"j": start of construction 1975, finished 1976 … and still running

Honduras, Off-Road (en)

10.09. – 14.09.
I leave Monterrico early in the morning and make my way to Honduras with the todays destination Copan Ruinas just behind the border. It is a long ride today. But it is going well. About 80km from the border, I see two BMW motorcycles on the side of the road. It is the first time since my departure, that I see other people who are also heading south too. I stop immediately. It’s Renate and Bart from Holland, a very nice couple who are also traveling to South America. As they We decide to continue together to the border.

On the border to Honduras there are surprisingly no helpers. As a reminder, the “helpers” are people who accompany you at the border and say, go here and there and at the end they want some money. But they do not really help.

It takes about two hours for all three of us to cross the border. Re-run from A to B and getting some copies again . Many data are entered in the computer and written in the passport. There is much room for improvement with the processes at Central American borders. But again I can not say anything negative at all. We change money to pay the import fees and within a few minutes we are in Copan Ruinas .

We stop outside the hotel / hostel / restaurant / bar ViaVia. It is a Belgian chain. The hotel is run by a very friendly and helpful Belgian. He is motorcyclist too and knows almost everything about Central America. He gives us tips what places we should visit, what to take care about, where we can find BMW dealerships and what roads we should take.

DSCF1214He is also telling us how to properly bribe police. If you are fined, police keeps the driving license. The fine has to be paid at a bank. If it is paid, you get the driving license back. But as a traveler you don’t have much time for such things. One should never make a direct bribe. Discuss and argue as long as possible. Then argue that you have no time and need to move on and ask if there is another way to pay the fine. Ask if it is possible to give the money to the office and if he could pay the penalty at bank. If he puts the papers away, you are on track.

We stay two nights in Copan Ruinas and celebrate a little bit in the bar ViaVia. I’m glad that I met people with the same interests to talk to. Our schedule is approximately equal to Costa Rica and we travel together for the next few days.

DSCF1219The next day we did sightseeing. Copán was once an important city of the Maya. With a small tuktuk taxi we drive to the ruins. The three of us barely fit in the back seat. The ride up and down on the steep rocky road of Copán is an adventure itself . Several times , I am afraid that we fall or that we have to get off and push.

The ruins are spread out in a lush valley, the old walls overgrown with trees.

 

12.09.
We drive on to La Esperanza, the last 30 kilometers are off-road. My first time that I really get off-road. Sometimes, it is quite challenging for me as a newbie with the full loaded bike.

We were sitting at breakfast the next day, when we hear drum sounds and music. Bart got out looking. There is a parade of children, maybe because school started, I can not say. Lot of schools from around the area came to La Esperanza. The different schools have different motives. The children are dressed in costumes, dancing through the area. Sometimes, it seems to me, that the children have no idea what the whole mess is about.

DSCF1251We’re leaving. The first part of the route is off-road again. We come to a very muddy place. There is only one track. Bart moves forward, Renate was waiting until he wa through. I’m at the back. Then Renate starts to cross the muddy place. As she is in the middle of it, a small bus made his way up the hill from the other side. I just wondered: Why? The guy has seen that there is only one track and Renate is already in the middle. The van could not pass and got stuck in the mud. Behind me and also from the other side other vehicles were approaching. For a few minutes nothing happened. It would not have been so difficult to pull Renate back a bit, but why? It was the bus drivers fault.  Finally, we pulled back Renates bike a little bit with the help of a few locals, that the bus was able to pass.

The road is bumpy. At some time it happens and I fell. My left box is torn from the rack and looks pretty damaged. Luckily the bike is ok. Bart and Renate have disappeared around the next bend. I put the bike up, then I empty the box. With a stone I hit inside of the box to fix it a little bit. Bart comes back. I was able to fix the box at least so much that it fits back on the rack. On the inside is a small hole, But it stays on the rack.

IMG_0351Back on a paved road, we take a short break. A few school children join us. We “talk” for a while. Bart let the two boys sitting on his motorcycle. The two of them for sure enjoy that.

We stay in San Lorenzo, at the sea.
14.09.
It’s Saturday and for the next three days are holidays in Central America. There is a parade held in San Lorenzo too. We do not watch that long as we did the day before and head towards Nicaragua.

Just before the border we got stopped. A single policeman and a whole bunch of the helpers. He wants to see our papers. It was a strange situation with one policeman and that bunch of people surrounding us. We did not want to let go of the papers. We talked about it later. It were the helpers who got us in the awkward situation, saying we have no respect for the police. At a certain point, the policeman stopped talking to us and called for colleagues on his phone. We waited. Bart suggested, we simply should continue. I did not want, because I was convinced that we will get into real troubles. A few minutes later, two other officers came on a motorcycle. The helpers were gone. The misunderstanding was cleared and we can continue.

Thank you for reading, Jürgen.

photos Album Flickr


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