Big steps through a small country

Step 1: Tegucigalpa 

Boardercrossing

Chasing Birds in Tegu

We caught a very early bus from Managua to Tegucigalpa. The bus ride took us through gorgeous landscape with lush forests and rolling mountains, deep wide valleys and along clear rivers – Honduras might quite possibly be the beauty queen of Central American countries. We got to the capital in the late afternoon, spent some time walking around the city center with its small but nice plaza, churches and the busy pedestrian street but felt unsafe and uncomfortable and just grabbed some food after about an hour and went back to the hotel.

Step 2: Sambo Creek 

Hanging in there!

Another early bus took us to the northern coast of the country, to La Ceiba, the next day. From there we jumped on a chicken bus with loud Bob Marley tunes and singing dreadlocked smokers and went to the tiny seaside village Sambo Creek. A dirt track turns off the main highway and leads to the settlement that is inhabited by Garifuna fishermen and their families. On our way there, it started pouring and when we reached the miniscule 'plaza' to get off the bus, the whole village was already flooded. The paths had turned into muddy rivers, the skies were black and the sound of the raging sea was deafening. No one was out and every little store and restaurant was closed. We waded through the muddy street waters and got to the only hostel in town. It first appeared to be deserted but luckily a guy turned up, let us into the bare bone shed that was going to be our room and asked for a horrendous price for the night. We had no choice but to make the best of it and just hope for the bad weather to pass.

Zipping through...

We woke up the next morning to a completely different world outside: a clear blue sky was spanning over us with a blinding sun drying up the roads quickly. Our hostel turned out to have the most inviting terrace facing the blue Caribbean sea that was now calmly hitting the sandy beach. The tiny houses had opened up and the dusty streets were busy with barefoot children on their way to school, colorful traditionally dressed women running errands and gossiping men sharing a space in the shade of some trees. It was a beautiful scene.
We made our way up into the thick green forest that covers the mountain slopes and went for a canopy tour – a tour around the leafy roof of the jungle beneath. We went zip-lining. Together with two great guides we rushed through the sky, hooked up to a simple steel cable, and got to see breathtaking scenery, flora and fauna of the Honduran forest. One time we went through a big cloud of steam – down beneath us was a hot spring of more than 250 degrees Celsius. Another time the zip-lines let us bounce up and down and touch giant trees while pulling acrobatic stunts. And yet some other times the ride became so fast that we had to break like crazy and still crashed into the guides that caught us at the next platform. It was amazing.

Water-massage

After more than 4 km of cables and over an hour of what felt like flying we were back down at the foot of the mountain. But the fun wasn't over yet. We were guided back up into the forest, along the river and up some gorgeous waterfalls and pools. These formed a natural Spa that was fed by the hot spring that we had seen earlier – down here the water was still about 40 degrees Celsius hot. We were welcomed with a floating bowl of sweet tropical fruits, went for a quick swim and then got the most relaxing body massage before being treated with healing volcanic earth that we got to wash off in a natural whirlpool. It was incredible, the best spa we've ever been to!
In the late afternoon it started raining again and we made our way back to La Ceiba where we stayed for the night.

Step 3: Roatan Island 

All of you!

The next morning we took the ferry to the largest of the three Bay Islands, Roatan. When we left the shore, stewards started to hand out sick-bags to every passenger. We first made our jokes about that - in the end almost everyone had used their bag and it wasn't that funny anymore...We got to the paradise island around noon, made our way to the little town West End, found a hostel amidst some local family's houses in the middle of the jungle a little outside of town and a professional looking dive shop with the most welcoming atmosphere right at the beach – and jumped right into the water for our first dive less than an hour later. Heaven!

Our first eagle ray - so graceful!

The reefs around the western tip of Roatan are part of the second largest barrier reef worldwide
and home to an incredible range of aquatic life. The clear water and its comfortable temperature make this the perfect dive spot. So of course that is what we did for the next two and a half days: we spent our time under water. We got to see seahorses, turtles, eagle rays, octopus, lobster, giant morays, flounders, squids, sponges, corals and anemones among all the usual colorful tropical fish. We got all excited when we found our first lionfish (it was huge and beautiful) – and were accordingly shocked when the dive master got out his spear and killed the fish in front of our eyes (although witnessing the grouper that had been following us feeding on the lionfish by opening his mouth and swallowing it whole was actually pretty cool). Later we were told that the lionfish don't naturally belong here and are now so numerous in the Caribbean that they actually threaten local species. That is why they are being killed off whenever possible.

Whenever we were not under water we spent our time on the porch of Coconut Tree Divers to discuss the great dives with new friends while sipping on an ice cold beer and enjoying a great time with our amazing hosts at the most homely hostel we have stayed at so far (first the owner's birthday party with self made brilliant sushi, then a hearty BBQ night and at last the goodbye party of a long time guest with super tasty Mexican food – wow, that was one yummy stay).

The time flew by and we didn't really see much of Roatan itself but we found great new friends, had an amazing time diving and enjoyed the relaxed, beachy island atmosphere to the fullest. What more can you ask for.

Step 4: Copan Ruinas

Little, colorful Copan Ruinas

We left Roatan very early (this time we took some pills to not get sick that made us sleep through the ferry trip), got back to La Ceiba and caught the next bus to San Pedro Sula, the second biggest city of Honduras, where we changed buses again to finally go to the small town Copan Ruinas in the Copan Valley, close to the Guatemalan boarder. The whole trip from door to door took over 14 hours so we were exhausted when we got there and just got some dinner before falling asleep.
The next day we were out to explore. Copan Ruinas is very pleasant and welcoming, with clean, cobblestone streets and colorful little houses. A pretty square marks the center of the hilly town that, thanks to its mountainous location, has a climate that is perfect for outdoor activities (warm yet not steamy). We walked around town for a while and climbed a hill to catch a great view over the settlement and the surrounding landscape. Instead of the lush jungle of the north we were now surrounded by fields of corn and potatoes along the river down in the valley and rugged, grassy fields and stony mountain slopes around.

We walked eastwards out of town and reached the highlight of the Copan sights in less than 10 minutes: the town's namesake archeological site of Maya ruins. We hooked up with a guide, went into the park – and were astonished from the first moment on. We were welcomed by Honduras' mascot, the macaw birds. These magnificent birds live freely in the park and their loud songs fill the air around. Whenever they fly from one tree to the next it looks like a flash of red, blue and yellow in front of the dark green of the trees – spectacular. A broad path lead us to what was once the center of a sprawling Mayan kingdom and home to a long line of royal families, priests and their servants. The most remarkable aspect of the Copan Ruinas' Mayans is that they inscribed their history in stone. The fine lines of their picturesque hieroglyphs can be found carved into stairs, stelae and temples – our Mayan guide could read them to us and thereby, and with his great ability to make everything sound exciting and lively, make the ruins come alive for us.

The Acropolis

We first visited the Great Plaza with its many huge, intricately carved stelae that depict the Copan rulers in their majestic attire. Next to a couple of altars for animal sacrifices, we could also see the perfectly shaped round altar for the human sacrifices that were celebrated about every 3 years to please the gods. Built into the altar is a small hole where the head of the boy (it was always boys) was placed, and two diagonal channel that caught the blood of the beheaded afterward. The blood was collected and then burnt – when the smoke was rising up to the heaven the sacrifice was going to the gods. It sounds pretty horrible but our guide made a strong point of telling us that a human sacrifice was quite rare in the Mayan culture (unlike with the Aztecs) and the ritual was only celebrated when “it was really necessary because of long droughts”. Well, okay then, glad to hear it. 

From the Main Plaza we went on to the Ball Court, something we could call an early stadium with big stairs and lots of place for tons of spectators. Two temples frame the court that were housing the changing rooms of the two competing teams (interesting enough that they would put those into temples...). The rules of the game aren't certain today, but it seems clear that two teams had to keep a hard rubber ball in the air without touching it with either their feet nor their hands (they used their knees, shoulders etc.). They scored when the ball hit a statue of a macaw's head. Who would have thought it – ballgames originated here, in Central America. The only difference to today’s games: if there was need for a human sacrifice, the best player of the winning team was chosen. Not a great incentive for giving your best, I'd think.

Next to the ball court we found the most spectacular monument – the Hieroglyphic Stairway. On its 63 steps, the whole history of the royal house of Copan is inscribed with thousands of beautiful, detailed glyphs. The sight is covered with a massive tarp which lessens the photogenic beauty of the stairway but is necessary to protect it from the elements.
Next up on our tour was the Acropolis, with its beautiful plazas that are
flanked by massive, high rising temples and offer great views over the city. From here we entered the tunnels beneath the large temples – to find the preexisting structures that lay below. Each Mayan ruler used to destroy old temples and use them as the base for their own new and improved (or simply bigger) temples. There is only one known example where a temple was so sacred that it wasn't destroyed but kept intact – but still served as a base for a new temple. This is the Rosaslila temple (called so due to the color that can still be found on the temples outer walls) that can be visited via tunnel. When it was found in the 80s it was completely intact, including colors, carvings etc. Another tunnel leads to the Jaguar temple where we could see a king's bathroom, more carvings and the ridiculously large foundation that every building got since it was already clear from the beginning that it would one day become the basis for a larger building in itself.
After the tour, we walked around the park for a while longer and explored the ruins of the living quarters on our own. We were soon 'templed-out' though, and decided to explore the rest of the site the next day. On our way out of the park we found some dancing birds (they swing around the branches when they sing – it looks like a little dance) and what looked like a tiny tapir. Someone please tell us what it really is!

We started off our next day of non-stop exploring with a visit to the amazing Museum of Sculpture. From the moment you enter the museum through the mouth of a serpent you are enchanted by the beautiful exhibits on display. Some of the finest sculptures from the archeological site can be seen in a Guggenheim-like set-up while the center of the museum is filled by a full-scale replica of the Rosalila temple, with all its original carvings, sculptures, paints and statues.
From the museum we went on a further 2 km down the road to get to the Las Sepulturas ruins. This site is not as grand and impressive as the main one that was the political, religious and cultural center of the kingdom – but hidden away in the forest and rarely visited by tourists it is a great place to explore. This is where noblemen and religious leaders lived in grand compounds that were set around plazas and courtyards. Temples and altars can be found and carved walls as well as glyphs on stairs indicate the importance of the small settlement. We lost ourselves in this exciting area for hours before we – once again – decided that we had seen enough ruins for a day. So we climbed over a fence, made our way through some wild forest and ended up next to the river that we followed back towards Copan Ruinas as long as we could. When there was no way to continue, friendly farmers helped us over yet another fence, guided us over their fields and showed us a way through maize, forest and tiny 3-house-villages that inhabited 10 people but 100 chicken. After a beautiful long walk we got back to town just in time before sunset. A beautiful day out!

The Copan valley

One last thing, in case you were wondering: Of course Lara and Indi were featured in this exploration of ancient temples and cultures – they always come out when we get to some sort of archeological excitement. But when we found a nest of colorful, small but highly venous serpents that crawled all over each other and stared and hissed at us Indi, with his fear of snakes, decided to leave right away, and Lara just went with him. Pretty sure they will be back to explore other Mayan sites, though. So stay tuned for upcoming adventures...

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