Adventures of Don and Virginia Cazier: May 2014

A week ago Monday the temple presidency and wives and other temple missionary couples enjoyed a day trip to Comayagua, an old colonial town an hour and a half north of Tegucigalpa which was once the capital not only of Honduras but of all Central America, when it was all one country. Our former bishop (now stake president's counselor) David Matute invited us at his expense, with his providing the transportation plus a lovely lunch at the Comayagua golf club, where he has a membership.

Yesterday, with the temple now closed for two weeks for semi-annual maintenance, Virginia and I went for what we intended to be a two day excursion to the La Tigra National Park, also about an hour and a half away--closer to Tegucigalpa, but in the mountains, which made for slower traveling time. We found a taxi driver who said he would take us for the equivalent of $15, but it took significantly longer to get there than he had anticipated, over slow, winding, uphill dirt roads, so I felt we really ought to ask him once we arrived what he would have charged us if he had known how long it would take to get there. He said $30, so we gave him the $30, which was still less than the $55 another taxi driver had once told us he would charge.

The park has basic accommodations for $25 per night ($12.50 per person), and a very basic open air cafeteria next door. It turns out we were the only visitors that day, and the cook at the cafeteria (who seems to double as the maid for the lodging), not having anticipated any customers for Monday lunch, had nothing in stock to prepare. We were glad we had taken along a couple of quarts of fruit juice, which served as lunch. We enjoyed walking around several trails through a beautiful tropical cloud forest that afternoon, though it was a bit rockier and steeper than we had anticipated. While it was beautiful, we have seen a lot of beautiful places in our short lives, and I can't say this was any more beautiful than mountain trails or jungle trails in other areas. There were lots of orchid plants attached to the trees, but none were in bloom. We heard lots of pretty bird songs, but saw absolutely no pretty birds. We did see two tepezcuintles back by the cafeteria, and I briefly glimpsed some large animal--I think a deer, darting uphill through the brush, but that was it.

During the night it rained for several hours. It was also chillier than at least Virginia had anticipated. The prospect of the trails being even muddier than they were on Monday, plus a sore knee on me and sore legs on Virginia, plus the fact that we had already explored the nearby trails, and we wouldn't have had the physical endurance on our gimpy legs to make it to the waterfall several miles away, helped us decide to leave a day early for home. We didn't want to call the taxi guy again for another $30 so decided to take the bus back. To reach the bus we would need to walk nearly a mile downhill to a small "village," if it can be called that. We were told buses left at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., among other times. We decided to gulp down breakfast and try to make it for the 9 a.m. bus. Once we got to the "village," we found that for the first time in recorded history something occurred ahead of schedule in Honduras. The bus had left at 8:48! So we got to wait a couple of hours. Our 11 a.m. bus more typically left at 11:15, but we're glad we took it, as it got us back as quickly as the taxi had gotten us there, even though it stopped every few feet, it seemed, to pick up another school child or other passenger. To make up for the stops, the driver drove like a maniac in between stops, speeding down hill on the wrong side of the road and honking at anyone daring to be in his way. But we got to town safe in spite of it all and got a taxi from the "terminal" back to the temple. We really did enjoy the bus ride, feeling that we got to see more of rural Honduras and rural Hondurans than one would in a taxi. Also, we now know how to get there on the bus, in case Bob and Sherryl still want to go there during their visit in June. Photos follow of both adventures.

In front of the Comayagua cathedral, dating to the 1700's sometime. The clock is one of the two oldest in the world that still works, and the oldest in the Americas, dating to about 1100 A.D. I believe Columbus had something to do with its getting here.

The rest of the front of the cathedral

Clock close-up

Oh, the indignity of it all!

Gold-leafed interior of the cathedral

Close up of the inner workings of the clock. Notice halo surrounding head of husband of angelic looking creature on his right.

Bell rigged to wire which is connected to clock, such that every 15 minutes a hammer hits the bell to ring it.

Virginia ascending through narrow passageway up to the bell tower.

Virginia working on musical matters while others swim or hike at golf course.

View of Comayagua golf course

Pretty peacock perched at golf course. (I heard it well before I saw it, looking all over the top of the tree for the bird that could be making the melody, before I suddenly saw it on a lower branch.)

Pretty posies at golf course


Large cricket inside country club building, on top of the curtain.

Visitors' center at La Tigra National Park (where we were the only visitors that day)

Accommodations at La Tigra National Park, where we were the only guests. We had the room on top, with a nice view from the porch. The cafeteria is on the right, where we were the only customers.