Random Thoughts

So we have less than a week left. We don't know what to do with ourselves. On the one hand, it's exciting because we are going to El Salvador. On the other hand, we've become accustomed to being here, and are feeling a bit of trepidation about leaving. In case you're wondering, yes, that is my word of the day.

It's going to be weird to go home after our adventures here. Honduras is just...different. For example, today we took a taxi and were serenaded by an old man in the front seat playing a guitar. That just doesn't happen anywhere else. And yet, we were not fazed at all.

I think I'm starting to annoy the brother in charge of rooming for Pioneer School. He's being very patient with me though. We now have a place to stay the entire time we are there; we just sent a picture so they know what we look like when they pick us up at the airport. How wonderful it is to have a worldwide brotherhood that takes such good care of its people! I love having friends where ever we go.

And last of all, this is not the kind of blog that posts pictures of kittens without a purpose. So here is a picture of Zach sleeping. Enjoy!

Sunday Gathering

We got so caught up with Chariman Meow that we completely forgot to post about the party. Oops!

Almost everyone came, including two studies. We all sat out on the porch, which worked out fine until it started raining and the porch got a little flooded. So everyone just had to get a little cozy.

We played Sequence and sang Kingdom songs. That was fun, because we only had two songbooks, so we got to see how well everyone knew the songs. I think our group did pretty well. 

Here's some random pictures. 

I was going to post some other pictures that the little girl in our hall took, mainly to prove I'm not the only one in the world who takes pictures of my feet. But then Zach pointed out the other person is a 6 year old girl, and maybe that wouldn't help my case. So now you all get to wonder what her feet look like. Sorry!

ZachnRobynn To The Rescue- Again!

Yesterday was very eventful.

After meeting we had to get ready for our gathering, so Zach was moving some chairs and things around when he found a little surprise. There was a very little, very hungry kitten hiding behind the chairs. At first, he just brought down some milk for it, but it was too skittish to come eat. So we decided it needed rescuing. For a little guy, he sure runs fast! We had to chase him all over the yard, but we finally caught him and got him some much needed food. We didn't (and still don't) have much in the way of kitten food, so we've been feeding him milk and hot dogs. He really likes the hot dogs, but they do not like him. Yay cleaning my house!

He's really starting to like us now, he was eating out of my hand last night, and was just taking a nap with Zach. In just the last day, he has gone from being a skittish sick kitty to being playful and adventurous and loving.
I made the mistake of giving him a name (Chairman Meow) and now we've gotten attached to each other. Which is a wonderful thing since we are leaving in two weeks and can't take him with us. (Awwwwwwww)

We found Chairman Meow a good home though. He is going to live with the sister who cleans for our landlords. So, we're happy for him, but sad. I miss him already and he's sitting in my lap.

Two Weeks To Go

This last week has just flown by, I don't know how that happened. It feels like we have gotten so little accomplished. Zach says that's because we have.

We have two weeks exactly until we go to El Salvador. It feels like we need to pack up everything now, but we can't because, you know, we still need the stuff.
Since we are flying in a couple days early for the school, we have to find a hotel to stay at for a couple nights. Picking a hotel in a city you have never been to is so hard. Everything seems pretty close together, but that's what I thought when I picked the hotel we stayed at when we first got here, and that definitely wasn't the case.
Should we pick a hotel close to where the school is going to be, or one close to the English hall, since we will be going to the meeting on Sunday and Zach will be meeting there for service during the week while I'm busy.....I don't think it really matters since it's only for two days, but it feels like *such* an important decision.

I think I'm just pushing my anxiety about Pioneer School onto something I can control

We still have to clean the house before our party tomorrow. How a place so small can get so dirty, I do not know.

Kinda funny but sad story, there are certain things that I haven't missed much since we've been here. Certain entertainment, my high-tech fancified cell phone, the shiny computer that got stolen. Which is great, because it's always good to work on being non-materialistic. But the closer we get to going home, I'm starting to miss these things. I don't think we will be as into them as we were before, but it will be nice to feel connected to the world again. Cause, clearly, we are soooo far from civilization. At any rate, we will just be turning around and leaving again, so it's not like we will be able to form a new attachment to those things.


Just got a genius idea- maybe I can use my airline miles for a hotel....oooo, one with a bathtub!

So Proud of Myself

After meeting today we went to a local buffet for lunch. I wasn't super excited because they mostly have tipico food, which as you all know, I don't like.
But I surprised myself. I ate tipico and I liked it! My plate looked like something an actual Honduran would eat. And it was nice change from spaghetti.
Maybe there is hope for me after all.

Next weekend we are hosting a shindig for our congregation. I hope our little patio is big enough to fit everyone. We just realized we only have a handful of chairs and one table, so that could make things a little difficult.

We had quite the adventure yesterday. We were doing some generic cleaning when we realized my passport was missing. The last time either of us could remember seeing it was when we went to Tela to get our visa extension. So we completely tore the house apart, literally going drawer to drawer emptying everything out to look for it. Didn't find it. So we went in and cleaned the house up again, still didn't find it. Figured there was a small chance it got taken to the internet cafe to get scanned to send to Customs a few weeks ago, so we went to the mall to look for it. Still no luck. So we came home and looked on the US Embassy website for what to do. Because we need the passport in two weeks, we would have to take a 7 hour trip to Tegus by bus and have an appointment there to get everything handled. Problem with that- all the appointments are booked out for the next 3 weeks. Kinda makes it hard to have an emergency. So we were totally freaking out by this point, because I am not going to miss Pioneer School. So sitting there contemplating worst case scenarios and Zach just happens to go back through a drawer of clothes that we had already checked 3 times. Found the passport in his pocket. The shorts had been folded just right, so when he checked those pants before, he didn't feel it in there.

HUGE sigh of relief!

Still not sure how my passport ended up in there, but I don't really care at this point.

On the bright side, because of this ordeal, we have now packed up about half of our apartment. It was amazing to go through what we brought and realize there were things we wouldn't need for the next 3 weeks, because we hadn't used them for the last six months. I don't know if that's a sign that we can go ahead and get rid of those items permanently, or a sign that we just packed completely wrong. It's probably a combination of both. Enh, maybe we can learn from that. We did pull out our jeans to wear a couple days ago, so I don't feel quite so dumb for packing those. Hey, it gets cold here...kinda.

In fact, I think all of you back home have hotter weather than we do. Well, except for Curtis, because the rain follows him everywhere he goes. Now you're all mad jealous that we are here, with the nice ocean breezes while you swelter in the 100-plus temps. And all of us wish we were hanging out with Curtis.

Huh, maybe we should move to Oregon.

Clarification

I guess I've been a little spacey lately, as there have been some questions about what on earth we are doing?

So, here's the lowdown for all my peeps. (I'm so not gangsta) Plus a little added info to show why it's so confusing.

We were supposed to stay in La Ceiba until Aug 19, then fly to Colorado. we have to be out of the country by Aug 19 because our visas expire THAT DAY and we don't particularly want to be deported. So, the plan was fly to Colo, we were gonna hang out in Colo for a while, then go to Cali for a couple months. Then it turned out that there was no one to pick us up at the airport on Aug 19, so we figured "hey, we are flexible" and booked a flight from Colo to Cali on Aug 20 to catch the District Convention out there and hang out in Cali then we would go home to Colo. It was a good plan.

Now we have Pioneer School, which is in El Salvador. School is the 6th-17th of August. Originally, we were going to send me by myself, so Zach could stay here in La Ceiba for the extra two weeks to go out in service  with our congregation, and to clean and pack our apartment. The problem with that, is School ends the 17th, I would have to catch a flight on the 18th to San Pedro Sula, and Zach would have to catch a bus up to SPS that same day to meet up with me- plus he would have all the bags by himself- we would have to spend the night in SPS and then leave bright and early the next day for Denver by way of Miami, then have a 12 hour layover in Denver and jet off to Los Angeles. This would be a long trip to put it mildly. Plus that puts me on my own for two weeks in a foreign country running around by myself to and from school. Not a good idea.

So....we cancelled all our plane tickets. That was actually kind of fun, we had used Airline Miles for all those flights, so my miles went from like 0 to Epic due to reimbursement and now we can use the miles to fly back down here.

Now, we are both going to El Salvador, Zach will hook up with an English Congregation there while I am at school, and from there we will be flying directly to Los Angeles, and even catching the last day of the District Assembly with Zach's parents. At this point, we will be with them an undetermined amount of time, because we even had to cancel the original return flight from LAX to DEN, and now we have to find a flight that can be booked with miles because of blackout dates and such. Not really worried, but as I mentioned in the previous post- I miss my bed. 

So, mostly straightened out. But figuring it all out gave me quite the headache. On the bright side, the next two months of our lives have a plan, so right now, I'm gonna hold tight, wait for the amazing blessing of Pioneer School, get to the Convention which we hear is awesome, and then I can freak out. Or not. Yeah, let's go with Not.

Ok, hope you are less confused!

Been feeling a little weird lately. I think it's because we are almost at the end of our trip and will soon be back home. We put in our notice at our apartment that we are leaving sooner, and we are planning a get-together for the congregation before we leave. Everything just has this air of finality, but there isn't really a reason for it.

In some ways, it'll be nice to be home again (I miss my bed), but we don't really know what we are doing when we get home (I don't know when I will see my bed again), so that's a little frustrating. I'm a planner and we have no plans. I also don't do well when plans get interrupted (even for good reasons) so the last week of excitement has been a little more than my nerves can handle.

I know we want to come back here in December, but I've been reading about other places that friends are visiting, which gives me the travel bug. Maybe when we come back we can do a Pioneer Route and that'll take care of the wanderlust.

I'm not exactly sure what a "Pioneer Route" is, but it sounds similar to working unassigned territories back in the States, just for a longer period of time, and with more walking. I'm sure it would be interesting to do. From my understanding, it can get very rustic. And it would probably be good to learn Spanish.

That is a point of...well not exactly contention, but I don't know exactly. Learning Spanish. We know it is important to do, and we get tired of not understanding people or being understood. But we have survived this long with only a few major problems, so it's kind of like "O, we don't NEED to learn." Which is definitely the wrong attitude. I just feel like my brain completely shuts down every time I hear something other than English. Although that could be heat-related, my brain doesn't work so well when I hear English either. Alas, we will never be mistaken for locals at the rate we are going.

Speaking of hearing English though, comments and phone calls are always appreciated. So are visitors, but we know it's a little late for that- for this trip anyway. Unless you want to get on a plane tonight- we aren't doing anything tomorrow, so we could come pick you up at the airport. Just a thought.



22 days until El Salvador. I wonder what that will be like. Any advice? Like don't fall asleep in class after pulling an all-nighter studying? You know, helpful stuff. 


Ok, time to make dinner. You know, we are finally sick of spaghetti. Only problem is, that's all we have ingredients for. I can picture you all reading this and laughing at our predicament. Guess we're going shopping tomorrow.

Red Beans and Rice

Today a sister in our hall was making and selling lunches- potato salad, plantains, some chicken that smells amazing and true island red beans and rice. Delicious! Of course we had to buy some.

Sitting in our little room, eating out of Styrofoam containers- this reminds us of New Orleans. Good old times. I loved sitting around in that little FEMA trailer with dad and Zach every night eating dinner.

Feels so long ago. So grateful we got that experience. I think it really helped us prepare for being down here.

Yay yummy food and good memories!

Happy Little Picture

Just wanted to share a picture from today. When we got home from the store, this little guy was sitting on the window bars waiting for us. He stayed just long enough to chirp at us, poo on our freshly cleaned window and let us take his picture before flying off to his nest on the roof. I thought that was nice of him.

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG

As you may be able to tell from this post's title, we have something exciting to share.

This year is the the first year for an English pioneer school in the circuit down here. And guess who gets to go? O yeah, that's right- ME!

We are so excited. I thought for sure I would miss school because the one in Colorado is scheduled while we are still down here. This is such an amazing blessing.

The one down side is that we will have to leave the friends here sooner than we thought. But we will be back soon if everything works out.

Ah, still freaking out!

Top 10 Places to Eat in La Ceiba In No Particular Order

These are just a few of the places we like. There are more we haven’t been to, and a few that just don’t seem uniquely Honduran enough to mention, even though they are good. So this list is far from complete and there will probably be a Part 2 at some point. 

Pizza Hut-UniPlaza, El Centro and across from Mall Megaplaza. I know what you are thinking. You have a Pizza Hut at home, and you aren’t really that impressed with them. Well, it’s different here. Just try it.

Wings n Burgers- North of Uniplaza. This place has everything. St. Louis style ribs, Angus hamburgers, and the most beautiful Hot Dogs you will ever see. I swear, they are a work of art. Wings n Burgers looks like an ordinary fast food joint, but they have really yummy food and quality ingredients.

Latin Taste- Big Red Building on 15 Calle and 14 de Julio. Ok, you don’t actually eat here. This is a butcher shop owned by an Argentinian, or is it Chilean, man. He speaks English and smiles a lot, which makes the place a winner right away. But the service is always great, the prices are ridiculously low and the meat is really good. If you come in right after they get a delivery, you get to point to which part of the cow you want them to hack off for you. It’s pretty cool.

Pupusaria Universitaria- On 1 Calle, right by the beach and next to Immigration, 3 blocks east of the pier. Authentic food for super cheap. Pupusas are tortillas with cheese and pork or other various ingredients. For less than a dollar US, you can get a pupusa and Asian slaw. It’s a great little snack, or for five bucks you can make it into a full meal with drink and tip included. This is the first place we ate when we got here, and we've been going back ever since.

Dole’s Bakery-On 14 de Julio near the Puma gas station. They make the best oatmeal raisin cookies and cinnamon rolls here. Also, it’s owned by a brother. What’s not to like?

Super Jugos- Several stands inside Mall Megaplaza, Uniplaza, across from the mall and there's a drive-thru on 17 Calle and 14 de Julio. Smoothies extraordinaire. You can get just about anything in your smoothie- local fruits, granola, dairy, OJ, cocoa krispies, honey- provided they haven’t run out.  But if they have, never fear! There’s another one just down the street, or the helpful staff can tell you what you actually wanted but didn’t know existed until that moment. Try the manzana-sandia-naranja smoothie. It’s awesome. But my favorite is the banana-cocoa-miel mix.

The Little Italian Place next to the Puma Gas Station and a place called RAP- No one really knows what this place is called and it is nearly impossible to find unless you already know it’s there. But it’s owned by an Italian lady who gets food shipped directly from Europe. They make great pizzas and pastas, plus there is a pool you can swim in for an extra charge.

Golden Palace- In Mall Megaplaza Food Court and possibly an actual restaurant in El Centro. I was skeptical of trying Chinese food in a Latin American country that doesn’t even have authentic Mexican food, but I got a craving and boy was this place good, especially for food court dining. The Sweet n Sour Pork is a little fatty, but the wontons are absolutely delicious. The fried rice has chicken, shrimp and pork in it and you get enough to cover the entire plate. The helpings are super generous, for US $7 Zach and I shared a meal- rice, chow mien, wontons, 2 meat dishes and drinks.

El Pollo Rey- Across from Uniplaza. This place has whole rotisserie chicken for 100 Lempira. Considering an uncooked whole chicken costs that much at the market, it’s worth the extra walk to come here and get it all cleaned, cooked and seasoned to perfection.

Kibok Café- At the triangle where 8 Calle, 11 Calle and Ave. La Bastilla come together, across from the gas station. This is a nice little coffee shop not too far from the soccer stadium. They actually came and took my drink away from me to put more whipped cream on it, just because. They also serve hamburgers and tipico food. Zach once got fried chili cheese plantains here; you may remember that post from a couple months back.

I do have one dishonorable mention, which is so bad it's going on the Lonely Planet review site. I was so excited to try this place because everything I read about it was amazing. The restaurant is called "Expatriates Bar & Grill" and it is located on 12 Calle. It's a place that sounds from the name like it would cater to the foreigners living here, but the only good thing about this place is that they have free calls to the US and Canada, and now that we have a MagicJack so do we. (Come to our house to make your calls, we are more pleasant.) Other than that, the food sucks, the drinks are watered down and the service is non-existent. Honduras is not known for superb restaurant service, but this really takes the cake. But apparently they have live music and a lending library, which should somehow make up for everything else being horrendous. It doesn't. 

So don't go there, but definitely try all the other places I listed. Yes, even Pizza Hut.