TOR GOES TRAVELLING AGAIN

I enjoyed compiling 10 Everyday El Salvador Sights so much, here’s another one for Honduras. Enjoy!

Coffee Beans drying on every available surface

Honduras is Central America’s largest coffee producer, with 70% of coffee farmers farming on just two hectares of land. This means that in coffee harvesting time (November to February) coffee beans are laid out to dry simply everywhere. I saw them on roadsides, in car parks, in the square outside a church… It seemed that every pickup that went past me was piled high with sacks of coffee beans.

Mototaxis

Three wheeled motorised taxis ply their trade everywhere. You don’t even need to hail them as when you walk literally anywhere they beep as they pass you if they’re free and you just hop in. Other people travelling in the same direction hop in too!

Fried Chicken

They simply love fried chicken here. It’s definitely the national dish, found on every street corner, every bus station, every park, every square and at every supermarket. There’s several national chains, as well as heaps of independent places. What a shame I don’t like fried chicken.

Baleadas

Ooh, I’m definitely a baleada fan. A flour tortilla, rather than corn which I’ve decided I am not a fan of, filled with sour cream, dried cheese and refried beans. About 40p each. I’ve been buying tomatoes and green peppers at the market to add into them and make them into a tasty burrito.

Pepsi Advertising

Literally every corner store seems to be sponsored by Pepsi. I’ve never seen so many ads for Pepsi. And they’re nearly all hand painted,  so presumably a much sought-after job in Honduras is Official Pepsi Logo Painter.

Things being sold out of pickups

On the edge of every town there’ll be a pickup selling something. It’s usually fruit, sometimes a vegetable, but always the same item packs out the flatbed. Comes with a smiley cowboy hat wearing farmer.

Salva Vida

Cases of this Honduran beer are always stacked high in supermarkets. On New Years Eve people were buying it by the trolleyload. Not sure I agree with the name ‘life  saver’,  although I have enjoyed more than one or two cans and bottles of it, including one while sat in a 40° pool at Gracias hot springs.

The Pulperia

Not a juice place as I originally guessed but the local shop. Usually you stand in the doorway or window, at the counter and ask el Pulpero (shopkeeper) for the goods you want. Always reliable for a healthy array of unhealthy sugary drinks (loads of Pepsi of course) and various packets of corn related snacks.

Palomitas

A beloved snack here is popcorn. You most often see it sold in sticky balls, five to a pack. This is the teeth-rottingly sweet caramel or ‘dulce’ flavour. Sometimes plain or ‘barbacoa’ flavours are available. Sellers hop on the bus at every stop, with bags hanging off a large metal ring. You simply pull off the snack you want and hand over 10 lempira (30p).

Giant letters

Seen at most touristy areas. Cue a million selfies. By locals, not backpackers who are way too cool for that sort of thing. At least one person always try to climb on top of the letters.