ICS Honduras

For International Volunteer Day, on 5 December, our ICS volunteers in Honduras wrote a series of blogs reflecting on their experience and the importance of volunteering. 

To be honest with you, that saying has always baffled me. I have been a qualified teacher for just over two years now and I know with absolute certainty that it wasn’t written by a teacher. Nor could it have been written by someone who was friends with or related to a teacher for that matter. It shows a very clear viewpoint that teaching is a bit of an easy career.

There was recently a BBC programme aired named ‘World’s Worst Place to be a Woman?’, set in Honduras. It depicted a shocking Honduras to the British public: the highest femicide rate in the world, the situation worsening as in the last decade the murder rate of women has trebled, and close to zero support for women fleeing violent situations.

Culture and religion together define the key dimensional aspects that influence society, setting up behaviours within the community. Malawi is not an exception to this predicament as the laws, beliefs and experiences tend to revolve around these spheres.

Host families - A home away from home

Ever since we arrived in El Carrizal just over four weeks ago, we have been holding three weekly English classes with the local school, the national volunteers and the local community. They have been very well received as the English language is a sought after skill in Honduras, yet hardly anybody in El Carrizal can speak it.

Due to the low wages/job instability across Honduras many people aspire to emigrate to the United States in order to earn more money and secure a more stable life for their families. Therefore, English is a very useful language to learn.

1. Hola, Hello, Buenos Días!

The people of El Carrizal are some of the friendliest you’ll ever meet. Whether you know them or not, or you’ve just seen them 10 minutes ago, greeting with a friendly Buenos Días is a must everytime! We feel very far away from the sullen silence of the London underground here and it’s brilliant. 

2. Tortillas, Tortillas, Tortillas!

A vital part of the ICS experience is the cultural exchange between the UK and national volunteers. What better way to learn about the intricacies of a culture than to spend three months working with the locals? In order to squeeze the most out of this opportunity we decided to arrange a weekly session during our lunchbreak, where the two groups of volunteers can take turns to showcase something from their culture, from the Beatles to Baleadas! 

As soon as we touched down in the hazy Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa we were whisked off into the mountains for a week of in-country orientation, training, informative talks from guest speakers and tons of training with our fellow British and Honduran volunteers. 

Despite having lived and worked in Honduras for nearly a month now, one thing that hasn't changed for us UK volunteers is the weather being a constant source of conversation matter. While our first week was relatively boring weather-conversation wise - it being gorgeously warm most days in Tegucigalpa - upon arrival in La Esperanza (famously the coolest place in all of Honduras due to its high altitude) the weather has been much more up and down.