Jail Fire

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/honduran-murderer-pardoned-saving-hundreds-deadly-prison-fire-article-1.1026718

As many of you know, there was a major fire at the jail in the town where we live (you can read about it in the link above).  The newspapers share conflicting information of what caused the fire but what is consistent is that hundreds of people died in there and a few hundred inmates have escaped.  The story is tragic either way you look at it.  We drive by this prison several times a day and even today you can see family members standing at the gates waiting for answers.  You can read the earlier articles which show the police having to spray tear gasses at the crowds and shooting in to the air.  What a mess.  They are so corrupt and unorganized in this country I doubt if the truth will ever be known.  The activity duty (American) military is not currently allowed to travel off the base and in to the town of Comayagua.  I suppose it's because of the fear of rioting in the town, i'm not really sure.  The immediate hours after the incident the whole base was on lock down - they were't letting people on or off of the base.  The American and Honduran military members assisted in the aftermath of the fire and on the first day the Honduran military protecting the base didn't even have any weapons as they had let the Policea in town "borrow" them... how crazy is that?  Last Thursday Jordan & Everett's school asked all of the families to send sack lunches to school to help to feed the families that were waiting outside the gates.  A friend of mine lives in another neighborhood in town and her security guard told her that he had seen two men running through the neighborhood in nothing but underwear at 2am the night of the fire.  A little frightening....  The   Policea  are positioned on many of the main corners in the town to make people feel better I guess - although they are known to be very crooked and corrupt themselves.

On a lighter note.... I have started taking Spanish class on the base.  I love it.  I go 4 days a week for 4 weeks in the evenings.  I'm really learning a lot and it feels good!  So much to learn though.... I had a test last night which the boys thought was cool - Jordan made me a sign for when I got back home congratulating me on the "good work".

Remember our car window that was broken out?  Well it STILL isn't fixed.  We have had the pleasure of visiting many auto parts stores and what an experience it has been.  I usually have the car during the day (taking the kids/picking them up etc) so on several occasions I have had to get Jose at lunch and a Honduran coworker that is going to help us and we have to go here, there etc.  Every day it's a different story.  This store doesn't have it but they can get it by this date, then we go there on that date and they tell us to go to this other store and then that store is closed so we go back the next day and then they tell us that they can't get it but this store can so we go to that store and they have to order it and it will be here this date and then on that date it comes and it's the wrong window and so they have to order the right window and then we go to pick it up on that date and the place is closed etc etc.... you get the picture...  The good news is that we GOT the window this morning!  It looks right and just maybe we will get it put in today!!  I am hopeful!
The fun thing is that i've had the opportunity to experience the auto parts stores.  You would not believe it!  They have just about everything you can think of!  Seat belts, steering wheels, headlights, hubcaps, rear view mirrors, and the list goes on and on and on.  The one place we actually got to drive in to was oh maybe 3 acres and they had everything so organized!  All by type of part.  The parts were arranged in containers all over the place.  The containers were Truck Beds!  No truck - just the bed of the truck, no axle or anything else.  I tried to get some pics but they just don't do it justice.  There are also seats, doors, etc all lying around too.  Kinda like a junk yard but a little different.  And of course there were chickens wondering around........

Lessons Learned

Jordan and some of his new friends

Sorry it's been so long since my last post!  It's not really like we are too busy - I have just been unmotivated.  We've done a little exploring and a little shopping, and have had a few setbacks....  So I had my first pedicure here and i'm just now okay to talk about it.  It's been about three weeks and I think I can say I have fully recovered.  What a horrible experience.  I knew it might be different, but what I had expected was for it to take a long time and cost very little.  Jose gets his hair cut for $4.00 for crying out loud and they spend forever on it but do a great job.  I had my friend Nikky take me so her place so I figured it couldn't be that bad.  The place was inside of a hair salon in a little shopping strip and it looked okay.  They put some warm water from the shampoo bowl into a bucket and had me soak - the water quickly got cold but that was the least of my worries. After a few minutes, a gal came back and took some tools out of a plastic bag and got to work.  She had a small desk lamp that she kept plugging in in different outlets so she could see my toes that were on her knee.  I was totally uncomfortable the whole time trying to keep my leg from sliding down her knee but that wasn't the worst part.  The "tools" were an old pointy nail file which she used to push my cuticles back, and a tired old callous file thing!  Not only were they UNSANITIZED but they were PAINFUL!  She made three of my toes bleed and poured nail polish remover on them to stop the bleeding (which didn't work of course).  I was in so much pain but for whatever reason I stayed and endured the whole thing, telling myself to grin a bear it. Uggh!  Finally I had her switch feet to give the first side a break.  My friend from the other part of the shop was giving me the thumbs up sign and saying Muy Bueno Si?  Of course I didn't want to hurt her feelings so I flashed her a smile and just got through it.  I couldn't wait for it to be over, and when it was - she put the used (and bled on) tools back in the bag, and back in the box to be used for the next victim.  I said very little to my friend on the way home, and barely stopped the car for her to get out at her house.  I was anxious to get home to a bottle of hydrogen peroxide.  I doused my toes three times a day for two weeks before they felt better.

Dog on Roof - Security?

Two weekends ago, we visited a nearby town called  Siguatepeque (try to say that fast a few times) Say Gua Te Peck Ay is how it sounds... kind of a fun word to say huh?  We'd heard that they had pretty good shopping so we ventured out.  That day we saw some interesting sites.  As we traveled over the mountain we got stopped in traffic for a tow truck that was pulling a car up from off the side of the mountain.  Jose got out and took some pics - the mountain roads are very windy, I could totally see how that could happen. There are some good restaurants in  Siguatepeque and lots of roadside stands with pottery, honey, hammocks, and birdcages.  We came home with a hammock - which is our all time favorite purchase, some plants, and a ceramic pot for outside.  We have also had some discussion about a bird.  Our last stop was where we bought the ceramic pot.  There were two small kids playing outside and helping their dad.  One of the boys was about Jordan's age and he was filthy dirty.  The other was 2 ish and he had absolutely no clothes on.  Jordan, Everett, and I  stayed in the car while Jose talked to the dad.  My boys were in awe - mouths hanging open wondering why that boy didn't have any clothes on.  My guess would be that he was not potty trained and they can't afford to buy diapers so to be naked is the easier option.... Sad - very sad to see.

Early last week when Jose was coming home from somewhere he had a little run in with a herd of cows.  There was a young boy taking them down the road and one turned his head and broke the passenger side mirror off the car.  I asked if the cow was injured and Jose said - "well he kept walking".  Crazy.  Later in the week (last Friday) we had our usual happy hour with some of Jose's co workers and a few of their spouses.  It's become a regular thing and I really look forward to it since I feel like i'm on house arrest the rest of the week.  This happy hour ran long and we ended up moving from the poolside site at the Golf Club where we live to a social club in downtown Comayagua.  Jose and I drove our own car and met everyone there.   We parked in a well lit spot at the Cathedral and I decided that rather than to risk getting mugged on the street I would leave my purse in the car. Our windows are very dark black tint and the purse was on the floor board very close to the seat in the back seat.  Needless to say - when we came out 2 hrs later our window had been smashed out and my purse was gone.  What a bummer!  Several credit cards/bank cards,  Military ID, Drivers License, etc all gone.  Lesson Learned #2.

Sleeping Boys

Not too much else going on.  We are taking a trip next weekend to the beach to celebrate my big 4 - 0 birthday.  We're really looking forward to that.  The place is called Tela.  I will be sure to Blog about that when we get back.

Transportation

Windshield Cleaner 

For the first few weeks I was simply a passenger in the car just observing the sites as we drove in this foreign place.  I've since decided that I LOVE to drive here.  It's FUN!  You can drive anywhere you want as fast as you want passing anyone and anything that you want.  In our town most of the main roads are paved and there are some traffic lights and traffic signs, but here everything is just a suggestion!  Nothing is enforced.  Everyone drives crazy and everyone honks their horn!  Dogs, pedestrians, cattle, sheep, chickens, kids, donkies, bicyclists, motorcycles you name it - they are
sharing the road with you and there are lots of them!  It is crowded everywhere you look.  On one of the main roads there are always young boys trying to wipe your windshield for 1 limpera (which is like not even a penny).  In the market area there are so many people in the streets selling things, buying things and asking for handouts the driving can be quite tricky - you always have to be aware.  No more Sunday driving or trying to apply makeup while driving thats for sure!  Another thing that's strange is that there are no street names and no addresses!  I might have told you all that in an earlier post but if you ask directions to somewhere you are often told - "it's on the main boulevard" or you are given a hand sketched map.  The public transportation here is hopping in the back of a pick up tuck and holding on to an iron frame that was designed for passengers riding in the back.  Now this isn't official "public transportation" it's just that you frequently see trucks picking people up on the side of the road and they tend to get super full of people- all ages too!  They do have busses here that take people to the neighboring towns.  They are most often discarded School Busses from the United States!  They are everywhere and it's not uncommon to see them for sale.  Many people rely on bicycles for transportation.  Most times you see a bicycle you will see more than one person on it.  You will often see the main rider transporting a passenger sitting sideways on the bike.  Sometimes  you will even see a whole family on a bike!  Tons of people walk everywhere they go too.  They are often carrying heavy loads - women might be seen balancing a load of something on her head!

Lady Cooking

Dinner Stop

This week we've passed around a stomach bug - not fun!  Jose is the only one who hasn't had it yet.  Even Sancho was eating grass today.  Jose said we got it from eating Mangos from the little boy that sells bags full outside of Jordan's school.  It's one of my new favorite treats!  The boy is there every day.  He calls out "Mango Mango"  he charged 10 limps (about .50) for a bag full of cut up and peeled GREEN (not ripe) Mangos.  They are doused with "salsa negra" which is Worcestershire sauce and salt.  It's the best thing I just love it!  Jose has been joking us that they were "an unauthorized food source" and probably made us sick!  I think not.  Speaking of unauthorized food sources.  All of the eating places here are dine at your own risk.  Which I guess means that there are no health regulations governing food preparation.  All over town you will see ladies on the side of the road cooking things from a hot pot or fire or something.  Some of them have a table or two set up for passerbys to stop and have a bite.  Not really sure yet what they are cooking and I guess it varies from day to day but just overall strange to see.  On our drive to Tegucigalpa which is over the mountains on winding roads there is a lady just there selling roasted corn.  I suppose she just comes down from her home in the mountains and cooks.  She must do some business because she is always there.  One of these days we might just stop!

Teamwork

Horse on the Road

Delivery Moto

Cute Little Truck Thing

Fancy Bus With Vendors Selling Snacks

Bus Parking Lot

Fruit

Ugly Couches for Sale

Movies Anyone

Fruit for Sale

Market

Busy Market

Market

Wheelbarrow

That Looks Heavy!

Volunteer Firefighters

Carpool

Power Outage

What a slacker i've been!  Several days since my last post.  So much to tell about!  

Jordan's Stack of Books

Jordan & Everett's School

The kids are getting adjusted to school and we are finally in somewhat of a routine. 

 Jordan is still getting used to the ways of his classroom - how to know what is for homework etc...  he has a ton of books and a ton of supplies.One of the strangest things 

on his school supply list was Toilet Paper!  The things we take for granted huh?  Jordan said when you want to go to the restroom you have to ask for that Bathroom Pass and then you are given Toilet Paper and Hand Soap.  Last week he had a "uniform inspection" 

and he was sent home with a Warning Notice!  He was out of standards!  Missing from his handsome little get up was: a belt and the appropriate socks.  He is required to wear black dress shoes and we had no idea that there were specific requirements for the socks so we put him in black dress socks - can you believe that the socks are supposed to be white athletic socks?   The warning was sent home for the FATHER to sign.  All of the paperwork that comes home requiring a signature asks for the Father's signature!  Jordan almost missed recess on Friday for failing to bring back his weekly report - we of course had no idea that this was to be signed and returned each week.  

Street View

 Street View

The square downtown

Sunday around 9AM the power went out and we had no idea why.  It appeared as though it was out in the whole neighborhood so we decided to go site seeing in down town Comayagua.  There are beautiful old buildings there, a really pretty cathedral and that's 

Cathedral Downtown
Comayagua

about it.  The streets were quiet.  It was almost lunch time when we found a really nice little restaurant/gift shop set back in an awesome courtyard.  It appeared to be closed but when we peeked in the gate, the owner came out and asked us to come in.  She was a beautiful woman who spoke great English and of course Spanish too.  Turns out she is a native of Comayagua but shares her time living in Cleveland, Ohio for 4 months and then 3 months here and so on.  She explained to us that power was out in all of Honduras because there were Political Conventions of opposing parties going on.  The electric company is run by the government so to minimize viewership they turned off the power to prevent the people of Honduras from watching it.  Power would most likely be out until 4pm that day she told us.  Wow - what a Democracy.  She was able to be open and fix us lunch because she had a gas stove.        

We finally got a vehicle after a month of a rental car - a 2000 Ford Explorer with new tires and 105k miles.  Sounds crazy but this car is quite the luxury!  Vehicles are hard to come by here and all of them cost a fortune.  We got lucky and bought this one from an American guy that was working on the base.  

Our New Ride

We also got a kitchen table!  The table was handmade by a local artisan here that makes beautiful furniture.  It is made of Honduran Mahogany wood and is super heavy.  Next in line is a handmade desk from the same guy. 

Our tiny new table

Walking Stick on our porch!

Escuela Bilingue Honduras

School has officially started for the Torres boys and what a process this has been!  We knew school started on the 9th after the Chirstmas break so last week we went to try and register Jordan.  There were reception type staff there (Spanish speaking only) and they told us we had to come back on Monday.  We went back on Monday and met the Principal and the English Coordinator who pretty much gave us no information.  We did manage to arrange for testing for Jordan which would take place on Tuesday and we asked about a program for Everett, met that Coordinator and were told we could get all of that information on Tuesday after Jordan's testing.  Tuesday we had to drop Jordan off for two hours (tear) and when I came back to get him I talked with another administrator who explained to me that they needed to have a meeting with both parents about the paperwork.  The meeting had to be scheduled for Wednesday.  I convinced them to let Jordan and Everett both start school on Wednesday and they did.  At the meeting they suggested  we hire a lawyer to assist us with all the required paperwork  (we can use the Base Legal dept so it works out fine).  Official records such as the Birth Certificate and School Report Cards not only have to include the state's official seals on them but they also have to have an Apostille which is a certification done at the U.S. Department of State's office that says the document is "entitled to recognition in the country of intended use" at the meeting we signed formal contracts promising to initiate the process obtaining this paperwork and try to have it completed within 60 days.  Whew - what an ordeal!

School day was very stressful.  Boy boys were a wreck.  Jordan more so than Everett... he was super nervous about everything and hated the uniform he had to wear.  The English Coordinator who he tested with, Laura (pronounced Lao Da) made a great connection with him so he felt at ease when he saw her.  Jordan ended up making some fast friends and realized that all of these kids DO speak English just not so perfect.  The majority of the classes are taught in English and all the teachers are English speaking.  The Principal and Office Staff; however are not.  There are 3 classes that are taught in Spanish:  Social Studies, Spanish and Values.  Jordan won't be tested in any of these classes but will have to attend them sort of like an audit situation like we have in the states.  The school is set up like an open mall type building and during recess and lunch they have free reign of all the spaces - can you imagine?  Recess is scheduled in the morning at 8:40 and during this time the kids are allowed to eat a snack from home.  I packed Jordan some cookies and a water what the heck right?  Cookies in the am just because it was allowed!  At lunch time I received a call from Laura saying he had no lunch!  She put Jordan on the phone and he told me he had eaten the sandwich and the rest of the lunch I had packed him at snack time!  I had given him 100 Limps just in case he needed to buy something so that's what he ended up doing.  Lunch was some sort of chicken, beans, plantains, etc. and cost 20 Limps which is about a dollar.  Most parents bring their kids lunch.  They walk up to the gates right before noon with a plate of something covered in foil that they have just cooked.  We won't be doing that..... Both boys ended up having pretty good days.  Everett seemed to have a great time.  He only goes until 11:30, and Jordan came out with a smile.  He had lots to say about just how different things were.  This morning they both went off with a smile.  Today I will be working on getting all the cash together to go pay for their registration fees and their books.  Some has to be paid in American Currency and some in Limperias.  All of it has to be paid right at the school's bank and then you take the payment slip back to the school.  Jordan can't be issued his books until I get that part done.  School starts promptly at 7:00 am!  If  you are late you have to miss your first class and sit in the counselors office.  Needless to say  - Jose will be taking them to school!

Potty Talk

Nasty!

notice the trash can

See anything different about Jose?

Dennis, Jose y Alejandro

Nikki

Imperial - my new fave!

So yesterday after work, Jose came and picked us up and we went to Happy Hour with some of his co-workers.  They are going to try to do this every friday.  Most of the wives don't go - but Jose wanted me to meet everyone so off we went.  We dropped the kids off at Dennis and Nikki's (co-worker and his Honduran wife).  Dennis was at the Sky bar so we grabbed Nikki and had her come with us.  There were several kids at their house and Karen, the 20 yr old daughter so our boys were in good hands (and super excited to be going there to play).  We found the little dive on the side of the road The SKY BAR and met the guys.  I so wish I had some pics of the place but I don't.  It was interesting.... An open space connected to someone's residence I think?  because there was laundry hanging on the line in this courtyard area.  They were happy to have us there because besides our group there were maybe 3 other people there. Beers were 20 limperias which is about a dollar.  The gathering was fun until I had to go to the bathroom.  Now I've visited some bathrooms in Honduras of course and none of them had been too too bad but I only go if I absolutely have to.  They are usually pretty dirty and may or may not have toilet paper.  My mom had warned me of this and she was right.  Lucky for you I do have pictures to share of this particular bathroom.... Written on the door in marker was the words "Damas Y Caballeros"  which was the first clue that it might be less than desirable- a shared facility.  There was no toilet paper and it was overall just a nasty nasty place.  Dead cockroaches littered the floor some being eaten by ants......the pictures here can tell the rest.
Overall it was a fun time - we got back to Dennis and Nikki's to find Everett asleep on the couch and the boys begging for Jor DAN to spend the night.  They had a fun time and so did we but we made it an early night.

Trash Day

Trash men in front of our home

Going through the trash behind our home

I've been waiting for today to come! Today is trash day and i've been watching the trash guys come every time.  They come twice a week- pick up all the trash in the neighborhood and then they park behind our house and literally cut through each of the bags looking for aluminum, plasticos, and anything else that might be salvageable.  As most of you know, I drink quite a bit of diet coke and the boys have been guzzling Fresca so we tend to have several cans for them.


 I've decided to separate them in the house just as if we were recycling - cans and plastic items.  You can imagine my disappointment when this morning I went out to add to the trash pile and to my dismay someone had already scoured our trash pile and had taken the items meant for the trash men!  I was so disappointed and I bet they were too to find that we had nothing good for the taking!  Next trash day I will be doing things a little different!





Yesterday was a fun day in our house - we got a couch, a rug, 19 boxes from home and some Christmas boxes!  It feels so good to have some of our things!  The boys were super excited to see some of their toys and to get some new ones for Christmas!

19 boxes!

Our new couch and super contemporary  rug

Boys LOVE Tech Decks!

Christmas from the Albright's!  Thanks friends!

Jordan says: FINALLY Nana! His birthday game

Christmas from the Torres'

I am thankful that Jose is so outgoing and that he speaks Spanish!  Yesterday after work he met a local Honduran man, also named Jose, that lives is our neighborhood. Jose has two boys - one is 10 and the other is 3.  Yay! He invited my Jose and the boys to meet up to play soccer.  There is a big group that plays every day at 5pm right behind our house.  Jordan had to be coaxed to go out.  He is a little uneasy sometimes about the language barrier and even though he is learning some Spanish words, he doesn't like to use them.  Everett and Sancho went along too.  They had an absolute blast!  Every one of them.  Turns out the 10yr old boy (don't know his name) goes to the same school that Jordan will start on Monday.  He knows English but wont usually speak it because he is not so confident in his ability - you see where I am going with this......