Latin American Lifestyle and Art (LALA): Gracias and La Campa, Honduras

I’m sitting on the terrace of Hotel Guancascos looking down at the town of Gracias, Lempira. I’m sipping an icy cold licuado sandia (watermelon blended with ice in a tall glass). The setting sun is turning the hills a dusky pink and sends intermittent flashes of gold off the white stucco of the church (as though someone was sending a secret message in morse code). Its hot, dry and dusty. I’m filthy, sweaty, tired and (after two watermelon juices still) trying to scrape the fine white road dust off my teeth. I am reflecting on my good fortune and I feel very happy. Very tired and very happy.

For example, I consider myself very fortunate to have Allan as my travel companion and that we hatched up this road trip plan at the last minute (avoiding what I’m now sure would have been 12 very uncomfortable hours on buses). I am one lucky girl that Ford produced a truck such as the Ranger Diesel Turbo, that kicks arse on the most crappy roads imaginable (and that the good folks at Econo Car Rental in Tegus tactfully steered me away from trying so save $20 a day with an Economy Class Kia Piconto – very lucky). But what’s really making me deeply happy right now is the absolutely gorgeous Lenca pottery that I saw in La Campa late this afternoon. And the thought that tomorrow morning I can go back and choose a whole lot of the lovely stuff for LALA.

Who are the Lenca (you may be asking yourself)? They are an indigenous people of Central America, thought to have inhabited southwestern Honduras and eastern El Salvador for at least 3,000 years. Across the regions of Lenca occupation, Lenca pottery has always been very distinguishable. Handcrafted by Lenca women, it is considered an ethnic marking of their culture. Traditional Lenca pottery crafted by skilled artisans can still be found in the town of Gracias (where I am staying) and most notably in the small village of La Campa (about 18 kms from Gracia on an extremely rough dirt road).

This beautiful and remote location, which all things considered is difficult and expensive to get to, has rewarded our efforts with an abundance of beautiful red clay pottery. To my dusty tired eyes it was a bit overwhelming and too much to take in at the late hour we arrived. The impression I have now back at the hotel is the simple perfection of form coupled with strength and practicality could be why the design of this pottery and the method of producing it remained unchanged for thousands of years. Tomorrow morning I will return, refreshed, to watch the Lenca craftswomen at work before selecting my pieces. I plan to buy as much as I can carry so I don’t have to make this trip again for a good long while (despite the stunning scenery). I will do my best to document everything.

For now though, I can barely keep my eyes open and as soon as I have my last sip of (delightfully bitter) hot chocolate I am off to bed, dreams of red pottery running through my head. Good night to you all xx

P.S. A Few Notes on Travel to Gracias

Gracias is in a pretty remote part of Honduras. I knew that from the get go. However it feels a whole lot more remote now after actually managing to get here. Not counting the (thoroughly enjoyable) hour spent over a late breakfast in the lovely Spanish-colonial town of Comayagua, the 300km journey between Tegucigalpa took us 7 hours driving. The road quality deteriorated rapidly about 40kms outside of Tegus and at one time, just as we left the town of La Esperanza, it disappeared completely leaving us driving in bewildered circles through treacherous rocky terrain trying to pick up the unpaved trail again. We have traversed mountain ranges and forded rivers. Gracias a dios for the Ford Ranger with its 4-wheel drive, off-road suspension and turbo diesel engine.

It is possible to travel from Tegucigalpa to Gracias by bus….. apparently. There were many stretches of road where we marveled to be getting through and I imagine a bus would have greater difficulty. The deterioration of the road, in addition to the increasing number of hitchhikers, as we approached Gracias made me think the bus route may not particularly well serviced at the moment. But I have spoken to people who have done it in the past and they say it is slow but possible. You can take "Bus Carolina" from Tegucigalpa to La Esperanza. There you switch buses for direct service to Gracias. Between Gracias and La Campa there should be chicken buses running approx 5 times per day. There is no fixed schedule. Total travel time from La Campa to Tegus is approx 10 hours. For my purposed, there is an alternate route from San Pedro Sula through Santa Rosa de Copan and seems much better serviced. I plan to come from this direction next time.

Once in Gracias I can highly recommend Hotel Guancascos. The rooms are lovely (very clean!) as is the restaurant on the terrace high up overlooking the town. The cost of a single room for single occupation is approx. $20 per night. The free wifi is very fast and quite reliable.