Saltboxes in Honduras

Saltbox back, originally uploaded by Honduras Sprout.

I've been killing two birds with one stone the past few days. I've been using the posts from the SPS Daily Photo blog and posting them over here. It just seemed to be interesting enough for both blogs. I'll try to do a recap of some of the fun we had and show some pictures of the kids and the really cool cabin we stayed in on this trip in the next couple of days. But until then, here is some more images and info about the Americans in the little town of San Juancito.

The homes surrounding the US Consulate are colonial saltbox style clapboard homes. The picture above shows the back side of the house. At the front of the house (images below) you can see a stone marker probably saying something about the home and it's history. I didn't get a chance to read it as I was holding things up by stopping our trek up the mountain to take photos. I thought I might be a little nervous living in one of these homes with them being built along the slope of the mountain with long posts driven down into the ground to hold the home up. Something must have been done right in the construction to keep the house up for nearly 100 years now.

The larger two story house "next door" to the consulate was in such a state of disrepair. It is currently undergoing renovations. Either to preserve or to inhabit the home. If you can see the interior walls have been redone. Interesting the way the exterior is ripped wide open for all to see inside.

The photo taken from further up the road I also posted yesterday, but I just wanted to show again the steep incline these homes were built on. Yikes!

If no one minds, I'll probably have at least one or two more days of photos from our trip. I'll try to keep it at one photo though. Tomorrow we'll be visiting a graveyard.

1st US Consulate ~ San Juancito Honduras

US Embassey San Juancito Honduras, originally uploaded by Honduras Sprout.

We stayed up in a mountain resort last weekend. On the way up (way up) to the property we passed this old mining spec of a town called El Rosario. Approaching you could tell right away there was some history there. I was completely surprised when the owner of the resort we stayed at explained that this building is a US Consulate started in the first part of the 1900's. She even went on to say that this is even the first US Consulate in all of Central America. Here is a link with some more interesting information about the mining town up in the mountains of Honduras. (Not too much reading but still fascinating)

Looking at this building you can see that it is clearly American architecture. You can imagine the two flag poles in front, one waving the US flag. We wanted to get a closer view, but the property is still US owned. Some locals are hired to live on the land next to the building and they oversee it's care. Mainly to cut the grass and make sure no unwelcome guests find their way in. I was totally itching to get in there and snoop around. I became fascinated with historical architecture and it's preservation while studying interior design in college. I felt a little awe struck seeing this. Mainly because I didn't expect it but also because surprisingly I felt a tinge of patriotism too. Having been away from the US for almost a year now I guess it gave me a feeling of "home" when I saw this. It reminded me of one of the many historical places you can visit in the US. Too bad that it couldn't be preserved and possibly turned into a museum of sorts. San Juancito seems to be a hidden gem of a tourist spot in Honduras. I know if I was a tourist, I might find it all quite interesting and pay money to visit the little mining museum...if they had one.

There is more info to come on the American mark on this small community so stay tuned.

Below are a few more images. One up close and the other up the road a short distance.

Crazy Corn

Elote, originally uploaded by Honduras Sprout.

This past weekend we went to a mountain festival in a town called San Juancito. It was a great time and I very much enjoyed the fresh air. The kids had a great time too. I know sister likes something when she asks if we can move there. There was very little electronics in use and it was a nice change to cool nights for cozy sleeping wrapped up in blankets. I haven't had time to compose a proper recap of the weekend, so until then, here is a short post from my other blog. The SPS daily photo blog.

These corn on the cobs are not sweet corn. They are called elote. They have a bland corn flavor. The bucket of corn is being cooked by a heater of some kind in the box with the corn cartoon. You can see the fuel tank with a line under the box. The corn is then put on a stick slathered in mayonnaise and sprinkled with grated cheese that is similar to parmesan cheese. This treat they call "crazy corn".

Here are some photos of a few young kids enjoying their treat.

A Day At The Zoo

There is a zoo about an hour away from us. I am drawing a blank on the name. It's about 15-20 minutes past the Port so it's a nice drive to see the coast. If someone reads this and knows the name, please leave it in the comments. The park has a zoo and a water park, as well as some small cabins for rent. I think the owners are Jewish. reason one, because I saw a few passages from the old testament painted on murals and secondly, because the zoo is closed on Saturdays. I'm thinking this is in observance of the sabbath which according to the old testament and Jewish law it would be considered a sin to work on the day of the Lord.

The zoo seems to be well kept. The animals look like they are fed well, not under stress and the cages are clean. The only complaint that I would have, and this is true of so many places in Honduras, is that they do not maintain their bathrooms very well. With a lot of traffic, bathrooms really needs to have better attention.

There are many different kinds of trees and plants on the grounds and they put signs stating the type of tree/flower/plant it is. One such tree had me smelling the air it was so fragrant and really quite beautiful. It was a pepper tree which I think was this. The sign read, if I remember correctly, "pimenta grande".

All in all it was a great day. I tried to take lots of photos to show what types of animals they had but as always, I look back and think I should have taken more. This was our second time to the zoo and it didn't disappoint. I hope you enjoy the show I made. I wish I would have had more space on my digital camera for more footage of Brother chasing the birds. He really enjoyed running after those poor things.