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Honduras here we come

I got my own back at 3:00am when by alarm went off and I turned my shower on. Taking my wheelie bag down the stairs at 3:45 was the sweetest revenge.  Clunk, clunk, clunk

Bags loaded into our bus and we are away. There’s room for each of us to have a seat of our own and I nabbed front row. I stretch out and try for some kip. It wasn’t forthcoming. 

There have been political blockades around Guatemala City so we were lucky to bypass the city and avoid them. If we got stuck we could have been there for hours. 

3 million people live permanently in Guatemala City.  4 million more commute up to 3hrs a day each way. People were waiting on the side of the road for busses at 4:30 am. They dont start wotk till 8:00 but have to leave home early to catch the bus in case there is a blockade. 

We missed the blockades but there were roadworks which slowed us down. 

Camioneta aka chicken busses zoom past resplendent in their finery. 

Our first toilet stop was at a Shell station where they also sell coffee,  hot dogs, pizza, smokes, vapes and booze. RTD’s are in the same fridge as soft drinks and not too much more expensive.  Use of the loos was free and they were spotless and well maintained. 

I wasn’t hungry but saw they had hotdogs, American style in a bun. Yes thank you very much. And yum it was too. 

Maybe I shouldn’t have had it as not long after we stopped at a hotel for a hearty breakfast.  Still full I just had a juice. 

Much of our trip was on either the Pan American or the Atlantic Highway. The roads were windy but in good condition and the landscape we passed through rather beautiful. Green and lush. The rainy season has just finished so I hear that by the end of their summer it will be brown and dry. 

Rafa our guide is keeping us posted about our options for today, the border crossing and anything else that comes to mind. He’s a cool guy, lots of fun and obsessed with climbing. He runs a climbing company. Check it out. 

After a bit of faffing we’d checked out of Guatemala and nekt minit we are in Honduras on our way to our digs for the night. We have been warned that it’s ‘basic’ so who knows what we will find. 

OK so it is basic but I have my own bathroom and it is clean.  Checked in we walk down through the very cute township to a restaurant that sort of thought it was in the US but had Latino food. Again I had a steak with fries mainly because I am trying to avoid ‘wrap’ style stuff and tortillas which don’t excite me. I am over steak though. A local beer washed it down for me and as we paid our bill we were treated to a moist towelette, a mint and a chocolate coated frozen banana. Finished it off nicely. 

After a difficult night and an early start I am waning but have agreed to go to the hot pools and dinner which will probably knock me out totally. 

It took about 80 minutes to get to LunaJaguar pools. The road , while not gravel as we had been told, was a little better in some parts and considerably worse in others. Full of pot holes, patches of straight mud, river crossings etc. We wondered how we would get back home again. 

But was it worth it. Absolutely. The pools were divine. A variety of temperatures spread out over a large area and beautifully done.  

Our deal included dinner Hmm. Cardboard would have been tasty than the incinerated beef and chicken we got. The juice (not) was good and the corn chips with red bean paste great. 

We armed ourselves for what might happen on the way home. We had passed through some decent mud holes coming in and wondering how our van would manage them in an incline was front of mind for most of us. 

Squashed into van we set off and superbly the van handled the mud holes, our bums coped with the bumps and we arrived home safe and sound. 

Bed and dead to the world in 10 minutes. 

The cuteness of Antigua

I keep mentioning loud Americans but the couple in the room next to me are on a parallel. They woke me yesterday at 7am with loud chatter and again today standing outside their room having a conversation. They were speaking a germanic language loudly without a thought for anyone else.

I can’t wait to wake them tomorrow morning when I check out to start my trip.

Today I don’t have a fixed plan. Maybe return to buy an embroidery I saw but otherwise there is much of Antigua I haven’t walked. Cobbled streets and arthritic  joints are not playing nicely with each other but I have long travel days coming up so I will make the most of it today and can rest up whilst travelling. Solid walking shoes would help but I can’t find anything big enough. People must have small feet here.

So I am going to try and walk every street that I have yet to explore. I have a map with Museums and Galleries marked. They will be my first priority.

Except they weren’t. Half of them didn’t exist any longer. I headed in the direction of a coffee shop I’d been to and half way there decided I wanted that coffee in an outdoor courtyard, of which there are many. In my travels I came across many and could not get over the gems hidden behind nondescript doorways.  They inspired the title of this post.

The gems are unending, everywhere, quite unlike any other place I have been. It’s gorgeous. I stumbled across a wee jewellery outlet and the woman there gave me the addresses of some art galleries which is where I am off to.

On the way I stop by the Jade Museum which gives tours and also sells Jade jewellery. Guatemala is one of the few places in the world with Jade Jadeíta. It comes in colours other than green and in a gorgeous lilac colour. The piece of jewellery I bought the other day is Jade Jadeíta in variegated greens. Really pretty but not great quality.

I walk on. There are lots of photos but difficult to post on this site. Follow me on Facebook. Helen Neni Dobson.

A cute doorway beckons and I am now having an espresso in the courtyard at Adra. I dragged myself through the doors and the waiter took one look and suggested I might like the armchair. 🤣

Like many of the cafes Adra is also a hotel/guest house with rooms off the main courtyard. Cuteness overload.

My espresso is like every single one I’ve had here. Superb. Rich, smooth and with a pleasant aftertaste.

Guatemala is one of the top producers of coffee in the world. Their main crop is Arabica which is gives a good punch. Another reason to love this place.  So far the food had been good but not good enough to excite me but the coffee is well worth it.

More here: https://www.guateadventure.com/guatemalan-coffee/

I’m getting hungry, my feet can’t take much more and I think back to last night. My meal was ok, light but large and filling and I had 4 cocktails which must have been very light on alcohol as they didn’t scratch the surface. The drinks were 2 for one but even so my bill came to something like $25. I’d pay that for one drink at home.

I am in awe of how much is packed into this tiny city. I can now say I have walked ever Avenida and Street of the old city. Each doorway has another treasure. I see a new one which is a tourist arcade, the usual tourist junk. But nestled amongst them is a metre wide little stall with the same mass produced art work. Except she has what I was looking for and at a good price. Perfect for my travel wall.

Further along I find shoes. Hand made, ethnic and supportive of my feet. Best of all at a great price. Tick for that one too. Shopping complete. Now for one small souvenir from each of the other countries I visit.

I started thinking of the fries I had the other day. Of all the food the meal with the bread roll and the fries was the best. Guess where I am now?

And I ordered the same thing again.

My hibiscus drink was garnished with a piece of star fruit. I’m curious as to what it tastes like. It looked real pretty but I wont be trying that again. More sour than a lemon.

My meal even better than the last time and I think the best meal I’ve had here. Plain, simple, huge and a decent price.

But I’m done. My stomach is full, my knees are protesting and I am now happily relaxing on my bed. Home. Time for a nap.

Our trip started today. 13 of us from all sorts of places, UK, US, Australia, Netherlands/Brazil and one of the Stans. All different demographics. How cool.

We had a brief intro and then went to Casa del Sopa for dinner. No I didn’t have soup. I had a churrasco (grill plate) and damn good it was too. Tried a new beer and that was excellent so I left dinner feeling pretty good.

We have. 3:45am start tomorrow to avoid the commuter traffic in Guatemala City and despite being far too early I am looking forward to a trip with some exciting people. Our tour guide Rafa (no not my beloved Rafa) seems like a hoot and should be great. Can’t wait.