Marcala, Honduras

A trip to Marcala

We left the city in the morning for a 4 hr bus ride to Marcala, a town 166 kms from Tegucigalpa. Once we were out of the city it was a very scenic ride as we went into farms and ranch land and then back up into the mountains where coffee is one of the main crops.

A view from the bus window...

There were lots of watermelons for sale...

We arrived at our hotel by lunch time so we ate there before we continued on into Marcala for meetings with the ACJ there. We were all pleasantly surprised with our accommodations as it is like a mini resort in the mountains and we get to stay in small cabins. It is owned by a local coffee farmer and is quite new.

Bev in the door of the cabin...

The dining area...

Since we are high in the mountains the weather is quite cool which surprised us as we thought that being summer the temperatures would be higher. However we were told this is an unseasonably cold summer. The mountains here are beautiful with lush vegetation, a beautiful rural area.

After lunch we were privileged to spend time with the staff, volunteers and participants of the two programs that we fund from the Atlantic YMCAs (in one of two locations). We were warmly welcomed and spent all afternoon and into the evening with them at their building in Marcala.





On the way to the ACJ building

Doing an introductory activity with the group...

The two main programs they offer to youth between the ages 13-25 are Citizen Formation and  HIV Prevention program (Sexual  Health). Hundreds of youth have actively participated in these programs to date. These types of programs help the young people become more knowledgeable about the issues they are facing in their commuities (ie Violence, human rights, drug use and abuse).  The ACJ/YMCA provides Sexual Health education to students as the issues are not covered in the school curriculum .

Tomas and Dani doing a presentation...

Their method of teaching is to be very participatory and designed to teach the participants how to recognize and solve their own problems. The young people become more involved in their communities and learn to take place in the political processes at the local level. They also work on a Train the Trainer model so the ones that are trained go out to other communities and train other youth.

Some of the students are members of our group...

We were told about their programs by the facilitators and then had the opportunity to speak with the young people and learn from them their experiences as participants of the program. They were very articulate and told us how being involved in the programs has given them more self esteem, made them more knowledgeable about issues they are facing and has helped them develop leadership skills to take back to their communities.

Jessica sharing her photos...

We also met with the mayor of Marcala who spoke about the positive work that the ACJ is doing in his region and hope that we could find a way to keep supporting the programs as they add so much to the communities. He also indicated that funding sources are not easy to obtain and without foreign support many of these types of programs would not be offered to the young people.

 

The Mayor in red with some of the other officials...

At the end of the evening we were treated to a tai kwon do program which is also held at the ACJ and run by a volunteer from the town. He reports these type of programs give choices to the young men and teaches them discipline and responsibility.

Ended the night back at the hotel restaurant with a late night as we were trying to get up a blog post so we would not be too far behind.

Bev's Thoughts:

Today was very fulfilling on so many levels.  The trip to Marcala to visit with the youth participating in programs that are beneficial and important to them and to know that these are possible becuase of our support makes me feel that I am apart of something wonderful and that we are the reason for positive change in a very beautiful country.  The motivation, the positive atmosphere and the energy in the room was contagious, the discussions were recipricol, they asked questions about our programs in Canada and they answered our questions.  Tomorrow we are off to visit a school,  and another program site...Looking forward to gaining more knowledge

Bev

Debbie's reflections...

I really enjoyed the day and our trip to the Marcala ACJ. The young people we met were so inspiring and positive about their participation in the programs that we are funding. Even though they face many challenges they feel that what they are learning is making a difference in their lives as well as the lives of their communities.

We were priveleged to spend this time with them and learn about their lives and they also had a chance to ask us about our lives and programs. I am inspired by our learnings and more motivated to continue to support this program.

Honduras Day 2

Up early this morning for breakfast and a bus ride to the Office of the Honduras ACJ. We met the staff and toured the building which is situated on one of the hills in the city. The Director is Rossibel and she has a small staff which support her in the administration and running of the programs.

On the way to the bus to start our day...



On the way to the ACJ building





The traffic in this city is crazy...



The Honduras ACJ has the main office in Tegucigalpa and offers programs there as well as in outreach centers. We were given a presentation by some of the staff to help orient us to their organization and to set a context for the programming we are about to discover. They have a number of partners besides us for example Norway also offers support to them. It seems since the recent coup the funding sources have become less both inside and outside the country.

Here is the Honduras ACJ/YMCA building

Their neighbourhood...

The ACJ/YMCA- Honduras was founded on June 16, 1990. Its mission is to achieve improved living standards of the youth and build spaces to search for proposals to support the youth to improve their social underdevelopment by understanding and accessing the political, economic, cultural and educational systems in the country. Their main priority is to work with youth between the ages of 16-30.

Some of the staff....

Rossibel, the Director of the Honduras YMCA, on the right and Tania, our translator on the left...

Bev and Debbie busy taking notes of the meeting...

After our morning meetings we went to Pizza Hut for lunch (there are a lot of North American food chains here). We had a great lunch as we got to eat at the salad bar!!

Now what will we have for lunch?? Maybe pizza??

In the afternoon we went to one of the neighbourhoods called San Francisco which again was located way up in the hills. Here we visited a center called Ludoteca which is run by the YMCA with a few staff and lots of dedicated volunteers. We were greeted very warmly and given a tour of the facility and again an introduction to their programs.

The view on the way to the San Francisco neighbourhood...

Bev outside the Ludotec building. This building is located in the neighbourhood so that it is accesible to the young people who live here.

One of the main programs they run here is the computer informatics school which trains young people over a 6 month period (5 months educational, 1 month on the job training) in four aspects of computer training (ie Software, Graphic design, Web base information and computer maintenance). Another interesting component of this program is the module of citizen formation which teaches such things as self esteem, community development and participative democracy. This area is one of the main goals of the Honduras YMCA and seems to be included in all their programs.

The computer room...

There is also a child care program but as you can see there are very few toys or books on the shelves...

This is where they collect water and wash their clothes, notice the wash board on the left. No washing machines here!

We were also treated to a theatre of the opressed performance in which the young people portray the challenges of their lives such as unemployment and drug addiction. The neat thing about this type of theatre is after the performance the audience is invited to participate in finding solutions to the scenarios presented.

These actors were discussing the drug deal...

And finally one of the volunteers from another program in Sector February 21 treated us to some of his own lyrics again addressing the issues facing the youth in Honduras on a daily basis.

A very talented singer and song writer, he expressed his feelings about his life and the work of the Y with such passion...

Some of the volunteers and participants of the programs...

Here we are with some of the children and the NL flags we gave them...

After that we drove out of the city for about 20kms through a stretch of road where the elite of the city live in huge, gated communities on the sides of the mountain or in the valleys. Our final destination was a small town of Santa Lucia where we had an opportunity to go for a stroll, visit a Catholic Church and stop for supper before going back to the hotel.

A view of the town, very beautiful houses...

Minding the shop...

The beautiful altar in the town's church...

Most of our group...

We concluded the day with a group meeting where we talked about what we saw today, our impressions and some logistics for the rest of the trip. And again we were off to bed early as both of us were tired from all the images in our head from our day’s experiences.

Debbie’s Reflections

Well what am I thinking after our first day seeing the work of the Honduras ACJ?

I am impressed with the enthusiasm of the staff and volunteers as they do their work with very few resources.

I appreciate the warmth and generosity of our hosts and how much time they have put into the planning of this trip as they still have their own jobs to do.

I admire their mission and how it is clear if they can work with unemployed or underemployed youth it will make a difference in this country which has so many challenges.

I question how I can take the pieces of what I am learning here back home to our YMCA in order to strengthethen our International Development work.

I am looking forward to the rest of the trip and all the learning I am about to encounter as today was such an eye opener and maybe a glimpse of what is to come.

Bev's reflection

Today for me was all about passion and dedication.   The youth in the capital and surrounding areas were eager to let us know what they accomplish in their regions, they have so little but give a hundred and ten percent of what they have.  The people here are very thankful for the YMCA Canada involvement, without outside involvement and partnerships, like ours, their programs may not exist.  Tomorrow we will go to Marcala, this community YMCA is a direct result of the partnership between us and YMCA Honduras.  The enthusiasm that I have seen so far makes me excited for tomorrow`s agenda.... Stay tuned 

We made it! Day 1

We have arrived in Tegucigalpa after many flights and a long time in the air and airports. We left Gander yesterday afternoon and arrived here after 4 flights and 10 hours flying. The time here is 3 and half  hours earlier than home.

Bev in Miami airport checking her BB for a message from her daughter, Ashley..

On the way down from Miami the landscape was very mountainous with high peaks and broad valleys. As we flew into the city it seemed to be located in the bottom of a bowl created by surrounding high mountains. My first impression as we drove to the hotel was of a busy city with narrow winding streets and plenty of hills. Our hosts warned us when we arrived that the part of city where we are staying is very poor so we should be very careful. I was going to go outside to take some pictures and was told that I should wait until tomorrow when someone would go with me!



Flying into the city, we came over a big mountain and then we could see the city in a broad plain stretching for a long way...



A view of the landscape as we flew into Central America, very high mountains and lots of jungle...

We settled into our hotel which is comfortable and clean and has wifi so I can’t complain. Bev and I are sharing a room so we will either like each others’ company by the end of the trip or NOT!!

Checking into our hotel...

We then went to a mall, quite a fancy one to pick up some supplies that we couldn’t take in our carry ons. I love going into grocery stores in other countries as there is always something interesting to look at, however the more I travel it seems that the more the stores look alike. Most of them are also owned by Walmart as this one was. Prices were a little cheaper than home but not much.



Taking in the sights at the fancy mall...



Here's a product we don't see much on our shelves...refried beans, but they do show up on most plates here in Honduras.

We ended the evening by having supper at a local restaurant called El Patio. It was quite large and it was packed with lots of people who came to party. There was music, singing and dancing with everyone having a good time. The food was excellent as well.

A cheese appetizer served in a clay pot filled with burning wood chips so the cheese was melting as it was served. It tasted great...

Bev and Karen sharing a laugh at dinner...

Interesting sign at the entrance to the restaurant...

Tonight we are all tired from travelling so we all went to our rooms to try and get a good night’s sleep for another early morning rise. In the morning we will be picked up by our hosts and start the day with a trip to the local YMCA. We think this is going to be an interesting trip.

Bev - Final preparations

Hi,

I am all packed and the night is almost gone.  Myself and Deborah are leaving NL tomorrow to start our 10 day journey.  I am looking forward to this adventure as I have never been outside of Canada, so this is quite exciting.  The fact that I am going to Honduras to represent our YMCA and to be a part of something that makes a difference in the lives of so many youth is quite exciting..

Keep up to date as we will post our daily travels for all of you.

Bev Brace
Manager of Administration
International Development Committee Member
YMCA of Exploits Valley
 

Getting Ready...Debbie

Well the backpack is out and just waiting to be refilled,since we are only allowed one carry on I will be packing light. Checked the temperature in Honduras and it is 27 degrees so we won't be taking the clothes we are wearing now!

I am getting a little excited for the trip as I have never been to Honduras and am looking forward to meeting our Y partners when we get there. It will also be a treat to be hosted as guests in their country.
I have my shots, my malaria pills, my deet all ready as well as the passport and our itineary for the visit.

We land in ,the capital of Honduras, Tegucigalpa, where we will stay for two days while visiting the YMCA sites and observing their programs and how they are doing. I am sure we will learn a lot from them and hopefully we can share them some things to strengthen their programs. We will spend the rest of the time doing the same thing in three different rural areas of Honduras. Then back to the capital for the last two days to discuss our partnership agreement. Sounds like a busy schedule with a lot of learning to take place!

A view of Tegucigalpa, capital city of Honduras, our first destination...

And in case you were wondering which one of us is Debbie,here I am...

Why Honduras??

This blog will detail our Partnership Trip to Honduras taking place from March 14-23, 2011. Beverly Brace and myself will be part of a group of 14 individuals from Atlantic Canada who will travel to Honduras as part of a process to establish a long term, cooperative realtionship with our Honduras partners.We will meet with staff, volunteers and participants and visit different program sites around the country. Our goal is to be able to facilitate communications, support program development and coordinate and share resources from our associations and the ACJ of Honduras.


The Exploits Valley YMCA is one of the YMCAs in Canada East that is in partnership with th ACJ (YMCA) of Honduras. We started the process in 2009 and will continue to the end of the agreement in 2013.

So what about Honduras??

As you can see from the map Honduras is one of the seven countries of Central America, located east of El Salvador and Guatemala.

It is a country with significant social challenges as illustrated by the following statistics...

Out of a population of almost 8 million, 65% of the population is under the age of 25 with the average level of schooling attained being at a grade four level. It is estimated that at least 25% of the juevenile population is neither working or attending school.

Honduras has the highest HIV/AIDS infection rate in Central America .National fiqures suggest that between 20 and 22% of the adult male population also suffers from depression.

There is also a high incidence of homicide among young people in the country.

These are the types of challenges that the YMCA of Honduras are facing as they develop programs for the young people in their country.

Our monetary contributions every month are used to support a number of programs that help in providing citizenship training and facilitates capacity building and the involvement of youth in the political process at both local and national levels.

Here is a link to a YouTube video from Honduras that highlights some of their work...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLgGKhCeefk&feature=related


Stay tuned to our blog as we begin our final trip preparations and share out thoughts, observations and stories with you....

Thanks for following!!!