My New Adventure

At first, I considered merging this new blog with my old Spain blog, but ultimately decided against it given the dramatically different natures of the two trips. Really the only similarity between my experience in Spain and the one in Honduras is that I live with a family other than my own in a Spanish-speaking country. Allow me to explain.

  Waking up Saturday at 2:30 am, I made my way for Dulles airport to catch my 5:30 am flight to San Salvador, which would eventually take me to La Ceiba, Honduras. Two wrong gates, a mistake through customs in San Pedro Sula where I thought I'd lost my bag, and a ridiculously rickety La Ceiba landing, I made it to my final destination in one piece. Thankfully, I recognized Sean at the airport because he definitely did not recognize me (maybe it was the 3-year-old family picture I had sent him?) As soon as I stepped outside I knew Lindsey (Sean's wife) had been right. Honduras is definitely HOT and muggy. After living on the 8th floor of Eagle without AC and in madre's boiling house for 4 months, I'm fairly confident I've had sufficient training.

During the brief drive from the airport to the McCann's (family I'm living with) house, Sean filled me in on a few La Ceiba facts. Here's what I know thus far:

-Driving the width of the city only takes about 5 minutes. 

-We live 1 mile from a very polluted beach and about a 15 minute drive from a relatively clean beach.

-We live in between mountains and the beach (mountains to the south, beach to the north)

-La Ceiba is a kind of huge tree (originally found around the Dole banana port that once made this place famous)

-The city was almost entirely built by the Dole Banana Company about a hundred years ago

-The currency is Lempiras and 18.8 Lempiras amount to $1

-I can't drink the water

-Toilet paper goes in the trash can (yikes). 

Now for a bit about my living conditions, new family, and nature of work. I live with Sean and Lindsey McCann (both 27) and their two young girls Lucy (2 1/2) and Ellie (8 mo.). I live in a guest house behind the main house and conveniently enjoy the only air-conditioning unit :) Already Lucy wants me to do everything for her, at times preferring me even to mommy (apparently being allowed to bath her the first night was a pretty big deal). She has a contagious smile and extremely expressive face, almost cartoonish. With a head full of blonde curls, sweet blue eyes, constant impromptu songs and dances, and her pure excitement for anything and everything, she really had me at the get-go. I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship J

Ellie, a woman of few words (zero, to be exact), is basically just fat and happy. 

My first day basically consisted of me getting settled into my new home. I enjoyed a typical Honduran lunch of baleatas (modified with pulled pork, cheese, tomatoes, and avocado all wrapped in a tortilla) with Lindsey and Sean, unpacked, and took a much-needed nap. Later, we headed over to the Pettengills (Mike and Erin are also MTW team leaders with Sean and Lindsey) to help with dinner and wait for the arrival of the new weekly team. With the team's flight delayed, dinner was relocated at a Chinese restaurant (apparently, Honduran food isn't something to get too excited about). As Sean, Lindsey, Josh (18-yr-old intern who will be at Elon in the fall), the girls, and I pulled into the parking lot, I was reminded that I was definitely far from home. Twelve or so loitering men greeted us and then dashed at the snap of one man's fingers. No doubt some big drug deal was going down...just a day in the life I guess. 

Back home it was baths and bedtime for the girls, Wii for adults. I think they just made me play to boost some self-esteem. I mean, SOMEBODY'S got to lose. Josh saved the day and came over to babysit while Lindsey and Sean left to meet the team (for real this time) and I caught up on sleep. I enjoyed a cold shower, blasted the oscillating fan, and fell asleep beneath a tin roof and mango tree. Chiva! ("Cool" in Honduras--I think it will be a while before my first instinct isn't to say "SUPERGUAY!")

 

Sunday 7/12/09

The day began with a big pancake breakfast at the McCann's. All 15 new team members, plus the Pettengill and McCann families piled in to enjoy classic, sludgy Honduran coffee, eggs, pancakes, and cultural debriefing. 

After playtime and lunch with the girls, it was nap time (for everyone). At 3, we headed off to "gringo church," which is just another name for team worship at the Pettengills. After dinner, we made our way into Armenia Bonita, the very poor community in which MTW does most of its ministry, to attend a Pentecostal church service. Between the ear-blasting music, children dancing in the aisles, arms waving, the "alleluias!" and "amens!", a man pounding a tortoise shell for percussion, and the pastor yelling the sermon in Spanish, I had more than a few "pinch me" moments. How could I have been running errands in Falls Church just two days earlier?

Among other things, I was really struck by how welcoming they all were. Throughout the entire service, the pastor repeatedly said how grateful they were to have us, that God is so good for blessing them with people like us to help them, etc. Several members of the congregation made it a point to go around and shake each one of our hands before choosing a seat for him/herself (in the back of the room too since they had reserved the front section for us). Their extreme kindness and hospitality were almost embarrassing. After the service, I was talking to a man holding a beautiful baby girl. I told him I thought she was cute and asked if she was his. He nodded and said her name was Naomi, and plopped her into my arms. I have since found this to be completely commonplace here as people seem to find no problem with grabbing Ellie out of my arms without saying a word. 

The night came to a close as we made the trek home, being pulled over by 2 different cops on the way. I guess a huge blue van without license plates crammed with 13 gringos was cause for interrogation. Apparently, these random cop stops are fairly normal too.