Day 28 (July 25) - Roatan to Tegucigalpa
Flying back from Roatan to Tegucigalpa was actually faster than we expected: the small plane did not stop in La Ceiba, probably because everyone was continuing to Tegucigalpa. One thing with those mini-planes is that their A/C is practically non-existent. We were seated right behind the pilots and could see the millions of switches that were all over the ceiling above them and the walls that surrounded them. I even located the A/C switch, but didn't see them touch it at any point. Once in the air it becomes a little cooler. In any case, it is a relatively short flight (less than an hour).
Arriving at Tegucigalpa airport we headed out to get a taxi. There are a few "official" dispatchers who claimed the cab ride is 200 lempiras ($10). Knowing that the price is $4, we simply walked to one of the parked cabs and after a short negotiation he agreed to the standard $4. The cab driver was a young, slightly rough guy. He drove a bit aggressively even through the very congested Comayaguela market that is at the entrance to Teguc. He had no clue where the Hotel MacArthur was, but after a little asking we found it. Hotel MacArthur is an extremely pleasant hotel. It is very clean with both A/C rooms ($50) and fan rooms ($40), all with private bath. We originally booked an A/C room, but the weather was so pleasant (perhaps after we were used to the Roatan weather), that we switched to an ordinary room. They have a very nice swimming pool and even a small play structure for kids. We did, however, move to a different room after we found out that the frying odors from the cafeteria were overtaking the room. The better rooms are towards the pool.
We strolled from the hotel to downtown Teguc. The city is built into the mountains with some seriously sloped streets. But the downtown area is relatively flat. There are tons of stands and shops selling almost everything. The nearby Iglesia Los Dolores is pretty, with lots of doves to feed. It is surrounded by stands and people selling all kinds of food, from fresh tortillas, hot corn, vegetables, freshly cut watermelon and other fruit, etc. There is also a good, simple, and cheap comedor there.
We roamed the streets for a few hours, feeling completely safe everywhere. We had a good dinner at a neat Greek restaurant called Restaurante Mediterraneo (but skip the desserts). Lots of vegetarian options that are not on the menu.
We felt that we have not spent enough time in Teguc, and would have liked to spend there a couple of days more. People scared us so badly of Teguc and San Pedro Sula, that our original plan was to try and avoid them as much as possible. In retrospect, that is probably a mistake.
Flying back from Roatan to Tegucigalpa was actually faster than we expected: the small plane did not stop in La Ceiba, probably because everyone was continuing to Tegucigalpa. One thing with those mini-planes is that their A/C is practically non-existent. We were seated right behind the pilots and could see the millions of switches that were all over the ceiling above them and the walls that surrounded them. I even located the A/C switch, but didn't see them touch it at any point. Once in the air it becomes a little cooler. In any case, it is a relatively short flight (less than an hour).
Arriving at Tegucigalpa airport we headed out to get a taxi. There are a few "official" dispatchers who claimed the cab ride is 200 lempiras ($10). Knowing that the price is $4, we simply walked to one of the parked cabs and after a short negotiation he agreed to the standard $4. The cab driver was a young, slightly rough guy. He drove a bit aggressively even through the very congested Comayaguela market that is at the entrance to Teguc. He had no clue where the Hotel MacArthur was, but after a little asking we found it. Hotel MacArthur is an extremely pleasant hotel. It is very clean with both A/C rooms ($50) and fan rooms ($40), all with private bath. We originally booked an A/C room, but the weather was so pleasant (perhaps after we were used to the Roatan weather), that we switched to an ordinary room. They have a very nice swimming pool and even a small play structure for kids. We did, however, move to a different room after we found out that the frying odors from the cafeteria were overtaking the room. The better rooms are towards the pool.
We strolled from the hotel to downtown Teguc. The city is built into the mountains with some seriously sloped streets. But the downtown area is relatively flat. There are tons of stands and shops selling almost everything. The nearby Iglesia Los Dolores is pretty, with lots of doves to feed. It is surrounded by stands and people selling all kinds of food, from fresh tortillas, hot corn, vegetables, freshly cut watermelon and other fruit, etc. There is also a good, simple, and cheap comedor there.
We roamed the streets for a few hours, feeling completely safe everywhere. We had a good dinner at a neat Greek restaurant called Restaurante Mediterraneo (but skip the desserts). Lots of vegetarian options that are not on the menu.
We felt that we have not spent enough time in Teguc, and would have liked to spend there a couple of days more. People scared us so badly of Teguc and San Pedro Sula, that our original plan was to try and avoid them as much as possible. In retrospect, that is probably a mistake.
posted by Galit Shmueli at 2:00 AM
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