Our first week

After almost a week here in Copan we are finally feeling like we know our way around. Well at least we know how to get to key places like the Pulperia “Victoria” which is the biggest grocery store here in Copan (about as big as a convenience store in the US) and the Mercado where local farmers sell produce. At first we were surprised to find there is no actual grocery store here. Instead everything is sold at little tiny shops that locals own. Every block has a couple of pulperias where you can find cooking materials and other key necessities. There are no chains and no American stores which we think is unique. We like the fact that everything we buy goes toward supporting the locals.

We finally have enough ingredients at home to cook some meals. We made our first meals this week of beans and rice and vegetables. It is fun to try new things. The fruits and vegetables here are very different and every time we go to the market we ask the lady how to use certain foods. Eating out here is very inexpensive so we’ve also been trying out a variety of “comedores” or eateries. A very common food here is called a “baleada” which is a homemade flour tortilla with black bean paste and crumbled cheese inside and it is pan fried. It is similar to a quesadilla but with not as much cheese.

On Saturday we did laundry by hand for the first time here. It sure takes a long time and you have to plan to have your clothes hanging during the sunny mornings and take them down before it rains. Later that night we went to the circus that was in town. Just before it started the power went out (a very common occurrence here). We were trying to imagine what they were going to do and luckily the generator turned on and the show went on. Yesterday we went to church in the morning and it was really fun to meet people and see how things go here. It is very small yet there are many similarities to church in the US. Later in the evening we went on a walk to enjoy the cool evening (away from our house) and we walked by many churches in the town and heard them singing. Everyone was out and about and we sat in the central park watching everyone for a long time before heading back to our hot house.