Internet Cafe

So we left at 3:15 this morning. Terribly early, but amazingly close to what we were aiming for!

We then drove about 5 hours to the border. Immigracion wasn´t too bad, two dollar fee here, three dollar fee there, and they were real genuine official fees. Marlon and Maricela´s kids were different. It took just under two hours for them to deal with the run around and it was pretty expensive too. Then once we got to Tegucigalpa, Maricela went to immigracion and finished tying up the loose ends that remained. I was really glad my visa was straightforward, a little weird (a 5 day visa?), but fine for what I need it for.

Part of the issue is that Dulce Maria (5 years old) and Ashley (4 months) were both born in the States, so they both have US passports. It reminded me of a friend back at the NPHI offices in Cuernavaca. He is from Holland, his wife is from Haiti, but had residency in the US. Her two kids were born in the US, so they have US citizenship and their latest was born in Mexico, so she has dual Mexican and Dutch citizenship. Makes me glad I just have me! It also makes me incredibly grateful for my US citizenship.

I remember when a friend I had met in South Africa was trying to come to the US to run a marathon. I had gotten into his country very easily and here he was, an accountant living in London and because of his South African visa, he couldn´t get into the US! I really take for granted the incredible freedom I have in travel. When I am thinking about where in the world I´d like to go, it doesn´t even occur to me to wonder if I´d be allowed in.

The rest of the afternoon has been spend napping, working and watching TV in English (but with Spanish subtitles!). I´m currently at a nearby Internet Cafe with Maricela´s little brother and another friend from Nicaragua. I´ll head over to the NPH ranch nearby tomorrow. Hopefully I can spell well today because spellcheck isn´t working on this computer!