Honduras and Nicaragua

Central America Caribbean » Honduras
April 5th 2009

Published: April 5th 2009

Edit Blog Post

Everette

Honduras

The land reminded me of California.

Hi Everybody!
I guess you figured out in the last blog that I meant the buildings in San Salvador were old and in bad shape. We left San Salvador and headed for Tegucigalpa. On our way morth to this city, we decided that we really did not want to go there. We asked the bus driver if we could get off before the road split north. He agreed and let us off on a road near a small town. We walked down the hill to this town and saw about 10 people. Nothing was there. We asked a policeman for directions to a bus and he pointed to a gringo. The gringo was an American girl working there with the Peace Corps. She took us to the highway where he had to wait for the bus. The bus was not a chicken bus but a greyhound type bus. It was a regular bus between local towns and was packed when we got on it. I was really afraid that our pockets were going to be picked. A couple of teenagers kept bouncing up against us. Walt dropped his wallet down into his shirt. I took everything out of my pockets and

Honduras

put it in my backpack with a combination lock on the pack. I wore the backpack in front. We had to stand up on the bus. Eventually, we got to Choluteca, a small town in Honduras. It was a dusty, dirty town with no appeal. We asked a taxi driver to take us to a grande hotel. There were only a couple in the town. The hotel cost about $18, had a tv, AC, and cold water. The restaurant had no menu. We finally communicated enough to get something to eat. We headed out early looking for the bus station. It had moved from the address on the bus brochure. We finally got a taxi. He found the station and it was closed. We paid him a tidy sum to take us to the border. At the border, we were surrounded in the car and later in person by MANY money changers and bicycle tuk tuk drivers. We went through the immigration office, paid our charges for leaving Honduras and entering Nicaragua. We hired a tuk tuk to take us over into Nicaragua. Can you imagine a guy on a bike trying to pedal uphill with Walt and me plus

Honduras

Our hotel in Choluteca

our luggage in the tuk tuk I can t make the question mark, quotation marks, or apostrophe work on this computer. This guy definitely earned his $3. Next, we hired a taxi to take us to Granada for $160. He drove us about 35 miles and the car starting shaking. He called a friend who came with his taxi and we got in with him. He was much nicer and spoke some English. He took us all the way to Granada. This whole process took hours. The taxis are not air conditioned. It is very hot in Central America. I look like Goldenlocks with super curly hair. It is also very humid. Many of these countries are not prepared for tourists. They do have one price for locals and another for tourists. You just have to accept it.
Columbus claimed Nicaragua in 1502 for Spain. Granada and Leon were the first two colonial settlements. We are currently in Granada. It is a pretty town with many interesting buildings. Today is Saturday and many of the locals had moved their chairs outside on the sidewalk to sit and visit. We went to the square which had a market like atmosphere. We

Hondura

a bicycle tuk tuk at the border of Honduas and Nicaragua

are staying near the center at the San Francisco Hotel. It is beside the San Francisco Catholic Church. Tomorrow, I hope to go into some of the museums.
As we traveled down the roads of Nicaragua, I saw many hot pink billboardswith President Ortega{s picture on them. The billlboards said, Rise up, you poor people of the world.
I would only recommend that you come to Central America if you are planning to visit a nice resort. The hotels used by the locals would not meet your U.S. standards. The only hot showers that I have had in one week were at the Hotel Aurora in Antigua. The cold showers are not terrible since it is so hot. They are not freezing cold but more room temperature. I contine to enjoy the wonderful fruit. It is fabulous and available everywhere. I have heard that Costa Rica and Panama are the hottest countries in Central America. I cannot imagine dealing with more heat. So far, I have not seen girls-women in shorts. The Mayan ladies wear dresses and skirts. Other girls-women wear blue jeans. The younger women wear tank tops and very low cut t-shirts. I get the impression that many

Honduras

A home along the roadside

people cannot read. When I showed them the address for the bus station, they just nodded their heads. No person had been ugly or rude. Many have shown us kindness.
While we were in San Salvdor, I went into an interesting business. It was a shop that made shoes. They had about 30 pairs of ladies shoes on display. You could pick out any type sole- leather, plastic, rubber, etc. You could choose any type heel and type top. It could be sandals, flats, etc. I would love to have had a pair of shoes made if I had planned to be there longer. I liked the idea of designing a pair of shoes.
I hope all is well with you! We fly from Panama City to Flores, Guatemala on the 13th. We have a few more days to get to Panama.
Take care,
Everette

Additional photos below

Photos: 14, Displayed: 14

Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and a half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. During the 1980s, Honduras proved a ha...more history