Mail Call!!!

With the help of AMAZING family and friends, my birthday has been transformed into a month long party of cards and packages! Over the past 3 weeks, I have gotten all sorts of great cards, letters, and packages- making for lots of smiles and laughs! Thank you is definitely not enough, but it will have to do for the moment - along with a good *air hug*!

As a result of all the extra visits to the post office , I have had some great conversations with the mail room ladies, and I got the international Honduran mail breakdown.

How U.S. mail gets to Orocuina, Honduras:

1. Mail comes into Tegucigalpa daily where it is sorted and potentially searched (ie: opened and taken home- Sorry Robert and Christa- apparently your packages were way too good to ¨make it past customs¨) Mail usually takes 2 weeks to arrive (Grandma, the US post office did not lie... exactly...).
2. Next, mail accumulates and gets sent to regional centers- in the case of Choluteca, mail is sent southward twice a week
3. In Choluteca, mail accumulates until Orocuina`s postman, Victorino, comes to make a visit (Victorino visits approximately once a week)
4. Mail accumulates in Victorino`s house until he is able to get intouch with the person who has mail.... this can be anywhere from a day to two weeks depending on how much the person is home and how active Victorino is feeling...

Given the above, it is easy to see how a package from the sta

tes can take upwards of 6 weeks to arrive... making it that much more special and exciting!!!

My gigantic ¨chocoholic¨care package from Grandma: I am stocked for months!!!

My wall of home is rapidly expanding, and I have many, many thank you letters and postcards to send! I also have lots of new addresses to write to and am looking forward to doing some serious hammock writing!

Thank you SO MUCH All!! It is great to get pieces of home ... but the best part is to get pieces of you! I love the funny notes, the letters, the updates, pictures, and social commentary!

Thanks Cassie, for the reconnection to pop culture!!! Iam super excited about the lip gloss!

YOGA!! I am soooo excited to read this month`s Yoga Journal! (And do some spicy cooking!) Thanks Miguel!

SIM City En Vivo

Honduran news has recently been abuzz with legislation that is said to allow the creation of ¨Model Cities¨ within the country of Honduras. While the controversial legislation has been in the Congress an extremely short time (perhaps a week), it made its way to the floor and was approved today. (Interesting how quickly things can move when the need to.)

I was initially drawn to the topic of Model Cities for its name... it sounded so ideal, so optomistic, so clean and lacking in ferile dogs.... I was surprised to learn; however, that the idea of Model Cities is an open invitation for foreign investors to play God here in Honduras. Not only will foreign investors be able to create their own cities, but they will be able to run them as well..... say WHAT? According to multiple news sources, approved legislation will allow investors to purchase or rent a portion of land on which they can build their Model Cities. These cities will essentially be Nation States with their own public services including health and sanitation, police and safety, schooling, public transportation etc. Model Cities will have their own economies, will be allowed to circulate various currencies beyond the national Lempira, and create their own immigration regulations. Spanish does not necessarily have to be the only primarily language.

From a tourist perspective, this sounds AWESOME- it`s like a large scale Epcot Center, where you can travel around the world within the confines of your home country. In an ideal world, Model Cities could offer the opportunity to experience other cultures and worlds most Hondurans and Central Americans have never had access to; however the cynical side of me can`t help but wonder if most Hondurans would ever make it past the front gates. Really, what, if anything, will the average Honduran gain here??? While the government claims this project will inspire growth beyond the confines each city`s Model boundaries, it is difficult to view the project as more than an opportunity for foreign investors to play dress up with Honduras, creating their very own Corporate Elite SIM CITY... all the while resources and attention are being drawn away from the vast majority of campesinos, living in extreme poverty, with out electricity and running water.

The concept of self sufficient, planned cities is not new. China just unveiled plans for an isolated ecocity, and ¨New Towns,¨ or planned cities, have existed since Rome. Very few isolated cities however, have been sustainable in the long term, hinging on the presence of centrally located employment opportunities to prevent residents from traveling and eventually migrating outside of the epicenter for jobs. I have been unable to find other examples of cities designed, run by, and catering to foreigners. If they are out there, please comment and share!!!

From an anthropological perspective, I am extremely curious and will follow closely in the SIM CITY LIVE HONDURAS that is about to unfold.... always with the understanding that projects like these are most likely desperate attempts to gain attention and financial investment without consideration to the long term effects to the overall stability of the country and its inhabitants.

Pepe, you can`t get rid of the pueblo by building a new one...

Articles to Check out: (Can probably translate with Google!)

http://www.laprensa.hn/Pa%C3%ADs/Ediciones/2011/01/19/Noticias/CN-aprobara-hoy-proyecto-para-crear-ciudad-modelo

http://www.latribuna.hn/web2.0/?p=230599

http://www.latribuna.hn/web2.0/?p=232183

Too ¨Dangerous¨ to Travel, You Decide...

San Pedro Sula, Honduras: Ranked 2nd most dangerous city in Latin America and 4th most dangerous in the world. Does it look like it????

In keeping with a New Year`s resolution to read more news, I was browsing a national Honduran news website, when I came across the headline: ¨San Pedro is No Longer the Most Dangerous City in Latin America¨... 3 articles below the headline read: ¨Two Honduran Cities are Within the 10 Most Violent in the World.¨ Well, the news started out good...

Intrigued, I decided to do a little cyber research:

According to the most recent study by the Mexican Consejo Ciudadano para la Seguiridad Publica y la Justicia Penal, homicide rates are as follows:

• Ciudad Juarez, Mexico 229 per 100,000
• Kandahar, Afganistan 169 per 100,000
• San Pedro Sula, Honduras 125 per 100,000
• Tegucigalpa, Honduras 109 per 100,000

These statistics compare to New York City with a rate of 6.3 homocides per 100,000 habitants.

Working in public health, I am well aware that there are many, many ways to ¨read the numbers.¨ Here, any Honduran will tell you (and they are correct) that the majority of these homocides are gang related... just another ¨wonderful importation¨ of US culture. Further research helped me understand that until recently (the last 20 years), gang activity in Central America was fairly limited to knives and marihuana; however, as Central Americans returned from working in the states, they brought back with them a more intense and violent gang culture. Unfortunately, Honduras` poor infrastructure prevents it from being able to tackle the problem. ¨San Pedro Sula`s regional director of criminal investigations, Pastor Ortiz, complains, `If American police with all their resources can`t control the gangs in their cities, what can we do? We have nothing.`¨ While many surely use this information to argue for stronger border patrols preventing immigration, it saddens me that those who left seeking out a better life brought back the worst of the US and ultimately worsened the well being of their families and communities.

So what is a traveler to do with this cheery piece of information?

Quite possibly, the most important thing to me, is to keep traveling.

Statistics like those above are important to be aware of, but say very little if anything about the average citizen and the types of relationships you can create. Don`t let a statistic speak to an individual or the type of experience you will allow yourself to have. Given the recent massacre in Arizona, it would be easy for Non US citizens to view a deterioration of ethics and security; however, most US citizens are appalled and shocked, as are Hondurans, Mexicans, and Afganis.

This being said, just be careful. There are all sorts of common sense things you can do to keep yourself safe while continuing to see the world and explore new cultures. Simple things like taking private taxis in large cities, avoiding traveling at night if at all possible, not lingering in large markets - especially while toting your backpack or luggage, and springing the extra $5 dollars a night to stay some place with guarded entry (Quite common even at hostels) are basic but important. Keeping money dispersed but well hidden also helps prevent ¨pocket bulges¨ that scream: ¨I have extra, and I want to share!¨

I am happy and lucky to say that I have spent many a night in San Pedro Sula, passing through on my own and with others without problem and have met some amazing, kind people in the process. The numbers are important, but never defining!

A great, interesting website on gangs: http://royalespot.blogspot.com/2008/08/san-pedro-sulas-gangs-do-excellent-job.html

Original article on international homocide stats: http://www.latribuna.hn/web2.0/?p=230208

Cultural and Personal Reflections for a New Year

While my holiday vactions were busy, diving and dancing, I also had the chance to witness some amazing sunsets. Sunsets have always provided me a time of reflection, an opportunity to drop whatever I am doing and focus inward. It amazing how a sunset´s sheer beauty can infuse even the most topical of moments with a sense of profoundness we don´t always allow ourselves...

Having had the luck of seeing many fresh and salt water sunsets over the past 2 weeks, I took the opportunity to reflect on experiences of this past year as well as what I would like out of the year to come. I realized that while I have absolutely enjoyed this past year in Honduras; there are many things I would like to change in the way that I approach my work and what has become my life here. Including how I approach this blog!!

My limited travels have taught me that it is extremely easy to stay in a place for any given amount of time - 3 weeks at camp, a semester abroad, 4 years of college, as long as you know that at the end of the experience, you are able to go back home. The idea of returning home makes it easier to view daily stressers as temporary and insubstantial. It is not until you begin to consider making a life for yourself in another place that ¨the little things¨ begin to matter. (I personally think that this is why so many temporary international volunteers have such a hard time going home. They have shielded themselves from the experiences and growth that have occurred abroad with the expectations of returning to the exact same, more ¨comfortable¨, life they had... only realize that this is nearly impossible.) Having been in a fairly constant state of moving for the past 6 years, I have become extremely good at adapting to my surroundings, adopting the characteristics and ideals of those I live with. (Silly but true example: While living in Chicago I wore $100 Lucky brand jeans and went out every weekend, in Milwaukee I wore $20 Old Navy jeans and worked on a farm.) I had not thought about how this adaptation process has affected me here in Honduras until recently when I was able to let my hair down and relax, far from the strict gender roles and prying eyes of small town Honduras.

Previous posts have discussed the difficulties of being a woman in Honduras; however, all of this tends to be compounded living in a small, rural area where gossip is the primary form of communication. In an effort to protect myself as well as open doors, I have overrelied on softer, sweeter personality traits as a crutch. These thoughts were confirmed when a bilingual friend told me, ¨you are nicer in Spanish than you are in English.¨ Upon hearing this, two things happened: 1. I laughed :) as I always felt like people thought I was too nice in English... and 2. I immediately thought of the concept of ¨Marianismo,¨ a culture that requires women to play the part of Mary, sweet, kind, and pure- a rose without its thorns. While this sweetly tempered optimism is truly a part of who I am and has gained me the confidence of many female counterparts, it has also backfired, leaving me with an uncomfortable barage of male admirers and the opportunity for a lack of respect in more formal work settings, including the opportunity to confront ideals that run contrary to my own.

I recently decided not to let this soft side wither, but rather aument it with the strength and proactiveness that has lied fairly inert this past year. I took this new ¨actitud¨for a spin recently and felt a rush of energy and purpose that I didn´t realize I was missing. While I understand that this change has the opportunity to adversely affect both my working and personal relationships here, I feel that I am finally ready to ¨live¨ in Honduras, and to do that, I need to be myself- all of it.

Sooooo.... what does that mean for THE BLOG???? I promise that not all of my future entries will be nearly as text heavy; however, I hope to show a more holistic context of the Honduras I have come to know and love. Past entries have been fairly rose-colored in nature, and I feel that Honduras´intricacies, it´s contradictions and controversies, make it a much richer experience than what I have portrayed thus far. I hope that this deeper look at culture provokes curiosity and questions... and perhaps even a healthy debate! I do promise to keep lots of photos in the mix for all you skimmers out there ;)

Love and Light in the New Year ~Amanda

Diving into the New Year!

This New Years found me surrounded by water on Utila, one of Honduras´Bay Islands. Utila is known for being a ¨backpacker´s haven¨ of dive shops and cheap hostels. It is also one of the least expensive places in the world to get your Open Water Diver´s Certification. It was for all of these reasons, that a group of nine of us found ourselves in on the island, diving, drinking (responsibly), and dancing our nights away. It is true that Utila´s main drag is filled with dive shops and expat establishments, but there is so much more to the island, its people and their collective cultures. While I was only on Utila for 8 days, I could easily see myself staying for 8 weeks... and may just do that somewhere down the road. For now, I hope to get back soon - I had an amazing time and met some amazing people- what better way to start a new year!

(I had just cleaned off my memory cards to take pictures, but apparently the universe had other plans. All of the pictures are thanks to a friend. Thanks Reghu for documenting a great week and letting me enjoy it sans camera!)

Left: The boat that we took between La Ceiba on the mainland and the island of Utila.

Right: The Utila shoreline

Accomodations were simple: $6 a night with cold water showers.

The food was not! We dined on lobster, king fish, redsnapper, shrimp, and fresh pasta nightly!

Right: King fish in a white wine sauce- so good, $6!

There are more than 15 PADI certified colleges of diving on the island, each with its own flavor.

Right: Our group after our first day of 12 hrs of videos, discussions, and exams!

Our 2nd day, we were in the pool and then it was out into the water beyond the dock to practice basic techniques!

The sexiest part of suiting up was the 12 to 26lb weigh belts that each of us wore to ¨help us sink¨

Dive rule #1: Keep breathing... good idea

Dive rule #2: Always swim with a buddy... where´s YOUR buddy?


While there are tons of amazing things to see, our special underwater camera didn´t capture too many of them :) We quickly learned; however, that under the sea is a great place to dance! (especially when you are too tired to stay up all night)


New Year´s Eve found us hopping around the island, dancing on swaying two tiered docks, and watching fireworks over the ocean. It was surreal!






It was an amazing week, filled with meeting people from across the globe, learning new things, and letting loose.

Happy New Years All!