Next Stop: Copan

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We made it through yet another border crossing ourselves, narrowly escaping getting stuck behind a coach full of people entering Honduras. Like any other border crossing day, we had to rise and shine bright and early for a 0540hrs bus to to Aguilares. From there we got another bus to the border crossing at El Poy. At the border, there is no public bus so we had to get another micro bus to Ocatepeque. In Ocatepeque we got a bus to Santa Rosa de Copan where we transferred to one headed to San Pedro Sula but disembarked in La Entrada where we caught our last micro bus to Copan Ruinas. It was rather glorious as the bus from the border climbed into the mountains an we cooled off (Ashley even got goosebumps!!!).

Our only hiccup was when the bus driver in Ocatepeque said the bus would leave in 45 minutes so Dan and Mika decided to find some food and a bank while Ashley stayed on the bus with the bags. Whenever Dan got off a bus Ashley was paranoid it would try to leave without him but it always worked out, until this time that is. About 20 minutes later, the bus started moving so Ashley tried to firmly ask the bus driver to wait for Dan and Mika. He said we were just going up the road to park but Dan and Mika wouldn't know that when they found an empty spot where the bus once was. Just in the knick of time, they came running up from behind. It was during our transfer in La Entrada we got an idea of the true poverty most of their people live in. By that time, we were accustomed to vendors coming on the buses to sell their goods; water, soft drinks, and snacks. On this bus though, it was the poorest of the poor; people who were so sick or disabled they didn't have any other means than to ask for money on the bus. It was a bit of a wake up call.

The drive to Copan Ruinas was high in the mountains along twisting, winding roads. The town itself is very cute and the cheapest place we've found so far for accommodation; our private room with attached bathroom was USD10. For dinner we found tacos which felt like the freshest food we'd eaten since Mexico. The main reason for us visiting Copan was of course for the ruins. The ruins are small compared to other more famous sites like Chichen Itza which makes it more palatable for walking around on a hot day. It's also a less touristy site so it's not bad if you don't make it out there early. With your Copan ticket you can also go into its sister site, Sepulturas. We got a little lost on the way there and ended up on a road facing onto the back of the site. However, Mika, our friend from El Salvador really didn't want to go all the way back to the main road so we snuck in what looked like an old entrance climbing, very carefully might I add, over a barbed wire fence and wandering through the jungle until we found the ruins. Sepulturas is much smaller and only took a few minutes to walk around. But it's less excavated and much quieter so it was very serene.

We were meant to go to Guatemala the next day but, unfortunately, Ashley came down with something awful and could not move. She spent the day in bed sleeping and Dan played caretaker, skimping on money exchange and shopping trips to leave us just enough cash to run out as we hit the border (we survived on USD20 for everthing that day). Lucky for us, Ashley would feel loads better the next day so we were on our way back to Guatemala for the long travel up to see the grand ruins of Tikal.

More pictures here.

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Photos

Hieroglyphic Staircase
Covered for protection from the elements.

Making New Friends
A parrot rehab center near town was raising awareness in the square.