Mountain School tour / typical dance

This last week Sigel's school put on a cultural/folklore event for a few different schools to come to. I was able to go along with Sigel and we had a great time. It was about 3 hours of dances native to Honduras and then they were acting out some skits of Honduran history and folklore. It was very interesting = some of the event was done by groups of kids from the schools and then they also brought in professionals as well for the dances and dramas.

Our favorite part was a dance done with machetes - each dancer had 2 machetes and they would dance around hitting the machetes behind and in front of them - and then kicking and jumping slamming the machetes together to make loud cymbal like noises. It was very impressive!


One morning last week Maddy and I took a drive around the mountain above EL Ayudante with one of the locals so that I could meet the school directors and get to know the area and evaluate the needs up there. It was a fun and long morning. We went to 5 schools - ranging from having 116 students (a 3 room classroom) to a school of 25 students - a one room classroom. All of the teachers were so open to me and happy to have us there to visit - and although I had nothing to give them then, I was able to find out what they need for the future - and for when I'm given things to pass along. The roads were all pretty terrible - really bumpy and some right along the edge of the cliff. We were in the clouds at 2 of the schools when we had reached the summits of that area. One of the roads was really scary as it was along a cliff the whole way up and then there was no where to turn around after we finished at the school - I ended up turning around in someone's driveway with 2 people guiding me and my front tire almost went over the edge...it was a couple very hectic and scary moments. But Praise GOD we're all ok and we didn't go over the edge. Next time I visit that school i'll hike up to it!

These mountain schools are so poor - some of the children not in the required uniform and some even without shoes on their feet. The teachers were asking for simple supplies that the parents and the school cannot afford - like extra pencils and notebooks as this is the most difficult time of the year for this region economically. This mountain mostly is agricultural and they harvest corn and coffee and beans - harvest season for coffee is Dec/Jan and then the others are in the fall - Sept/Oct. So the months of June, July, and August is the poorest. The teachers were really sweet and obviously care a lot for the children as they said that many times they end up buying pencils to give to the students.

One of the schools gave me a branch of plantains as a thank you for coming to visit. (picture below). it was very sweet of them!





(this school above is so very remote - it is not in a village or anything - no church or stores nearby at all! The teacher lives an hour away and comes only Monday-Wednesday to teach the children. The 2 boys in the front of the picture don't have shoes.) The school is new - only 2 years old - before that they didn't have a school to attend in this area. The teacher is a hard hard worker who seemed to care a lot about the students. I've been in Honduras 4 years and it is still so hard to see poverty scare in the face like I do all the time...and I pray that I never get indifferent or callous to this poverty.

above: the plantains that they gave me. the community shows us their gratitude through gifts of what they grow - we also got a bag of onions and a pineapple this week. During the mango season we received TONS of mangos from the community. It is so kind.