Into Honduras
Trip Start
Jan 01, 2007
1
43
141
Trip End
Ongoing
La Ceiba,
Honduras
Sunday, March 11, 2007
In complete contrast to the Guatemalan border Honduras has a massive facility that looks like it could handle tens of thousands of people and cars a day. It is huge with a least 50 windows for people to walk up to for immigration checks. Not surprisingly ours was the only bus there. It was a bit of overkill.
We hop back on the bus and head down the road a couple of hundred yards where the bus stops so the money changers can do their thing. I´m always amazed at how this process works. Five or six guys come up to the bus windows with wads of cash about 4 inches thick and start to ask you what you need. Kay leans out the window and asks the exchange rate, it is 18 Limpiras to the dollar. Thats not that bad as the current rate was 18.55 or so. She exchanges $20 bucks while hanging out the window and we are set until we can get to a big town and an ATM.
The bus continues on to San Pedro Sula which is a very large industrial town and where we have to change buses. We get off the bus along with Pablo and Leo and head into the terminal to buy our next tickets. In front of Leo is Sara from Spain who is obviously fluent and helped us all out with tickets. Just like that our group has expanded to 5. (For those making the trip we used El Rey bus line and the tickets to La Ceiba were about $4.50 US per person.) We have about two hours until our bus leaves so the five of us head to the center of town to check it out and find an ATM. To our suprise every fast food place from the US you can think of is here. In one block we saw Pizza Hut, Popeyes, Burger King, Wendys and Dunkin Doughnuts. It is was dissapointing. The center of town was packed with people and we headed into the little market to get some local food. We ate and watched the people go by for a bit and then headed back to the bus.
At 4:30 on the nose the bus headed out for La Ceiba. After 2 uneventful hours we stopped at a roadside cafeteria near Tela for a break. Another hour or so and we are in La Ceiba. Ahh beautiful downtown La Ceiba the beachside resort of your dreams. Not even close. The city is dark, dirty and 90 percent closed. We share cabs and head to the first hotel in the guide book. Kay and I got a massive room, complete with 2 double beds and free roaches for 250 limpiras (about $14 US) per night. Leo, Pablo, and Sara shared a triple room next door.
We went for a walk that night for dinner in an area called La Zona Vida, supposedly the happening place to be. For who? The restaurants were empty, with a few locals milling around.
The next morning, we took a cab out to catch the ferry to Roatan. Read more in the next journal!
Frank
