Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Folks,

I've enjoyed my time in Honduras. I am travelling to Nicaragua tomorrow, and I have just three weeks left before I'm home. I've shaken off my cold, and I'm all set for the final few weeks.

The pic of the week shows one of the two wrecks in the harbour of the wonderfully-named town of Coxenhole in Roatán. Which is quite a worrying sight as you arrive on the ferry.

Roatán to Copán Ruinas
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It was an early morning start to get the ferry from Roatán, and then I got an up-market bus to Copán Ruinas. We were served with soft drinks and crisps, and we had two films to occupy us on the journey.

The security was much stronger than I've had on a bus before. They checked our tickets against our passports, took individual photographs with a digital camera as we got on the bus, searched our bags, and even cigarette lighters had to travel in the hold.

Copán Ruinas
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The town of Copán is a lovely little cobbled town, and you can walk out to the ruins, which are just a kilometer away. The weather was really beautiful.

The ruins themselves are less dramatic than either Tikal or Chichén Itzá, because they're on a smaller scale. But they have very rich carvings on the stones and that's impressive. There is a large hieroglyphic stairway, where the steps have hieroglyphs telling the entire history of Copán. However, it's covered with a canvas roof to protect it from the elements, which diminishes the impact.

There are a number of tunnels which run under the ruins. They cost the same amount again as entry to the ruins (€10), and my guidebook said that they weren't worth it. But when I was going around, I found an unguarded door, and nipped in and had a good wander around. I could hear the footsteps of the guard trying to find me, and I pleaded ignorance when he did.

Tegucigalpa
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I stuck with the same bus company and again had two films for the
journey to Tegucigalpa. As we left Copán they showed 'Apocalypto', which was very appropriate having just visited my third and final Mayan site. It did make me wonder when I saw decapitated heads rolling down the steps I'd sat on.

Tegucigalpa isn't really on the tourist map. Even the taxi driver was amazed that I planned to stay a day. He'd assumed I was heading straight to Nicaragua in the morning.

My hotel strategy is the same in every location at this stage. I choose one from my book, and head there by foot or taxi. I pretend I have a booking, which stops taxi drivers or touts plaguing me about other hotels. If I like it, I check in. If I don't I wander around to find a better one. I was arriving later than usual in Tegucigalpa, it was after 7pm.

The hotel I'd chosen was booked out, and they redirected me to another. They showed me two rooms, both with bathrooms infested by cockroaches. I told her I didn't like them. 'But they're everywhere,' the girl replied. I could see that. So I was back out on the street trying to find somewhere else. It took a while.

My book is 'The Lonely Planet Guide to Central America on a Shoestring'. It's great for finding cheap places. The only problem is that it only has basic places, so if you decide to go a bit more upmarket, which I was prepared to do wandering around he dark streets of a strange city at night, they don't list them. It's strange to find yourself asking 'You don't have anything a little more expensive?'

I tried another place which was full. They directed me to another which only had room in a shared dorm. They told me that there was another hotel, but that they charged 300 lempira a night, as if this was extortion and I couldn't possibly afford it (€10.60).

It's ok, the bathroom is spotless, and remarkably cockroach-free. I had a wander around the city today, and there isn't much to see. But it was nice to take it easy, and organise my bus to Nicaragua for the morning.
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So that's it for this week. I've been travelling for eight weeks now, and I really miss having a base. I feel like I'm just wandering from hotel to hotel, and I'd love to have an apartment that I could just go back to for a week. It makes me look forward to getting back to Ireland all the more.

So until next week,

Chau,

Éamon

Today's Headline in El Triunfo: Premium petrol to rise by 6 lempira