Hola Honduras!

Cayos Cochinos

I took a day trip to an island with some other volunteers to a beautiful group of islands called Cayos Cochinos. Apparently one of the Survivor series was filmed on one of the little islands. I'm not sure I believed our guide about that one. I'll have to do some research! We took a small boat for a 30 minute ride out to the main island to have a little orientation and little science lesson about the islands, the reefs and wildlife.

Cayos

Lunch

By the end of the day, I was exhausted from all the activities and the sun, but it was a fabulous day!

Island

Boats

Island Kids

O.k., I just did a little internet research and found that Survivor was not taped here, just as I had suspected. However, a reality show called "Temptation Island 3" was filmed on a small island off of Roatan, another island in this area. Interesting.... you can't fool me with tv trivia! Ha ha!

I took an all day bus yesterday from La Ceiba to Copan Ruinas. Riding on buses is on the bottom of the list of things I like to do when I travel. Even though it was a nice bus with air conditioning, I still felt nauseous the whole way. Copan Ruinas is a much smaller, more quiet city. It has cobblestone streets, a central park, many restaurants and hotels. It's kind of touristy. I'm doing a coffee plantation tour this afternoon and tomorrow I will visit the Mayan ruins. After that, I'm not sure what I'll do. I'm right on the border of Guatemala right now and I could venture back to Antigua. I was there a couple years ago with Play it Forward. I really liked Antigua with its Jade shop, coffee and lots of shopping. I'm finding it very difficult to find volunteer work on my own. You really need to be going through an organization. It's unfortunate that my program didn't work out, but I'm glad I at least had a week of some work with kids.

I had a great morning with the kids at the daycare. They just can't get enough of the music I brought and the story books. I'm still so saddened and shocked that they don't have any books to read to the kids. I got the address of one of the teachers and I said I will mail some more story books in Spanish. They are much cheaper back home if you look on ebay or amazon. If any of you want to contribute, the need is SOO great! As a teacher, it breaks my heart to see so little in their classrooms. They eat up and swallow every single book I read to them. The address is:

Sandra Melendez
Colonia San Judas
Calle Principal
La, Ceiba, Honduras C.A.

Many of the other volunteers and I are being refunded our money for the program due to some inappropriate behavior by the director (of Volunteering Solutions, not the day care) here in Honduras. I won't get into details, but I'll just say he is an alcoholic, disorganized and completely incapable of doing his job. There's more, but that's all I'll say now. I'm going to Copan Ruinas on Sunday to look for some Spanish classes and volunteer work. I'll be back to La Ceiba before I leave.

More dancing

Cute sisters

An all time favorite ( A Tu Ti Ta)

Today was a nice day with the kids at the daycare. They are really enjoying the story books and music activities. I figured out what I'm going to do for the next 2 weeks of my trip. Since this program is not what I was told it would be, I am going to travel up to a smaller city near Guatemala called Copan Ruinas. There are many activities to do there, including touring the Mayan Ruins, hiking, taking Spanish classes and also additional volunteering. The director of the volunteer program that I am in here is really shady. Many other volunteers are feeling the same way and considering leaving. It's unfortunate, but at the same time, there's a lot to do and see in other parts of the country. Here are some pictures from today.

3 yr. olds

3 yr. olds

3 yr. olds 3

5 yr. olds 1

5 yr. olds 2

Hello! I have worked 2 days with the kids so far. I have enjoyed them very much, but it isn't exactly what I was told I would be doing. The place I am working is not an orphanage. It's a government run daycare for children 2-5 years old. I was a little irritated at first, and I guess I still am, but I'm going to try and make the best of it. There is absolutely no structure in this place. They don't have even 1 book around to read to the kids. After the first day, I went out and bought about 6 books. I also am so thankful that I brought that suitcase full of teaching things. I didn't know what age group I'd be working with, so I luckily brought some things for little kids. They absolutely LOVE the music I brought. I have a CD of children's songs in Spanish that I can play on my computer (I used my ipod the first day, but that was stolen yesterday! boo hoo, long story). Anyway, for those of you who teach, you may be familiar with the song "A Tooty Ta". The little kids love it! There is also a Hokey Pokey song. They are all so engaged in the music, it's amazing! They are not used to anyone leading a structured activity of any sort and they have been so in awe of the few things I have done. It's amazing how little that the kids have here compared to the fortunate kids in the USA. I also read them a story book which they listened to so attentively.

Since this is not exactly what I was wanting to do, I think I may look into working in a school next week with a little bit older students. I will be able to teach some English and do additional things that I won't be able to do at this day care.

The weather continues to be stifling hot and humid. I am finding relief at a mall near my homestay that has A/C and free wi-fi. This weekend, I am doing an excursion to the islands with some of the other volunteers that I met. There are a lot of options for touristy things to do around here!

Until next time, adios.
Kristin