mucho tiempo sin update

Hello!!!

It´s been awhile since I´ve updated ...

I´m in El Salvador!! I just spent an amazing week on the beach with Brittany Hoover, one of my roommates from college. Her flight left this morning and I´m heading back to San Pedro Sula tomorrow to catch my flight home. I´m sad to leave.

The beach was amazing. Brittany and I had a great week. We had an amazing view ... which I´ll post pictures up as soon as I´m home ... and made lots of new friends!


It´s my third time in El Salvador and I continue to fall more and more in love with it!

despedidos

My time in La Ceiba is almost over. I leave tomorrow to go to San Pedro Sula and from there I'll travel to El Salvador. I'm excited about my next travels and about going home, but I don't want to say goodbye. Here are some photo highlights of my last days in La Ceiba:

dance baby dance

I'm living in Barrio La Isla now with Micah and Tyler ... and the occasional backpacker who needs a couch to sleep on. My first weekend with roommates in Honduras has been full of lots of things: packing, unpacking, eating, dancing, high school PROM, cleaning, educational movies, parties, rum, dancing, discos, beach volleyball, drinks, dancing, Japanese food, romance novels, fruit, the river ...

Here are some photos that capture the essence of the weekend:

Dancing at prom. The students all looked awesome! Most of the girls had their dresses custom made and the boys all looked nice in suits. Prom here was much different from my prom ... the whole family came to the party! I left around 3 a.m., but even then the dance floor was still pretty full with students and their families.

Cindy and me -- a group of us meet at the beach every Sunday afternoon to play volleyball, hang out, and watch the sun sinking into the Caribbean Sea.

Tyler, me, Matt, Cindy and Hiromi at Ki'Bok Sunday night for a little fiesta. Hiromi made a traditional Japanese dish and afterward we had a photo shoot with random objects.

Only one week left in La Ceiba. Estoy triste. :(

ode to hiromi

I just got back from having coffee with my good friend Hiromi. It was awesome. We laughed so hard and talked about all sorts of things ... girl things ... in Spanish. :)

It's been a rough week, although I'm not sure exactly why. I haven't been feeling myself. A lot of stuff is stressing me out. It was really nice to take a break from everything and giggle with a good girl friend.

Hiromi is a volunteer here through the Japanese government -- kind of like the Peace Corps. She's one of the sweetest, most joyful people I've ever met! I hope we're friends forever! :)

goodbyes

Saying goodbye to a place is difficult. Unfortunately I've planned it so that I have to say goodbye several different times. The first time will be Thursday when I move out of my apartment and into Tyler's apartment with both Tyler and Micah.

One of my neighbors, an older widow who only moved in about 2 months ago, found out today that I would be leaving soon. I offered her my coffee maker, which soon turned into her walking through my apartment and asking for more things. It was a little weird, but normal for this culture. A few minutes later I heard her knocking at my door -- she had a dust pan in hand, a temporary gift to help me with my cleaning! About 5 minutes after that she was at my door again but this time with a bowl of homemade noodle and potato soup.

When I returned her dishes she told me that that I could live with her, "juntas," after Thursday if I wanted. :) I politely declined but am still blown away. I wouldn't say that my 10 months here have given me the impression that Hondurans are super hospitable and open, but maybe they are?

I honestly don't know my neighbor well. I can't even remember her name, but it's nice to feel this little sense of community. It's nice to feel like my neighbors might actually miss me a little. It's nice to be noticed. It's nice to not have to make dinner.