Elvin Santos, left; Roberto Micheletti, 3rd from left; Pepe Lobo, 4th from left. The rest don't matter any more. Caricature by: Dario Benegas, La Prensa, HondurasProbably the most interesting and Honduranesque outcome of the Honduran presidential primary elections is that the winner of the Liberal party, current vice president Elvin Santos, is a man who was not even on the ballot! Since Santos was
I can never catch upI like San Pedro Sula, Honduras' La Prensa newspaper. It is a sister newspaper to El Heraldo based in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. I'm disappointed sometimes in thoroughness of the articles. I always have unanswered questions and wonder if they didn't think to ask or whether they were just unable to obtain answers.Sometimes even with my limited Spanish I find spelling or gr
Trivani is very excited to make a huge announcement: an incredible incentive announced at the Leadership Summit!
This incentive is one of the most thrilling announcements made at the Summit: during June and July, distributors at every level of the business have the opportunity to join the Trivani Adventure winners on their first Child Rescue [...]
Honduran warped timeCubamericana left a comment on the last Carnaval article that brought up so many thoughts for me.First, regarding the carnival: If it is for Hondurans and Hondurans don't mind the disorganization and lack of information, that's fine. But the fact is, it is supposed to be the biggest tourist event in Central America and you just can't run a tourist event like that and expect to get the quantity and quality (as in money-spending) tourists that way.Cubamericana mentioned soccer games that have no schedule and a one hour warning of game times. We've had a similar situation with our neighborhood patronato (association). The people in charge announce the neighborhood meetings sometimes the day of or the night before the meeting by placing a sign at the entrance. Those who don
Photo: La Prensa, HondurasOnce again Honduras has hit the international headlines and as usual it's not a good thing. The US Food and Drug Administration has reported that Salmonella outbreaks in 16 states in the U.S. have been linked to Honduran cantaloupes. The Canadian Food Inspection Service has followed suit after nine incidents.Agriculture is one of Honduras' major industries and a bad reputation could really hurt the country's already depressed economy. President Mel Zelaya has declared the FDA's announcement to be unfair, extreme, and imprudent, saying that the contamination could have occurred by mishandling in the U.S. grocery stores. While that may be true, it seems unlikely since the canteloupes, packed in boxes, were shipped all over the US and Canada. I think he would have be
Yes, another recall. This time its fresh cantaloupe from the Agropecuaria Montelibano company based in Honduras. So far consumers in 16 states have become ill after eating the Salmonella-contaminated melons. Keep in mind that any cut cantaloupe used in fruit trays or bowls is on the suspect list, too. Here are two links with further information; one from MSNBC and the other from the FDA:://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/charlie03_08.html
Tropical Storm Felix predicted path at 8 p.m. EDTWeather UndergroundHurricane Felix slammed into Nicaragua as a Category 5 hurricane early this morning but has been losing steam after making landfall and hitting the mountains of Nicaragua and Honduras.Felix has now been downgraded to a tropical storm. Not that tropical storm force winds (39-73 mph/63-119 kph) are anything to sneeze at, but it was greeted as great news by the local television stations.Now for you hurricane neophytes (Floridians can skip this part ;-) ), let me point out a couple of things about the map above. The large circles don't mean that the storm is getting bigger as it progresses. It just means that the further out in time that the predictions go, the less accurate the predictions are. The possible tracks that the storm may follow could be further to the north or south part of those circles.Also, be sure to compare the color of the little swirl in the middle of the circles with the chart at the top and you'll s
Honduran warped timeWhenever we are invited somewhere, I always ask, "Is that real time or Honduran time?"There is a big difference, you know.We've been invited to parties that included dinner for, say, 7 p.m. A neighbor in particular has invited us several times. Since we were walking, the first time we waited until about 7:15 or so, and walked over. Not only were we the first, but we were the only ones until 8 p.m. or so. Many people arrived at 9 or 10 p.m. Another invitation for Thanksgiving dinner was for 5 p.m. Dinner wasn't served until almost 7 p.m. and STILL people arrived after dinner was already being served. How inconsiderate!I think that El Jefe gives his family a stern warning about "American time" because they are always here exactly on time. So, see, it can be done. And let's not even talk about people not being able to afford a watch! All cell phones have clocks, right?Our veterinarian was giving me a lecture last year because I was about a month late bringing one of
These photos are of typical middle class houses in and around La Ceiba, Honduras. The muros (concrete fences) in front are usually painted the same color(s) as the house. The front porches are often enclosed with decorative ironwork for reasons of security. Only rarely will you see a middle class home without iron bars on the windows.I like the little rooftop over the gate area on this house. That's where I got the idea for the little entrada entrance that we built. With the amount of rain we get in La Ceiba, it seemed like a practical and considerate thing to do. Our architect really liked the idea and sketched a design even more grand than we had in mind (see photo below).Unfortunately, many people do not bother to paint the outside of their muros. It's especially unattractive in the the wealthier neighborhoods where the concrete walls may be 10 or more feet high. Who am I to talk, though, since we haven't painted our muro yet.Floors in middle class homes are always tiled and oft
Honduran white corn tortillasTravelers often expect that Honduran food will be like Mexican food. Some worry that it will be too spicy for their taste − no worries there. In general, Honduran food is not picante (spicy) at all, except that many people douse their food with hot pepper sauce. But that is done at the table, not in the kitchen. I'm not an expert on 'real' Mexican food, except for living in Texas (Mexican restaurants) and vacationing in Mexico a few times. I have been around this country somewhat but most of my Honduran eating experience has been in La Ceiba. With that stated, I would say that Honduran food is not like Mexican food. This article is about some of the common everyday food of Honduras. Rice, beans, bananas, scrambled eggs, and tortillas are the staples of the Honduran diet, but they aren't really prepared the way they are in Mexico. Even the tortillas are very different, especially the corn tortillas. White corn masa (corn flour) is used for tortillas.
Some enterprising young Honduran bloggers have set up a new website called Red Blogs Catrachos (Network of Honduran Blogs). This is a wonderful idea because it is really difficult to find Honduran blogs, especially those in the Spanish language. So many of the blog list sites are in English and many don't have blogs categorized by countries. Some like Globe of Blogs do. Global Voices does, but if you look at their front page, you won't even find Honduras unless you know to click on the plus sign in the upper left corner. The site is just evolving. They are adding more features to their website and more and more blogs as they find them. If you have a Honduran blog or know of someone who does, please contact Red Catracha at the email address on the site. I'm proud to say that La Gringa was invited to join, even though I'm not a Catracha verdadera (true Hondureña). I feel quite honored!Have I ever explained that Catracho is the slang word or nickname for Honduran? There is nothing
We don't have regional telephone area codes in Honduras. The entire country is area code 504, which shouldn't be a problem since we only have about 900,000 phone numbers. It would be half that number if it wasn't for the cell phone companies.Originally the numbering system started out pretty organized. A 7-digit La Ceiba number starts with 4, San Pedro 5, Tegucigalpa 2, and so on.When the first cell phone company came, all cell phone numbers started with 9. That was convenient to know, since most people will not return a call to a cell phone, knowing that it costs a little bit more. In fact, many companies have enabled call blocking to cell phone numbers so that they physically can't call customers who only have a cell phone.After several years, a second cell phone company was allowed to come in and they received the numbers starting with 3 and later the first cell phone company was also given numbers starting with 8. There is also one or more satellite phone companies. Some parts
A fisherman was selling live crabs in the market. An old woman went up to him and looked at one bucket of crabs while he removed the cover to show her the other bucket of crabs. She asked, "Why do you have that bucket of crabs covered but not this one?" He replied, "Bueno, the bucket with the cover has North American crabs. If I don't keep it covered, they work together to build a chain to the top of the bucket and help all the others climb out to freedom. I've lost so many gringo crabs that way." The woman asked, "But what about the other kind? Don't they climb out, too?" He sighed and smiled, "No, these are Honduran crabs. Whenever one tries to climb to the top, the others just pull him back into the bucket."
Christmas lights on palm trees outside Restaurante La Palapa Mexicana in La CeibaChristmas traditions in La Ceiba aren't so different from those in the U.S., depending, of course, on the income level of the family. The traditions here in La Ceiba may have been influenced by the long-time presence of the Standard Fruit Company (Dole Co.), at one time the largest employer in the area.Presents Christmas is very commercialized here, too. Right now the newspapers are full of ads for clothes, appliances, computers, and cellphones. The stores are full of trees, lights, decorations, and Santa Clauses.Children almost always receive a new set of clothes and shoes for Christmas. Often that is all that the family can afford and for some it may be their only pair of shoes.I know some very poor families and I can tell you that those kids are as happy and proud to receive a new outfit as many North American kids may be to receive thousands of dollars of gifts. Dolls for girls and toy cars for boys a
I just got caught up on Matthew's blog. I stupidly thought he hadn't been posting because no articles were showing up on my Bloglines, until I realized that I hadn't set up his blog feed. Jeesh!Anyway, littlewoodenman has some great insights into Honduran life from the perspective of two Canadians in a smaller (than La Ceiba) Honduran town.Most recently Matthew gave a short lesson on cussing in Spanish. When trying to show off your Spanish-cursing abilities, be warned, however, that the meaning of some words vary considerably from country to country.For example, the word 'pendejo' is a perfectly acceptable word in some South American countries, meaning kid or silly or foolish in an affectionate way. In Honduras (and Mexico, I believe), however, it is extremely insulting, meaning a**hole, stupid, or fool. I hear that word a lot, mostly from employer to employee, and no, I never ever use this word.In Honduras, insulting someone's intelligence (even when they are being very, very st
My god now Cantaloupes are contaminated source(CityNews)
what kind of pesticide are they using that we are getting a cantaloupe to have salmonella
I'm going to eat organic cantaloupe
I noticed last summer that organic tested better then the conventional one
i wonder if growing them in a pot would work
