We just returned from Trujillo, a very historic coastal town (The oldest fort in the Americas, William Walker was executed here), where we did almost nothing that we expected to do and a lot we didnīt expect. A few tips for the future.
TIP 1. If arriving in a city by taxi, ask to be dropped off at a neutral place (a square or something). We only asked about hotels cheaper than the Christopher Columbus Resort and Casino he originally offered (with rooms at 1200 lempiras a night), and he took us to "Hotel Plato del Mar", whereupon the proprietor handed the drive a tip of 20L and ushered us upstairs to take a look at the rooms -- a bed, a fan, a bathroom, a TV, all for 100 L a night (about $6 USD). It seemed fine to us, so we dropped our stuff and paid the man. He did say something about a disco next door, but otherwise, he assured us, it was "muy tranquillo".
We returned from dinner at about 6:30, realizing to our dismay that our street had several discos, everything seemed peaceful enough. Then at 9pm, the music started, and it was loud. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
The music continued all night, occasionally punctuated by screams and laughter from the street. Which brings us to:
TIP 2.
Donīt rent a room on the same street as a disco if it can be avoided.
The night was full of other surprises -- a noxious petroleum smell, a broken fan -- Kelly and I did not sleep much. Instead we prayed for safety and clung to each other all night, a precious time for us, and a beautiful picture of how even merely inconvenient situations can drive us to each other and to our good Father.
TIP 3.
It may be worthwhile to pay a little extra for a little nicer room. The hotel we had the next night had hot water, a beautiful view, excellent service, and was truly "muy tranquillo", and because we chose to forego the AC and TV, we only paid 200L for it.
INCIDENTAL OBSERVATION:
People are more exciting than places, generally speaking. The best time we had in Trujillo was visiting La Finca del Ninos, an orphanage run by Franciscan sisters, where we talked with some American volunteers. They seemed to be very much in tune with us. They were about our age, and questioning the "American dream", and desiring to serve. It was really encouraging to talk with them. They share the hope that somehow in a foreign land we can learn to be compassionate instead of competitive, giving of oneself instead of getting for oneself, and so on.
Speaking of which, we are also learning how marriage can be a great place to learn unselfishness. Itīs a process of making space for each other to grow and be whoever we were created to be, which is perhaps the essence of service: empowering, enabling, preferring each other. Jesus makes himself a servant in order to reach us, to bring us into his kingdom, to set us free from sin so we can be children of God, and we are to have the same mind. Phil 2.
PRAYER REQUESTS:
-- for unity, discernment, wisdom, and excellent communication between Kelly and me, and with Joe and Rachel, and with our friend Larry. We will be deciding how our time will be spent in the river valley area, and want to make good decisions.
-- for continued diligence with language acquisition.
-- for our friend Larry as he prepares to return to Honduras November 7.
Buena onda, vos...buena onda.