Tegucigalpa/ Traffic

Buenos dias everyone. This is Crystal and I am currently in the capital, Tegus buying fruit for my family on a training trip to learn how to talk again-but in Spanish this time.)



Here is a picture of what the city looks like from the air. Are you saying 'Wow, that city looks like it's just built right into the sides on mountains.." Well, you're right, it is! Of all the large cities Ive been to, here has the worst traffic by far. Tegucigalpa is one of the only cities I've ever been to in my life that isn't built on a grid (think of Minneapolis without stop signs, lights, street signs or anything for that matter). This makes for general chaos. There are no traffic rules in Tegus and every man (or woman or child or gringo) is for themselves: buses, cars, trucks (with 20 people in the back), pedestrians, motorcycles...you name it, I was almost hit by it today.




On a good note however, the internet cafe my friends and I are in currently, is air conditioned and guarded by the police with sawed off shot guns. There are also armed guards outside the McDonalds, which I found interesting. I am very proud of myself for asking directions and figuring when what buses leave for where. It sounds like a small feat, I know, but still...I also bought a fresh pineapple and some plantains today, mmm..pineapple. :)

It sounds like next week we will be going out into the field for a day to visit a volunteer in our project. We have to make our way to Tegus by bus and then to the correct station by taxi by ourselves and figure out how to get wherever we are going. Not too difficult, but not too easy either, in a city of a million with no road signs or maps or traffic laws-and with very poor Spanish. The language is coming along, but it's going to be a rough road for awhile. Im glad the training center let us off the leash today for a kind of ¨practice run¨.

Later today, I will be meeting back up with Simon and some people and we´re going to see Peace Corps Headquarters for the first time. Well, we´re off.