TravelStream™ news feed for member tracygosnow on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/tracygosnow en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:47:30 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1136927460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1136927460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1136927460/tpod.html Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:47:30 -0400 My continued love affair with the Middle East. Back to Egypt...

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

San Jose, California, United States

Wow, so it's been almost a full 6 months since I returned from living in Egypt and as you can imagine, I've gone through some immense changes. I decided to look back over all of my blogs for the first time and I have to say it's very therapeutic! I get a silly grin on my face and my heart is bursting...for I feel so incredibly lucky for having had the experiences that I have. Nothing compares.I gave the corporate world a fair shot I believe. I felt so much pressure to utilize my very expensive degree in a very specific manner. I found that I was forcing things really. I just don't belong in a cubicle behind a computer under flourescent lighting. I cannot grow in that environment. And I really don't care to push around paper so that the executives and engineers who started the company get rich and I just get depressed and gloomy.I will admit that I experienced some seriously sad times upon my return. It's no one's fault, really, just life. I drowned my sorrows in fast food and wine and became quite plump and unpleasant to be around. I missed my friends...I wanted to be neither here nor there. I wanted purpose in my life. I wanted happiness again.Back to purpose. There was none like I said in crunching numbers and pushing contracts around. I still was meant to be out THERE in that big bad world living life and experiencing everything that it had to offer. Reality sucks. Or should I say, student loans suck. I even toyed with the notion of grabbing a teaching job overseas and just ditching the loans and seeing if anyone ever came after me. I did, in fact, get a teaching job back in Cairo. But it just wasn't the right time.I finally found some purpose in my current pursuit of a military career. I started looking into it as soon as I got home...had always looked into it over the years since turning 18, but nothing too serious. I couldn't see how I'd fit in or what I could contribute. I'm not a crazy fanatical right-wing Bush-lover, but I am thankful to be an American and the kind of life I've been privy to having grown up here. Traveling to poor countries has afforded me this insight. And I think seeing my little brother once again and his inability to serve has had some impact.All I do know is that I have a lot to contribute and the constraints of the 9-5 grind just don't do it for me. I want to do something that is significant and again, has purpose. Something that will challenge me mind, body and soul. I really want to work towards something. Oh, and I want to travel!! I want to live overseas and continue to experience different ways of life. My wanderlust will never leave me. I wonder if it's some sort of a genetic mutation or something...this wanderlust gene. Peace.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1181874960/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1181874960/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/middle_east_2/1181874960/tpod.html Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:44:57 -0400 My continued love affair with the Middle East. Back to Egypt...

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States

Uh, where to begin.Okay, so I'm in the US Army these days.  Have been on active duty since April 2006.  I work in Special Operations.  I get paid to jump out of airplanes and learn Arabic!  I've been in Arabic training for the past 6 months and have about a month left to go.  I actually re-visited my blogs because my Iraqi teacher and the Egyptian teacher next door always get a kick out of my Egyptian Arabic slang that I can bust out once in awhile.  I knew there was quite a bit I was forgetting and came back to find a few phrases.  Success!I am still in touch with Mandy (her and Ahmed split up ages ago).  She still spends a majority of her time in Dahab and has since found a new boyfriend.  I still am in contact with Anwar.  He was injured quite badly in the bombings that took place in Dahab last April.  In fact, Al Capone where he worked was the site of one of the primary bombs.  He required 27 stitches in his back and had a terrible injury to one of his legs.  Several friends that I knew back in Dahab were killed in the attacks and many others wounded very seriously. Not much else to report.  My brother also came back into the military and is in training for Special Forces at the moment.  What can I say--it's a very interesting life.  I hope to get myself into some embassy work here eventually.  But the travel itch never goes away and I'm already envisioning a round-the-world trip in 2010 when my contract with the Army is up!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1139261940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1139261940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1139261940/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:46:19 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

San Jose, California, United States

A few years later and I'm just now getting some photos downloaded from the time I spent in Honduras. Here's some more random ones I came across that I don't feel like going back through my entries to see where they'd fit. And some don't fit and are from later dates. Alan and I continued to attempt to date long distance and I went back to Honduras several times to visit him and my other friends I'd made at the Embassy. I think I took three trips back in total: October-November, December 2003 and then finally in April 2004. Alan and I remain good friends to this day and exchange emails occassionally. Meeting him as a very important part of my experience there b/c I got to see life from a much more 'real' standpoint and experience things that none of the other interns could have hoped for.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1058548260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1058548260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1058548260/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:39:10 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

I've only got about 5 days left here in Honduras. I've been enjoying my time off from work and have been able to do a tiny bit of traveling. Last weekend a group of about 10 of us drove the 2.5 hours south down to the Gulf of Fonseca. There are a group of islands down there in the Pacific Ocean, the largest being Amapala. It was about a 30 minute boat ride from the mainland to Playa Negra. The island is a volcanoe and thus, the sand on the beach is black. We had the entire beach to ourselves aside from the fisherman bringing in their day's catch and the children who rushed to the boats to get their fish. It was wonderful to swim in the warm water--especially since the only Pacific Ocean I know is in California and it is VERY cold water! We found a little old woman who killed a chicken for us--serving it with the typical rice, beans, and tortillas. I have come to absolutely love my simple little meals of refried beans, cream, and homemade corn tortillas. In true Honduran style (they do that trick where they buy just enough gas at a time to get them to where they need to go--yeah, I know we've all down this at least once in our lives!), our boat back to the mainland ran out of gas midway there. There was only one oar aboard and so everyone had to start paddling. Eventually, another boat saw us and was kind enough to tow us in. On the way home we stopped in San Lorenzo to get the famous papaya liquado sprinkled with cinnamon. I ended up only having to work on Tuesday. It consisted of a lovely trip to the Tegus morgue. Us interns have been working on a cable regarding the number of murders in Honduras and looking at trends and how numbers change according to a group's political agenda. The morgue was absolutely horrific. It's still a "temporary" morgue that they built after Hurricane Mitch in 1998. It consists of one room for autopsies and one large freezer to store the bodies in. I saw my first ever real "live" dead body up close. A man was there who had been shot in the head and the stomach. Just as we guessed, the forensic doctors told us that violent deaths were on the rise and that they just don't have the facilities necessary to accomodate all of the bodies they receive. Interesting as well, is that since in the cities they are cracking down on gangs...the gangs are moving out into secondary cities and the countryside. Thus, they are seeing more bodies come from outlying areas due to gang violence. Alright, enough of that. Alan and I took a trip back to Valle de Los Angeles on Wednesday so that I could fulfill some Lenca pottery orders I received from people. I'm not sure what we'll do this weekend, but I'm having a great time just relaxing.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057943220/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057943220/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057943220/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:31:57 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Well, today was to be my last official day of work at the Embassy. I decided to take the next week and a half off to do some local travel and just chill. But as I should have guessed, they've already asked me to come back on Monday and Tuesday for a few things! I actually just got back yesterday afternoon after traveling with the Ambassador on a trip to the department of Choluteca. I had been there once before for the de-mining project, but this time around was a trip sponsored by Peace Corps and USAID. We visited several Peace Corps volunteers and learned about their projects and we ate a LOT of food as usual. We went to the inaguaration of a library in a small pueblo. It was a really big deal for them. It was only the 3rd computer in the town and one of the first television sets and VCRs. They had about 200 books, nothing by American standards, but like I said--a huge deal for this very small town. The mayor made some remarks and the children did some traditional folkloric dances. On Wed. night we had dinner with all 25 of the Peace Corps volunteers serving in Choluteca. It was great to talk to them on an individual basis, especially b/c I had considered doing Peace Corps had I not gotten into grad school. On Thursday we visited a relocation settlement, a typical poor town with no services. The mayor showed us their water tank that doesn't work and said that no one in the town had direct access to water. We also saw a vocational center they had there which taught sewing to the girls and machine work to the boys. It was actually a very nice center. We then went out to a USAID water pumping station that was properly working and learned about how they were trying to connect wells so that more people had access to water. It's amazing how we take for granted that we have clean water as soon as we turn on our faucets and that our sewage is taken away properly. A lot of people have these ditches in front of their houses and that's where their sewage and sometimes water runs. We had lunch in San Lorenzo, which is a port city. Of course I was the odd ball and ordered a chicken sandwich while everyone else ate fresh shrimp, soup, and fried fish. It was really fun to watch all of the shrimping boats coming in and unloading. It made me think of Forrest Gump....We then went next door to the shrimp packing plant. It was just like on tv, we were up in the closed office on the 2nd floor looking down onto an assembly line. The workers are 75% women and they are dressed from head to toe in white suits--this plant has the reputation of being the cleanest factory in the country. Basically they shell the shrimp and cook them for 25 seconds in 175 degrees and then package them for shipment. 100% of their product is exported with abot 60% to the US and 40% to Europe. After, we stopped by a pulperia (these are the roadside food/drink stands) for a Liquado. They are pretty much like a milkshake/Jamba Juice. This pulperia is famous for their papaya liquado sprinkled with cinammon. It was absolutely to die for. Overall, it was a great trip and it's so much fun to travel with the Ambassador. It's always a learning experience and you get VIP treatment when traveling with him. Today is my going away lunch at my favorite chicken joint. Right now I am tentatively scheduled to go to the changing of command ceremony out at Soto Cano on Monday. My boss is pulling strings to get us on the Blackhawk helicopters that are flying everyone out there--so hopefully that'll pan out. Other than that, I plan to relax and travel a bit with Alan. I'm also looking on the internet for housing in the Jersey City area for school. I'm trying not to stress myself out with all of the crap I have to do when I get back home as I want to enjoy the rest of my time here. As usual, I hope everyone is well
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057597320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057597320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1057597320/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:28:29 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Things are still going really great for me here in Honduras! I've been working hard at the office and continue to learn so much on a daily basis. I spent two days last week down in the Consular section learning about Visas and whatnot. I also sat in on the Visa line interviews. It was pretty cool b/c after reviewing paperwork and listening to stories, I'd make my own decision in my head about whether or not to give the visa or how long a person should get one--and my decision was dead on with what the officer decided to do each time. I have to say, it's truly hearbreaking to watch people get denied their visa. One in particular was this guy who was an agricultural worker and he said he was going to visit his sister in Miami. Well, we can all guess what he most likely was going to do. Of course, he was denied straight away, but it was tough b/c these people pay $100 just to apply and when they get denied, they can't apply again for another 6 months. But just for most people to come up with the fee, it must have been tough. I had an absolutely wonderful 4th of July. I have to say the only thing missing was fireworks, but then again the gunshots that go off at night on the weekends kind of made up for it--it was almost like home :) We started off with our usual Happy Hour Thursday at Ruby Tuesday's. Sears was having a blowout sale for all Americans in Honduras. So all of us interns made our appearance there and basically ran around the store like kids trying to stir up trouble. It was even more fun when the Ambassador joined in! Friday, July 4th, was THE event in Tegus. There is a huge party at the Ambassador's residence with a guest list of Honduras' 1,200 most important people. I hadn't yet been to the AMB residence as they've been renovating it. WOW--is all I can say. I don't think I'd mind being an AMB's wife someday :) The property is huge and is this sprawling area of trees and exotic plants and flowers. They went all out for this party and it was one of those times where you feel like a VIP just for being there. So I schmoozed with Congressman and businessman from all over the country. And I got to accomplish the one thing I wanted to do here. I met the President!! He speaks perfect English and we even had a short conversation, he was just asking me about what I was studying and whatnot. We also did a photo session with him and the interns...so that was pretty cool. But the high-light of the day was when once all the guests had left, the AMB busted out the kareoke machine and about 30-40 of us from the Embassy did kareoke for about 2 hours. It was a total blast. We then continued the night, all of us interns and the AMB's son and the DCM's son, at El Patio--my favorite beer joint. Then we headed over to Chad's (he's from the POL office) house for some drinks. Then about 20 of us left for El Nilo, which is the discoteca where Alan works. They were honoring all Gringos with free admission and drinks. Of course, at midnight, I was then the guest of honor as it was my 25th b-day. The last thing I remember is having a shot of Bacardi 151 lit on fire and me shooting it and then proceeding to the bathroom where I threw up. I have never before in my life felt like I was throwing up gasoline and fire--but I guess there's a first time for everything. I guess I'll see how the rest of the night went once the photos are developed. On Saturday--my birthday--we went to a country fair/picnic deal at Zamorano (the ag school). It was fairly miserable with everyone being hung over and it being hotter than hell out. So that was pure torture until about 3 pm. We then went home and I power-napped. We all went out for my b-day dinner at Casa Mexicana and then to El Divino. I made everyone promise that there'd be no alcohol involved at dinner and they all got looks of horror on their faces. So the restaurant workers come out banging pots and pans and singing. They throw a towel over my eyes and start pouring shots down my throat. Luckily they were just tequila poppers and those aren't too bad b/c the 7-Up takes away the taste of the tequila. El Divino is the high-class bar here in Tegus where you need to be "someone" in order to get in. Well, my theory is that if you can't be "someone", at least make sure you know people who do fall into the category. Well, we had met the son of some public minister and he got our entire group in with a private table complete with a bottle of scotch. It was a lot of fun hanging out there and dancing. Plus, it was even better b/c Alan got to come out--which never happens since he is always working on weekend nights. So overall, it was a great birthday weekend. Sunday we just chilled and watched movies and ate Chinese food--very mellow. And thus, another work week has started. I'll spend this week trying to catch up and finish any open items. I'm working on a huge arms trafficking cable and a murder trends cable. My last day of work is this Friday the 11th. I'm going to spend my last week and a half here just relaxing and doing some small day trips to parts of Honduras I haven't yet been.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055868960/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055868960/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055868960/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:15:56 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Work is busy as usual--always something going on here in the Political section. My de-mining trip to Choluteca was very interesting and informative--and extremely HOT. It's a very dry heat that they have down there and it was pretty damn hot. It was very cool to be standing practically on the Nicaraguan border, the location where the de-mining exercises will take place. I went to the Army Ball on Friday night. It was really nice to see all the servicemen dressed up in their formal uniforms. It was your basic dinner with speeches and toasts and dancing after. My boss finally taught me how to Merengue, so that was fun. I was extremely tired after a brutal Thursday night Happy Hour at Ruby Tuesday's (that's our new ritual every Thursday now). So I got home around midnight. Saturday just hung out by the pool and then a bunch of us went to El Patio for some beers. I turned in early again on Saturday to gear up for our big Sunday. On Sunday a group of about 10 of us went to La Tigra. It's a protected park about 30 mintues outside of Tegus. It's often called the "Cloud Forest" b/c you are actually up high enough (about 7,000 ft) that you are up in the clouds for some of the day. The hike was pretty difficult, but well worth it. We hiked in about 1.5 hours to the waterfall and then out another 2.5 hours through the valley and by the old mines. All in all, we were there from about 10-4 and just as we started driving out it started to pour. As I've mentioned before, it's the rainy season right now and they call it winter (which is odd to us Gringos b/c it's still so hot that it feels like summer). The good thing is that it never rains in the morning and usually doesn't start to rain until about 6 pm at the earliest...so you can usually plan activities accordingly--it's honestly a fullproof method! Other than that, it's just another work week. I went to this big signing ceremony at the Police compund with the Ambassador and some other Embassy people--as we're giving their police program some money. It was cool b/c I got to ride in the Ambassador's armored Suburban and I felt really important (yes, I can dream). Not much in the pipeline for the coming week. A bunch of us girls are planning on having a beauty day at the high-class salon here (imagine, a full massage for only $10!) on Saturday. Alan's birthday is on Sunday and they aren't too big on birthdays here--so I'm throwing him a complete Gringo-style surprise birthday party with a bunch of our mutual friends...so that should be fun.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055177640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055177640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1055177640/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:07:03 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

I've been keeping really busy with work and my tremendous social calendar (ha!). There has been so much going on at the Embassy lately and they really are keeping me and the other interns very busy. We've officially received our "area assignments" and I'll continue to work on narcotrafficking, port security, and police/crime issues." This, of course, is very exciting b/c these are huge areas of problems here in Honduras. I have a meeting today with DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) and TAT (Tactical Analysis Team) to get up to speed on what's going on. Tomorrow I leave bright and early for Choluteca which is South of Tegus and right on the border with Nicaragua. I'll be joining some military people from the US and other various people from the OAS (Organization of American States). We'll be working on a de-mining project and I'm hoping to get in a helo ride as well. There are a lot of mines still active down in this border area back from the 1980s when the Communists and guerilla groups of Central America were fighting (think--the Sandinistas). I'll be staying overnight and I feel really cool being on travel orders...plus, I get per diem. This past weekend was a lot of fun. We went out dancing on Friday night and then to a movie on Saturday. We saw the Quiet American with Brendan Frasier and Michael Kain--it was horrible. Yesterday was a lot of fun as we went to Valle for zip-lining. I've never been before, so it was a great way to start out. We weren't incredibly high off the ground--but fairly high up in the trees. It took about 2.5 hours to do all 16 stations. Some of the other interns have gone in Costa Rica and they said you zip-line clear up above the rainforest canopy...so maybe someday I'll be able to do that. Last night we went to dinner at El Patio for some "typical" Honduran food and just hung out. Other than that, nothing much going on...I have a very busy week ahead of me. Then, next week is the next round of negotiations for CAFTA (Central America Free Trade Agreement). What they are doing is having each CA country host a round locally...and it's Honduras' turn now. Although I'm not working in the ECON section, all interns have been called upon to help. I'm already in my 12th week here...I can't belive how quickly 3 months has flown by!! I hope everyone is well and be sure to drop me a line to let me know occasionally what you are up to.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1052325300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1052325300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1052325300/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 15:58:35 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

My four day excursion to Copan was nice. Copan itself is a tiny little touristy town with cobblestone streets and tons of artesan shops lining the square. It sounds piteresque, but don't be fooled! It's just as dirty and whatnot as everywhere else in this country. But the hotel we stayed in was a really nice Colonial style place with a pool, restaurant, bar and any other ammenities you can think of. We arrived Thursday afternoon and just relaxed at the pool and ate dinner at a local place. Most of the eateries are outdoors with lots of hammocks to lounge in. The big "thing" there is for the waitresses to carry drinks and food plates to your table on their head and in both hands. Friday we went to the actual ruins. They are Mayan ruins that were inhabited from around 300-900 AD. Having obtained my BA in Anthropology, I thought for sure that it would be an awe-inspiring experience to see my first Central American ruins...as I'd only ever seen them in print and video. It was still a very awesome experience, but just not quite as magnificent as I expected it to be. It has been explained to me, though, that the other ruins located in Mexico and Guatemala are known for their archictectural significance. One of the reasons Copan isn't is b/c the excavation projects there are still fairly new and have only picked up momentum (and funding) in the past 60 years or so. So they still have much more to uncover. The most important part of the the ruins is the massive hieroglyphic staircase. It was commissioned by the 15th King (around 600 AD) and basically relays the entire history of the Mayan kingdom at Copan. So in that respect, it's one of the most comprehensive and important archaeological finds. Unfortunatley, b/c of concerns over the damage to the staircase by the weather--it's covered in a huge green tarp--so it takes away from the experience a bit. The other cool find here is the ball court. It's the second largest uncovered yet. The Mayans played a game similar to soccer called "pelota"...except the ball was made of 100% rubber and weighed what felt like 20 lbs. They used their hips and knees to hit the ball. It's said that often the best player from the winning team was sacrificed to the gods, and that this was an honor, b/c only the best things were ever sacrificed. Aside from that, there's tons of stelae all over the place that various kings commissioned. A lot of early stuff hasn't survived b/c the practice was for the new king to destroy the monuments the previous king had erected. This practice didn't stop until about the 10th king or so...and there were 16 known kings in this culture. So around 900 AD everyone started to head out of town b/c of fighting and revolutions. They joined surrounding communities and today there are still tons of Mayan communities in the area--especially since it's only about 10 miles from the Guatemalan border. The ruins at Copan were pretty much completely abandoned around the 1100s. So there's everyone's history lesson for today! Saturday we pretty much just shopped and went to a few museums and hung out at the pool again. Sunday we headed back and it was an awful ride b/c myself and another lady had apparently eaten some bad food the night before--so it was no fun driving home on twisting mountain rides and being sick the entire time. Other than that, it's been pretty much just the same old thing at work. The past two days have been very busy, but today is terribly slow. I'm excited, though, b/c we got word that 8 new interns were given posts here (but of course not all will end up accepting). One girl from Texas A&M arrives in exactly two weeks--so it'll be cool to have another girl around (although she'll be in the ECON section). Plus, we have a guy coming to work here in my section-he's from George Washington Univ. in DC, and he'll get here around Memorial Day weekend. But the really great news is that I have interim housing from June 10 through July. I mentioned before that Joyce is leaving June 16 to get her next assignment and I had no housing lined up. My boss found this kick-ass 3 bdrm house with a swimming pool in a neighborhood near the Embassy where tons of other people live as well. The only other people who have pools are the Ambassador and the Marine house...so we scored. It'll be myself and the other POL intern living there and I guess the 3rd bdrm will go to whoever else may show up. I guess that's about it. We're going out tonight to celebrate the arrival of a new Marine. Then this weekend we have a day trip planned and I'll hopefully be going to my first championship soccer game here in Tegus. I hope everyone is well!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1051720200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1051720200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tracygosnow/honduras/1051720200/tpod.html Mon, 06 Feb 2006 15:45:33 -0500 Living and working in Honduras for the U.S. State Department

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Not too much going on really here in Tegus. The rains have officially started...so everything will start to look nice and green. Found scorpion #2 in my bathroom the other day-very exciting. I guess all the little spiders I used to run screaming from at home are looking better and better! Let's see, went out Friday night with the Marines to a bunch of clubs. Uh, aturday night-same thing. It's starting to get old b/c there are really only like three "good" (if you can even call them that) places to go. Oh wait! Saturday night I went to dinner with some people at the only decent Mexican place in town. Then I got to go to my first Honduran casino. It consisted of about 5 card tables, a roulette table, and maybe 30 slots. The interesting thing about it, is that Hondurans are NOT allowed in there. So the whole place was Asian and then us Americans. Also, the service kids come down from Soto Cano (the joint task AFB about 1.25 hours NE of Tegus), so there were a lot of them there as well. I am starting to feel much better about work. I have to admit that I was pretty down last week, wanting to go home. I didn't like work much and I was just homesick and missed my friends and family. But work is starting to feel a bit more familiar and I'm not so lost. It's still very overwhelming-but I guess in a good way. So that's some good news. Some bad news is that the woman I am living with is being sent back to DC to be debriefed on her next assignment. So as of June 16 I lose my wonderful housing situation. I have been so lucky b/c it's a great house and she is always taking me places. This is very important b/c we are not allowed to take taxis or public transport and we are NEVER allowed to walk around town by ourselves. So I am very sad that she is leaving-plus we get along really well. So hopefully my next housing assignment will be alright. Today I went on a field trip with some Consular people (they are the ones who process VISAs and generally watch out for Americans who live and travel here). We went to a Mennonite community in Guaimaca, about 1.5 hours NE of Tegus. They are one of those groups of "Anabaptists" that broke from the Roman Catholic church along with Luther. They're much like the Amish in their lifestlye and whatnot. These folks were all pretty much from the Midwest: Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, etc. They first came to Honduras in 1969 to set up their mission with only 3 families. Now they have about 20 families (the main couple have 12 children!) and run two orphanages, a hospital, and a school. It's strange to all of a sudden see Western style homes and nice fat cattle and really cute homes...compared to what you usually see out in the campo here. They served us this huge lunch and I had homemade butter for the first time (it was good). They also have a bakery and everyone stocked up on homemade breads and pies. I brought back Moonpies for the office, which are these chocolate cake sandwiches with cream in the middle. Yummy. Tomorrow I am leaving bright and early for the Copan ruins. It'll be about a 7 hour trip by car b/c we have to go NE then double back W b/c the direct route road is very dangerous--if you go this way you'll most likely be robbed. They are Mayan ruins and that's about all I can tell you. We're staying at an old colonial style hotel right on the plaza of the ruins. So I am really looking forward to it. Plus, it'll be great to get out of Tegus b/c tomorrow is Honduran Labor Day (i.e. burn the American flag day) and apparently the Hondurans get crazy on this day. It's funny b/c down in the consular office is a big color photo of people burning American flags with the caption "If you are in any of these photos, do not even think of applying for a VISA." So I'll be back on Sunday and will let you all know how Copan was. Also, Alan did call and it is so nice to have a local as a friend...I get to see so much more of the "real" way of life this way. Unfortunately, I still feel bad about the circumstances and I find myself looking over my shoulder when we are together b/c it is inevitable that a Marine will spot us and it'll get back that we are dating. Whatever.
]]>