Day Two: The Hike

Today was the longest and craziest hike I have ever been on. Though only about 4 miles in length, the humidity, dust, and terrain made it incredibly difficult. The dust in the air towards the base of the mountain made breathing-in clean air very difficult. The first portion of the hike was to the water source, a small stream up the mountain that has been damned off with a small retaining pond. The walk up this mountain was full of incredibly steep dips & inclines, and lots of loose rock and cliffs to slide off of. At one point on a steep decline, rounding a turn, on a thin makeshift path I lost my footing; for a split second I thought for sure I was going over the edge and tumbling to my death. I'm fairly positive that whomever insures Global Brigades has no concept of the places they are going with inexperienced college students. The second part of the hike was to the large concrete cylinder that is the holding tank. Here the water is stored and cleaned with a simple chlorine filter before continuing down the mountain. This entire system uses gravity to keep the water moving so the source is higher than the holding tank, is higher than the homes of the community. Though the hike was incredibly beautiful I'm not sure I would go for that much danger again any time soon.

(two other brigadiers climbing up the mountain)

(video of the damn area of the water source, this was a very small creek which is why not much appears to be coming in our out, but over 150 gallons per minute go through here)

(water holding tank)

After the hike to the damn and then the holding tank ( the most beautiful point I've seen in Honduras so far) we headed down the mountain to a community meeting. There were over 100 people packed into a 20x20 school building to discuss the current water project as well as the future of Public Health Brigades within the community. The meeting in this hot, humid, dusty room lasted over an hour in rapidly spoken Spanish. Though I didn't understand the majority of what was being said it was obvious that there was some frustration and animosity between Joel, Orlando, and the other GB leaders and the community. Though not understanding

the words being spoken, I was able to recognize the leaders, activists, and concerned citizens of the Pajarillos community and to see that a rural Honduran community meeting is exactly like a community meeting in the United States.

(soccer field outside the community center/school)

We are staying at an incredibly beautiful ranch, formerly owned by R. Aguilar Paz C., whom I so far know nothing about seeing as all of the historic landmarkers are en Espanol. According to the memorial carved into the ceiling support here on the patio behind me he lived from 1929-1993. Since this is the Honduran dry season and the nation is in a drought we were told to take navy showers (turn water on only to get wet and to rinse off) but while they were telling us this the sprinklers were watering the grass, so I'm not sure what to believe. In the female dormitory room there is a large bull's head hanging over my bed, slightly odd, but I guess it adds character. Along with the sword-framed crests, beautiful arches, wood beams, and random historic pictures it makes for quite the room. Especially with bunk beds for 30 young women inside.

I'm currently sitting on the patio at dusk overlooking the beautiful Honduran mountains, drinking the first legally purchased beer of my life. I'm not sure if a drinking age exists in Honduras, but apparently I'm legal. The NYU kids have declared tonight "Fancy Night" and every bottle of wine in the store has been purchased. Everyone is dressed in their nicest t-shirts and paper bow-ties & corsages have been made. Tonight should be a good night, hopefully they will be ready for our first day of work in the morning.