Honduras

[kib]

DH may have an opportunity with work to travel to Honduras for 2 weeks, probably in May. If I wish, I could go with him for the cost of airfare. I know absolutely nothing about the country. Most likely he would be limited to the capital city of Tegucigalpa, with maybe a weekend extra somewhere close. Has anyone been here, or have any stories good or bad to sway me? Two weeks at home in peace also sounds pretty good, but I haven't been away in a while.

[razz]

Never turn down an opportunity to see another part of the wonderful world is my motto.

[iris lilies]

If shadowmoss doesn't come along shortly, send her a PM. I'm pretty sure she lived there for a few years doing IT contract work.

[lessisbest]

Make sure you have your shots (inoculations) up to date. Our son-in-law was stationed there for 18-months and loved the place, other than riding on the buses and getting malaria. He was supposed to be there for a year, but the Iraq war broke out and his deployment was extended 6-more months. Our daughter and granddaughter traveled there to see him and enjoyed the trip. A co-worker of my husbands and her husband took early retirement and they live there. Leave your jewelry at home, however, there is a lot of crime.

[Packratona!]

Yes, lots of crime and worse than ever especially in the capitol. Use a money belt. I personally would suggest traveling up to the north coast, (La Ceiba) and riding in a banana boat ($10? Not sure) out to the island of Utila for a couple of days. This would be a nice weekend trip as it takes a few hours to get to the north coast. Take bug spray with you for the sand flies. Go snorkling while you are there, it is fabulous. You can google for good cheap places on the island to stay and eat. I also enjoyed going way up in the mountains to visit some small indigenous villages.

[shadowmoss]

Where are you staying? Intercontinental? Marriot? The area in Teguc around the Mall and those hotels (which includes the Presidential house) is fairly safe. I never had an issue takng local taxis in that area, but the hotels can also provide taxis, they will just cost more. Money-wise, a 100L (limpera) note is $5. Most places will be happy to take US money, but if you want local currency use the ATM at the Intercontinental or Marriot. Also, at least at the IC (Intercontinental) they are happy to arrange a tour for you of the city. I recommend it. The taxi will be nice and air conditioned, the guide knowlegeable and English speaking. Up on the mountain is the (ok, can't spell it the real name from memory...) statue of Jesus that is a copy of the one in Brazil, an amazing view of the city from way up, the local 'zoo' that is worth it to pay the $.50 to see, and a nice park to walk around in safely that has a cool gift shop. The tour will also include stopping at the cathedral for a tour. With the taxi driver from the hotel you will be safe.

A point and shoot camera is safe, but don't take a big DSLR with lots of lenses, etc. Everyone will have a camera, just don't stand out. Don't walk a lot even in the area of those hotels, the local taxis are pretty safe, as I said. The Majic casino is in that area and is a safe place to go at night. Be ready to see guys in various states of uniform toting shotguns at every door of every store. After awhile I liked knowing they were there. But, it is odd at first to see them guarding the entrance of a grocery, etc. If every in doubt, trust the military before the police, the police if no one else is around. In the area I mentioned there are a lot of Americans as that is the only real area that the active duty American military are allowed to go.

Ask for a tour or where to get a bus to Valley of the Angels (again, my Spanish memory isn't up to the local name). It is a tourist mecca, up in the mountain outside of Teguc. English is spoken by most, and it would be safe for you alone if you want. It has a nice central park (as do most of the Honduran small towns) and open air restaurant/coffee shops. It is the Honduran version of Gatlinburg/tourist trap/sanitized version of Honduras. If you want any souviners, either the Picacho(?) park I mentioned or Valle d'Ageles (that is spelled incorrectly I'm sure) are the places to get them cheapest.

There are bus lines that will take you to the coast at La Ceiba in air conditioned comfort. I forget the name of the bus line but ask at the hotel. I wanted to get to Roatan (the island next to Utilia already recommended) but never made it. They have newly built (as in, while I was there they were still working on it) a nice 2-4 lane road from coast to coast to supply an alternative to the increasinly expensive Panama Canal. Travel along it is easy. I took a chicken bus over to San Pedro from where I lived in Comayagua and lived to tell the tale. My Spanish was pretty basic at the time (not much better now).

The Honduran people were uniformly wonderful to me. Speaking English is a door opener to the casinos and other places if the guard(s) move to block you as you walk up. Showing the people respect gets respect shown to you, at least from what I found.

I lived there 2.5 years. I'd go back anytime. I enjoyed my time there. If you tell me more specifics of where/when you will be in the area or what interests you I can probably come up with more.

[shadowmoss]

Ok, more:

Take a non-smart phone that takes a regular size sim card with you can buy a sim card at the mall across from the IC along with 'saldo' with is minutes. Tigo is the main cell phone carrier. There is another, actually the one I had, but I can't remember the name... They are about the same cost-wise. If you both get cards, you will have cheap cell phone access, much cheaper than taking a US phone plan and using it down there. It isn't terribly expensive to call back to the US from there, not as expensive as it is to call from here to there. If you are in one of the two hotels I mentioned you can have wifi. Depending on many thngs (phase of the moon?) it may or may not be included with the price of the room.

Forgive me if you are an accomplished international traveler and I'm telling you things you know. Dress for very warm weather, but take a jacket/sweater for evenings. Shorts not so much. I wore longish skirts there, and haven't since I got back. Jeans will be hot. Lightweight cotton or nylon I found to be more comfortable. I wore nylon hiking pants almost exclusively. Do take bug spray. You might not need it, but the bugs there can carry bad juju. I didn't have any issues, but others did.

If you are interested in visiting a small Honduras town and visiting an orphanage and other real-life type stuff of Honduran life I can see if my former neighbor is still there. He is a retired nurse from Seattle who was in the Peace Corps until they pulled out of Honduras, then stayed and lives in the small town I did (not Comayagua...) and volunteers at one of the local orphanages. He speaks Spanish and could show you a lot of the area safely.

I keep mentioning safe. The vast majority of the time you will be safe in Honduras. However, if you flash out the fact that you are from a rich country, that will be noticed and can make you a target. Just dress casually for the most part, little jewelry, small camera, and show respect and you won't have any issues. From my experience anyway. However, given a chance to relieve you of some of your excess valuables, there a many who would do so. Just give it over and mostly you won't be hurt. They want money/stuff, not to hurt you. Don't be a target, and if you accidently do become one, give them the stuff they want. Simple.

Most people don't go alone anywhere. I think it is a cultural thing as much as a safety thing. By being out alone I knew I was advertising that I was American. I just didn't flash, tried to blend in, and didn't go walking at night or on lonely streets. I keep stressing, I had zero bad experiences while in Honduras. Within 48 hours of being back in Kansas City I had $400 taken from a wallet I dropped and someone scooped up and ran off with. It's not location so much as just not being stupid (like I was).

I miss the desyuno(?) typical or typical breakfast of Honduras. Even Wendy's has it there. Try it at least once. Honduras also grows some of the best coffee in the world if you are into specialty coffees. Turns out I don't particularly like Honduran coffee (I'm waiting for lightning to strike me saying that...) but it is served with sugar and cream unless you specifically order it otherwise. Do drink it while there as it is one of the things Honduras is well known for. Oh, and you can get beer at Wendy's down there as well.

The restaurants in the area of the hotel's are US chains. Denny's, Wendy's, McD's, Burger King are all right there. You have to try to find local restaurants. Over by the Embasy is another safe and upscale area, and there are more local restaurants over there. I didn't spend a lot of time in that area. The Maya Hotel is a local hotel that was the finest in the area prior to the US chains being built. I recommend dinner there at least one night, but allow plenty of time. Food was great but service was extremely slow.

So, ask me more questions. Please. My co-workers cringe when I start talking about Honduras, which I guess I do often.

[nswef]

Wow, Shadowmoss, you make me want to go to Honduras and I am never comfortable traveling anywhere English is not the dominant language. You must have had a grand couple of years there. I love reading about other people's adventures...I am not adventurous at all. So thanks for sharing and for giving such good advice.

[Packratona!]

Ah, the breakfasts....this whole conversation is taking me back...I was there for 4 months when I was 19...that was a long time ago. Visited the home of the painter Velasquez. He was very old at the time. Another thing I thought of is to visit the ruins of Copan.

[kib]

Shadowmoss, thank you! I had read about there being an unusually high crime rate ... hey, I have a house in Mexico, so that shouldn't have bothered me, but you know, when the first thing you read is Murder! Kidnapping! it's hard to shake that. Thanks for a much more enthusiastic and realistic perspective.

I am a relatively "accomplished" traveler but it's always much better to hear suggestions and reminders from someone who's walked the street I'd be standing on.

I won't know for a couple of months whether this comes to pass or not. DH will be teaching all day on the weekdays so I'd be on my own a lot. The things you've talked about all sound exciting to me, including the orphanage, I'll get in touch with you when I'm sure I'm going. Thank you again.

ETA: Thank you of course to everyone else who responded, all contributions gratefully accepted and I've got lots to mull over now.

[shadowmoss]

I'm glad I have had a positive influence on folks' impression of Honduras. It is a beautiful country with wonderful people who went out of their way (mostly) to be helpful.

When you see statistics of crime in places, look to see who the majority of the victims are. In Honduras it is much more dangerous to be Honduran than American. It is more dangerous to be young and flashy and hang out in bars. I did not ever drink alcohol while alone in Honduras. Just being smart. The kidnappings are of rich or middle class Hondurans. They want ransom money and they don't want the US Embassy involved in any investigations. Mostly if you aren't flashy (alone on a street with a nice big DSLR camera taking awesome photos will get you relieved of your camera pretty quickly), aren't obnoxious, don't interfere with any locals in things that aren't your business, you will be fine. Not unlike a lot of places in the US. The Honduran experience with Americans is usually missionaries or US Military. Both want to bring money/medicine into the country. Tourism is a career track in schools there, and English is taught in a lot of schools as well. In Teguc in the areas where Americans hang out there will usually be someone around who speaks English. In the stores in the Metro Mall across from the IC there is usually at least one person who sorta speaks English, but don't stray too far from the basics subject at hand as the conversations may be very basic. Be willing to pay a reasonable price for what you want, and you will be shown a wonderful time (I'm thinking tours and such).

Copan was the place I couldn't remember the name of, so thanks for mentioning that Packratona! That is another place I didn't make it to. Well worth it from what I heard, but not really a day trip. Myan ruins, and interesting from what I heard. Closer than La Ceiba, if you only have one weekend it would be either/or.

This will give me an excuse to try to get in touch with my former neighbor. It was great when he moved into the apartment above mine as he could translate for me with the landlord/landlady. Cute story alert: I was at the Mall at the Dunkin Donuts buying some breakfast (they have a small sandwich there that they don't have here) and the people on the cash register don't speak English but are used to us Gringos just kind of pointing and trying to pronounce what we want and worked with me. I was doing my usual point and gesture and a small girl who was with her brother and mother next to me looked up and said 'I speak English'. Her older brother about 10yo turned and jumped to also be of assistance. It actually took longer and his translation of numbers for what I owed was incorrect, but it was worth it to give them practice and I appreciated their immediate willingness to help a foreign stranger. The busy cash register person took time for all this to transpire as well. In reality I went there every couple of weeks and they knew me and basically what I wanted, but it was fun to have the kids help.

As someone who didn't speak Spanish there, I had to turn loose of expectations of what might end up showing up when I ordered food. I could tell at times the waitperson would just bring me what they thought was close enough to what I struggled to ask for. Forget trying to order anything out of the usual way it is served. I did learn quickly how to order black coffee, though, in perfect(ish) Spanish. :) At the Tigo store I walked in and asked, in English, if anyone spoke it there. Twice customers stepped away from what they were ordering or doing and helped translate for me. I don't see this level of helpfulness here in the US for Spanish speakers who don't know English. Just sayin'. Again, this was in the area that has a lot of Americans around.

[shadowmoss]

Now you are seeing why my co-workers' eyes glaze over when I say 'back when I was in Honduras...'

Another area that might be fun to explore is La Esperanza. Take the new highway to Siguatepeque and turn left. Really. La Esperanza is the agricultural area of Honduras and also where the indeginous Indians live. Copan isn't too far from there, relatively, but I don't think you want to take the direct road from La Esperanza there. The Japanese are supposedly making a lot of investments in the agriculture in the area, teaching the local people to farm efficiently so that Japan can import the produce. There is a big local market there that was fun to walk around. You can probably get the hotel to hire a taxi to take you there, but if you have a car it really isn't a difficult drive. I'm assuming now that you speak Spanish and are comfortable moving around in a Central American country from your comment about having a house in Mexico.

You can get a tour almost anywhere by asking the hotel to arrange a taxi tour. Another way might be to go to the 'taxi guy' standing at the doorway of the Metro Mall that faces the IC and ask him if he has a taxi driver who will take you to, say La Esperanza, for the day. They are more 'official' than the independants that hang out in the street between the hotel and the Mall and perhaps more safe, but more expensive. The most safe and expensive of course are the hotel taxis. Your own comfort level can guide you as to what your pocket book can handle. I used the independents for local stuff but most of their taxis I wouldn't trust to make it outside of the local area. Just remember, tourism of the area is something that everyone and their brother is part of, so you can get a tour to anyplace for some price. Busses run to all the outlying areas as well.

The only place I would tell you to be extremely careful is San Pedro Sula. I think it really is as dangerous there as the media portrays all of Honduras. Again, mostly Honduran on Honduran, but I never took the chance except the time I did take a bus there during the day to catch a plane as that airport is safer than the Teguc one as far as landing/takeoffs go. After that trip I just went to Teguc to fly in and out as they have extended the runway from the time all the stories about how dangerous it is are about. Daylight only in San Pedro Sula, and in and out as quickly as you can.

I'll stop now...

[Packratona!]

Thanks for your comments shadowmoss. Takes me back! Hondurans are indeed really great. I lived with a Honduran family for the 3 months or so that I lived there when I was 19. I really liked the Bay Islands especially and there are a number of Americans who have retired there.I do remember riding in the back of a pickup to San Pedro Sula and staying overnight with some family members, on the way to La Ceiba; it was a pretty sketchy place and I am sure even more so now.
One thing that is a shock if you have never been exposed to that kind of environment is the poverty levels; all the beggars on the streets etc.

[kib]

Thank you again, everyone. Shadowmoss, don't apologize, this is great! Just know that it's not a done deal yet, I probably won't know until a few weeks beforehand. ... One of the frustrating things about these "free" trips is that DH's plans could get yanked at any time up til he receives written confirmation. If I wait too long the plane fare can be eye popping - skipped going because I couldn't find anything under $1300 to Puerto Rico, ouch, but if I commit too early I may find myself going to Honduras alone.