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A Real Christmas Break

December 26, 2012 By Fran Leave a Comment
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Shrimp-Parilla

I don’t know what your Christmas day usually consists of, but mine has been somewhat atypical since moving to Honduras.  I experienced the holidays differently in the other countries I’ve lived in as well, but both Christmas’ in Honduras I headed to the beach.  When I’m home in the US I spend the day with friends or family or I go to a movie and have a good meal.  Do I miss that?  Yes, I miss the people, but I am happy to have the adventure I am on, the experiences, the new faces and the culture I am living in now.

Today I didn’t quite know what to do with myself.  I had an invitation for a casual dinner at my friend’s house in the early evening and was happy to have a timeframe to focus on.  But I could not figure out what to do for the bulk of the day, so I left it in Jorge’s hands.

After getting me into the car, he looked at me in the rearview mirror with that — “Where do you want to go today, Mrs. Fran?”  I was stumped.  Not because I couldn’t figure out how to respond in Spanish, but because I knew I didn’t want to go on a long drive, but I did want to see the ocean.

So my brilliant response — “Hmmmm, la playa, por favor?”  (The beach, please?) was met with another question mark — “Tela?”  “Puerto Cortes?”  “Omoa?”  Since Cortes is the closest beach to San Pedro Sula, I opted for the port.

Puerto-Cortes-Beach

I remembered it taking less than an hour to get there a few weeks ago when we drove up for a job fair, so it seemed like the right location.  I had packed proactively and my small bag had a bathing suit and a towel.  I was ready!

Omoa-Pier

We headed out in the rattly Hyundai Our good, sturdy, heavy car was in the shop again.  You know that Expedition is in the shop on average, once every 2 weeks.  And not for a quick fix, but an expensive, complex repair.  Yep, I suspect we are getting “taken for a ride,” but I am not an auto mechanic type person, so I am not good at catching the game they are playing.  But I digress…

Boat-at-Omoa

We head north on a picture-perfect day.  Not a cloud in the sky.  No rain in the forecast.  Nothing to spoil a quick trip to the Caribbean.  We flew up CA5 and I gasped a few times.  I’ve grown quite used to passing cars all the way, racing down the road at the speed of light and navigating our way through check points along the way, but today, with so little traffic on the roads and a light weight car, I felt vulnerable.

Beach

The check points were frequent and somehow different today.  A few of them were set up in a serpentine configuration so it would be absolutely impossible for a car to race through without stopping.

The Federal Police were manning the stops which seemed out of the ordinary as well.  I wonder what they were looking for?  Who were they looking for?  And in the wake of the Newtown tragedy in the US, were their automatic or semiautomatic weapons really necessary?  If a car was carrying a load of drugs or fugitives, would one of these weapons really be needed?  Couldn’t they just shoot at the tires and stop the car in its tracks?  Ok, so auto mechanics and deadly firearms are not my wheelhouse, but it was a thought I had as we were either waved through or stopped.  Being in a smaller white Hyundai kept us from getting pulled over too many times which was a change from the shiny, big Ford Expedition with very dark tinted windows.  We stand out like a sore thumb in that vehicle.

Caribbean

About an hour later we end up at the beach.  It’s crowded at just after noon with families looking for a Christmas activity.

We kept driving and ended up at a dead end, turned around and into a parking area.  With that, two guys in vests came running and as Jorge was starting to follow the directions for parking from the guy in the orange vest, Mr. Yellow Vest comes up and they start arguing and telling Jorge they each had better food and floats and parking spaces for us.  Jorge and I looked at each other in the mirror, chuckled and he turned into a parking space without vested man help.

Omoa-4

He led me to the water, showed me a few things out on the horizon and then my nose led me to freshly cooked fish.  I could see that the water was not really meant for swimming, there was no good place to change and I suspect Jorge was happier having me on dry land because the only way to get into the water was a set of stairs accessed from the restaurant we stopped in for lunch.

Most of the lunch I ordered was inconsequential, but I was thrilled with the shrimp.  Was it grilled? No, don’t think so, although that’s what I ordered.  I believe it was done on a plancha — a griddle — with onions and green bell pepper slices.  It was perfect at my table by the sea.  Frankly, I don’t know where the shellfish came from, but it was not tough, it was not overcooked and it did seem fresh, not previously frozen like the shrimp I’ve been buying this past year.  I have never seen fresh fish here other than at the coast — which makes sense.  The fish dish of  the region is a whole fried fish was on everyone else’s table, but it’s never been appealing to me.  I don’t feel like navigating skin and bones.  Maybe I’ll be in the mood next time.

Cortes-Beach

I was relaxed.  I didn’t feel as though I had a care in the world.  I was thinking of nothing other than the glorious weather, the view, the fact that we were all having a day off.

I hope you all had a most wonderful holiday and I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to New Year’s Day.  I’m thinking of taking the trip to Tela and hanging out on a proper loung chair by the sea for the afternoon to start the year off right.

Perfecto!

Filed Under: All Tagged With: Beach, Christmas, Holiday, Honduras, Omoa, Relax, Travel

Winding Down

December 28, 2011 By Fran Leave a Comment
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Potato-PancakesIt’s time to take a deep breath.  The holidays are almost over and things can return to normal.  Oh, how I wish that were true.  My life has not been consumed by holidays.   As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t have known it was time for Christmas or Hanukkah if it weren’t for the few Christmas decorations at the office and the tree and decorations that were put up in the condo for us.

There has been no exposure to the constant hawking of Christmas gifts from the TV because I haven’t turned it on to sit down and watch anything yet.

I tried to find something to watch last weekend and sadly, it was beyond my attention span.  I’m sure CNN International is available and if not, the BBC, but I didn’t have the patience to root around with the Channel Up and Down buttons to bother.

Cooking has not been something that’s been happening around here either.  I’ve cooked two times.  Yes, I said TWICE in the 31 days since I arrived in Honduras!

I seem to have fallen into a routine that has caused me to lose my mojo.

Those two meals I made were … there’s no other way to say it … meh.  The first was a chicken dish that came out nearly tasteless and had the look of a pan of anemic chicken thighs.

The next was a Hanukkah meal for my condo-mates.  The potato latkes came out like hockey pucks and the brisket was so tender it fell apart into a mass of shredded beef with no liquid left.  We all enjoyed it, but I’m not quite sure why.

Potato-Pancakes

The thing is, I have lost not only my culinary mojo, but my trabajo de la vida (work life) is suffering as well.  I need to get back into my stride, buck up and make things happen.  There is good reason for all of it and it’s all about me making the changes needed to turn things around.

I think I have entered the “Honeymoon is over” stage of being an expat.  It came quickly this time, but it’s here and time to move past it so we’ll tackle the food mojo issue here.

Primitive-Cooking

It’s not my kitchen.  I don’t have all the tools I’ve grown accustomed to surrounding me.  Hell, I don’t even have one piece of All Clad cookware or a single Global knife in the cabinets.  But really, should that matter?  Renaissance Italians didn’t have food processors or grill pans to help them create masterpieces in the kitchen.  A Chinese kitchen doesn’t necessarily have a gas stove to stir fry on.  Sometimes the most incredible food comes from the most primitive equipment.

Latkes

Take this most basic cast iron pan with a make-shift stove top resting on a few pieces of charcoal.

The fish that was frying in that well used pan looked incredible and I would love to have tried it because you know it was just fished out of the sea or the lagoon just a few steps from the fire, but I’ll have to save that experience for another time.  It’s not like me to ask someone to give up part of their dinner.

Steamed-Broccoli

I’d say the best thing to come out of the kitchen on Sunday night was this simple steamed broccoli, olive oil and smoked almonds dish and sadly, I didn’t make it.  The second best thing to come out of that kitchen was the home made applesauce.  It was missing just one thing, but we did fine without it — Cinnamon.  I think I may have a jar in the box that’s still sitting in Customs.  One day I’ll see it.  I just know it!

My contributions to dinner — brisket and potato pancakes were nothing short of disappointing, but we were so desperate to be eating at home without the hassle of choosing a restaurant, navigating our way through the menu, ordering in halting Spanish and coming home at 10:30 at night, that we dove into our meal and enjoyed it like it was our last meal on earth.

By this weekend I’ll be in my own apartment.  I will have gone to the local department store to shop for what I need in my kitchen, while I wait for a water cooler to arrive I’ll pick up a case of bottled water and I’ll stock my pantry and fridge with what I need to create delicious and healthy meals at my own hands.

Yes, life is starting to calm down at the office and I’m feeling a bit more tranquility and comfort at both work and home.

Hanukkah-Dinner

Saturday is New Year’s Eve and while I don’t have any big plans, I do plan to ring in the new year with a smile and a nod to 2011.  And no, I don’t think the world is going to come to a screeching halt on December 21, 2012, but I have plans.  Big plans.  I’m only a few hours from one of the largest remains of Mayan civilization in the world and the quaint little town outside of the ruins has some incredible hotels or B&Bs to stay in, so I plan to make reservations this month to head to the Copán next year and stay in the town of Copán Ruinas to see what happens on the day the world is supposed to come to an end.

I’ll bet I won’t be the only one!  The whole town is sold out this weekend, so I can only imagine what next year holds.  As a matter of fact, I wonder if there is any room in town or if everyone is staying home to be near loved ones while they wait for the lights to go out on the earth.  Time will tell, but in the meantime, there’s no reason for me not to get into Mayan calendar fever.

What about you?  Do you think the world is going to come to an end in December, 2012?

Filed Under: All, All Posts Tagged With: 2012, Christmas, Cook, Dinner, Food, Hanukkah, Holidays, Mayan Calendar, Potato Latkes

Christmas 2011 at the Beach and Home

December 25, 2011 By Fran 1 Comment
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Delivering-ToysDuring this holiday season I had an opportunity to give back to this new community I have become a part of and it ended up being a special morning.  A committee at work put together a Toy Drive for a school in the area and we headed over last Sunday to deliver the goodies.

Some of the children had never experienced anything like this before and while most took their new toy quietly, some were exuberant and the yelps and smiles told it all.  I’m happy to have had the opportunity to join in on the fun and thrilled that the team got something together so quickly to help us be able to make a difference in the lives of this group of children that probably won’t soon forget their morning of toys and fun.

It was a long two weeks working without a break which called for a road trip yesterday!

Tela-Honduras

We got in the van and headed 90 minutes north to Tela to soak up a little bit of sun and to get some sand between our toes.  The Ensanada Beach Resort was almost empty.  I’m not sure if it was due to the weather or the holiday, but we had the place almost to ourselves.  After a drink in the Sunset Bar, a few of us headed to the beach and relaxed for the day.

Lounging-at-the-Beach

I spent some of my time pulled up to the water and some of it lying comfortably in a hammock under the pine and palm trees.

It was good to know that no matter how hard you slept, there was someone watching to be sure you were safe.  Ok, for those of you out there wringing your hands with worry, it never felt unsafe, I think it’s great that there are people there to keep the hawkers away and to make you feel comfortable falling asleep with your things a bit out of reach.  You know how beaches can sometimes be with hawkers waiting to pounce on a tourist, ready to offer them local handcrafts or maybe a hair braiding session.  There was none of that here.  It was an untouched beach.

Guarding-the-Beach

Beautiful-Flower

The rain couldn’t stop the flowers from being beautiful.

Beach-Transportation

Santa-Comes-to-Town

I’m not going to leave you with this cheesy shot of Santa lounging at the beach.  I wouldn’t do that to you.  This is a food blog, after all.

Garlic-Cutting

Señor Bender made dinner for us.  We weren’t really allowed to offer much help, but I have to admit, I am the same way in the kitchen.  I always thought it was because I haven’t been trained how to delegate in a busy kitchen, but perhaps I have it all wrong.  Maybe I truly am a control freak that doesn’t want to take any chances with someone screwing up my work and having the meal end in failure.

Putanesca-Sauce

No matter,  I was happy to be there attempting to offer help while Bender made us a spectacular Pasta Putanesca and a rich and creamy Tiramisu.  I sure am glad he trained in Italy!  I needed something with a tomato-y, oliv-y, spicy-y kick.

Plated-Pasta-Putanesca

And I have to say, it was the best meal I’ve had since I’ve been here.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love all the tortillas and a good dose of Power Chicken makes me smile, but sitting down to a home cooked meal with friends and not having to work through the translation to order properly provided for an incredibly relaxing meal.  And what a great way to celebrate Christmas Eve in a new home.

Tonight it’s my turn!  A home-y Hanukkah meal — Brisket, Potato Latkes and Spinach Salad.  Yumm-y!   The last time I had this meal was a year ago.    I had no idea what I was doing with a camera in the kitchen, but I’ll put up some shots that should be more inviting later in the week with a Hanukkah post.

I didn’t make the dish so I don’t have the exact measurements or the recipe, but it’s easy to find online.  I found a recipe at the Weight Watchers site (for members) and the 4 serving Points Plus Value with 8 ounces of uncooked whole wheat pasta is 8.  A perfect count for a delicious and satisfying meal.

I wish you all the best and hope this holiday season is an outstanding one!

Filed Under: All, All Posts Tagged With: Beach, Christmas, Community, Cook, Ensanada Beach Resort, Food, Holiday, Honduras, Weight Watchers
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