their own culture and language, but can also speak Spanish as well. After dinner, we wandered along the beach front by the restaurants, had some dessert and then bed.
Unfortunately it was rainy and cloudy our first day in Tela. We were all pretty bummed, but got to sleep in, have breakfast and then the girls decided to go shopping while the guys stayed back and played cards. So the girls (Mandi, Amy, Laura Beth, and I) went shopping around Tela in the drizzle rain. Amy and Mandi both wanted to find hammocks and we all had fun looking at all the little trinkets and souvenirs we could buy. They had some really nice stuff and I wish I could’ve bought more: picture frames, candle holders, paintings, jewelry. After shopping we had a snack and came back to the hotel to play cards for a little while before we had lunch. The guys left and did their look around town. We had a chill afternoon and then got ready to go to dinner. We had a few options; one was on the other side of town and we didn’t know exactly where it was. We started wandering and asked for directions, but still couldn’t find it; plus we were getting into a shady part of town.
We turned back and headed back to one of the first places we saw called Casa Azul. It had a great atmosphere; while we were there they had to turn the power off for a bit, so we even got some candlelight dinner for a bit! The owner was very hospitable; he gave us a free appetizer and made sure we had everything we needed. We heard about places to kayak and visiting Garifuna villages around Tela and decided to set it up that night to do the next day. I was really excited because I had wanted to see a Garifuna village for a while, as well as kayak in the mangroves. The Garifuna people here in Honduras are black; their ancestors were slaves who were brought to the Caribbean during colonial times. They’ve developed their own culture and language, but can also speak Spanish as well. After dinner, we wandered along the beach front by the restaurants, had some dessert and then bed.
Semana Santa
Copan to Tela
We got up very early on Monday morning to catch a direct bus to San Pedro to make our way to Tela. From my knowledge of most direct buses, they usually go faster and don’t stop as often. Things are never predictable in Honduras though and this one stopped quite often and kept picking up people until the whole aisle of the bus was filled in addition to the seats. Steve, one of Tad’s friends, had a baby next to him in the aisle who either got sick or carsick and starting spitting up; it almost landed on him a few times. And we weren’t even in San Pedro yet! Haha. We arrived at the bus station, scrambled to get a bus to Tela as quickly as possible and left around 10:30. This bus ride was quite uneventful and we arrived in Tela around noon. We got a taxi to our hotel, but realized we may have to pay before we could go into our rooms. So we decided to drop off our bags and Tad, Laura Beth and I went to the bank. I didn’t desperately need money and I had an ATM card for our bank, but neither Tad nor LB had a card. We got to the bank and our hearts sank when we saw the line. It was probably 50 people deep, no joke. I decided to use the ATM and unfortunately Tad and LB ended up standing in line at the bank for 2 hours to get their money!
I went in search of my friends who had gone to lunch while we were at the bank, but couldn’t find them. I found a cheap baleada place to eat lunch at and then tried looking for Amy, Mandi, and Steve again. Since I couldn’t find them and they had the room key, I decided to just lounge by the pool and wait for them. I ended up napping on one of the lounge chairs after our long and early travel day. We eventually reconnected with everyone and spent some time soaking up the rays before the sun went down. Rain clouds were starting to gather and before we knew it, it was downpouring. We went to dinner at a nearby hotel. I got this amazing fish and got to listen to the rain while we ate. We all decided to go for a late night swim in the ocean after that, and then hit the sack.
We got up very early on Monday morning to catch a direct bus to San Pedro to make our way to Tela. From my knowledge of most direct buses, they usually go faster and don’t stop as often. Things are never predictable in Honduras though and this one stopped quite often and kept picking up people until the whole aisle of the bus was filled in addition to the seats. Steve, one of Tad’s friends, had a baby next to him in the aisle who either got sick or carsick and starting spitting up; it almost landed on him a few times. And we weren’t even in San Pedro yet! Haha. We arrived at the bus station, scrambled to get a bus to Tela as quickly as possible and left around 10:30. This bus ride was quite uneventful and we arrived in Tela around noon. We got a taxi to our hotel, but realized we may have to pay before we could go into our rooms. So we decided to drop off our bags and Tad, Laura Beth and I went to the bank. I didn’t desperately need money and I had an ATM card for our bank, but neither Tad nor LB had a card. We got to the bank and our hearts sank when we saw the line. It was probably 50 people deep, no joke. I decided to use the ATM and unfortunately Tad and LB ended up standing in line at the bank for 2 hours to get their money!
I went in search of my friends who had gone to lunch while we were at the bank, but couldn’t find them. I found a cheap baleada place to eat lunch at and then tried looking for Amy, Mandi, and Steve again. Since I couldn’t find them and they had the room key, I decided to just lounge by the pool and wait for them. I ended up napping on one of the lounge chairs after our long and early travel day. We eventually reconnected with everyone and spent some time soaking up the rays before the sun went down. Rain clouds were starting to gather and before we knew it, it was downpouring. We went to dinner at a nearby hotel. I got this amazing fish and got to listen to the rain while we ate. We all decided to go for a late night swim in the ocean after that, and then hit the sack.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Semana Santa
Copan: Day 2
Today was our Ruins day! We made a quick breakfast out of Espresso Americano and baleadas. Tad decided he wanted some fruit instead so he went in search of some bananas. He comes back with this bag and I look inside and informed him he had just bought platanos, not bananas haha. He was disappointed, but we gave them to the restaurant where we ate baleadas so they could use them. We started our short walk to the ruins and it was already a warm one in the morning. Again, I had already been to the ruins once, but it was great seeing them again at a different time of the day with different people. Everyone thought it was amazing, which they are; it’s also amazing that they let you just walk on the ruins instead of just staring at them. We met some other people from the States vacationing there, including some guys from University of Wisconsin; we asked them why they chose Honduras and they were like it as cheaper than Mexico (so true). I wish more people knew about how much Honduras has to offer vacation-wise; I know I’ll keep coming back to Honduras from now on for vacation before I think about other countries.
After a hot day at the ruins, we decided to go back to Macaw Mountain and use our tickets for the natural pool. It felt amazing and refreshing; we just got to relax by the water or in the hammocks near the pool. We ate lunch at the park and then headed back to get ready for our horseback ride. I haven’t ridden a horse since I was around 10, so I was anxious to see how it went. The horses weren’t huge (thank goodness), but some of them had a little feistiness and kept biting each other when another would get close. So that made for an interesting ride. Our guides only spoke Spanish, but between Mike, Laura Beth and I we did fine communicating what was needed and even got to joke around with them a bit. Our guides were a father/daughter team; the girl was hilarious and spoke Spanish more clearly than her father, so I had fun talking with her. Our ride went through the country side, across the river and up to a Mayan village, La Pintada, where we got to see the school there and meet some of the kids who live in the village. They’re poor and sell corn-husk dolls to help make money.
I had a blast riding my horse; whenever he saw another horse starting to do anything besides walking, he would follow. So I got to trot quite a bit and actually got to a canter or gallop, which was my favorite. Trotting is just so bouncy; cantering or galloping (I’m not sure which it was) is a lot smoother. After our hot horse ride, we freshened up for dinner at Pizza Jims, the local pizza joint in Copan. It was so good! We wanted dessert after dinner and went to ViaVia, this great little café, for brownies and Belgium beer. We were all pooped from our action-filled day that we crashed into bed.
Today was our Ruins day! We made a quick breakfast out of Espresso Americano and baleadas. Tad decided he wanted some fruit instead so he went in search of some bananas. He comes back with this bag and I look inside and informed him he had just bought platanos, not bananas haha. He was disappointed, but we gave them to the restaurant where we ate baleadas so they could use them. We started our short walk to the ruins and it was already a warm one in the morning. Again, I had already been to the ruins once, but it was great seeing them again at a different time of the day with different people. Everyone thought it was amazing, which they are; it’s also amazing that they let you just walk on the ruins instead of just staring at them. We met some other people from the States vacationing there, including some guys from University of Wisconsin; we asked them why they chose Honduras and they were like it as cheaper than Mexico (so true). I wish more people knew about how much Honduras has to offer vacation-wise; I know I’ll keep coming back to Honduras from now on for vacation before I think about other countries.
After a hot day at the ruins, we decided to go back to Macaw Mountain and use our tickets for the natural pool. It felt amazing and refreshing; we just got to relax by the water or in the hammocks near the pool. We ate lunch at the park and then headed back to get ready for our horseback ride. I haven’t ridden a horse since I was around 10, so I was anxious to see how it went. The horses weren’t huge (thank goodness), but some of them had a little feistiness and kept biting each other when another would get close. So that made for an interesting ride. Our guides only spoke Spanish, but between Mike, Laura Beth and I we did fine communicating what was needed and even got to joke around with them a bit. Our guides were a father/daughter team; the girl was hilarious and spoke Spanish more clearly than her father, so I had fun talking with her. Our ride went through the country side, across the river and up to a Mayan village, La Pintada, where we got to see the school there and meet some of the kids who live in the village. They’re poor and sell corn-husk dolls to help make money.
I had a blast riding my horse; whenever he saw another horse starting to do anything besides walking, he would follow. So I got to trot quite a bit and actually got to a canter or gallop, which was my favorite. Trotting is just so bouncy; cantering or galloping (I’m not sure which it was) is a lot smoother. After our hot horse ride, we freshened up for dinner at Pizza Jims, the local pizza joint in Copan. It was so good! We wanted dessert after dinner and went to ViaVia, this great little café, for brownies and Belgium beer. We were all pooped from our action-filled day that we crashed into bed.
Semana Santa
Copan: Day 1
We left Santa Rosa in the morning from the hotel and started our adventure to Copan. The buses went pretty well to Copan and when we arrived we took motos to the hostel. It was Mandi and Amy’s first mototaxi ride so it was amusing to see their excitement. We got settled into the hostel and decided to go right away to Macaw Mountain, the park where you can see macaws and other birds native to Honduras and Central America. They also have a nice restaurant and natural pool there. Laura Beth and I had both been there before when we last went to Copan, but for the others it was all new. I love the park though, so I didn’t mind going again. After we finished the tour we headed back to town to the central square to do some tourist shopping on the streets. They have tons of tables set up all along the street with jewelry and trinkets and loads of shops with gifts. There were several unique things I saw that I wanted to buy; the thing is I wouldn’t know what to do with them or where to put them here or back home in the States. There were things like beautiful vases and wooden placemats and frames, rugs, and pictures, but without a place of my own and not knowing what I’ll doing in the next year makes those things unnecessary for me right now.
After shopping, we went back to the hostel to rest and get ready for dinner. We ate at this pupusa place we had been to last time we came to Honduras; you can get pupusas really cheap which is great. I was really hungry when our pupusas arrived I said out loud, “yum, yum, yum,” and made the waiter laugh. Afterwards we went to a bar/restaurant where they had some dancing and karaoke and spent the rest of the night there. Tad and Steve had some Honduran women dance with them and try to teach them how to salsa or something; it was entertaining to watch.
We left Santa Rosa in the morning from the hotel and started our adventure to Copan. The buses went pretty well to Copan and when we arrived we took motos to the hostel. It was Mandi and Amy’s first mototaxi ride so it was amusing to see their excitement. We got settled into the hostel and decided to go right away to Macaw Mountain, the park where you can see macaws and other birds native to Honduras and Central America. They also have a nice restaurant and natural pool there. Laura Beth and I had both been there before when we last went to Copan, but for the others it was all new. I love the park though, so I didn’t mind going again. After we finished the tour we headed back to town to the central square to do some tourist shopping on the streets. They have tons of tables set up all along the street with jewelry and trinkets and loads of shops with gifts. There were several unique things I saw that I wanted to buy; the thing is I wouldn’t know what to do with them or where to put them here or back home in the States. There were things like beautiful vases and wooden placemats and frames, rugs, and pictures, but without a place of my own and not knowing what I’ll doing in the next year makes those things unnecessary for me right now.
After shopping, we went back to the hostel to rest and get ready for dinner. We ate at this pupusa place we had been to last time we came to Honduras; you can get pupusas really cheap which is great. I was really hungry when our pupusas arrived I said out loud, “yum, yum, yum,” and made the waiter laugh. Afterwards we went to a bar/restaurant where they had some dancing and karaoke and spent the rest of the night there. Tad and Steve had some Honduran women dance with them and try to teach them how to salsa or something; it was entertaining to watch.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Thursday and Friday, March 25 & 26
Thursday
I had a pretty good day, although it was hot and my kids were tired, crazy, and ready for break as much as me! I was a little frustrated during tutorias, but made it through and came back home for dinner and packing for Semana Santa! One cool thing today: got a ride up to my house in the back of an empty dump truck! It was great.
Friday
Today was a good day, considering it was the last day before vacay. Everyone was kinda laid back and did easier stuff; we let our kids play or have a party to celebrate. Tad, Laura Beth and I left right away after school to Gracias to catch the bus to Santa Rosa to pick up our friends. I was so excited on the bus; I was bouncing up and down on the seat because I couldn’t wait to finally see Mandi and Amy! They were coming to Honduras for our Semana Santa to travel and see me. We had been planning this since the fall and it was finally here. When we arrived in Santa Rosa, I rushed off the bus with my stuff and sprinted across the street to Espresso American where they were waiting. I literally attacked them when I saw them; we caused quite a scene! Semana Santa could finally begin!
We did all of the introductions between Mandi, Amy, Tad, Laura Beth and Tad’s two friends, Mike and Steve. Steve met Mandi and Amy at the airport and they all traveled to Santa Rosa from San Pedro together. Mike is actually working in Honduras right now for a microfinance group which is helping small coffee farms down here (if you want more info about this, let me know!). Mike had found us a hotel so after all the intros we loaded into taxis and settled into our hotel. We freshened up and headed out for dinner in town to a great pizza place. For those of us from Gracias, it was a treat to have great American-like pizza! Everyone got to know each other more chatting about jobs, Honduras, the States, West Michigan, etc. We ended the evening at the hotel poolside. Tomorrow….COPAN!!
I had a pretty good day, although it was hot and my kids were tired, crazy, and ready for break as much as me! I was a little frustrated during tutorias, but made it through and came back home for dinner and packing for Semana Santa! One cool thing today: got a ride up to my house in the back of an empty dump truck! It was great.
Friday
Today was a good day, considering it was the last day before vacay. Everyone was kinda laid back and did easier stuff; we let our kids play or have a party to celebrate. Tad, Laura Beth and I left right away after school to Gracias to catch the bus to Santa Rosa to pick up our friends. I was so excited on the bus; I was bouncing up and down on the seat because I couldn’t wait to finally see Mandi and Amy! They were coming to Honduras for our Semana Santa to travel and see me. We had been planning this since the fall and it was finally here. When we arrived in Santa Rosa, I rushed off the bus with my stuff and sprinted across the street to Espresso American where they were waiting. I literally attacked them when I saw them; we caused quite a scene! Semana Santa could finally begin!
We did all of the introductions between Mandi, Amy, Tad, Laura Beth and Tad’s two friends, Mike and Steve. Steve met Mandi and Amy at the airport and they all traveled to Santa Rosa from San Pedro together. Mike is actually working in Honduras right now for a microfinance group which is helping small coffee farms down here (if you want more info about this, let me know!). Mike had found us a hotel so after all the intros we loaded into taxis and settled into our hotel. We freshened up and headed out for dinner in town to a great pizza place. For those of us from Gracias, it was a treat to have great American-like pizza! Everyone got to know each other more chatting about jobs, Honduras, the States, West Michigan, etc. We ended the evening at the hotel poolside. Tomorrow….COPAN!!
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