Que Magnifica!

We arrived in Tegucigalpa after a bumpy landing at the shortest runway in the entire world. As the pilot announced “Welcome to Tegucigalpa,” my eyes began to shed tears of joy. Fortunately my pride was strong enough to hold them back. I was so happy to be in Honduras.

Almost immediately we were ushered onto a bus headed for Santa Lucia. Driving through Teguc, I got a brief glimpse of the poverty that is rife in theis part of the world. There was trash everywhere, but the environment was so beautiful that it was difficult to concentrate on the negative things. The mountains are absolutely breathtaking, the sun is warm, and the colors of the buildings are a marked contrast to the dismal houses of the suburbs.

My Spanish needs a lot of work, so the first night with my host family was a bit akward. Luckily the language trainers are fantastic (and very patient) so I have learned a lot only in a few days. I’ve nearly doubled my vocabulary.

My host family is absolutely wonderful. They are so warm, conversive, and hospitable – I could not ask for anything more. There are two parents in their mid-thirties and one son who is 13. The porch provides an excellent view of Tegucigalpa, and I can see the stars at night.

I am the youngest of 50 other ‘aspirantes’ (Peace Corps Trainees), and we comprise a very diverse group. Sure, there are some Type A personalities, but in general this is a great group of people. I’ve already made a couple of amigos.

Here is a picture of our living room...