San Francisco de la Paz

I decided to keep my true Honduran Sunday pact going, so this past Sunday I was thrilled to hear that our neighbor Fr. Dan would be saying mass in the town of San Francisco de la Paz. Since coming to Honduras in August I have wanted to visit SFP. Laura, volunteer/roommate/friend, had been to Honduras twice before to work in SFP for a week as an alternative Spring Break sort of deal through UNH where she went to school. She fell in love with Honduras there and speaks so highly of this place that I knew I just NEEDED to go there.

So Sunday morning, I climbed into the back of a pickup truck to head out the 40 mins to SFP. I was perfectly content riding in the box, cozying up with Jess and Katie, riding in silence, as the wind ripped around us, the sun shone, and I knew I was beginning my day in sky church.

We arrived in SFP and headed straight to mass. It was so exciting because Laura knew so many people there from her previous trips, it was wonderful to see her so happy and excited and in her element. I am so glad I had the chance to experience her SFP. Mass was wonderful. It was a great community, filled with love and rhythm and joy. Father Dan recognized us and had us introduce ourselves at mass, which lead to a large number of signs of peace and bienvenidos.

Central park in the downtown area.

Cathedral.

After church, we headed to a taco joint to grab some dinner with Fr. Dan, my neighbor Mario, and Mario's family. I am always one to try whatever is on the menu that I've never had, so when I saw platano relleno, I knew I would have an easy choice that morning. And let me tell you, its sooooo rico. Plantains, ground beef, tomato salsa, repollo, cheese, pataste/potatoes, so yummmmm. Again it was so nice to get to know and enjoy time with more Hondurans.

Lunch gang.

Platano relleno.

From here we headed to the Hogar, which is where all the magic behind their mission happens. Mario and Fr. Dan work closely for Adelante and Project Eden. Adelante is a school tutoring program that helps tutor and teach English, support school studies, etc. Project Eden is a garden project. Visiting the garden--major highlight. Laura lead us through the gardens where we saw yucca trees, oregano, cinnamon, chile, tomato, mango, avocado, some weird fruits I had never seen before, plantain trees, banana trees, and more. Wow! It was a beautiful sight. The project is incredibly inspiring as well. The garden serves 3 groups of people mainly. It serves families who are poor--in exchange for garden plots the families work the land and learn about nutritious eating. It serves schools--students and classes can come work the gardens and receive food. It also serves a medical clinic and patients can receive various foods that they may need for treatment. It's awesome. In addition its worked daily by Mario and his family, what amazing people.

The beautiful gardens. Yucca trees right in front.

In the tomato patch

Plantain treeeees.

After visiting the gardens, we headed back into town to watch a futbol game. I LOVE soccer, and I have also wanted to watch a soccer game since coming. Two checks on the Honduran bucket list: SFP and soccer game. Unfortunately I fear that we were more entertaining that the soccer match as all heads turned towards the group of 5 gringas and 2 men to watch the game. Not only were we gringas, but also we were the only women. Hooray for being watched, stared at, and fawned after for an entire soccer game. Nevertheless though, it was super fun. What a great opportunity to see a beautiful sport in action with Honduran sky, clouds, and mountains as the backdrop.

Gringas: always a main attraction.

Beautiful day for some futbooooooooool.

To finish off the Honduran Sunday, we went to drop of Lalo a volunteer in SFP at his house which meant side trips to Mario's family's house. They truly are a beautiful family as they welcomed us in with coffee and cookies.

I feel so lucky to be able to check off 2 perfect Honduran Sundays in a row. Two Sundays of family, relaxation, peace, listening, and simplicity. Two Sundays to really learn, grow from, and truly enjoy.