We may have been a day late, but we made it without too many problems.
Flying out of San Pedro was delayed by 2 or 3 hours, making us miss our connecting flight to Minn. By the time we got to Miami, the airport staff were ready to leave for the night. So, we got put up in a really nice place. The nicest hotel ever. We were rerouted to Dallas, then eventually got to minneapolis, or wherever the airport is.
American Things
1. Carpet-It feels nice on my feet.
2. Micro-brews-Dont taste like water
3. Family and friends-Its always nice to be home
4. Drinking Tap Water-Everyone tells me its safe, and I drank alot of it, but Im still nervous filling up that cup from the sink and probably scarred for life.
5. Lots of lights and electrical devises-Well, there are just alot of them.
6. Speaking English-all the time-and not having to translate to a friend. Its almost too easy.
I didnt even notice when we got to the desk in Miami that I was speaking spanish to the woman getting our hotel reservations. It didnt matter-she spoke spanish-but when I noticed it, what I had the realization, "Talk in english, you idiot."
7. Not knowing what to say-Aside from not being able to think of the words I want to say and having the english vocabulary of an 8 year old again, I dont really know what to say to people anyways.
somebody: "How's Honduras?" me: "Good."
Anyone who's travelled knows that sentence all too well and it doesnt really need an explanation. There's nothing you can do about it, and its just a part of coming home.
Luckily for us, our friends and family have been really great and helpful and asked us so many good questions. So, that makes me happy.
Time to eat again!
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Feliz Navidad! A little early.
Conversation while taking this picture: Time lapse of 35 minutes:
Eric: "Take a picture of us saying Merry Christmas!"
Andrik: "Yeah, we want a picture!"
Jeremy (the littlest one): "Do we get presents for taking the picture?" "Candy?"
Crystal: "No, now smile nice."
Eric: "What about Stella! She HAS to be in the picture, too."
(10 mins: boys disperse, find dog, pose for the third time)
Andrik: "Look, Stella likes pictures!"
Eric: "Look how happy she is!"
Crystal: "That's called animal abuse."
All: What?
Jeremy: "I'm happy!"
All: "Feliz Navidad everyone!"
All: Crystal, bring us candy when you come back.
So, Merry Christmas everyone, and we hope to see you all soon.
And dont forget to read the new blog before this one! We didnt want it to go forgotten.
Crystal and Simon
Monday, December 11, 2006
Adding Insult to Injury
Illness and injury are two afflictions that tend to shadow members of PC throughout their time outside of the states, for various reasons. Quite obviously, the developing world can be characterized by substandard sanitation, medical techniques which are scarce and antiquated, and the presence of diseases and illnesses which are products of geographical location, climate and weather patterns, or a simple inability to vaccinate everyone.
The same goes for injuries; the lifestyle here tends to be coarse and physical, the landscape rugged and sometimes resistant to human improvements like roads or stairs. In short, if you gotta move a bag of cement, you sling it over your shoulder and head off on your way. Injuries and illnesses come and go down here, and this week we got a visit from each.
Crystal was doing some exercises at the house last week when she heard something crack in her neck. Later, she turned her head to do something and fell over, not understanding what had just happened. After the local doctor recommended some injections for an obviously non-injectable condition, pc decided to send her to Tegucigalpa to visit a neurosurgeon. The problem was traced back to a rather severe car accident that Crystal had when she was sixteen, which had caused two of her vertebrae to become pinched together over the years.
The treatment was a week’s course of massages (the good) along with electroshock therapy (the bad). Since she was stuck in Tegucigalpa for a week, and being the supportive husband that I am, I came down to help her out. The allure of international cuisine and free hotel rooms playing a minor role in my decision making process.
But, as irony would have it, I became violently ill mere hours after getting into the city. Now, illness is one of those things that you tend to shake off; its frequency makes it more of an inconvenience than an event, kinda like waiting in line at the bank. And this one was like many others: super high fever, stomach cramps, diarrhea, total body aches, delusions, etc. The next day I was still hurtin', but determined not to let it slow me down, I went to the mall with Crystal.
I was still miserable with a temperature, stomach problems, and a pounding migraine, yet determined to continue with my plans. The mall is the place for the moneyed class in Honduras to hangout, just walking around the mall dictates a certain social eliteness that most Hondurans could never dream of achieving. Now, this next part is a little delicate, and perhaps reveals more about myself than I would like, so bear with me. Let’s just say that an unknown symptom of whatever terrible illness I was harboring was random and spontaneous defecation. More bluntly, I was so sick that I soiled myself while at the mall.
Fortunately, this is an incident where I can mentally insulate myself with the cause of illness, but it remains a harrowing and embarrassing event; the “going to school naked” dream has nothing on this reality. And surrounded by the crème de crème of Honduras didn't make things easy, either. Given the circumstances, I handled it well; I went the bathroom and cleaned up, and concealed my shame, and then we beat tracks for the hotel. Crystal was extremely supportive during this ordeal, although she has not stopped laughing uncontrollably since. Today I had some tests done, we’ll find out tomorrow what illness causes this, and then I will start a foundation to fight it internationally.
Once again, this life is all about resilience, you learn to deal with aches and illnesses that would normally confine you to bed, you learn to deal with situations that would normally force you to move to a new town and start a new life. Finding the personal strength to deal with whatever comes your way validates your need to walk around the mall with a sweatshirt tied around your waist. Sometimes personal growth means public embarrassment.
simon
The same goes for injuries; the lifestyle here tends to be coarse and physical, the landscape rugged and sometimes resistant to human improvements like roads or stairs. In short, if you gotta move a bag of cement, you sling it over your shoulder and head off on your way. Injuries and illnesses come and go down here, and this week we got a visit from each.
Crystal was doing some exercises at the house last week when she heard something crack in her neck. Later, she turned her head to do something and fell over, not understanding what had just happened. After the local doctor recommended some injections for an obviously non-injectable condition, pc decided to send her to Tegucigalpa to visit a neurosurgeon. The problem was traced back to a rather severe car accident that Crystal had when she was sixteen, which had caused two of her vertebrae to become pinched together over the years.
The treatment was a week’s course of massages (the good) along with electroshock therapy (the bad). Since she was stuck in Tegucigalpa for a week, and being the supportive husband that I am, I came down to help her out. The allure of international cuisine and free hotel rooms playing a minor role in my decision making process.
But, as irony would have it, I became violently ill mere hours after getting into the city. Now, illness is one of those things that you tend to shake off; its frequency makes it more of an inconvenience than an event, kinda like waiting in line at the bank. And this one was like many others: super high fever, stomach cramps, diarrhea, total body aches, delusions, etc. The next day I was still hurtin', but determined not to let it slow me down, I went to the mall with Crystal.
I was still miserable with a temperature, stomach problems, and a pounding migraine, yet determined to continue with my plans. The mall is the place for the moneyed class in Honduras to hangout, just walking around the mall dictates a certain social eliteness that most Hondurans could never dream of achieving. Now, this next part is a little delicate, and perhaps reveals more about myself than I would like, so bear with me. Let’s just say that an unknown symptom of whatever terrible illness I was harboring was random and spontaneous defecation. More bluntly, I was so sick that I soiled myself while at the mall.
Fortunately, this is an incident where I can mentally insulate myself with the cause of illness, but it remains a harrowing and embarrassing event; the “going to school naked” dream has nothing on this reality. And surrounded by the crème de crème of Honduras didn't make things easy, either. Given the circumstances, I handled it well; I went the bathroom and cleaned up, and concealed my shame, and then we beat tracks for the hotel. Crystal was extremely supportive during this ordeal, although she has not stopped laughing uncontrollably since. Today I had some tests done, we’ll find out tomorrow what illness causes this, and then I will start a foundation to fight it internationally.
Once again, this life is all about resilience, you learn to deal with aches and illnesses that would normally confine you to bed, you learn to deal with situations that would normally force you to move to a new town and start a new life. Finding the personal strength to deal with whatever comes your way validates your need to walk around the mall with a sweatshirt tied around your waist. Sometimes personal growth means public embarrassment.
simon
Thursday, December 7, 2006
Don´t Call it a Comeback....
Unless comeback means that we are coming home for Christmas, cuz that is exactly what is happening....
Thats right folks! Simon and Crystal are heading back to the great white north for a limited engagement! Gather your sandwiches, your finely crafted midwestern microbrews, and be prepared to shower us with gifts and affection, as we may be coming to a city near you!
Here is the deal: We will be flying into Minneapolis on December 19th at midnight, and will be staying until we return to Honduras in the wee hours of January 4th. My little sister Amanda is getting married on December 22nd, and we will probably be in Minnesota until the 23rd where we will head to Wisconsin for a while, and then we will spend a couple more days in Minnesota before we take off. We will split our time between states evenly, giving you all equal opportunites to bask in our altruistic glow. we might not have time to see everybody but we will do our darnest. Besides, you dont miss us that much, do ya?
We greatly look forward to a break from Honduras, and a chance to experience subzero windchills and christmas carols, two hearted ales and seven layer bars. I quiver with excitement as i think about it...
Those with specific questions about our schedule feel free to drop us an email or leave a comment on the blog, otherwise we shall be seeing you very soon!
simon
Thats right folks! Simon and Crystal are heading back to the great white north for a limited engagement! Gather your sandwiches, your finely crafted midwestern microbrews, and be prepared to shower us with gifts and affection, as we may be coming to a city near you!
Here is the deal: We will be flying into Minneapolis on December 19th at midnight, and will be staying until we return to Honduras in the wee hours of January 4th. My little sister Amanda is getting married on December 22nd, and we will probably be in Minnesota until the 23rd where we will head to Wisconsin for a while, and then we will spend a couple more days in Minnesota before we take off. We will split our time between states evenly, giving you all equal opportunites to bask in our altruistic glow. we might not have time to see everybody but we will do our darnest. Besides, you dont miss us that much, do ya?
We greatly look forward to a break from Honduras, and a chance to experience subzero windchills and christmas carols, two hearted ales and seven layer bars. I quiver with excitement as i think about it...
Those with specific questions about our schedule feel free to drop us an email or leave a comment on the blog, otherwise we shall be seeing you very soon!
simon
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