Sorry that I haven't posted but I just got back from spending 2 weeks at my parent's house in Dallas. It was great to be home in Dallas but I am glad to be home in Honduras. I think I'm lucky to have multiple places that feel like home to me.
The last 2 weeks were really fun but I hadn't realized before just how short 14 days can be. I tried to spend time with everyone and was almost successful. The truth is that I am one of the luckiest people in the world because I have so many people who really truly love me and care about me. Not only do I have all of these people in Dallas but I had SIX visitors who had to get on planes to come just to spend some time with me. They all came during the weekends so my weekdays were spent running from lunch with so and so to dinners with family. I feel like I had a chance to really get to know my little niece and nephews who keep growing so much while I've been gone for the last almost-a-year-and-a-half. I did a ton of shopping for important stuff for our apartment like couch covers and curtains and even some small kitchen appliances. I spent a day cooking with my grandmother and sister-in-law to try to get down some wonderful family recipes.
The culmination of the visit was the shower which was amazing. I know that I tortured everyone by not registering. The big practical stuff, I know that I can get down here without having to worry about how to get it down here and the baby clothes down here just don't compare to what I can get in the states. I'm so proud of all of my friends because out of like 100 outfits and blankies and towel sets, each one is gorgeous but I didnt get a single duplicate. I am going to have the best dressed baby in Central America! I'll try to blog pics of him in all the outfits as we go through them. The whole shower was amazing though, the games were really fun, the cakes were beautiful, the food was delicious (thankfully because there was so much of it we were eating it for days), and most of all, the company was great and let me leave Dallas feeling so loved. I'm sure that the baby felt that love and even though we are a world a way, he will know that there are people in this world who love him and care about him. OK, I must be pregnant because I am getting all choked up writing this.
As a huge contrast to my 2 weeks spent in Dallas where everything is so 1st world and orderly and new and perfect, was my day yesterday trying to get home to the mine in Honduras. First of all, my parents and I awoke at 4:30am. There is nothing like having to be up that early to make you wake up 100 times during the night. Mom and I threw on our clothes and headed out to the airport. Even though the first part of my trip had perfect Dallas springtime weather, it was really cold as we walked into the airport. I was excited about the flight part of my trip because instead of taking American Airlines and paying with miles, I tried out Continental which goes through Houston and cuts about 5 hours out of the travel time. I would arrive in San Pedro at 11am, giving me time for lunch, grocery shopping and still getting back to the mine not long after Rob finished work at 3:30. HA! My flight to Houston was uneventful. I managed to doze for about 15 minutes. Everything seemed fine in Houston...I boarded the plane happily into my seat in 11F which is nice a close to the front. I settled into my seat and noticed that everyone on the plane was yawning from similar early mornings to mine. The flight was only about half full so the middle seat next to me was empty of people. We all kind of settled into our naps. Through the haze, I heard the pilot say something about finding something that they didnt like going on with the plane during the pre-flight inspection but whatever, I was tired. Probably about 30 minutes later, he came on the loudspeaker and said that we were to change planes because of this mechanical problem. Not a huge deal. We were all headed to Honduras so its not like anybody was in a hurry and we all need to get used to things happening on their own time, right? Once we got on the plane, they even told us that the $6 direct TV would be free for us for the hassle that we had so I settled into a movie and not long after it ended, I looked out the window and saw acres and acres of palm trees. It made me smile.
I got off the plane and was instantly hit with hot air from outside. As I walked through the airport I was tugging at my sweatshirt trying desperately to get it off of me while at the same time trying to beat out the passengers from another big flight for a good spot in line for immigration. I won and it all went quickly and smoothly as usual. "You are headed to El Mochito, Santa Barbara?" "Yes" "I will take your picture now" "OK" "Thats it, NEXT". It was the most an immigration official has ever said to me in Honduras! Then off to get my bags. The lady who sat next to me on the plane was complaining that she hates how they pull the bags off the belt for you in Honduras but I was relieved because I'm not supposed to be lifting and my bags were really heavy. We laughed that the conveyor belt wasnt even turned on which employs 10 guys whose jobs it is to tug all of the giant, heavy suitcases along and put them in a line on the floor. Its very typical Honduras and I was really feeling at home and laughing to myself at the gringos for whom this was obviously their first trip.
I called Rob to let him know I was finally here and he sounded relieved. "I've been waiting for hours to hear from you." "Yeah, my flight was late, it was a fiasco but no big deal" "Well, your day is not looking like its getting better. There are major strikes going on and the roads are closed. Mine personnel from San Pedro couldnt even get to the mine today and you might have to stay the night in San Pedro." I just laughed. The best part of the mine is that they take the task of taking care of all of us very seriously. I spoke to Winston, the head of security, who was also stranded in San Pedro. He told me that we would check in with each other in 4 more hours and in the mean time to go with the driver wherever I wanted in San Pedro.
My driver was great, a young guy named Ariel who told me that he works for Winston's family. Of course, I wouldnt be using a normal mine driver since they couldnt actually get into San Pedro because of the strikes. I wasnt angry about the strikes because I am sympathetic for the teachers who continue to teach even though they rarely actually receive their pay checks. I found out later that yesterday just happened to be the day that 14000 healthcare workers and many other national employees decided to join the teachers for a big, giant strike. Oh well, more shopping. I checked out baby stuff at various stores and got the curtain rods to hang the curtains that I bought in Dallas. I even spend a couple of hours at a fancy mall with international stores like Benetton. I looked at every baby outfit and smugly was assured that my baby will still be better dressed than even the rich San Pedro babies.
Finally, I ran into my driver, who was probably enjoying a day on the clock spent wandering the mall and he said that the roads would be open soon. Finally we headed for the supermarket and after an hour spent shopping for the "everything" that Rob said we needed, a busito from the mine arrived to take me home. I was pretty tired and after chatting with Marbeo (or something like that), I laid down and napped. I finally sat up as we were driving through Los Naranjos, the town where we had lived at the brewery. We were surrounded by the now-familiar towering tropical mountains. I know I got a big smile on my face because we were on the home stretch and I remember just how much I love these lush, green mountains and multicolored flowers.
Blah blah blah, we finally got home, dragged my stuff down the stairs from the parking lot to the apartment. I'm home and ready to get back into my routine. It is summer here and for the next month it is going to be hot hot hot during the day. Maybe I will go swimming today.
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