The alarm rang at 7:30 I think. I wrapped the library book in a plastic bag and put it inside a ziplock bag. In the shower it made a nice wedge for my left heel to support the ankle. After our shower we got dressed and met the others in the lobby. Our guide met us there and walked us to a nearby restaurant for breakfast. I got a typical Honduran breakfast of chicken, cheese, butter, beans, rice, avocado, and plantain. We walked back to the hotel. Jaime went to her room. The guide arranged a tuktuk to take three of us and himself to see the ruins. There were some nice t-shirts in the gift shop but I figured that was not the best place to buy one. The price of the ticket depended on what you wanted to see. I wish I had known ahead of time so I could think about it and maybe look it up online. We paid only for the ruins, not for either of the museums or the tunnels. With my ankle in dubious shape, I thought we could always buy more tickets if I still wanted to see the museums or the tunnel. On the walk to the ruins, we passed a colorful macaw. There were other birds high up in the trees.
Initially the site looked like a football field. But past the pyramid were more structures. The pyramids were burial places and past that were the royal living quarters.
A lot of what we saw was like a giant puzzle pieced together with the stones they have found so far. I think someday there will be an app to scan all the rocks and fit them together as they used to be. There was a gladiatorial arena for fighting panthers. The field we initially saw was for soccer. The winner got his head cut off so he could win again in the next life. It was a lot of walking and climbing so we did not see the museum. At one point, my camera memory got full so I had to switch to Chris' camera. We stopped by a nearby souvenir shop where I got a t-shirt, but not as nice as the one in the gift shop. The tuktuk took us back to the hotel, a ride of about 5 minutes. We met those who hadn't gone along and walked down the street to some souvenir shops. I got a jade copy of the medicine god. In the other shop I got a green t-shirt. Then we went to lunch at the place we ate supper at yesterday. I ordered a cheese sandwich plate. It came with french fries. I scraped the bread off and gave it to Chris. I gave my french fries to John who gave me his avocado. The food prep took so long that we were afraid we might not make our 1:30 appt for the hot springs but we were pretty close. A 4x4 truck picked us up at the hotel.
The two young guys in our group rode in back. I felt sorry for them because the road was all dirt and ruts. The 18 mile windy road took us 45 minutes. We passed cattle, dogs, people, a pig, and fields of corn planted on hillsides. Our guide brought his son along to help watch us. Apparently his family owned the hot springs, too. There were two pools, but they were two cool for me. So he took us into the woods to where hot water from underground made its way down through seven pools, cooling off as it went. We walked over a rope bridge, and through a rock tunnel with skull faces in the wall to get there. Also, they had cold water piped in to keep the top pool from being scalding hot. Areas marked in red were too hot to touch. There was a natural hot shower and a cold one. I sat in the second pool, enjoying the heat. Chris came with me and we talked to a German American travel agent on holiday. It started to rain. That bothered her more than it did us. But my shoes and clothes got wet. The rocks were slippery and I was afraid to walk barefoot because of parasites. With a bum ankle and slip-on shoes, it was precarious. At last I went to the bottom spring which had a carved rock container of special mud. The water wasn't as hot.
I rubbed the mud on my arms, legs and feet. In hindsight I wish I had done my face, too. The mud was slightly scratchy and made my skin feel smooth. The guide came to tell us supper was almost ready. I washed off the mud and got out. We went back through the tunnel and over the swaying bridge. I put my damp clothes on over my bathing suit as that was the best choice available. We were seated at a table under a roof. We were brought plates of food including beef or chicken as we had been asked when we came in.
There was also cheese, butter, avocado, rice, beans, and tortillas. Nearby was a chicken pen where you can actually pick the chicken you want to eat, like picking a lobster. In front of the chicken pen was a laundry line. The first thing on the line was a yo-yo quilt. When we finished eating, the guide brought me ice for my ankle. He said he had to send out for it. Then we all made a pit stop, and then piled in the 4x4. Since it had rained, the road was even worse. The German American lady came in a van and we figured we'd see it mired somewhere along the road. But we didn't. We crept along through puddles and streams, driving around ruts and washouts, and sharing the road with oncoming traffic (in the dark no less). I was glad when we made it back to the hotel.
We hung up our wet stuff and retired to the bed, each of us with a book. It was so pleasant that I just read until my eyes closed. Chris turned off the lights and we went to sleep.
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