Month: May 2008

For all my woes about missing the British Festival Season I had of course been forgetting the more local of pleasures; the Latin American Festival. It is said that a quarter of a million people descend on La Ceiba every year for the week of Carnival. Making it the hardest week to find a hotel, buy a reasonably priced drink and…well, sleep I suppose.

There is close to a whole week of celebrations, culminating in a huge parade on Saturday. Almost every major neighbourhood in the city has its own small carnival. We were duty bound to attend the carnival in our own adopted neighbourhood, Colonia El Sauce. The air was heavy with the smells of fried chicken, candy floss and thousands of sweaty bodies dancing in the streets. As we weaved through the crowds from one stage to the next we saw DJs spinning Latin hits and bands with scantily clad dancers; all shaking it down to the sounds of Reggaeton, Punta, Salsa and Meringue. Between different roadside stages there were Nicaraguan transvestites selling gum and cigarettes from huge baskets.

Although, dancing horses, scantily dressed women and huge sound systems aside there seems to be only one motive for attending carnival.  That is to get your hands on as many cheap plastic necklaces as possible. They are thrown from every float and balcony in their thousands and as the crowds dive for them it all gets a bit competitive. I saw grown men wrestling each other on the floor and adults snatching necklaces from small children. Further down the road sleazy politicians throwing 1 Lempira notes off the balconies of seedy looking flats, draped in garish banners. Vote Pepe for President. Strangely, I think the competition for the necklaces was bigger.

Of all the things I thought I would miss I can’t say I thought the seasons would be on the list. Honduras is a land of few seasons. One part of the year is hot and the other is hot and wet. Asi es la vida.

It’s hurricane season right now and there’s a thick dust in the air, the type that will only disappear with rain. Everybody is waiting, listening, anticipating the rain. There’s excitement for it, like the arrival of a visiting friend. We’re just waiting for that change in the air. 

For all that I am living in the land of few seasons we appear to be in season of the electricity failures. Twice in the last week I have had the computers die in the middle of class leaving me with rows of disappointed little faces. The locals here just accept it in a way that I can’t help but admire.

I remember hearing something amusing about the Honduran people recently. It said that even though the Honduran government is the worlds best caricature of corruption and incompetence, miraculously the country has escaped any form of civil unrest for decades. I think it’s a testament to their natural disposition to be accepting and laid back about things over which they feel they have little power to change. In the case of their government it feels like a failing. In the case of the weather and power supply, it’s probably wise