pleurs et rires en Honduras

Comme dit la chanson « pleurs et rires », nous avons pleuré et ri en Honduras … Nous avons passé plus de la moitié de notre séjour dans un garage à Tegucigalpa, coincés, à attendre, inquiets que Bip Bip se fasse réparer … le propriétaire Roberto a accepté que nous restions dans le garage la nuit pour que nous puissions dormir dans Bip Bip. Ce qui nous a tout de même permis d’éviter des dépenses d’hôtel !!!! Il nous a même évité des dépenses de frais de garage puisque nous sommes partis sans dépenser un copeck (nous qui avions peur de nous faire arnaquer …) !!!! Il faut dire qu’il n’a rien vraiment réparé mais il s’est démené pour trouver la panne et a fait appel à ses confrères.  

J’ai dû laisser Chrissy finir seul le séjour garagien afin de retrouver ma copine Delphine qui nous a rejoint pour 3 semaines au Nicaragua en prenant le bus, sans savoir quand et comment Chris aller nous retrouver…

L‘Honduras n’a pas seulement été un séjour au garage mais aussi de bien meilleurs moments : la visite des ruines de Copan, le lac de Yojoa et les 3 jours passés au D&D brewery , et la chasse des quetzals au Parc National de la Tigra (sans succès)

En tout cas, les gens ont été vraiment gentils et chaleureux entre les différents garagistes, la famille de Roberto qui a fait une visite guidée à Chris du centre-ville de Tegucigalpa et  la réceptionniste du parc national qui nous a embrassé chaleureusement quand nous sommes partis (peu de chance que çà arrive au château de Versailles…). Tout le monde nous a aidé de son mieux et a utilisé ses connaissances (ceci mériterait bien un schéma de nos amis Kath et Andrew) c’est ainsi que Jose-Mario du Salvador nous a donné le contact d’une amie en Honduras qui nous a donné le contact de son garagiste qui nous a envoyé chez un confrère …

Comme j‘ai mis du temps à écrire et à publier ce post avec mon clavier qui a une touche sur deux qui ne fonctionne pas … je vous ai mis une photo bonus, à vous d’être vigilant (attention çà va vite!) 

Like the song on the video says… blablabla its some sort  song about I laughed I cried, i dunno… well I guess we had a few moments like these in Honduras.  We tippytoed Bippers to a garage in Tegucigalpa with a wounded transmission.  We waited with no little bit off worry as this could possibly be a trip-ending event for us.  However Roberto took good care of us, while we camped in the rain in his collection of rusting half-finished collection of car-corpses leaving us just a little bit MORE worried.  Still while he poked here and proded there and cut another, ANOTHER, wire we were living fast and hotel-expense-free but wondering what we were buying in the end.  When it was all said and done and we drove away, he waved us on and didn’t charge us a penny for the 7 days diagnostic  and repair OR even the camping !  Nice guy.  Well he didn’t do too much – did a cardiac bipass and transplant of 4 wires within the transmission wiring harness (not a little feat to be sure) and jiggled this and banged on that.  He sent us on the road thinking that the computer managing the transmission was pooched but we could still drive ‘manual’.  Some 50 km down the road I realized that the transmission was acting all normal and stuff.  BINGO and double BINGO for a free fix.

Now we wonder why the car needs a special screwdriver treatment in the mornings before we head off to start the motor.  The key works the rest of the day but just not in the mornings… ???  Every day greets us with a new drama to live through.

Meanwhile Fanny left me in the pickle (Teguc is NOT one of the more wonderful capital cities…) and high and rain drenched while she split to collect her friend Delphine who planned to join us for 3 weeks of our Nicaragua tour.  Fanny grabbed the first (delux bus i must point out) to freedom and friendship with not one worry about whether I would ever follow her with Bippers.

Honduras wazznt just a visit around Teguc garages.  Oh no.  We did get to visit the rainy Copan ; the rainy Lago de Yojoa (where at least D&D  brewery had camping AND beer on tap) and then of course we also got to see the rainy National Park La Tigra.  Did I mention it was rainy in Honduras ?  Even the Quetsals thought it too rainy to go show off to the stupid, wet tourists. Why spoil the fab elvis-like doo for nothing, they said ?

Well in the end the folks are super nice (yes even the cops that stopped us never asked about the triangle and were too busy falling overthemselves to give directions rather than to dance the ‘dinero-dance’).  While steaming-rusting chez Roberto, his sister and crew swung by to pick up Chris and the Granny for a sight-seeing tour of the center of Tegucigalpa (didn’t take long, and that doesn’t need to be pointed out).  Oh yea and the lonely clerk running the Park La Tigra welcomed us with open arms and then sent us away with a kiss on the cheek (and a tear in her eye, there they go … I’ll never have any more friends for the rest of my life….).  We had connections who connected with connections that got us just exactly we needed (but we did NOT need 40 pounds of Cinnibon bun !)  Jose Mario –of El Salvador – connected us with a Honduran who had a friend who happened to have another friend who just happened to be an auto transmission specialist.  Them’s good apples there.

In a serious moment however,  despite the gunshots around us, the folks here were more than warm and helpful.  That is the way it is no ?  Those with nothing have so much more to give.  Life lesson.

Been a long time coming.  We also suffer computer keyboard probs. If it is NOT one thing it is ANOTHER… see what I mean?