Celebrating Día de la Independencia at Lake Yojoa
One of the cool things about teaching at an international school is that we recognize both Honduran and U.S. holidays. The month of September is a pretty big deal across Central America. Most of its countries gained their independence on September 15, 1821.
Unlike the United States which generally contains its independence celebrations to a single day, we had 2.5 days off of school in addition to the weekend. This was the perfect excuse to get out of Tegucigalpa and see a little bit more of Honduras. I’m lucky that one of my teacher peeps has explored most of the region and put together a quick getaway for our crew.
We drove about 3 hours north of the city to the Lake Yojoa area however we didn’t actually stay on the lake. Instead, we spent 2 nights at the D and D Brewery, Lodge and Restaurant. From here members of our group ventured out on various outdoor adventures which included a waterfall hike, kayaking and exploring ruins.
Make no mistake after the waterfall hike I’d had enough adventure. I took a badly needed shower and sought out a hammock with my Kindle. The rest of the crew was more resilient than I. Saying that I am not “outdoorsy” is a ginormous understatement.
Let me take a moment and give a big shout out to Deep Woods Off. Despite there being SWARMS of flies and mosquitoes I was not bitten one time. Yeah, I probably exposed myself to something awful by using a product containing DEET but sometimes it’s about choosing the lesser evil. This time the greater evil was getting eaten alive by bugs.
One of the more remote homes we saw. Homes closer to town had electricity and were constructed of masonry.
The drive out to the lake along with the waterfall hike gave us a chance to see the real Honduras. The countryside is beautiful. This is a big contrast to Tegus which is downright ugly. The real Honduras is also very poor. Hiking past the humble homes was a reminder of just how fortunate those of us from the global north really are.
Did I have a good time? Yes, I did. However, I don’t see another trip like this in my future or the
It was cool to see coffee, corn and passion fruit being grown traditionally. It was great to bond with my teacher peeps. But It sucked to be sweaty, stinky and risking injury to hike trails that were ridiculously muddy and steep.
This trip confirmed for me that I’m not into the whole rustic forest hostel thing either. From here on out I will likely limit my interactions with nature and admire it from a distance.
