welcome back to Honduras

My *huge* fan base asked for more updates, so I´m going to try and please my faithful followers.

So I hopped on a plane yesterday morning and headed back down to Central America; Honduras to be exact. I got on a bus to meet a friend on the coast and was plesantly reminded of the fun bus rides. This particular bus didn't have any storage space, so everyone's luggage was blocking the aisle and door, which meant that I was practically sitting on someone else's luggage, while people had to step on my seat to crawl over and get further back on the bus. It doesn't sound quite as amusing as it seemed to me at the time, but it was a nice welcome back to the region. The air smelled sweet like the tropics usually do (unless they smell like diesel) and was so warm and stickly I had trouble remembering that I was chilly that morning waiting for the train in Atlanta. Off to eat yet another dinner of rice and beans...

updates - Panama first

I just updated my blog, so scroll down a while for lots of new pictures! Most of my pictures of the Panama Canal didn't come out, so this is what I have. The canal was fascinating; it takes 8 hours for ships to get from one ocean to the other and can cost around $300,000 for large cargo ships to go through.
a view of the Miraflores locks

ships passing through the canal

check out the cranes in Panama City - so much development

some ruins in Panama City

I didn't get a chance to properly explain bus rides in Central America. Remember the big yellow school buses some of us rode to school years ago? Well they usually make it down to Central America for many more years of use before they are finally (if ever?) put out of their misery. They paint these old buses lots of pretty colors, like the one above. The buses are called chicken buses and remarkably they don't even translate it, they just call the buses "chicken buses." And people actually bring chickens on the buses, which are never full. They can always fit additional people, which helps gringos like me keep from falling out of the seat on the curvy roads.

pretty views and rum in a can

La Merced in Granada, Nicaragua

view from La Merced of Granada, Nicaragua

sunset over the Pacific in Nicaragua

a can of rum and coke - only in Central America

Volcan Arenal from the lake - notice the smoke - woohoo!

more photos of the caribbean

glad this wasn't one of the ants that tried to eat me in Tanzania

another view of Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras

Marius and Felix trying to avoid the sun

me, Anders (my scuba instructor - cool name huh?), and Marius (my scuba buddy)

more ruins

pyramids above the trees at Tikal, Guatemala

hopefully you can see the toucan this time

Guatemala was in the midst of elections - some campaigning for one of the parties

ruins at Copan, Honduras

detail on one of the pyramids at Copan

even more Guatemala

Jack Sparrow is everywhere!

a ferris wheel in Guatemala that I wasn't about to get on - check out the foundation

women selling flowers outside a church on a Sunday morning in Xela, Guatemala

beautiful Guatemalan woman who wouldn't smile for the camera

more guatemala

view from the plane

Guatemala City from the sky

largest fountain in central america

pretty yellow church in Antigua

geothermal energy plant outside Antigua, Guatemala; if they can do it, why can't we?

hiatus

I'm briefly back in the States for a couple of weeks, attending a wedding in Chicago and catching up with folks while I'm here. I plan on posting a few more photos while I'm here, so the blog will still be updated. I will probably start traveling again after Thanksgiving, so check back then if you're interested!

independence day in Panama

Drums have not stopped beating all weekend (literally, they were practicing at 2:00 am Saturday morning). People have been marching in circles around the main square for 2 days straight. It´s a little out of control, but lots of fun and adds to the excitement of the weekend.

I´m currently at Bocas del Toro, Panama enjoying a couple more Caribbean days before I fly home. Below are some photos of the everlasting parade and the beautiful beaches around here.

Red Frog Beach, Bocas del Toro, Panama

same beach, different view


part of the parade

some really cute pom pom girls