HondurasBy Edgar BearWe have both read and have been told that we should not go to Honduras because the cops are the worst in Central America, the country has one of the highest murder rates in the world, and because gang activity controls much of the area.
Due to our having read and heard these things, I asked my cousin, “Dave, man, what do you think, should we go to Honduras or should we drive straight to Nicaragua?” Dave shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know man.” David and I were far too close to not visiting Honduras. But we both agreed that it would be silly to drive throughout Latin America and not visit. We felt uneasy, sick, and impatient about not going. So we looked into every possible way of staying a few days in the country. Where will we stay? This was a question that arose because, come to find out, the place that we were supposed to stay in didn’t work out. We were out of ideas. I don’t want to say we were desperate, but we kind of were. We really wanted to get to know this country because not only does Honduras and the people have a bad reputation, but we know many Honduran people in the United States. “Bro, let’s check out Couch Surfing,” said David. I replied that if it was our only option, we should look into it. As we were at the border crossing between El Salvador and Honduras, we still did not have a place to stay. We were on our way to Nicaragua (one has to cross through Honduras to get to Nicaragua).Then, a few minutes after we passed the road to the capital city of Honduras, we received a message from someone from Couch Surfing. They asked us to have dinner with them. We wouldn’t be able to stay at their home, but they said that they would love to hang out. “Dude, let’s go there. We will figure out where to stay once there,” David said. We quickly turned the van around and drove to the capital city in hopes of finding a place to spend the night. “Do you think this is a set up?” David asked. I replied saying that I do not know but that we should lock up our stuff and that we should ask to meet at a location while we stood in a different location in order to see who they were before actually meeting them. We did. When the person arrived, Vanessa, she looked safe. “Yo, let’s go talk to her,” I said. Come to find out, she was just as uneasy about meeting us. Of course she was, she had no idea who we were. But once we met, there was an instant bond. She was an engineer who loves to travel as we do. She was very smart, loving, hardworking, and kind. In her, I saw a lot of goodness and wisdom due to the conversations we had about Hoduras, politics, travel, and school. She took us to eat baleadas, and I have to say, I am far too excited for you, the person who is reading this, to try this food. It is like a burrito, but I dare say better. The kind we had was with a fresh flour tortilla, not the kind served in the U.S. that often tastes like plastic. The tortilla had beans, cheese, sausage, baked bananas, guacamole, and eggs. Delicious. As the night went on, we went to a mirador to get a view of the city of Tegucigalpa. It was breathtaking. We looked upon the mountainous city on a chilly day as the sun went down. I felt at peace, calm, joyous, and grateful for having had the opportunity to visit, to see the great city and people. These are the kinds of moments where I am extremely grateful towards God,where I feel blessed. I am thankful he has given me an opportunity to view His creation in terms of both people and land. Oh, and also, I don’t know if it is because we got along so well, but Vanessa allowed us to stay at her house (in our own room of course). The next day we went to the University with Vanessa and her sister, Johana. Johana was corky, funny, and a smart young lady. She was quick with a joke but at the same time knew much about politics, her surroundings, and about life. As we entered the university, the fresh air of higher education heightened our senses. A people looking to better themselves and their country: doctors, lawyers, engineers, and business men and women. People from all sorts of backgrounds: black, white, and brown coming together for a good cause. This goes against the idea that all Central Americans are uneducated and lazy. By no means. Similar to all countries, there are those who want to better themselves and those who do not. Now, to sum up, I would say Honduras is a beautiful country. And once again, similar to all places, avoid locations with gang activity and crime. But the country has been blessed with beautiful beaches, mountains, people, and food. It baffles me that we were far too close to not visiting. El SalvadorBy Edgar BearMs-13 and 18th street. These are the notorious Salvadorian gangs that have their roots in Los Angeles but a presence in El Salvador. Would we encounter them? Would they assault us? Rob us? What roads are safe? What roads should we avoid? Do they set up road blocks and stop vehicles? These are the sorts of questions that I asked myself and asked others as we spent our time in El Salvador.
The short history is that the Salvadorian gangs were formed in Los Angeles out of the desire to protect themselves from the surrounding gangs. They quickly grew and got involved in criminal activity. Due to their growth and their activities such as theft, trafficking, murder and so on, many were deported to El Salvador and because of that, their presence grew in the country. Now, when one talks of visiting El Salvador, there is a fear of encountering these gangs. IS THE FEAR JUSTIFIED? Yes and no. Yes, there are areas one should not visit because thefts happen, they murder, they abuse, and they extort. Yet, these are things that happen in most if not all countries even the United States: for example, there are parts of Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Detroit and so on that people avoid out of fear of encountering these sorts of criminals. And race is irrelevant. People of all races commit such crimes. So, when coming to this country, avoid those areas. On the other hand, there are areas where one feels just as safe as if they were in Beverly Hills or Disney Land. David and I walked about the city, the districts, and so on as we spoke to people who were extremely kind and loving. We joked, shared our stories, and ate together. We experienced a great beauty of the people and culture. We saw stunning green mountains. We also went to the beach where we saw the beautiful dark blue waters and where we saw the people go about their daily lives: going out into the ocean catching fish, preparing the fish, and selling it to the local markets. We had a great time. Having said this, during our time in El Salvador, we encountered heroes. Heroes. As cheesy as that sounds, we met local heroes. We spent the night driving around San Salvador with a community of Christians that have been coming together for years to speak with and feed homeless adults, children, prostitutes, transvestites, and rejected gay youth. The night went as follows. It was around 9:30 pm and it was dark in San Salvador. After speaking with the leaders and praying with those involved with the program called Pan con chocolate, they asked us to take our vehicle and follow them. While driving, we entered an area of the city that did not look too safe: there were people thrown on the ground, there was a lot of trash, and uncared for buildings. During one of our stops, it looked like an abandoned warehouse. At the wall of the building, there were homeless people lying on the ground ready to sleep. As we the group arrived, they were extremely happy to see us. These people were way skinny, some had missing teeth, and others survived by picking up trash or they were there because they had fallen deep into their vices. A lady gave them a word from the bible, and a few of us went to speak to some of the homeless people individually. They were known by name. Their life stories were known. After, we handed out drinks and food to the people as we continued our conversations. Then, I saw something that got me thinking even more deeply because I was already moved by the entire situation. I saw these young ladies speaking with a transvestite prostitute. And what I noticed was that they all got along quite well. They knew of each other. They respected each other despite their differences in views and in lifestyle choices. And as Christians, these people loved on their neighbor. Seeing this, the question needs to be asked, what people are we rejecting because they are different? I understand it can be hard to love on certain people, but it is something that God calls us towards. -Edgar Las Pozas de Xilitla |
DavidMuchacho simpatico EdgarEdgar is Christian. He loves soccer, traveling, and meeting new people. Archives
July 2016
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