A Cambridge Girl in a Honduran World

As I write this I sit beside Giselle, basking in the sunshine that coats our roof where we hang our clothes. As it begins to get winder we know rainy season will soon leave + the cold will settle in. Thus, we enjoy the sunshine and warmth it brings whilst we can. It’s unbelievable that we’ve been lucky enough to have been in Yam Yam for 2 months, yet we somehow we have. 
After being ill with various things for a good majority of the first two months I now feel settled into life here. We have our routines although how much these are stuck to is questionable, as so much of life here is sporadic – as you will find out. It feels like only last week I wrote my post about being here 1 month, and yet another month has already passed. 

In terms of me being ill, we believe this is due to our mould problem. Asthma and mould don’t seem to be a good mix. Currently we cannot use our wardrobe and I dare not even look under the sink too often because they are covered in white fluff. Yes, I clean it. Nevertheless, it takes anywhere from 2-5 days to come flooding back into our lives. I wish I was over exaggerating but the smell smacks you in the face as soon you enter the house – it’s making its presence very clear. We discovered the problem a week after our trip to Tela (see my Travel Tales series) + since then it’s ruined my washbag, multiple clothes, bedding – even Giselle’s laptop. Besides the health implications, this has hit us the hardest as to fix the laptop would cost over 7000L (equating to £250!). However (as I edit this) we have had a very joyous week and this problem has been fixed! This involved our neighbour ripping out our wardrobe, using a vinegar mixture on the wall + us aquiring 3 fans (ironic, considering we’re in the coldest project). I’m just thankful it’s finally gone 🙂   

The joyous job of mould cleaner…

Besides mould, there is only one other major problem in our otherwise perfect lives. That would be the fact that neither of our cards work in Honduras! So we lived in a mould infested house + have no access to money! Woo!! 

Now, let’s be realistic. We’re volunteers and we don’t expect a luxury life. I believe there are always solutions to problems. For example, the bonus of the card issue means we budget super well. We’ve just found a way to be able to get money out via our host which is nice, especially for emergencies such as my braces. Our spore friends were a pain but they are out of our lives for good now!

Now let’s talk about more positive things!! Living in Yamaranguila is one of the best things of my entire life. We really do love being here. Life here is slow paced, with early nights + early mornings allowing so much more time to do things. Yet, as slow as it is, there is always something going on, something to be involved in or someone to see – so in fact the time actually races past. We’re both actually pretty upset at how quickly the year is going! 

How would I sum up two months? Well, after having a think about this I decided on these factors:

* Books read: 8

* Tigo messages: 32

* Number of mosquito bites: uncountable but 60 alone after Belize

* Times I’ve been ill: at least 7 

* Most common questions asked: do you have babies/a boyfriend? Are you sisters?

* War + Peace: 8%

Are you sisters? Is a questions we’re frequently asked: by our students, both in school + out, by our Honduran friends + even by strangers we meet along the way. At first we’d laugh and say no but now we’ve adopted each other + so we just smile + say yes. 🙂 

This month has seen lots of travelling. For a long weekend in September we headed to the beach for a break from the mountains. Then for our October break we did our first lot of serious travelling as we headed to Placencia, Belize with the Americans for our 5 day break. Both of these I have written about separately in my Travel Tales series but they were super fun trips. 

Independence weekend was amazing. As I’ve already written about the festivities, I shall just mentioned that we were treated to a visit by Vegas. He’s hilarious + so ace, taking us for so much food. First coffee (well, a virgin piña colada + milkshake) + pan de pan (bread + butter pudding). Then an amazing dinner at La Teraza de Domingo where we had actual burgers – yum! As well as this there was typical Honduran food for starters + strawberry smoothies. As if all of that wasn’t enough, we also went to BlueBerry for crepes. The evening, as well as being filled with food, was full of laughs + conversation. We look forward to another visit in February!! 

One interesting thing that happened much earlier this month was the flooding of our neighbour’s house. Whilst we were at school there was a moment of seriously heavy rain, which, as we’re in Honduras, we didn’t think much about. However, when walking home we noticed our gated entrance to our houses (which is set lower than the road) had a huge collection of water in it. The only way to cross this river, besides cycle over it, was to take off both our shoes + socks + have a little paddle. 

This ended with us Brits joining together with our Honduran neighbours in the still falling raining to get rid of the water. About 5 of us had buckets we used to throw the water onto the street, with 2 more armed with brooms sweeping it away. Although this was seriously hard + cold work we laughed whilst doing it + the moment of relief when the drain was found was immense. This meant we could drain all the water in a matter of minutes!! I shall always, however, treasure this moment of community. 

Rain is something Yam has really been struggling with this year. Although we’re practically out of rainy season the rain has still continued to pour, meaning our roads on the way to school are absolutely terrible. (Not to mention our clothes never dry!) One day when we were on the bus on the way home we fell in a huge hole on the side of the road. I thought we were going to topple into the stream rushing below but somehow we stayed safely on the road.  

6am views from our roof🌄

In other news I’ve truly become Honduran. I awake naturally at 5 every single day. Often I go to bed at around 9-9:30, and rise almost exactly on 5. This is useful because the time difference means I can chat to family + friends, but also because it allows so much more time before school. We now run in the mornings, and if we don’t run, we tend (if the weather permits) to walk to school. We both absolutely love this! It means I can do writing, make a relaxed breakfast.. I’m definitely settled into the chilled Honduran way.

Morning Runs🏃🏽‍♀️

Sometimes in the mornings I write letters, which is one way I really enjoy to communicate with my loved ones, especially due to our inconsistent power. This gives me the chance to describe (often in greater detail than needed) life out here, + receiving letters back is amazing. So far I’ve only had 4 but expect many more that haven’t reached me yet. The post system is very spoadic. One example is I sent both my parents a letter on the same day, my dad received his yet my mum didn’t. Also, my letters arrive in such a random order but hey, as long as I’m getting them I’m happy!

Also in the mornings (or, if we’re organised, the night before) we make baldeadas. One week we bought tortillas, a pack of refried beans and cheese – however it just seemed like an expensive way to do it. Now, we make our tortillas from scratch, refry beans ourselves + consider ourselves not perfect, but definitely good, baleada makers. These are often our snack for school 🙂 We do our own fried plantain + definitely have some meals which are more Honduran. Our plans for the near future include grinding our own corn for corn tortillas!

Gap Years are all about pushing your boundaries, which I really feel we’ve done already. If not by making baleadas, then by dancing in front of our students. During chapel one Wednesday we got up in front of K4, K5, the two 1st Grades, 2nd + the two 3rd Grades and danced. If you know me at all, you know dancing is not one of those talents that’s ever come easy to me, but nevertheless we decided to have some fun. It was a slow song yet I couldn’t help but laugh as we did it. There’s a 1st time for everything! 

Besides school, whenever we travel around Yam, for example to La Esperanza, and there’s the option to go in the back of a truck, we take it. Everyone else seems so use to this way of transport, but for us it’s still so exciting! Even when it’s windy (+ even when it’s rainy) we’ve still be sitting in the back, admiring all the stunning views. 

One thing we’ve had some fun with out here is thrifting. It’s so huge out here it’s really hard not to do it, there’s multiple shops down most streets. By far my best purchase was a pair of dungarees for 20L (that’s 60p…)! Giselle has found a beautiful blue dressing gown and we’ve grabbed some jumpers for the winter – not anticipating quite how cold it gets here…

As previously mentioned, I broke my braces on a taquito. This was the break that kept on giving because it spread around my entire lower powechain. As we couldn’t take money out, Jake thankfully helped me out allowing me to take a much needed trip to the orthadontist. It was pretty weird, especially because they wouldn’t let anyone else in there with me, but I managed pretty well. We had some limited conversation after I surprised them with some basic Spanish + pretty soon the work was done. I now have a light blue top track + a dark blue lower power chain – rocking that Honduran pride with my two-tones braces. 

We’ve discovered a Saturday market in Yam which is lovely and also more comedors than I can handle! That’s what I love about it here, it seems no matter how long we spend here there’s always something new to find..

We go on lots of walks in the evening, simply because the sunsets out here are amazing. This has seen us wander far out of the centre of Yam along winding dirt paths. Here, away from the main parts, you are faced with shacks + really the level of poverty surprised us after being use to Yam. I didn’t even recognise one of my students until he called to me by name, and the house he lived in saddened me greatly. We are running through ideas of things to do in the community because we want to be able to help as many people as possible over here.   
I’ve truly become Honduran. I awake naturally at 5 every single day. Often I go to bed at around 9-9:30, and rise almost exactly on 5. This is useful because the time difference means I can chat to family + friends, but also because it allows so much more time before school. We now run in the mornings, and if we don’t run, we tend (if the weather permits) to walk to school. We both absolutely love this! It means I can do writing, make a relaxed breakfast.. I’m definitely settled into the chilled Honduran way. 

Día del Biblia was a pretty incredible experience. We headed to the top of the road to meet a procession of people. We were handed flags (I even lucked out + got a blue one!) then waited for the march to begin. All you could see, from our perspective, was rows of coloured flags + banners. Americans + Hondurans (+ us!) marched together, singing songs + chanting. It was my 1st ever march + it was definitely fun 🙂 we ended in the basketball court + then had a service outside. It was so hot Giselle + I ended up sitting down at the side but such an experience. 

On our 2 month anniversary weekend we decided to celebrate. On Friday we took a really long walk around Yam, to part we’d never even seen, watching the sunset. On Saturday we headed into Esperanza, doing the usual food shop but treating ourselves to papaya + orange juice smoothies 😛 then, we headed home + made pan pizzas which was not only fun but also hilarious!! I’m so thankful I am placed in Yam + extra thankful I am partnered with Giselle 🙂 Here’s yo the next 10 months! 

Sending love from a little house in Yamaranguila,

Charlotte

Travel Tales #2 – Placencia

• Placencia, Belize
• Hours travelled: 25hrs on the way there, 13hrs on way back 
• Distance travelled: 667.4 km
• Transport: buses + board 
• Rating: 7 1/2 

1 day, 3 countries. That’s how our Belize adventure began. A national holiday meant we had 3 days off school, so we left as soon as possible after school on the Tuesday and headed into La Esperanza. The fun began straight away as we fit 10 of us in the back of a truck holding tarpoling over us so we didn’t get wet. We took this down too early + I was soaked as I stood, facing into the pelting rain. We hopped on our bus and zoomed off to San Pedro, making a brief stop in Sigua. Again, we made food to save money so snacked on pineapple, banana pancakes + another veggie pasta dish. We picked up the La Union people (including Megan + Rachel, yay!) then made our way to our hostel. 

From there it was another 4am start to zoom our way to the border with Gutamala. Honduras is an incredible country to drive through, with some tunes blaring + of course a partner to lean on 😉 the border was packed there was a wait but eventually we were through + someone fitting 22 people into a small van designed to hold 12…

I ended up sitting across Giselle + Rachel for the hour it took us to reach the coast, as we played Contact (a word game) + had a laugh. There was more waiting as we filled out forms in a migration office but eventually we were on a little boat, speeding across the waves to Belize. I’m quite serious about the waves, I was bruised after flying into the air + landing on an non-padded seat repeatedly. It was totally worth it as we got to go right next to a storm + see the rain hitting the ocean. 

Then, we landed in Belize. I hadn’t realised it was a British colony so was shocked to hear the migration men speak in English (+ hear one say “look, your queen is on our money!”). Belize was pretty amazing from the start, as Giselle + I shared an amazing lunch in a wooden hut with a sea view. Let me just say now, Belizan coleslaw is one of the best things I’ve ever tasted. 

It was back on another bus to take us to another boat! There was a lot of travelling involved but eventually another small boat whisked us across the waves to Placencia. We were dropped at a dock, waved goodbye to the Americans + set off to find out hostel. We were so happy with this, it had cute little vibes, a common room, water (yeeees!) + ace rooms. However, my favourite part was the toaster. We got to make real toast (which we had everyday for breakfast, no regrets) 🙂 

We had a quick dip in the sea as the sun set, which was so lovely. The secenery was prettt unreal, as this photo shows: 

We got stuck in some rain so decided to head to one of the shacks on the Main Street which had chicken burritos for $1. After that we headed to a supermarket, stumbling across GIANT cookies which we ate whilst talking in the common room. 

The next day saw us lazing a bit, taking a walk along the beach and attempting to hire bikes (with no such luck). The other Americans got them from a place that did $5 for the day (but there were none left) whilst a place we found wanted $5 an hour. We bumped into Jake so got to see the American’s place which was super nice which such an amazing view + dock area! It was after this that we found John the Bakerman, who sold very delicious cinnamon swirls + was hilarious. I could speak about the food in Belize all day! For lunch Giselle + I both had a box of: drew chicken, coconut rice, split peas + coleslaw – YUM!! 

The afternoon was spent in the sea, making Rachel into a sand mermaid + climbing the lookout for an impressive view of the approaching storm. It came in faster than we anticipated, which saw us getting stuck in more rain. 

However, that night was Yulia’s birthday so we headed to Tipsy Tina where there was karaoke! In order to get there we went on the “smallest Main Street in the world” which was something ticked off the list 😉 

Tremble at the wonder that is the smallest Main Street.. in the world🌎

 it was such an ace night featuring: the Honduran national anthem, dancing, so much singing + us 4 belting out “You Belong With Me”.

There was only one awkward experience where I felt some creepy man was getting too close to us on the dance floor. He started having a go at us and I decided it was unacceptable so had a go right back. According to the others, I gave him the “death stare” + though my anger was well controlled it was very strong – I struggle with the macho culture over here. Lone men were lining the tables surrounding the dance floor, armed with their drinks, acting like they were stalking prey. It gave me the shivers + when one thought it was okay to get in our personal space without permission… nope! 

As the Americans went on a boat ride the next day we headed to pick up their bikes. This gave us an enjoyable few hours as we cycled around Placencia before, you guessed it, getting stuck in more rain – which was totally an excuse for more chicken burritos! Belize is pricey so although we looked in the souvenir shops we decided against anything – especially due to Giselle + my problems with cards… (more on this in the next one)

There was time spent playing in the sea with my GoPro then, as it was our last night, we dressed up and headed to Barefoot – a beach bar. We splashed out (literally, I’m still sad about how expensive it was) on an amazing meal. I had a burger + plantain fries which were incredible. As we ate there was a little reggae band playing so Giselle + I decided to get up + dance (even though we were the only ones). It was hilarious + eventually we dragged up Megan + Rachel too. I have very fond memories of us dancing + singing along in our little 4. He even switched it up, playing more modern songs and, at our request, Bob Marley!! 

On the final day we awoke at 5 to go and watch the sunset. This moment (although there are so many good ones) is amongst my favourite from Placencia. It’s hard to describe in words the feeling you get watching the sunrise over the water you stand in on a beach on the other side of the world. Awe would be the closest thing. 

The trip back was made more enjoyable by how calm the sea was and, because we set off at 7:30am, by 9:30pm we were back in the very chilly La Esperanza. I survived most of the day (although we obviously had our last toast that morning) off water + “digestive” biscuits but when we pulled into San Pedro we grabbed some Wendy’s. Giselle + I had a reaaaally long conversation about history where I practically taught her my A-Level course then we were home! However as it had been so hot we’d travelled in shorts. Thus, we ended our Belizian adventure freezing standing in the back of a truck being pelted by wind + rain. Yet this doesn’t change the fact Belize was ace + we had a blast there 🙂 

From a little pink house in Yamaranguila, 

Charlotte 🙂 

Placencia Tips:

– Eat at the shacks, they are so much cheaper than restaurants + sell yummy food

– Walk the length of the beach: the Americans were given free shells, etc by locals 

– Don’t go after tropical storms, it will rain a lot 

Travel Tales #1 – Tela

• Tela, Honduras 
• Hours travelled: 7 1/2 (would have been 5 had buses left when suppose to)
• Distance travelled: 245.7 km
• Transport: buses 
• Rating: 6 

Tela was the 1st lot of travelling we’d done in Honduras. It was a long weekend and so we decided to go to the beach (even volunteers need breaks sometimes!). 

Although we had to wake up at 3:30am, the night after Independence Day celebrations, it was totally worth it. Our neighbour’s (+ landlady) husband’s brother (confused yet?) kindly gave us a lift into town, as although Hondurans wake early, buses don’t quite run that early. We hopped onto the extremely comfortable 4:30 bus (luxury life) to San Pedro. A challenge to common beliefs, this actually left on time! It was lovely to ride through the Honduran countryside, watch the sunrise + chill. There was blogging + reading to be done – but not sleeping as both of us find that difficult on transport. Living that cheap life, we decided to premake lots of food to avoid having to buy any along the way. This included: veggie pasta and pineapple with a breakfast of jam sandwiches! I was still getting over an illness (more on this later) but was feeling okay – until we pulled into San Pedro at 8…

Although the bus station is huge we were shepherded into a waiting room only 10m from the door, so didn’t see the size until later. We had possibly one of the worst experiences with toilets out here, which I will not describe in any detail but will simply say this: when travelling in Honduras, tissues + hand sanitiser are a must. I purchased a bag of water + we sat, waiting for the bus which we were told left at 9. Here’s a prime example of “Honduran Time” as the bus didn’t actually leave until 10:15. Being use to the mountains, we were sweltering in the heat, exhausted from our little sleep + hungry. We curled up together in the waiting room, watching Honduran ‘Modern Family’ until we were allowed to wait outside. Eventually though, we were safely on the bus to Tela! I say safely.. yet for the first half an hour the bus was full of people trying to sell you things so you have to awkwardly not make eye contact. There was even a preacher who spoke for a good 20 minutes before going into a section where he tried to sell passengers medicinal products. A particularly funny moment was when we were handed free pastries. My first thought was of delight + amazement, until we noticed that Giselle’s had a dead fly in it.. which put an end to that excitement. 

Giselle noticed a sign for our hotel so we asked the bus assistant if he knew where it was. Apparently he didn’t and to cut a long story short it ended with him dropping us at the side of the road, saying “this is Tela, get a taxi” + us standing in the dust, watching our bus zoom away. After popping into a shop to check the normal price of taxis (if you’re white, expect to get ripped off) I hailed one + we had some moments of air conditioned peace in the back. We’re not use to that sort of heat at all + honestly we’re barely able to function that day. 
However, we reached our hotel and to our delight, it was lovely! A super cute place with really comfy beds which is basically all we ask for. Free water was an ace bonus so we were set for a weekend of fun! 

Obviously, the 1st thing we did was throw on shorts + head to the palm tree lined beach. From there we managed to find Bethany + Cielo + once we got their stuff to the hotel it was back to the water. Finding them had involved waddling through a stream that connected to the sea. When we attempted this journey later, however, a local informed us it was a sewage output. Nice. 
The afternoon was filled with cinnamon swirls + swimming before we got ready to head out. After comparing the prices of everywhere we could find, we settled on an “Italian”. It was cool to spend time together, chat about the differences in our projects + how we were finding teaching. 

The next morning we were up + down at the beach, being typical gap yearers, looking at stalls. It was an entertaining morning to say the least, with sellers trying all tricks. This included: playing ukele at us, discussing all the different words for “weed” in Latin America + even playing a conch. It ended with us trying our best to barter in response. I ended the morning with a headband + Giselle a variety of jewellery. We found a place with cheap baleadas for breakfast (yum) + headed back to the beach.

We’d been hassled by a Honduran on Saturday about banana boating – Carlos (“or in English ‘Charlie'”) but on Sunday about 5 different guys were surrounding us shouting different deals. We ended up paying 60L each for such an amazing half an hour. I somehow ended up at the front, where the man kindly told me it was the most bumpy, + after some apprehension really enjoyed it! We had a midway stop for some ‘snorkelling’ where one of the guys pulled up a anemone then clambered back on – which wa hilarious. As we zoomed back to shore they took a tight turn so we all fell off which made us all laugh. We were recommended a smoothie + juice bar that definitely exceeded expectations + then headed back to the beach. Whilst it rained we got ready + made our way to the apartment the La Union folk had. 

After an amazing dinner of cheesy chicken pasta (huge thanks to Samantha) we settled down to watch Hunger Games 2 (which Giselle had been craving to watch). We were on dessert duty but by the time we got to the supermarket it was closed, leading to us meandering down a side street. We stumbled across a bakery where we purchased garlic bread + a selection of yummy treats! As we’re so use to Honduran time we were shattered after the movie ended so simply headed to bed.

Monday saw us up bright + early to make the most of our final hours in Tela, being seated on the beach by 8. The sea was extremely calm so we headed in without a thought, until Giselle was stung by a jellyfish! A local we asked gave us two options: for Giselle to urinate on it, or to rub a lemon on it. The latter of these was the obvious choice so we wandered to a beach restaurant that kindly gave us one. However, we clearly didn’t learn our lesson as we headed back into the water (way more shallow than before) when I suddenly felt something like a hair on my arm. My brain couldn’t process what it was + I ended up semi-stroking the jellyfish until the sting began. It’s by no means the most painful thing I’ve had, but a little annoying all the same. Still, that’s one thing off the bucket list! We headed to the same restaurant for a super healthy breakfast of chips – yum 🙂 

These two dots are what was left after my encounter with the jellyfish..

We dashed back to the hotel to get ready, grabbed some snacks in a supermarket + headed to the tiny bus station. I was ill (yet again), + the travel back was intense. There was no direct bus to San Pedro, which saw us going with Cielo + Bethany to El Progresso. From there, we hopped on another bus to San Pedro. Things got worse as we pulled up into a random bus station, full of men. There was no one in the office but one man told us to simply walk along the road to the next block to get a bus there. For the next ten minutes we were frantically walking as fast as our feet could take us through San Pedro. We searched for safe looking women to ask for directions before being shown a tiny van that pulled up. It was this we clambered into. On the back row sat Giselle, then I, then 2 random Honduran men. I kept my head down so people wouldn’t see I was white + tried not to puke. 

I’m happy to report we survived the murder capital of the world and make it to the bus station. From there it was easy, a 4 hour journey to Esperanza. The tale wasn’t over as once home we tried in vain to contact someone for a lift, which was our fault for not anticipating troubles with so many buses seeing us arrive later than intended. We couldn’t get the other bus home but thankfully around 9 Jake + Rachel picked us up! 

Soon we were safely in our beds + ready for another week of school 🙂 

From a little pink house in Yamaranguila,

Charlotte 

TELA TIPS:

– Tela is pretty dead at night so you’re limited on food options 

– Always worth trying to barter as people will charge you more

– Banana boating = totally worth it 

– It’s really fun to float in the sea in life jackets, we wish we could have hired them by themselves 

Día de la independencia

The 15th of September marks a special day for Hondurans. It is the day they gained independence from Spain + is widely celebrated, so here’s what I got to see from that day…

I know I’m a month late on writing this but we’ve been extremely busy (more on this in a later blog) + hey, I’m on Honduran time. 

There appears to be lots of celebrations + things to get involved in over here, including: Día de la Bandera, Día del niño + Día de la Biblia. So flag day, children’s day + bible day – which have all been an experience in their own way. I even participated in my 1st march on Bible Day! However, the celebration that really sticks in my mind was Día de la Independencia. 

Honduras are extremely patriotic + if there’s one thing that makes it obvious, it’s this day. This year marked 196 years of independence. We definitely felt a little guilty standing there as I’m half spanish + Giselle lived in Spain as a child. 

We headed out to the main street to watch the parade which was meant to start at 9am. As it was an extremely long (+ slow parade) it didn’t get to us until much later than this, such is the Honduran way. We basked under the shade of a tree + awaited our first parade. We were certainly treated to an amazing time. 

First the sound of footsteps came towards us, hundreds of footsteps, many in time with one another. We were aware of cheers, of songs, shouts and the banging of drums making their way to us through the street. At the front of the parade was the police car, trawling its way slowly through the road, stopping every so often for the paraders. Behind this, flag bearers (after all it is a day of national pride). White and blue bunting decorated the telephone lines and glinted in the early morning sunshine. Children began to make their way to us, all dressed up, the girls dancing in beautiful bright dresses, the boys looking expertly neat. Young boys, dressed in a way not too dissimilar from the guards at Buckingham Palace, proudly banged their drums. These were followed by girls with Pom Poms, like the cheerleaders of Honduras. 

Edit
My vision was overwhelmed with all of the bright colours as children passed me flashing their vibrant costumes. Blue and white (of course), red, orange, yellow, purple + often a combination – there was something to catch my eye wherever I looked. There was even a mini beauty queen, proudly sitting atop a truck. 

As if the parade realised my eyes needed a break, the musical aspects of the desfile came marching along. The drums still echoed in the distance as they made their way to the centre of Yam, but from where we were there were little bands with a variety of traditional instruments. Tunes were tapped, drummed + blown out – including Despacito! I suspect we enjoyed that song more than anyone else in the crowd. 

After this, there were traditional dancers to feast your eyes upon – consisting mainly of the men stomping their feet + the women twirling the vast material of their dresses. 


A very exciting moment was when our neighbour passed us in the parade, proudly holding a banner. His whole grade was involved in one section of it, and although it was to do with gardening, we are still unsure of the reasoning behind this. 

We had fun pointing out the places we’d been as girls wearing dresses with the features of Yam swished their way past us. Next, children bearing inspirational quotes brightened our day (although it took a lot of brain power for me to translate some of them!).

 
Eventually, when the last person made their way past us, we headed to the municipal building. Here (what I can only assume were) important people were seated on the stage + got a full view of each section of the parade as it passed. We moved forward for a better view + found ourselves practically in the parade! It was a truly front row seat. 

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That wasn’t all the fun to be had though as we soon headed into Esperanza. As soon as we entered town we were held up in another parade, skirting round the edges of crowds to try to make our way to the park. We paused to watch a marching band in one section and I learned the dangers of standing too close as a performer whacked me with his drumstick. The memory of regretting sitting in splash zone in Seaworld as a child flooded back to me… I think there should be a drum zone here!

Our square was the liveliest we’d ever seen it, filled with stallers selling handmade goods, food stands and many wonders that would be typical of a fair in England. It was busy in every sense of the word: there wasn’t much room for my ears to hear between the sound of drums + men selling fries, the smells of all of the different foods (including even roast potatoes) flooded through my nose + there was much too much to see for me to describe it all. 

We bumped into our best Honduran friend, Abi, who we ended up spending the rest of the day with. Being with a local is ace because we get to experience things volunteers normally wouldn’t: such as a marching band competition.

Yes, you read that right. We spent 15 minutes being uncomfortably close to Honduran men as we crammed our way into the stadium. It was completely packed and people were thrusting their money through the fencing to be let in. Such is the Honduran way – there doesn’t seem to be much emphasis on queues or order here! As you can tell, there’s still a British streak in me that creeps out occasionally 😉 

Inside the stadium (imagine the sports hall of a college but with spectator seats rising high above the court) we found space to squeeze onto a step to watch. In true Honduran style, the competition was meant to start at 5 but of course half an hour went by + we were still waiting.. but when it eventually began it was unlike anything I’ve ever seen! 

A huge group of people organised into columns, like a Roman army taking their place on the battlefield, march out. Each had their own way of making the routines funky, which varied depending on the band. Some had banner bearers, proudly walking in front. For others there were dancers on the side, both traditional + more modern (by this I mean more whirling and jumping). However, my personal favourite was when one band had a little boy, most probably not much older than 7, sit down to a personal (+ tiny) drum set and play.

 There is a great deal of movement involved. We marvelled at how boys could bear the weight of a drum bigger than me (rolled in a ball) whilst jumping around so energetically. During the routine there was a great deal of tempo changes, for example, one band had a line of trumpeters who would blast out a tune every so often + the band would jam along. As the crowds of people filtered in and the seat sbecame less available we ended up having our view obstructed by gatherings of people at the bar. This resulted in Giselle and I watching the rest of the completion sitting on the floor by the bar, which (as the only white people in the stadium) was a little weird.  

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By 9 we decided to call to it a night as there were around 5 more bands + they played for an average of 20 minutes each. I have to say though, it was totally worth it + such a unique experience. As well as this, we were up early to get to Tela, but that’s another story…

From a little pink house in Yamaranguila, 

Charlotte