Honduras Part 2

Tuesday January 16, 2001 Day 2 of Honduras trip

I took a shower this morning and the water temp. was somewhere between lukewarm and freezing!

We are on our way north. Bro Casco’s daughters Mary and Gabriella are traveling with us which is great for me, as they speak English. We also have an interpreter, Abraham. As we were leaving and the girls were speaking to their dog, I thought how funny it is that the dog can understand Spanish but we can’t!

I don’t know the temperature but I’m guessing it’s mid 70s. There is a lot of trash along the roads and in the city. There are trash piles being burned everywhere and a rank smell permeates the air. There are donkeys wandering along the roadsides with no one around. I have seen entire families carrying huge bowls of vegetables on their heads. It is such a strange mix of modern conveniences and how things must have been 100 years ago. I feel like I have been transported to another planet. I doubt these people can even imagine another way of life.

I have noticed as we are driving there do not appear to be any rules or laws! There are very few traffic signals. For the most part you drive as fast as you can and if someone gets in your way, you beep your horn.  You pass cars even if there is oncoming traffic. I’m now convinced that Chicago taxi drivers train here in Honduras!

We ate lunch at a restaurant beside a beautiful lake. It is actually the only lake in Honduras. They let you choose your fish out of a tub and they fry it for you, the entire fish. It comes with fried bananas. It was so good.

We had our first service in a very small village in a very small room. John,my husband, preached about fear, change and getting out of our comfort zone. I am definitely out of my comfort zone! I was determined to overcome my fear of flying on this trip. After the driving scene today, I told John I’m longing to fly!

We then drove to a city called San Pedro Sula for another service. John preached about Truth. He said it isn’t what we want it to be or assume it to be, it is the reality of how it is. That is the purpose of me keeping this journal. I want to present Honduras to you from the perspective of eyes that have never before witnessed these things. Though I wish certain things were different, this is reality.

After the service we ate dinner (930 at night) at the pastors house. There are 2 distinct things I have noticed about the people here, their humility and their hospitality. They have such great respect for Americans. They make you feel like royalty and it just melts your heart. I think every American should come here and learn about humility. We would appreciate our blessings so much more and be very thankful people.

After dinner we drove to the hotel in San Pedro Sula. It appears to be the most modern city I have seen so far. As we drove up to the hotel I noticed an armed guard outside and I had some misgivings. I asked Mary if he shoots people and she said “only when necessary “. If they shoot like they drive, they probably shoot first and ask questions later! It has been a really long exhausting day. I will write about the hotel tomorrow I’m just too tired now.