Wanderlust and my Lack of Repentance Thereof

What do I, an arcwelder, and a self-proclaimed Central American celebrity named Saul have in common? We all shared the bed of a little white on-site KIA pick-up truck from La Entrada to Copán Ruinas, Honduras. How did we find ourselves in this rare occasion of comradery? We used our thumbs. Well, except for the arcwelder. It was already in the truck.

So, if you read my last post, I ended up taking what I thought to be the "safe route" charter bus into Honduras. Then I hitchhiked from there. I'm not sure I would have done it without the my confidence in Saul, which he quickly earned with his first forceful wave for me get off the telephone pole I was sitting on at the de facto pickup spot for Copán and to follow him and and the Miaman (Miamese? Miamian?) woman that accompanied him. When I asked him how we were getting to our destination (I thought he had a car or something, and was offering me a ride), he simply held out his thumb. The game was afoot!

Saul Molina Calderón: Entertainer

Copán was excellent. Little red tuk-tuks overran the cobblestone streets, and old archaeology tourists and young hippy backpackers--both local to C.A. and otherwise--could be found in many of the little street cafes.
Also, the burritos were huge. It was really my kind of place.








Copán at night

Big Burrito

While in Copán, I was pleased to take part in the pilot children's program that my friend Blair and his partner in petty crime Mr. Mateo were conducting, even if on the sidelines. They do an excellent job, and I am excited to see the fruit their work will bear when the program is put into permanence this summer. You can read about that here.

Also while in Copán, I got to see what most people are there for: the ruins. Yes, there are ruins. Old ruins. Ancient, even. Ruins from Mayan civilizations long passed. Ruins that foretell the coming apocalypse in 2012. I won't post pictures, because they basically look like what you saw in Apocalyptica, and in the History Channel special that plays every other night.

I am thankful for this particular experience with antquity, because I jumped in with another tour group. To pay, I just bought our tour guide lunch. The tour group I was in was great, and I made a contact in Antigua. Thank the Mayans for ruins.

A tuk-tuk for good measure.

Next up, Esquipulas. To be continued...