| Backpacking in South America, Tegucigalpa Eight Months On The Road |
Lost Time
I had time to shop a little in Guatemala and pick up a watch for
$1.50 because up until then I had no timepiece. This little watch
served me well until it was later stolen from my backpack while I
took an airliner to Trinidad, an incident that became a good
reminder to lock my backpack and never carry anything that I
couldn’t live without.
Tica Bus
I traveled from Guatemala City to the country of El Salvador
where I stayed in the capitol city of San Salvador, arriving at night
and leaving the next day. From there I crossed the border at El
Amatillo and stayed on the bus to Tegucigalpa where I booked a
hotel two blocks from the Tica bus station. Tica Bus
On many backpack trips through Central America, I have never
found the buses crowded. I just show up and buy a ticket; I never
make reservations. This lack of itinerary might not be to some
traveler’s liking and for them there is an option. A system called
the Tica bus takes backpackers through Central America using
the same bus and driver for the duration. The bus makes stops at
hotels in the various countries, the driver putting up for the night
along with the passengers. From Tapachula in Chiapas or
Guatamala City these buses are an option for backpackers
making a trip south to Panama City.
Tegucigalpa
I like Tegucigalpa, It has an interesting central square, streets full
of markets, and a hill that leads to a nice park overlooking the
town. I started to walk up the hill for an evening view when a man
ran up to me and insisted that I not go up to the park alone. at
night, A kindness noted in a world that is not always kind.
Luxury Bus
In Tegucigalpa I stepped out of character momentarily and
reserved a seat on the following morning’s bus, a futile attempt it
would prove.
The bus was scheduled to leave the station at seven in the
morning. A luxury bus, the first luxury bus that I had ridden on
since leaving Missouri, had an upper deck and served breakfast.
The traditional seating on the upper tier had picture windows
while on the lower tier the bus had reclining seats that turned into
beds.
The day before traveling, I booked a front seat on the upper deck
and looked forward to enjoying the view through Honduras on the
way to Nicaragua. That morning when I arrived at the station,
however, the conductor would not give me the seat at the front.
He gave me a seat on the upper deck but someone who had
more clout or more money than I had would ride in my reserved
front seat.
A traveler rolls with these pitches of the deck. When you are in a
foreign country, your rights and privileges depend on what your
money and connections can buy. If you have neither your only
option is to be flexible.
Thieving Beginners
From Tegucigalpa I went on to cross into Nicaragua and then on
to Managua where I spent the night. Here I had a strange incident
that reminded me to keep alert while walking the city streets. A
man approached from the front and from the corner of my eye, I
could see another one approaching from the back. The man
coming towards me put his hand out to touch me. I grabbed his
arm and pushed his hand aside while at the same time jumping
away. I turned and faced them demanding to know what they
wanted but they quickly turned and seemed to fade away down
the street. I don’t know what they were up to but I was thankful that
I had both arms free.
I prepare for incidents like this each day although they rarely
happen. It doesn’t bother me when it does happen, its no big
deal. You have to be hard-shelled as a prairie tortoise to make a
backpacking trip like the one I am making, traveling alone
through Central and South America, a place of frontier towns and
at times frontier justice. Some people can do a trip like this,
some cannot or prefer not to.
Most people who are robbed will get careless in a terminal or
they will walk alone in a seamy area of the city. After you have
done some backpack traveling, you get the feel for when
someone is looking at you with robbery on their mind. For the
most part, however, people all over the world are kind and
helpful, just like the man who warned me about the park in
Tegucigalpa.
Sure at times people call you names, “Whitey,” or “Gringo,” or
worse but the kind people who run up to you and warn you not to
walk in certain parts of the city make up for the few bandits out
there who prey on backpacking road warriors.
I had time to shop a little in Guatemala and pick up a watch for
$1.50 because up until then I had no timepiece. This little watch
served me well until it was later stolen from my backpack while I
took an airliner to Trinidad, an incident that became a good
reminder to lock my backpack and never carry anything that I
couldn’t live without.
Tica Bus
I traveled from Guatemala City to the country of El Salvador
where I stayed in the capitol city of San Salvador, arriving at night
and leaving the next day. From there I crossed the border at El
Amatillo and stayed on the bus to Tegucigalpa where I booked a
hotel two blocks from the Tica bus station. Tica Bus
On many backpack trips through Central America, I have never
found the buses crowded. I just show up and buy a ticket; I never
make reservations. This lack of itinerary might not be to some
traveler’s liking and for them there is an option. A system called
the Tica bus takes backpackers through Central America using
the same bus and driver for the duration. The bus makes stops at
hotels in the various countries, the driver putting up for the night
along with the passengers. From Tapachula in Chiapas or
Guatamala City these buses are an option for backpackers
making a trip south to Panama City.
Tegucigalpa
I like Tegucigalpa, It has an interesting central square, streets full
of markets, and a hill that leads to a nice park overlooking the
town. I started to walk up the hill for an evening view when a man
ran up to me and insisted that I not go up to the park alone. at
night, A kindness noted in a world that is not always kind.
Luxury Bus
In Tegucigalpa I stepped out of character momentarily and
reserved a seat on the following morning’s bus, a futile attempt it
would prove.
The bus was scheduled to leave the station at seven in the
morning. A luxury bus, the first luxury bus that I had ridden on
since leaving Missouri, had an upper deck and served breakfast.
The traditional seating on the upper tier had picture windows
while on the lower tier the bus had reclining seats that turned into
beds.
The day before traveling, I booked a front seat on the upper deck
and looked forward to enjoying the view through Honduras on the
way to Nicaragua. That morning when I arrived at the station,
however, the conductor would not give me the seat at the front.
He gave me a seat on the upper deck but someone who had
more clout or more money than I had would ride in my reserved
front seat.
A traveler rolls with these pitches of the deck. When you are in a
foreign country, your rights and privileges depend on what your
money and connections can buy. If you have neither your only
option is to be flexible.
Thieving Beginners
From Tegucigalpa I went on to cross into Nicaragua and then on
to Managua where I spent the night. Here I had a strange incident
that reminded me to keep alert while walking the city streets. A
man approached from the front and from the corner of my eye, I
could see another one approaching from the back. The man
coming towards me put his hand out to touch me. I grabbed his
arm and pushed his hand aside while at the same time jumping
away. I turned and faced them demanding to know what they
wanted but they quickly turned and seemed to fade away down
the street. I don’t know what they were up to but I was thankful that
I had both arms free.
I prepare for incidents like this each day although they rarely
happen. It doesn’t bother me when it does happen, its no big
deal. You have to be hard-shelled as a prairie tortoise to make a
backpacking trip like the one I am making, traveling alone
through Central and South America, a place of frontier towns and
at times frontier justice. Some people can do a trip like this,
some cannot or prefer not to.
Most people who are robbed will get careless in a terminal or
they will walk alone in a seamy area of the city. After you have
done some backpack traveling, you get the feel for when
someone is looking at you with robbery on their mind. For the
most part, however, people all over the world are kind and
helpful, just like the man who warned me about the park in
Tegucigalpa.
Sure at times people call you names, “Whitey,” or “Gringo,” or
worse but the kind people who run up to you and warn you not to
walk in certain parts of the city make up for the few bandits out
there who prey on backpacking road warriors.
| Tegucigalpa Page Four |
| South America, Backpacking, Tegucigalpa Eight Months On The Road By David Rice |
Editor’s Note: Tica Bus: serving backpackers to Central America Tica runs a
total of 38 air-conditioned buses that have reclining seats, restrooms, window
curtains, TV and video Tica Bus through Central America
total of 38 air-conditioned buses that have reclining seats, restrooms, window
curtains, TV and video Tica Bus through Central America
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