Reitoca! Part Deux

Where did I leave off? Oh yes, my first night at the hotel. Aside from a small battle with a large cockroach in my bathroom at 3AM, the night was quite uneventful. Those suckers can move quickly, but in the end my shoe emerged victorious. Cockroaches can be a pain even in death, as un-hatched eggs from the dead corpse can stick to the bottom of your shoe, ready to hatch at a later date. At least this one wasn’t as big as some of the ones I’ve seen in my bathroom late at night in my host family’s bathroom. But I digress.

Trapped

Anyway, I woke up early to get ready and grab breakfast before meeting Pat at the school to observe him while he worked. The main entrance of the hotel was closed, so I went to the side door that the hotel attendant said would be open after hours. It was a large metal door that can slide open, and when it is completely ajar it is large enough for an automobile to enter (and it is used to park a car from time to time). Ready to greet the morning sun and search for a cup of coffee, I pulled at the door handle, but… Nothing happened… It wouldn’t budge! I tried moving around a latch on the lock in hopes of loosening it, but to no avail. The key to my room didn’t fit in the keyhole either. I walked around the bottom floor looking for another exit, but there was none to be found. The door to the main lobby was locked, and although my room key did fit in the lock, it wouldn’t turn. I started to realize that I was going to be a little late for my day.

I walked to the second floor, where there was an open-air balcony. I looked over the ledge and started to contemplate if I could make the jump. Perhaps I could climb over the railing, slip down so that I would be hanging from the bottom of the balcony, and then only have to let go and drop several feet… However, aside from the obvious possibility of injury, I was hesitant to jump because it would bring some unwanted attention to myself. It was broad daylight, and people were walking by the hotel once in a while. A giant gringo jumping off the second floor of a hotel wasn’t exactly the kind of image I was trying to convey to the community. I decided to call Pat for help, who was able to talk me down from the ledge. He didn’t sound like he was sure of what to do, but at least he understood my predicament and would know I wouldn’t be able to make it to his first class.

After calling Pat I knocked on every door of the hotel. Nobody was home. Turns out I was the only occupant, and apparently they don’t have a staff member there 24/7. I decided to go back to my room and relax while I waited either for Pat to figure something out, or for the hotel open up. Luckily I had a book to read to keep me occupied. After reading for about twenty minutes, I finally heard the large side door to the hotel opening. The man that opened the door explained that he works there during the night, but didn’t realize that I was staying there. Assuming the hotel was empty, he left the door locked when he left an hour or so before I woke up.

Fresh out of prison, I grabbed some breakfast before meeting Pat at the school. As I sipped my coffee I thought to myself: “Only in Honduras.”

Down By The River

I could sit here and describe all of the different types of work Pat does in his community, but I don’t really feel like it. Let’s just say that I’m excited about the work I’ll be able to do in my own community in the coming months. For now I’ll just say that he does the majority of his work at the local elementary school, and I had fun helping him out and meeting some of the students. I had to chuckle when the students asked me in Spanish if I could touch the ceiling (something I was always famous for back in the States).

One of the highlights of the trip was when we went to the local river in the afternoon. Reitoca is definitely very hot, so it was nice to take a moment to relax in the water. I didn’t bring sandals with me, so I ended up wading through in bare feet, but I survived the afternoon without incident. Our destination was a collection of hot springs located a couple hundred yards upstream. I slowly made my way step by step so as not to pierce my feet in the rocks, but for the most part the ground was composed of sand and didn’t hurt too much. The hot springs themselves may not have been all that exciting in reality to look at, but they were still interesting to see. I couldn’t get too close as the rocks and sand nearby were extremely hot (bare feet, remember). Pat talked about how he’s had a picnic their a couple times, as you can boil an egg in the water and even cook Ramen noodles if you bring a pot with you. After checking out the springs briefly, I returned to the water and simply relaxed for a little while as I braced myself against the current (which wasn’t incredibly strong, but would take you if you let go). After we had all had enough time to relax, we made our way back to the shore where we left our things. The return trip was much easier, as I was simply able to float and let the current take me.

Qué Más?

Those were more or less the highlights of the trip. I know I left out a lot about our work in the community (which for the most part was me observing him, save a few instances), but I’m sure I’ll talk about my own work plenty enough in the future. Essentially we spent a lot of our free time gossiping about Peace Corps life, and it was great to get an inside scoop from a primary source.

We all left together on Thursday morning, as Pat wanted to accompany his friend to the airport. We had to take a bus at 4AM, thus I was quite tired. The bus ride for the return trip was much smoother than the arrival, and it even seemed to take a lot less time. The view of the sunrise from the mountain roads was a one of the best I had ever seen, but I didn’t take any pictures (both because I didn’t want to reveal how much technology I was carrying, as well as because I knew no photo could do it justice).

We all arrived together at the Peace Corps office, but I was instantly ready to head home. I felt bad for not hanging out with them a little while longer, but all I could think about is how much I wanted to be back in Las Cañadas. I needed to catch up on some sleep. I took a taxi to the bus station, and then took a bus the rest of the way back. As I got off the bus I realized how much Las Cañadas has become a ‘home’ for me, and how lucky I am to feel that way about a place that is hundreds and hundreds of miles away from the only place I had ever previously called home for my entire life. As I made it to my house, I breathed a sigh of relief and talked with my host family for a moment about the trip. Then, finally, I went to my room, shut the door, and fell right asleep.