Honduras and eastern Guatemala After I crossed through North Nicaragua and had paid the necessary taxes I was able to leave the country. A stamp and $3 later I was welcome in Honduras! I traveled via the capital Tegucigalpa and reached San Pedro Sula which is known as one of the most dangerous cities in the world (thanks to the high murder rate compared to the population in the outer suburbs). The only reason I had to be there was to pick up Jessica from the airport what I did with Luis the owner of the hostel. She had two weeks of holiday and we went together for a little tour. We went to Copan ruinas were the big Maya sight Copan is located. Against my habit we shared a guide with others for $5 per person, he was telling us some interesting details that could not be read from the ruins. The Mayans played a divine sport for honors with a heavy ball that often caused fractures and the fittest were offered under the influence of enigma, this poison of a frog was brought inward through the anus. The Maya who was sacrificed underwent the ritual without any resistance because it was all in favor of the gods. While they were high on the poison their heart was cut out and held up in the air towards the gods. Enemies were decapitated and the head was rolled down the stairs of the temple so that the blood ran on every step and again in favor of the gods. This in contrast of the Incas who would never do that as they believed that the soul was lost when you remove the head. While we were eating a pizza there was a little boy begging for money and every time when I looked him straight in the eyes he pretended that there was something wrong with him and looked cross-eyed haha. Furthermore Copan Ruinas a nice place to stay. On the way to Guatemala we miraculously did not had to pay anything at the border. Arriving at the back packer hotel in Rio Dulce we were surprised by an invasion of hippies. They had a meeting for sailing and did a competition whose body odour stink the hardest. Especially in the morning when they sat all together and the wind was blowing in the wrong direction, the penetrating smell was trying to destroy my olfactory. Even the staff of the hostel gave us a look that it was a rancid smell. To this village you come to visit Castillo de san Felipe what is an old fort built by the Spaniards and was mainly used as a defense against British pirates. These days it is a park where you can picnic and BBQ. You can also swim there but this is not recommended because of the strange bacteria in the water that is formed by the waste. Pollution is a major problem in parts of Latin America. They throw everything out of the buses or dump waste in the rivers and sea. Let’s say it is a matter of mentality. Then you have Finca paraiso where a hot spring flows into a waterfall what ends in a cold water spring. It’s a super nice place to spend your day or if youre a hippie to wash your clothes. After a boat trip through the Rio Dulce River we arrived in Livingston what is located in the Caribbean, a large part of the population is of African origin. We were also welcomed with: Ya man, were are you going? We already had a hostel but the best man wanted to walk along. After we had checked in he asked for a commission… that was tiring. We went to the Siete Altares (the seven altars) and hiked along the short coastline were we saw more of the real Livingston. In itself it was a nice walk with great views of the sea, laundry, rickety houses, dead fish and a lot of plastic. At our destination we had to pay 20 Quetzal (slightly less than 3 dollars) to the local chief. The Siete Altares was a bit disappointing compared to Finca Paraiso, some small waterfalls and a place to swim. The beaches there are also not to write home about but there is a boat that can take you to the private beach playa Blanca what was definitely worth a visit. Jessica had eaten some wrong vegetables and what first were a few small bumps spread quickly all over her body. The man of the family hostel was kind enough to bring us to the doctor that gave her a syringe with a long needle into her butt and miraculously the rash disappeared in less then a half hour. The doctor even gave a bottle of liquid for if it came back. We decided to spend the last days of the vacation in Omoa what is a small seaside town in Honduras. At the border I tried to explain that Jessica already had to pay a $37 tax on her departure by plane (this figured out by the government because the cost of the new terminal in San Pedro Sula went out of control) and I had already paid, the receipt was still in my passport. The customs officer was inexorable and we both had to pay $3. In Rolis place we met Jurgen (a German living in the Netherlands) and Nicolai a Dutchman. The last mentioned invited us to go to Puerto Cortez where he knew some people. Here we had a beach in contrast to Omoa that lost his coast partly by a severe storm and the rest by Gas the Caribe that installed wave breakers to protect the gas extraction system. 8 years ago this was a touristic place with a lot of potential but now its pretty dead. Anyway in Puerto Cortez they know gringos only from television which gave a lot of attention, a young girl asked Nikolai if she could buy his eyes. In Omoa there is a large Spanish fort that also served to keep the pirates of the Caribbean out. Roli’s place is a very nice hostel with an oasis of rest what is perfect if you want to take it easy. I had said goodbye to Jessica, she went with the shuttle to the airport and I went back the same path as we came and went on to Northern Guatemala. 5-03-2014
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 23:21:10 +0000
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