There's been a lot of stuff in the press during the debate over the stimulus plan about our aging/crumbling infrastructure in the U.S. Maybe it really is in bad shape, and maybe I'm not the person to say. But I have now seen crumbling infrastructure up close and personal, and by comparison ours looks pretty doggone good.
In fact, I am saying a little prayer of thanksgiving for the blessing of our great infrastructure that is so invisible to us. We really don't understand how good we have it some very basic ways. So let me briefly catalog some things we can be glad we don't have to deal with.
And don't get me wrong, this is not a knock on the country, people, or government of Honduras. It's a developing country with a lot of pressing problems and not a lot of money to solve them. Luis mentioned to us that people come there all the time acting like Honduras is the ecological equivalent of Chernobyl, and it's not.
But here is a short list of things I noticed, and why I am thankful.
Roads -- to be honest, the roads are better in Honduras than I expected them to be, but that does not mean they have a great road system. The typical Honduran highway we saw was about three lanes wide, with no lane dividers. Traffic signs are almost non-existent -- speed limit signs only in towns, no signs indicating how far it is to the next town, inconsistent signage on how to get from Point A to Point B, etc. In places there were areas of extensive potholes, and in a couple of places the road had completely washed out and was just gravel and dirt for 100 meters or more. The bottom line is that getting around can be s-l-o-w: the trip from the San Pedro Sula to Santa Rosa de Copan is about 160 km or 100 miles. It took us about 3 1/2 hours.
Effectively there is no enforcement of traffic laws. Sure, the Policia Nacional set up checkpoints randomly, but it's not at all clear what they're looking for, and it's definitely not speeders. People drive insanely, particularly when it comes to passing, and unfortunately a lot of people die as a result. We even saw the aftermath of one fatal accident. I told the team it was just better not to watch when we were passing somebody. We here in the States can complain about speed traps and the like, but today I am thankful we have excellent roads and decent enforcement of traffic laws.
Water -- Everybody knows you can't drink the water. What does that mean? It means that you always need to be acquiring agua purificada -- purified water -- which I imagine is a big business. You can't use tap water to clean your food or make ice. When you take a shower you have to be careful not to swallow any, and you can't even rinse off your toothbrush with it. At Shimishal where we were building, the city supplies water by truck once every three days. People store water in black plastic cisterns on their roofs that double as solar water heaters. You can certainly live this way and live well, but it is inconvenient to say the least. I've been thankful since we got back that I can drink straight from the tap here.
Sewer -- Related to the water issues are the issues with the sewage system. Flush toilets are everywhere, so it's not like you're camping or anything. Occasionally you come across a toilet that has to be flushed by pouring in water from a bucket, but that's no big deal. However the only things that can go in the toilet are water and human waste. Every bathroom has a little trash can next to the toilet for your toilet paper. It's not as gross as it sounds, but it is an adjustment.
Electricity -- There apparently is no electrical code in Honduras, and if there is, it must be either very basic or not enforced. If you look carefully, you see a lot of things that would just never fly in the States. Looking up at the telephone poles carrying the power lines in Santa Rosa, you can see literally dozens of lines on each pole, almost like every house has its own line from the power station. At the Red Frog Tavern in Copan Ruinas, there was a bundle of power lines about a foot off the railing of the balcony. The wiring from the poles to the houses and within the houses (Habitat houses excluded) is equally dodgy. And at our hotel in Copan Ruinas, hot water was supplied by devices affectionately known as "widowmakers" -- on demand water heaters at the shower head. What looked like a 220V line came out of the wall and ran along the pipe to the shower head. The line was connected to the widowmaker using twisted wire and electrician's tape. Also, the power went out twice while we were in Copan Ruinas, and the impression I got was that it was a regular occurrence. Probably somebody taking a shower. ;-)
Solid waste disposal -- Garbage collection as a service or even a concept does not seem to be widely known or practiced. There is no sanitary landfill. You have to arrange for the disposal of your own basura (garbage), and a lot of it gets burned -- plastic, paper, batteries, cans, bottles, whatever -- and sometimes in unlikely places like along the side of the road. Most of Honduras is truly beautiful, and even pristine looking, but parts of San Pedro Sula, Santa Rosa, and even the small towns and individual houses had lots of litter around them.
So as you go through your day today, be aware of and thankful for the many BASIC services we have here that improve our health and quality of life, and remember that it's just not like that in many parts of the world.
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