Adventures in La Ceiba: Part 1

Allison and I went into town Sunday to do a little exploring. It was raining cats and dogs on the bus ride down the mountain but we were determined to get our feet wet...literally...in La Ceiba. We were headed for Cafeteria Cobel, a restaurant that is renound in the Williams family for baleadas - tortillas with beans, eggs & cheese.

Once the bus stopped at the terminal de buses we were off. Armed with our umbrellas, rain jackets and limpieras (Honduran currency) we braved the weather for a couple of burittos. After about 20 minutes of walking on a very muddy street, in the pouring rain we laughed out loud at the fact that it only costs $1US to take a taxi! Haha, it was too late now though...we were in too deep.

We finally navigated the streets of down town La Ceiba to end up at Cafteria Cobel. It was a beautiful sight. I could almost taste the food and I had been dreaming about a warm cup of coffee for about 6 blocks. As we approached the building, I noticed something dreadfully wrong...the metal security doors were closed and there was a sign hanging in the window that said cerrar, closed. Noooooo!!!

I am sure we were quite a sight to the locals! All dripping wet standing outside of what was to be our haven from the rain. Luckily Allison and I can't be stopped. We walked 20 feet to the left and found a nice dry spot to rest and bought some baleadas from a street vendor for 14 limps a pop (about .60US). We ate till we were stuffed and talked with the owner who kept asking is we were Swiss...haha...2 very tall and very blonde, by Honduran standards, women in rain gear treking all over town for a bean burrito. haha

After breakfast we headed tp the market to investigate what $8US would buy us there. We kept seeing these carts piled high with what looked like bright red and orange hairballs.

After like the 10 cart Allison asked the vendor what they were. He replied "leechas" like we should have known that. Since that didn't get us any closer to knowing what it was we asked, "How do you eat it?" and he cut one open for us... They look like peeled grapes but they taste amazing! You just pop them out of the peel and put the whole thing in your mouth. There is a big pit in the middle so you have to be careful not to bite right through it. They taste kind of like grapes and srtawberries combined. Muy rica, and only 20 limps a bag ($1US).

Next stop on our list was Patty's Juices. We were determined to try some fresh fruit juice and Allison's guide book said there were two locations in downtown La Ceiba. We scoured the market and surrounding area but there was no sign of Patty and her elusive juice. We stoped and asked a girl if she had heard of the place. We got a very questionable look and she pointed us around the corner and said there was a place called "yampalla" pretty close. So off we were, still in search of fresh squeezed fruit juice. We rounded the corner, made the block and doubled back but still no sign of the place. We asked another woman who pointed us across the street to "The Pallace Chinese Buttfet" and we were like "no way, this is crazy! we are looking for juice." After a few minutes of verbal banter an English speaking man can up and asked us what we were trying to find, we told him..."yampalla, a place for fresh juice." He smiled...looked up and away like he was searching his brain, finally he laughed and said "Champla, it's right around the corner."

Finally, juice was within drinking distance! We turned the corner and to our dismay...Champla was closed! Drat! Foiled again. We were down 2, and this meant we needed reinforcements. We called Heidi, a girl from Norway that we met at a bible study in town, and she came to the rescue. She took us to a bakery where I got the orange muffin that the ants later attacked me for (bead bug wars). Allison got her juice and we got to dry off inside and get to know Hiedi a little better.

It was cool to get into the city for a bit and spread our wings. I have learned 2 very important lessons...there is very little to do in La Ceiba on a Sunday, and when it is raining take a taxi cause it is only $1US!

We will definately be back to try out Cafeteria Cobel and Champla Juices, but we are going to wait for a sunny day that is not a Sunday! I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as Allison and I enjoyed laughing about it on the way back up the mountain. Love you guys!