American Vagrant: Tegucigalpa, Lago Yajoa and Copan Ruins, Honduras

Following our time on the coast of Honduras we turned inland towards the capital, where Louise would need to do some research for her radio and written journalism on Central American music. It quickly became apparent upon our arrival that Tegucigalpa was the roughest city we had been to so far. With the highest murder rate in the world, Honduras is a fairly harsh environment, largely due to it's location in the path of drug trafficking from South America.

Our hotel owner told us we are not to be out past 10 pm on any night. He would not let us in after this time, because the local gang would kill him if he opened the front gate. Apparently he had an incident with them in the past. It was also reiterated often throughout our stay from the locals we met that Tegucigalpa is not a city to be taken lightly. Local nightlife was rare for this reason, many being too fearful to venture out at night and causing the arts culture to remain mostly in the refuge of sunlight.

The time we spent in Tegucigalpa was quite enjoyable however, offering nice museums/galleries and interesting street life. There are areas where the class disparities are highly apparent, such as a large if not gaudy shopping mall that appears a haven for the wealthy in city, those appearing too afraid or well-dressed to mix it up in the lower neighborhoods. Taxis are recommended for traveling around the city as a traveler, even if you look rough, us gringos will get stares throughout the markets and squares.

Louise was to meet her mother in El Salvador following Tegucigalpa, so after she left (I was to meet up with them about a week later) I headed for Lago Yajoa, located to the north. After first getting a taxi to the bus station (more like neighborhood, they were just scattered around a few streets) I boarded the one that was to drop me off on the side of the road, where I'd then take a local minibus westward into the more rural villages, which would then drop me in front of the last road that was to lead to the hostel I was staying in (which was also a brewery). So I followed the aforementioned steps and lo and behold the outcome was as I had hoped, and I was returned to the backpacking circuit.

Lago Yajoa is a very beautiful lake, the largest in Honduras. It's surrounded by heavy vegetation and mountains that hold great cloud forests. It is also fairly nearby a very impressive waterfall that one is able to travel into (underneath the falls themselves). As you may have guessed this occupied my time one day, along with a nice paddle around the lake on a row boat. I quickly learned that less any knowledge of how to row, it's not the easiest thing to accomplish. Firstly, I was unaware that the loops of rope on my paddles were meant to be hooked over the bolts on which stuck out the top of the boat sides, and appeared to be prepared to fall of any day. So without this very important knowledge I pushed off from the shore and continued to make, to my embarrassment and the present locals amusement, some very pathetic, very slow and very awkward donuts in the water. Taking pity on me, a local man beckoned me back to shore where he properly slipped the loops over the anchors (those odd bolts I had mentioned before) and proceeded to give me a quick demonstration of the proper rowing method. Lesson learned, I re-mounted and pushed off, determined not to look like a complete idiot again. Fortunately for me, with the oars properly setup paddling wasn't nearly as awkward, and by the end of my endeavor I would be willing to call myself a nearly-suitable rower, if one was willing to acknowledge the ability to row in an epileptically straight line as sufficient qualification for the distinction.

So out I went, paddling into the lake and doing my best to look natural and, after some exploring, in I came (go figure). It was as I had expected from the shore, a very beautiful lake. I had gone for a swim and lounged about a bit in the boat, listening to music. I'd recommend anyone who goes to Lago Yajoa to definitely rent some oars (only a few dollars for the day) and make the venture out into the lake. This is going on too long so I'll cut off my riff on Lago Yajoa now, just look at the pretty pictures and realize it's allure.

After Lago Yajoa was Copan Ruins where, as one may have guessed, I went to the ruins. The government charges an incredible fee for the ruins, more than any other I've ever been to, but I had traveled there just to see them so I sucked it up and paid it. For what it's worth they were quite awesome, or no less awesome then the rest I had seen. Following a couple day stay in the town of Las Ruinas de Copan, I headed for the El Salvador border.

The land is not for sale! (modified to the affirmative)