Shimbalaie

For the record, and you may have realized this already, all of my latest posts include a song at the beginning. When I embed a song onto a post, it’s (obviously) because I’d like you to hear it while reading whatever it is that I’ve written. I know some of you read this while you’re bored at work and probably don’t get to hear the music, but yea, I just wanted to put that out there. The reason why I include a song with each post is because I’d like to create a multi-sensory experience (also why I’m making an effort to post more pictures.)

The songs are either directly related to the post, or they describe my mood while writing it. For instance, the song I added in the post where I recapped my NYC trip was Skrillex’s remix of Benny Benassi’s “Cinema,” because it was my theme song of the trip. Every time we were cruising down the streets of Manhattan, we were always blasting that song on the radio (yea, we used public transportation just for the sake of it, to be able to say “hey, we were on the NYC subway,” but most of the time, we were in a car.)

In the “Cherry lips” post, I included Garbage’s song because everyone knows that red lips are kind of my signature look. Also, I was alluding to the fact that Cherry (my alter ego) is making more and more appearances these days, so you better hide yo’ kids, hide yo’ wives, and hide yo’ husbands, too! (And I hope to God that you all got that reference because if you didn’t it can only mean two things: 1) You were living under a rock for the latter half of 2010, and 2) You obviously were not a part of my life during said time period.) And here I am going off on a tangent. Ay Miss Bandy, whatever will become of you???

Anyways, I’m sure you get the point of these last 3 paragraphs. The music is here for a reason! Now, on to the actual post for today.



This weekend my family and I went away to Copan Ruinas, a quaint town located about 3 hours away from my city, San Pedro Sula, which is in very close proximity to the Guatemalan border, but most importantly, the Mayan ruins of Copan. We didn’t end up going to the ruins because 1) It was raining; 2) My knee cyst ruptured, leaving me in a lot of pain (I’m ok, though); 3) We’ve been to the ruins like a million times already.



Copan is such a magical place. Every time I went to the ruins in the past, and found myself walking through the ancient buildings, a sense of serenity would always come over me. It really felt as if I’d gone through a time machine and had been transported to the Mayan Golden Age. I always like going to the ruins because I get to zone out and think about my identity, my place in time, past vs. present vs. future, etc. In any case, we weren’t able to go to the ruins this time, but the town adjacent to them gives off the same “frozen-in-time” vibe, with its stone-paved streets, narrow walkways, central plaza, etc. We have a lot of family friends in Copan, and every time we go, we always end up having quite the get-together, usually at “La Casa de Todo," (www.casadetodo.com) a souvenir shop/ internet café/ restaurant/ bar/ book exchange/ everything! Last night was no exception, let’s just say that I wasn’t even planning on drinking, but ended up having 6 Cuba Libres instead! 6, coño!!!



Here I am posing with my older brother, Michael, after the 4th Cuba Libre... I really do look Middle Eastern, don't I? I guess there's no denying one's ancestry...


With my mother. The asshole you see in the background with the light blue Polo, that's my younger brother. (And it's okay, I call him "THE ASSHOLE" all the time. It's either that or "MOTHER FUCKER," this last one thanks to the movie Horrible Bosses, hehe.) I'm kidding, of course (but you already knew that.) His name is Erick.


Anyways, I woke up feeling fine, and after a hearty breakfast (certainly not diet friendly - these small-town folk don’t know anything about fat free or low carb, lol), I proceeded to walk around the town, perusing the small shops and taking pictures of things I found interesting.

These are made by the Lenca people, one of the remaining, and most prominent, indigenous groups in Honduras.

Copan - San Pedro Sula. Cute, huh?

Of course, I couldn't forget about the church.

And that was my weekend. It was a nice break from everyday life, but I can't deny that I'm a city girl, through and through. I miss my concrete edifices (even if the ones here aren't that impressive.) When one of you guys comes to visit me (and I'm really hoping at least one of you comes before I leave Honduras permanently), we'll definitely hit Copan up!