Cervezas

From time to time, I want to post what I consider to be vital info for the visitor to Honduras. One such topic is Honduran beer. I used to poo-poo Honduran beer because I found the quality to be very inconsistent. Instead, I used to buy Heineken, the real stuff imported from Holland. It was a real bargain compared to the States. A bottle of Heineken was normally only $1.50-$1.80 in a restaurant. But now things have changed. The Cerveceria Hondurena was bought a few years ago by SABMiller, and the quality has markedly improved. At the same time, Heineken is no longer imported from Holland and is now imported from Costa Rica where it is bottle under license. One swallow and you will know its not the 'real' thing.

So now I proudly drink Honduran beer. In general Honduran beers are quite light and contain 4.5% - 5% alcohol.

What are the local brews? Here's my take on the Honduran brands:

Barena- Think Honduran Corona. It's in a clear, transparent bottle with a light flavor and very easy to drink.

Port Royal- Think Honduran Michelob. The namesake comes from Roatan. It's a cold filtered beer, and the one most people are familiar with since it's the one that's exported. This is considered the Honduran quality beer

Salva Vida- Think Honduran Budweiser. It's a very light tasting beer. Personally, I find it has very little flavor, but then I don't think Budweiser has any flavor either. This is probably the most popular Honduran beer.

Imperial- Think Honduran Heineken. This is a pilsner style beer with a little more intense flavor. This classic formula has been brewed since 1930, and is sometimes considered Tegucigalpa beer. While all the beers are brewed in San Pedro Sula, Imperial is more widely distributed in the capital.

Imperial is my personal preference, but when its not available I drink Port Royal.

Finally, beer in Honduras is quite a bargain, generally selling for about 20-30 lemperas ($1.00- $1.50). With prices like this, one can afford to, as they say in New Orleans, 'laissez les bons temps roulez!'

Incredible or Incredulous? Only in Honduras!!

My wife invited her mother and aunt out for lunch one day last week to 'La Creperia' (reviewed in blog post of Nov. 29). My wife and I had really enjoyed the place and she wanted to share it with her mom and aunt. This restaurant was one of Don Godo's favorites, but no more. My mother in law ordered a sandwich and later asked the waiter to bring her some mustard. Everyone enjoyed their lunch. Incredibly, and beyond their wildest dreams, when the bill came, there was a 20 lempera charge for the mustard! That's $1.05 for mustard served as condiment for a sandwich!! Hello, Tegucigalpa isn't Paris or Tokyo...

My wife, her mom and aunt incredulously looked at the waiter and then proceeded to tell him their thoughts on the subject. He explained that the mustard was an additional service, not included on the menu, and the restaurant policy was to charge an extra 'service charge'.

Needless to say, my family will never patronize 'La Creperia' again. I'm just glad that they didn't order ketchup and mayonnaise as well!!

Well... I guess that's Honduras Living!

Water

The dry season is here!! For the past 2 months we have been trying to get running water in our property in Valle de Angeles. We had to determine where we wanted spigots (for watering the yard); place all the pvc tubes needed to run the water; build a brick shed to protect the pump and tank for the cistern; have iron doors made for the shed and get the ENEE (the electric company) to hook up the electricity. After everything was said and done and exactly 3 days before we had the pump installed, someone broke into the property and stole the electric cables and spigots . Everything for a grand total of Lps. 1,500 (about $75!!!!) The damages are almost twice as much as what they took, go figure.... Here is a piece of advice: Put up a fence. A tall fence.

We had the average wooden posts with 3 lines of barb wire. It was rustic and was there more as a way of defining the property line as opposed to security - Valle is very safe. Now we are in the process of building a security fence before we install the pump and tank. About a week ago, the newspaper had a story about a man that went around stealing electric cables in Valle. In his last robery, he made a mistake while cutting the cable. Needless to say, he is not with us anymore....

Get Involved!! or at least, Make a Difference!!

Anybody that has ever visited Honduras knows it's a very poor country with a lot of problems and needs. For me, it's especially troubling to see young children living in abject poverty with no hope for a better life. If these children could somehow get an education, they will have hope for the future. Touching the life of just one child impacts the life of an entire family.

If you are reading this blog, then I know that you have an interest in Honduras and its future. So I want to encourage you, no, I challenge you, to sponsor just one child on a monthly basis. Its not expensive, $25.$35. per month. Collectively, just imagine how many lives could be made brighter!!

Below are links to some charitable organizations in Honduras. Check them out and help make 2007 a year of promise for some needy children. You'll be glad you did!

Bilingual Education for Central America
www.becaschools.org

Helping Honduras Kids
www.helpinghonduraskids.org

Olancho Aid Foundation
www.olanchoaid.org

Trujillo Christian School
www.trujillocs.org

World Gospel Outreach
www.wgoreach.org

The above list is by no means comprehensive. If you know of a worthy organization that is not mentioned, please feel free to list it in my comments section.

Regardless of each of our own personal circumstances, we are all more fortunate than the poor children in Honduras. So please take a few moments and reflect on what you are able to do, and then do it!!

Health Insurance

My wife and children just got health insurance. They opted for one provided by the Honduras Medical Center. You can only get service at this hospital and one in San Pedro Sula, which is fine with us, since these are the most advanced hospitals right now. The cost for both of my kids is Lps. 330 /month for each one and for my wife Lps. 625/month. Any person over 45 is charged Lps. 985/month and needs to get an extensive physical test done. All others are exempt. The cost of the test is Lps. 1,500. For the first 3 months you are only covered if you have an emergency. From months 3-12 you are covered for routine doctor visits. After the first year you are covered for pretty much any disease that was not pre-existent, except diabetes, which is covered if it is diagnosed after the 2nd year. Then, you are pretty much covered for any treatment if it is available in Honduras. You pay Lps. 100 per doctors visit (usually about Lps 500) and then you get a 60% discount on lab work and medications.

One drawback is that you are automatically dropped from coverage when you turn 75.

Tegucigalpa Restaurants

El Patio, ($$/***, Blvd. Morazan), Typical Honduran Cuisine. If you want typical Honduran food, this is the place to go!!. The restaurant is open-air, so avoid cold days. All the dinners come with 'anafres'. I recommend the 'pinchos'.

Furiwa, ($$$/***, Bvld. Juan Pablo II, tel. 239.1396/239.1349), One of the better Chinese restaurants, with huge portions. A Taiwanese diplomat told a friend that this is his favorite Chinese restaurant outside of Taiwan. I'm not sure it's that good, but it's where we always go when we want to eat Chinese. The restaurant is large, with a children's play area, and very clean!

Gourmet Grill, ($$$/**, Col. Palmira paseo Rep. de Argentina, Edificio Bakery Center, tel. 235.7137), American diner-style food. American style breakfasts, sandwiches, burgers, entrees. My son devours the linguini with mussels ($6.50). We ate there on Thanksgiving day, and sure enough their daily special was turkey with dressing and cranberry sauce. When you have a craving for American food, but are tired of the franchise places, Gourmet Grill hits the spot!

NEW YAHOO HONDURAS LIVING GROUP!!!

My friend and fellow blogger, La Gringa (please see link on right hand side), has created a new Yahoo group aptly named "Honduras Living". La Gringa and myself are the moderators.

The group is intended as a discussion forum for all of you who are interested in moving to, retiring in, investing in, or simply vacationing in Honduras. All are welcome, whether expats or 'Catrachos'. We hope this will become the 'go to' spot for exchanging information, ideas, candid comments, experiences, and reviews regarding Honduras. We hope the questions, comments and information will cover the broadest range of topics from residency to restaurants, from where to go and what to see, to what and where to avoid.

Please keep your posts commercial free.

If you are interested, please join. There is a link on the right hand side.

We look forward to a lively conversation that will benefit all.