The Market

September 18th 2009 9:30pm

Around 6:30am, my phone rang. Freddy was on the other line and he let me know that due to the difficulties with the payment process that half of the office was not going to be there, but that he was going for half a day, and I was welcome to join.

On our way to work, Freddy explained that the checks came from a Swedish company, and that they were sent to the wrong bank in Honduras, so they had to be sent back. No one at the CCD has been paid in a month, and they are usually payed bi-weekly.

Patty, Elmer, Marisela, and Heidy were all absent today.

By 11:30, I had finished what I needed to get done, and Freddy took me to Yasmine's house where we hung out for a little bit before I was dropped off at my apartment. I made myself a quick lunch and then got down to studying my Spanish and reviewing my lesson plan tomorrow. Because Marisela was not in the office all week, I was unable to have her help me review my translation.

After I got done, I took a nap, and awoke to another phone call. This time it was Marisela, letting me know that she was picking up her daughter at a school close to Plaza. She asked if I wanted to meet her there to go over the lesson plan. I of course said yes, and went off to meet her.

When the frustrating session of seemingly endless correction finally concluded, Marisela told me that a friend was able to loan her some money so that she could go to the market today. She asked if I wanted to join, and I didn't have any other plans and had never been to the market, so I decided to go with her and her daughter to the market.

The market is huge. It is located down by the stadium, and is an enormous parking lot filled with booths of vegetables, fruits, tortillas, fish, meat, any sort of food product imaginable. I wish that I could have spent some time wandering around, but I was charged with keeping an eye on Mari (Marisela's daughter). We played lots of fun games like "Pick me up-Put me down" and "Lets run around but not when Mom is watching because she told us not to run"

I don't know if it is normal to shop at a market the way that Marisela did, but it seemed to me as though we meandered aimlessly and stopped at random stands and booths to get everything from coconut milk to fresh fish. I spent most of the evening hunched over because the average tarp hung six feet above the ground. It made playing "Picke me up-Put me down" extra challenging at times.

I got back to my apartment around 8:30 and showered before settling down and eating some of my recently purchased foods from the market, including some delicious corn tortillas. I know that you aren't supposed to put crunchy peanut butter on them, but it works.