Operation Fruit for Life

click for official website

"Operation Fruit For Life" is a program started by the charity Paramedics for Children.  The purpose of the program is to combat malnutrition by planting a special breed of hardy fruit tree at the homes of some of the poorest people in the world.  These fruit trees are bred to grow quickly and should produce fruit within 2 to 3 years.  We spent a couple mornings planting mango, orange and avocado trees at the homes of Chorti families in the mountains surrounding Copán Ruinas.

Chorti Community

 The Project is designed to be relaxed and intent on familiarizing the participants like us, with the families, their lifestyle and culture.  These people in general live on a diet of corn and beans.  The addition of fruit trees will add variety and compliment their diets for years to come.

Planting a Mango Tree

Chatting and admiring our work

We found the visits interesting and rewarding.  The lives that these people lead are so far removed from what we are accustomed to, that it is hard to believe.  Their homes are barely more than shelters from the rain.  They collect firewood to cook their food.  They dry and process corn by hand in order to make tortillas.

Chorti woman removing corn from cobs

About 4 months supply of corn.

Kitchen Stove

The people we encountered seemed shy and reserved, but ready and willing to help dig the holes in order to plant the trees.  It took a little time, but more often than not I was able to engage in some sort of conversation with them. (in Spanish)  The lady in the picture above chatted with me and explained the process she used to make tortillas from the corn she was preparing.

Members of the Chorti Community

Marco Tulio - coordinator of our daily schedule

The kids usually hovered around and were happy to have their picture taken with the blooming flowers or sometimes with one of us.  I got the feeling that we were somewhat strange or a novelty in their eyes.  Tourists regularly visit Copán Ruinas, but "gringos" like us seldom venture into the mountains to offer assistance and visit in a neighbourly fashion.  Despite their shy manner, we felt welcome, and the air of appreciation was definitely fresh and sincere.   

Paramedics for Children - "Operation Fruit For Life" 

I recommend it!!!!

Escuela Nacional De Ciencias Forestales - Our Home in Siguatepeque

 Welcome to the Escuela Nacional De Ciencias Forestales, our home in Siguatepeque Honduras for the duration of our Habitat for Humanity build this past February.  This is an institution set up to teach students from across Central America forestry skills which include preservation and sustainability of the forests and the associated ecosystems which are so important to the environment.  There are also training facilities pertaining to harvesting and uses of the resources.

Our Cozy Room

We stayed in the hotel section of the school.  The room was basic, but clean and otherwise comfortable. There was lots of hot water so that trumped any other short coming.  There was a television, pool table and ping pong in the main lobby.  Wireless internet was available.......most of the time. There were also some couches and chairs which made our evening game time comfortable and more competitive.  The main gate was about 100 meters from a gas/convenience station which sold snacks and cold drinks (including cerveza).  What more could one ask for..........our home away from home was pretty well complete.

Old truck still runs??

Flowering tree on the property

Our team leader arranged for a tour of the property.  The school has an operating sawmill, furniture building shop, machine shop for sharpening blades, a seed extraction facility and class rooms for the teaching of the various subjects and courses.  The grounds were adorned with many colorful plants and trees.  Our visit was during the dry season, so the colors weren't as lush and vibrant as they would be at their peak.

Sawmill

Giant Band Saw Blade

Large Circular Blades in the Machine Shop

Pine cones drying before seeds are extracted and prepared for planting.

Experience the Rugged Beauty of Honduras without roughing it!

Hacienda La Esperanza

Hacienda La Esperanza is located just south of Copán Ruinas. (Map)  It is a short 10 to 15 minute walk to the Central Park of Copán Ruinas.  If you prefer, a Tuk-Tuk ride will cost you about one dollar.  Copán Ruinas is the home of a Mayan archeolocial site, Macaw Mountain, (a bird sanctuary), and has many boutique style shops, cafes and restaurants as well as a local fruit and produce market.  You may also like to horseback ride, take a trip to the hot springs or the Zip Lines.  

Clinica La Esperanza

Hacienda La Esperanza was created and operates soley for the purpose of supporting the Indigenous Mayan Indians in the surrounding area.  Paramedics for Children is a charity founded by Roger Harrison which provides medical services at subsidized rates to the Indigenous, as well as purchasing and delivering school supplies to the children attending some 25 schools in the mountains surrounding Copán Ruinas. 100% of the proceeds of this beautiful B&B go to support the programs of Paramedics for Children.

Lower level grounds

View from porch

We stayed at the Hacienda and enjoyed every minute of our time there.  The room was spacious and clean.  The plumbing was up to north American standards which was a plus.  Hot water, large showers and nice beds made the stay quite comfortable.  Each morning, I enjoyed a coffee while watching a variety of colorful native birds perch in the trees or take a drink from the fountain.  Watching the cattle go up the road to pasture along the river and listening to the birds singing made for a relaxing environment.  We enjoyed the Baleadas, Pancakes or "Tipico" style breakfasts that were served.  The Staff was friendly and Roger made sure we had everything we needed.

If you plan to explore the beauty in and around Copán Ruinas,  I would recommend staying at Hacienda La Esperanza.  I was satisfied not only with the accomodations, but happy that I was contributing to well being of the Indigenous community that lacks so much in Honduras.  Rooms are limited, and  reservations must be made in advance.  Click Here for more info.  Hope you enjoy your stay as much as I did.  Happy travelling!!!

A Gem in Copán Ruinas, Honduras

Our recent trip took us to the town of Copán Ruinas, in western Honduras.  Copán is known for the archaeological site of the Maya civilization located there.  We were there to help an organization called Paramedics for Children deliver school supplies to Chorti Mayan communities in the mountains around Copán Ruinas.  Because of the school schedule, we were usually free for the afternoons and were able to enjoy the beauty of the town as well as the unique shops and cafes.

Our walk into town took us past a studio/ workshop of an artist who made carvings from wood and stone.  It was interesting to stop and watch as he chiseled his way through a block of stone or carve birds into cedar planks.  Our almost daily visits resulted in some conversation, and Marco Tulio Ramirez soon brought out some of his work in hopes that maybe he could make a sale.  He was working on a carving of a Humming Bird with some flowers.  It was partly finished, and looked pretty nice, but I told him I'd have to think and come back.  When I finally saw the finished product, he had a sale.  Hand carved, hand painted, and signed by the artist, I carefully packed my gem into my suitcase and brought it home.

If you visit Copán Ruinas, take a stroll south of the Central Park until the road goes down the hill.  The studio is at the bottom of the hill on the left. (see map below)  With any luck you will find Marco Tulio working away on another hand made gem.
 

Marco Tulio Ramirez

Map

Seeing a little better in Cuba

We took a last minute trip to Santa Lucia Cuba, which is east of the City of Camaguey, South of Cayo Coco and North of Holguin.  As a lot of people do, we wanted to take some gifts that we could leave behind.
As we quickly prepared for the trip, we bought a few pair of reading glasses (among other things) to take with us.  By the last day of our stay, we had given everything away except the glasses and we weren't sure what to do with them.
I had been chatting with the Bar Tender quite a bit so I thought I'd ask him if he knew of anyone who may be able to use the glasses.
I strolled down to the bar early in the evening and took up my favorite spot in front of the beer tap.  To my left (I found out later) was a hotel worker who began employment at the resort 23 years ago, when it was being built.
I asked Leonardo, the tender, if he knew of anyone who needed some eye glassed.  He inspected the ones that I brought and compared them to the pair he had in his pocket.  He said the ones he had didn't work the best anymore.  He got some paperwork from the back of the bar and started comparing the different strengths of lenses.
As the exercise continued, I felt a keen interest from the hotel worker standing beside me.  He also wore glasses.  Closer inspection revealed, his had no arms.  He had rigged the armless glasses up with a piece of elastic and wore them like goggles.  He tried on the new spectacles that we had brought and luckily one of the pairs worked for him.  It turns out, they were the same strength that I use so I gave him a spare pair.
Leonardo was also successful, in that his eyes were better than ours and he could use a pair of the weaker glasses.
I'm sure we could have left the glasses and they would have found their way throught the Cuban economic system to someone who needed them.  However, seeing the hotel worker sporting his new look that evening and the next day was kind of special.