¡Nosotros estamos en Honduras!

We’ve finally made it to Honduras and have now spend nearly a week getting to know our new country! Currently we are living in the city of San Pedro Sula on the North Coast of the country in a valley lined by big, green, lush mountains. Although, San Pedro is the industrial capital of the country, compared to other ‘industry towns’ I’ve seen, it is pretty nice! Surrounding the city is plantation after plantation of bananas, African palm (for palm oil) and coffee. As with most Latin American countries, the huge disparity among the rich and poor is visible everywhere, with small pockets of slums in the shadows of American chain restaurants and malls.
The Samaritans Purse office here is involved in a wide range of projects that reach out to the needs of both the urban and rural communities of Honduras. They range from HIV/AIDS prevention, testing and treatment centres to school feeding programs to animal husbandry and agricultural development programs to our water, health, nutrition and sanitation program. It is very exciting to see all that’s going on and to meet the national and international staff. In an attempt to attain holistic development for the communities we work with, our water filter project is going to be combined with a health, hygiene and sanitation program. Earlier this week we were able to travel out to some of the possible communities and speak with the women about the struggles they face in their daily lives in order to understand their perspectives so that we can tailor our program to their needs. It was sooooo incredible to be able to speak with people and to know that our main objective over the next few months is to work WITH them to improve the situation! All that time in school studying about the science behind water quality, the diseases it can cause and the technologies and education to improve it and now we actually get to use that knowledge to help real people! So excited for the net few weeks as things start rolling!
As for our living situation, currently we are in a beautiful apartment near the office with two American interns, Krystal and Kara. The four of us are all around the same age and have similar interests like being active, getting to know the culture and people better and exploring this country! So far we have had a great time together! On Saturday, we spent the afternoon at a government ‘orphanage’ for girls that have suffered sexual abuse on the street or in their homes. The stories that some of the girls shared of their lives before, and since they’ve been in the home were heart wrenching. Some of the girls as young as thirteen already have children of their own that live there as well and we got to hold many a newborn baby. Together we played lots of games (some true competitors in the crowd ☺), made beaded necklaces, painted faces and just hung out. It was sad to meet face to face the victims of such abuse and tough circumstances, but so exciting and encouraging to see the tough spirit and joy still present in so many of those girls! Each day we learn of situations that make me realize how incredibly blessed I have been in my life!