Erin Miller

We have just returned from Orlando, FL. I went partly to support my favorite little sister in a big-time national volleyball tournament, and partly to enjoy what I fear will be one of my last few free family vacations. Kelly did terrifically in the tournament. She not only played fantastically, but her team came in 15th out of about 100, so that's pretty sweet. Perhaps most impressively, Kelly didn't lean over the sideline and spew, even when she was playing in front of a full row of University coaches. Watching her play and encourage her teammates gave me an opportunity to be amazed at the composed, smiling, young woman she has become.
I spent a lot of time during the vacation drinking coffee on our screened in patio with a fan racing over my head. I read some books and caught up on American news, even though I find most of it just sad and complicated. My favorite activity while drinking coffee was watching the geckos climb around our screen, bringing me back to nights spent watching them crawl on the walls in Costa Rica and Roatan.
We did eventually give-in and go to a few amusement parks, we hit up Epcot, MGM, and did a marathon day at both of Universal's amusement parks, enjoying the privilege of the short, fast, lexus lines, thanks to Mom. Mom led the charge on the rides.
I was amazed that I was able to fly over parts of 7 states in the time it would have taken me to travel from La Esperanza to San Pedro Sula by bus. I enjoyed the efficacy of it, but actually missed the long slow bus rides through Honduras with the wind hitting my face as I watched the countryside slide by.

Sunset in Tampa

Jon and I in Morocco

The kids at Jurassic Park, good to see that I am still the tallest in the family

Twister

After the lake, Dan and I made our way (painstakingly) to the coast of Honduras and then to the most-developed and touristy island of Roatan. Dan and I spent a full hour of the bus ride to the coast sitting bent-over on the dashboard of an inter-city bus (it was too full to move any further back). We spent the next 4 hours of the ride dripping in sweat, sitting perfectly still, and fantasizing of refrigerators and ice cubes on another inter-city bus. Someone, after spending some time in Ghana, once told me that an African air-conditioner was simply a method of sitting, perfectly still, in the shade with ones arms raised slightly above their legs to prevent any skin-on-skin contact. I can tell you, that day, our African air conditioners were broken. We arrived in paradise exhausted and sweaty and spent the next four days lounging on beaches, snorkeling, scuba diving, zip-lining, and monkey-petting. We saw several hawksbill sea turtles during our dives and got to swim only inches away from them, putting seeing them at a close second for greatest moments during our dive, right behind getting to kiss Dan under 30 feet of ocean. After our first day of diving we went on a zip-line and wild-life park tour, which meant that we first got to act like monkeys and then hold them. When we walked into the wildlife refuge the guide pointed out some monkey in the trees and then yelled, "Ricardo, venga!" I thought now way were those monkeys going to come down from the trees to hang out with us, but sure enough, after a bit of calling and some bribing with juice in a plastic bag, Ricardo and his friends came to say hello. They tried to dig through our packs and our pockets and succeeded in stealing one man's cap. We spent the last days doing a bit more diving and more chillin' on beaches, which, as it turns out, is a particular skill of Dan and I. The power cut a few times on the island (always to our amusement), causing Dan to determine that the power-outages were the only difference between Roatan and the rest of the Caribbean islands.

Roatan zip line tour

holding bird in wildlife refuge

Ricardo!

monkey business

Dan and me on a beach

and again

We spent an afternoon traveling from the islands back to San Pedro Sula (barf city), and had an uneventful first return trip from Honduras.

From La Esperanza, Dan and I headed to the largest body of fresh water in Honduras, Lago de Yojoa. We stayed at a quiet hotel near the lake and managed to do a bit of dancing one night at the hotel's disco. The main attraction at the lake was the 43 meter waterfalls, and the guided tour we took behind them. We took a water-proof camera, but don't have the pictures back yet, but here are a few shots of our time there.

view of the lake from our hotel room

When I made Dan walk miles up hill in incredible heat to catch a bus back to our hotel

view from the walk

Dan arrived May 30th. He came to Honduras to bring me home. He arrived in San Pedro Sula and before he could even set his bags down, we grabbed a bus to La Esperanza so that the good-bye parties could begin. We stopped by one party the evening Dan got in. The rainy season began just days before Dan's arrival so going out meant darting between puddles and arriving always soaked at your destination. Hay dos estaciones en La Esperanza, un del polvo y un del lodo. (There are two seasons in La Esperanza, one of dust, and one of mud.) I prefer the dust to the mud, even though the rains did bring city water and mean that we could stop using the trickle of water from the mountain behind my host family's house. When it is dry in La Esperanza, there is unreliable electricity because a hydro-electric plant provides the power to the town and sometimes the dam runs dry or there is a small amount of water and the lights dim and microwaves won't work for days on end. However, during the rainy season, power is also unreliable because the above-ground lines will fall. Dan says that the power cut several times, "always to my amusement." And the truth is, that even after four months, I was always amused as well when the power went out. There is something mysterious and innately hilarious about not having power.

We began Dan's second day in town with a trip to the market, one of the most beautiful sights in La Esperanza, to pick up some last food donations for the women in the albergue. Then we went to the hospital in time for the diabetes club meeting (which was scheduled for 9 and began punctually around 10). The club members had organized a surprise going away party for me. The president of the club, head nurse from the operating room, and even the director of the hospital gave speeches thanking me and the other volunteers for our work. The club members had promised to teach me la punta (a traditional dance of Honduras) but everyone got too shy, so instead the volunteers demonstrated the electric slide. (The idea was to demonstrate that dancing can be good exercise.) The celebration was complete with sugar-free cake (quite the accomplishment in La Esperanza) and diet pepsi. After the diabetics party, Dan helped me bring in some final food donations and give my last "charla" at the Albergue. The nutrition program at the albergue is continuing. A new peace corps volunteer in town has agreed to continue the project at least until a new albergue is constructed, which should be complete within the next year (or so). I have secured funding to bring food in every other week for the next year and for now the volunteers in town are pooling their own personal money to bring food in on the off week. I am working on getting a system set up through an official NGO to accept more donations and will post about it when it is up and running.

market in La Esperanza

last diabetes club charla

the president of the diabetes club presenting a diploma de agradecimiento

me with the club members

Dan and I took Friday morning off to relax, visit the market, drink coffee, and play scrabble and dance (alone, together) on the roof of our hotel. It was an amazing day. Friday night my host family through me a small going away party. The food -- including tropical fruit shish kabobs and a going-away cake made by the other two volunteers living at the house -- was terrific. And, of course, we played the balloon game. Dan and I left La Esperanza on Saturday. I nearly cried as the bus pulled out of town and was glad to have Dan by my side. Everyone in town kept asking me when I would return, and I genuinely hope to go back soon.

ADIOS ERIN

Dan and I at my good-bye party

balloon game begins

balloon game championships

last shot of La Esperanza

Dan and I had a great time during his visit and I am back in the United States and slowly trying to adjust myself to my new surroundings without completely freaking out. Many people have asked me how I am, and generally I remark that it feels like I am in jumboland in the Mario Brothers games (no, I am not sure that its official name, and hard core mario brother gamers will just have to excuse the possible misnomer.) My mom offered me strawberries when I got home and I swear they look like they came from a different planet, I can only fit two of them in the palm of my hand whereas I could easily hold five of the strawberries from the hills around La Esperanza in a single fist. My dad then cut me off a huge piece of welcome home cake (terrific parents) and it was actually too big for me to eat. The ice cream was just a bit too sweet for now and I am actually sort of missing the dry corn tortillas with sour butter. The roads are big here too, not to mention paved to a perfect shine. The people are also bigger; I can no longer see over the heads in a crowd. Even the beers are big. I drank a full pint in the Houston airport, for only 4 dollars and 50 cents. I am shocked that a full weeks worth of money in La Esperanza has been shrunk to last no more than half a day while traveling here, or to maybe a half tank of gas. I have yet to drive my jumbo car in jumboland, but I am taking things in baby steps.

I looked around for a trashcan to deposit my toilet paper in the Houston airport restroom and was a bit confused until I remembered I could put it in the toilet. (You cannot ever put toilet paper in toilets in Honduras, it is always suppose to be deposited in the trashcans beside the toilets. This is an important fact to note for any would-be tourists, because it is under-signed and leads to many embarrassing moments among new gringos in town.) The toilet in Houston flushed automatically when I stood up and caught me a bit off guard. I would say that I have been about fifty-fifty putting the toilet paper in the toilet (the other half of the time it lands in the trash can) here in the bathroom I am sharing with my favorite little sister this summer, and I am sure this fact just thrills her.

I am greatly enjoying tap-water and have filled my glass many times today. Cool, clean water from the water fountain in Houston was a highlight of my return travels.

I am enjoying getting caught up with friends and family and have had a very happy reunion with a very excited, jumpy, and slobbery puppy.

But I have perhaps been most impressed with the welcoming attitudes of friends, family, and friends of family that I haven't seen in months. Without missing a beat, neighbors are stopping me on the street to ask about my adventures and how I am doing. One of my best friends moms told me to stop by for anything at all if I ever needed help with anything this summer and my own parents weren't around. She made the generous offer even though she knows that most of what I am trying to do the next two months is just adjust to the States and prepare for my move to New York. Its nice to know that all the corny stuff they say about home is true.

I have more blog posts to write about Dan and my adventures. I am going to try to break them up a bit because Dan claims that with my long posts, I am not using the Internet correctly and is threatening to take away my Internet privileges. So I will try making some shorter posts this time, which should be much easier now that I now have consistent and low-cost internet access. All the posts will just have to wait a bit until I get my pictures organized online, and that will have to be after I have cleared the foot-deep mound of mail I have received in the last four and half months from my desk and have room to set up my camera, but I will get to it as soon as possible.