First Week at AFE

Trip to Teguc

We had an amazing 2 months in Copan, however, Erika and I were anxious and happy to make the 8 hour bus ride from Copan to Tegucigalpa (plus an extra 5 hours sitting at the bus station because the bus was held up due to protesters in Guatemala blocking the street traffic).  On occasions like this, Erika and I always remind each other to be flexible and remember that this is Honduras.  Pastor Joeny and his son Brian graciously volunteered to pick us up at 11:45 pm from the bus station in Teguc and even patiently waited while Erika and I ordered and ate food at Denny’s.  Both of our Spanish teachers and our host family Mom in Copan called and sent text messages to our phones to ensure we safely made it to Teguc… we both felt loved :)

Teaching observations

Joeny and Rey both warned us that when we got to Teguc, we would be immediately plugged into the loop at AFE, and thankfully they were right.  The first two days here in Teguc, Erika and I sat in on classes taught by North American and Honduran teachers for a wide range of grade levels (7^th through 11^th grade).  We observed a variety of teaching styles, many aspects of which we can implement into our class when we begin teaching in February.  Additionally, two of the volunteers at AFE (Adam and Hollie) are going to the U.S. for a few weeks, and Erika and I will be covering their classes during that time period.

Connecting with the community

On Thursday night, Erika and I went to women’s and men’s bible studies.  This was a great way to plug ourselves into the Linda Miller Community, make new friends, experience Honduran culture, and practice our Spanish.  While at the men’s bible study, I conversed with a friendly Honduran teenager and invited him to come over to our house to say hello.  On Friday night, a group of 5 came to our house, visited with us for a half hour, and invited us to join them at the church for a workout known as “Insanity”.  The workout was really intense, and it was a great bonding experience for us with the Honduras; I feel like we are quickly becoming connected with the community.

Also on Friday, a team of North Americans from Oregon flew into Teguc and Erika and I went to the airport with Joeny, Rene (1^st student at AFE that is graduating this year), and Henry (designated driver for AFE, married to a teacher at AFE) to pick them up.  It was a group of 8 volunteers here to work on building a home for a trash dump family without one, and I will be going to the jobsite to help translate when needed.

Community English classes

The leaders of AFE encourage the volunteers at AFE to be apart of something outside of the school to become connected with Honduras.  Some examples of this include overseeing the progress of the learning center and overseeing the construction of homes for the trash dump people (what the team of 8 will be working on).  Erika and I have decided to teach English to the adults living in the Linda Miller Community.  Details are pending, but we hope to teach 2-3 days a week for a total of 3 hours a week (or more).  The people of Honduras are eager to learn English, so we anticipate a large group.

Can’t wait to (have Erika) share more stories and photos with you, thanks for reading!

-Ryan

Goodbye Copan!

We have finally finished 8 weeks of language school in Copan, Honduras!  Even though we have completed formal classes, we know that we are not done learning.  We will continue to add to our vocabulary and keep practicing forever. 

As I reflect on our time in Copan, we realize of the amazing people God has put in our lives…our teachers (Marixa & Ana), our new friends (Darrell and The Dollar Family), new friends who are missionaries in Copan at Urban Promise Honduras/English Church friends (Rachel, Katie, Kourtney, Lauren, Blaire), and the rest of the Hondurans who came in our paths including our host family.  As we are very excited to be heading to Tegucigalpa, we are sad to be leaving behind some really great friends who have given us some great Christian fellowship.

I feel these 8 weeks in Copan have given me a great starting foundation for living in Honduras.  I have learned so much since our arrival in mid-July in not only Honduran culture but everyday living, too.  We are excitedly anticipating our arrival to Tegucigalpa on Monday evening and can’t wait to get settled in and start serving at AFE.  In just 2 weeks we will start duties as as substitute teachers for another couple serving at AFE.

We have a few prayer requests for the next few weeks as we transition from Copan to Tegucigalpa.

Safe travels on Monday.

Safety as we purchase household groceries in the city.

Acceptance by our fellow teachers and our new students.

Fluency and confidence in speaking.

Thank you for your prayers and support!

Erika

Empanadas

Today for my enjoyment, I went to a store next door to our language school to learn how to make one of my favorite Honduras foods: empanadas.  I have only ever heard of them being called pupusas, but I learned that in Copan they refer to them differently.

I was able to make one, too, but didn't have anyone to take a photo of me, so the only one in the photo is the lady who does this for a living...but I think she is much more impressive than a gringa who just learned the task.  From start to finish, here is the process:

First, you must make the dough that is used to create the empanada from corn (maiz).  The corn is boiled for 40 minutes and then rinsed.

Then you grind the corn with a little bit of water through a motorized grinder to create a paste.

 Once you have the paste, you can work the dough on a stone and ease out little bits at a time to ensure the smoothness of the dough.

  As shown above, you scrape a handful of the dough and create a ball like the plop shown.  Now, you flatten it a bit in your hands and add the beans (frijoles).

Next, you work the dough into a pouch and enclose the beans inside.  First you create a thick disk to ensure the evenness of the beans throughout, and then flatten it to be put on the griddle.

A la Piscina - At the Pool

The last two Saturdays we have spent the day at a nearby hotel in Copan, The Clarion.  It is the nicest hotel here in Copan and has a beautiful swimming pool.  As long as we order and pay for lunch, we can stay as long as we want and use the internet there. 

It has been such a refreshing way to spend our Saturdays because it has been really hot lately in Copan.  We haven't had many afternoon showers which typically cools everything off.  Plus the electricity has been going out almost daily now and last Friday afternoon, it was off until the following Saturday afternoon - almost 24 hours!  The pool has made us feel like we are on vacation which is a great break after studying and going to school everyday without much excitement in our daily routines during the week.

 

We have had a few opportunities to go out on dates (2 in 7 weeks) and each time they have been extremely special.  We went out for pizza last Thursday night because we have been craving some "American" food.  What we found was a delicious pizza place and it was fabulous!  A nice change from rice and beans :)