Serving at an Orphanage

    Yesterday, after church we had the opportunity to meet up with a dear friend of ours from Honduras.  Mario Euceda has completed medical school and is in his residency in Guatemala.  I met Mario a few years ago on a short term mission trip during a medical brigade in Yoro, Honduras.  Ever since, our family has seen him many times on various medical brigades all over Honduras.  He has a huge heart of service and while going to school and working, for as long as I can remember, he has always made time to serve his people on a mobile clinic. 

     He knew he would be in Copan for a day and asked us if we would like to go serve with him at the local orphanage.  We helped serve the food for the 43 children living there, and we got to spend time with Mario and his friends.  

Inside the orphanage

Ryan's Station

assembly line

     Mario, who hardly has enough money to live on, is taking the time on an on-going basis to buy and serve lunch, provide medicine, hand out new shoes and a new toy to each of these children; all of which he has either purchased himself or raised the money or had donated to him.  His ear to ear grin is contagious and he is just so happy to be there and help out.

Mario and Ryan

Erika and Mario

     Please say a prayer for this orphanage, it is the only one in Copan…as all orphanages need prayer, God knows their needs.      

Lavar la Ropa -- Laundry

     Laundry.  The word itself made me think about the simple task of hauling a basket of dirty clothes to the magic box that makes them clean, however, not so much anymore.  Now, I think of the sweat and hard work of washing each piece of clothing by hand.  I have to say that I felt EXACTLY like Lucy Ricardo when she was trying to work in the chocolate factory when Lucy was making candy with the professional and she was making a mess of everything! 

     Roxanna, my Honduran mom, helped me clean 16 shirts, 2 pairs of pants, 10 pairs of socks, and 18 pairs of underwear.  It took us both an hour…thank goodness I have Roxanna to help me!

Morning Adventures

     We have been going to school in the afternoon from 1:30pm to 5:30pm which has left the mornings wide-open for activities. We have filled that time with running in the morning when it is still nice and cool out, filling our stomachs with delicious Honduran meals, studying for class, or doing our homework *yes, we have homework every day!* However, a couple days this week, we did two things we have never done before in Honduras. We went on a horseback ride with Enrique (Kike), our host family dad, and today we went to the beautiful and serene Agua Caliente (hot springs).

Horseback Riding with Kike

Kike at his ranch

     Ryan has said to me he would never get on a horse again since the last time he was on a horse was much too memorable. However, we were invited by Kike to go on a horseback ride with his horses on Monday, and there was no way we could say no. Plus, I really wanted to do it.

     We went to his ranch in the morning before school where he gives rides for tourists during the week and weekend. Ryan scouted out the most tranquil and calm horse for himself. The horse he chose happened to be the one Kike chose for me, and I will tell you that the horse I rode wanted to keep his lazy pace and wasn’t too happy that I was making him trot whenever it was flat.

     We actually ended up going in the mountains to the same place we went for a brigade last summer. It was so neat to have a different mode of transportation and actually see all of the agriculture (mostly “maiz” corn) and people walking to and from the village. It was a great experience, all four hours of it, and we are so happy to have done the trip. We had an absolutely wonderful time despite the soreness we felt the next day.

Agua Caliente - - Hot Springs
     The language school we are attending provides one tourist activity in Copan each week, and this week ended up being a trip to Agua Caliente. We really had no expectations, as you should when in Honduras or on any trip for that matter, but all of our Honduran teachers said how beautiful and great it was. So when we arrived, you can imagine what we thought when we saw this pool:

     We went to the tour counter and were asked if we wanted just the piscina (pool) or the spa. The piscina cost $3 and the spa cost $10. We both don’t like to pay for something we can’t see, and we weren’t allowed to go check it out before we paid. So, we said that we would pay for just the piscina and would be content with that. We changed into our suits, and went to find the pool:

     Can you believe that we actually got in? Yep, we did. It was really warm, so we didn’t feel too cheated. We were having a good conversation with our new friends, when another one of our friends came back from the spa simply to tell us that the spa was WAY too cool to miss out on. He was totally right, and we had a blast! I think the photos tell it all.

Natural foot massage

Beginning language school

Erika and I started language school the day after we arrived in Copan, Honduras. When we showed up to the school that Friday morning at 7:50 AM, there were no teachers available for us because they thought we weren’t starting until Monday. After a quick phone call, the teachers showed up about 10 minutes later, allowing just enough time for Erika and me to complete a “Spanish Placement Exam”. Erika explained that she understood about 30% of the material on the test. I informed her that I correctly spelled my name on the paper and that was about it. It was tough to identify the antonym to a Spanish word when you don’t know the initial word itself. When my teacher showed up, she looked at my placement exam and told me that there was “no problema” with my current knowledge of Spanish. I was a bit skeptical when my teacher informed me that she spoke no English, but we were easily communicating by the end of the first 4 hours. The homework Erika and I have been completing over the weekend along with communicating with our host family has already made a difference in our understanding of Spanish. I am very curious and anxious to see where we are with our Spanish skills after 2 weeks.

Ryan

First days in Copan

     We made it safe and sound to Copan, Honduras on Thursday with many blessings along the way *refer to the map below for the location*.    Copan is beautiful and lush with color.  It is currently invierno (winter) so there is LOTS of rain which we love since it cools off in the afternoons.  (It doesn’t keep us from having a fan in our bedroom!)  There are only 2 seasons here, though: rain and no rain.  It should be rainy season until next January…so those of you who are planning to make a trip down should think about that.

Downtown Copan facing the hill we walk up and down each day.

    

     Our host family, (Enrique, Roxanna, and Lissy) is absolutely wonderful.  We have already had so many delicious meals, and they have helped us a lot with our Spanish.  Lissy is 4 years old, my little friend and teacher.  All three are very patient with us, and actually speak slowly enough for us to understand as they don’t speak much English at all.    Their home is beautiful, and we are very blessed to be living with them.

Dining and kitchen

Our home stay

Lissy and me at lunch

     Language school started for us at Ixbalanque School on Friday.  We have learned so much already in one day, and can’t wait to start again on Monday.  Our teachers are patient and I surprised myself how much I already know.  Ryan is learning really fast! 

     Thank you again for supporting us and keeping us in your prayers.  We know that God is with us and that we are in the place we are supposed to be.  We are loving every minute of this adventure already!!

XOXO,

Erika