Simple shopping

 My (not so new anymore) new chair – comfy!

This is another one of those old articles that never got posted. I think this one is a couple of years old.


A few months ago, we made our annual pilgrimage to the big city, San Pedro Sula, thus single handedly improving the economy of Honduras with all of our purchases. ;-)

We always plan to go more often but don't seem to make it for some reason — mostly because a day trip is a real ordeal (about 3 hours each way on a life-threatening highway) and finding someone reliable to stay overnight and take care of the house and animals isn't easy. [The last time we went to SPS, we just missed a tornado, I think. There were fallen trees all over the highway.]

San Pedro Sula, the second largest city and industrial capital of Honduras, gets a bad rap in my opinion. We love it and would go much more often if it wasn't such a long trip. The traffic is kind of bad, but the city is laid out in such a orderly manner that we hardly ever get lost, unlike Tegucigalpa, where we have spent more time lost than not.

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One radish can feed a family

Honduran radishes

I saw these veggies at the grocery store. I thought they were radishes but they were just so big that I had to ask an employee. Sure enough: radishes. I put that normal sized banana on the display to give you an idea of the size.

Have you ever seen radishes this big? What do you do with them? I've never seen them used by anyone I know or served in restaurants, but some people must use them or they wouldn't sell them.

The small common red radishes that we are used to in the US, get very woody if you let them grow too big but maybe these are meant to be that way. Darn! I forgot to weigh one of them. Look below. You can even buy half a radish!

The Chinese are trying to kill us

Chinese Air Sun toothpaste

I asked El Jefe to pick up some toothpaste for me and he brought home the above. Oh, how sweet! He knows I like vanilla or citrus flavors and he found some.

At first glance at the orange area and 'Whitening Expressions', I thought it was a brand that we've bought before. But wait. 'Air Sun'? What kind of name is that for a toothpaste? It sounds more like the name of an airlines. I took a closer look. L. 28.68? (US $1.50) WTH? Toothpaste usually costs around L.100 (US $5.30) here in La Ceiba, Honduras. I thought the price tag was upside down and it was actually L.89. But no, it wasn't. I turned the box over and sure enough − made in China.

"Are you trying to kill me?! Remember all those people who died in Panamá because the Chinese dumped antifreeze laden toothpaste and mouthwash on the people?" "Oh, I didn't know." After making him feel sufficiently guilty, he googled Air Sun and apparently it hasn't killed anyone − yet.

I tried the toothpaste. Yucko! It did taste like lemon, but with an aftertaste of − oh, I don't know − I've never tasted antifreeze, but I imagined that it would taste something like that. Additionally, due to the "soft silicon abrasive", it had the weirdest consistency − maybe like it had a little Ajax scouring powder mixed in. After using it two nights in a row, my gums were sore and I felt that I had successfully removed all of the enamel from my teeth.

The box alone was worth the L.28 just for the laughs, which included gems like these:

Innovation taste
Surprise test
Complete new test for brush teeth
Refresh Breach
Use soft silicon abrasive will decrease wear of teeth
Will prevent oral questions completely
Super Refresh Vigor

Interestingly, there is no list of ingredients either on the box or the tube. I don't think the Chinese can sell items like this in developed countries so they dump them on poor unsuspecting third world countries who think they have found a good bargain.

For shame! I'm still trying to figure out what the "surprise test" is. Surprise! You passed the test: You're not dead.


The following day, El Jefe brought this home and I threw out the enamel-removing toothpaste. See the similiarity in the package?


At L. 115 (US $6.08 plus 12% tax), or about 70% of a day's pay for the average worker, which one do you think most Hondurans will buy?

Missing those favorite foods

Some of those 'nice-to-haves' from San Pedro Sula

One of the things that immigrants worry about when moving to another country is whether they will be able to find their favorite foods.

When I first started grocery shopping here in La Ceiba, Honduras, El Jefe would drop me off and come back a couple of hours later and I'd still only be half-way through the store. There were so many new and strange things. Many had labels in Spanish and I'd struggle to read them and wonder how I would use it or whether I would like it. It was fun, though El Jefe thought I was nuts.

The meats were mostly unidentifiable with names that I didn't recognize, like mano de piedra (hand of rock? or was that mano de pierna - hand of leg?), and cuts that I still don't recognize. Trips to the store were often frustrating because I never seemed to accomplish the list even when visiting both of the large grocery stores. Oddly enough, sometimes both stores would be out of exotic items like sugar, flour, lemons, tea bags, or our Honduran brand of coffee.

But the surprising thing to me is that a lot of the things that I thought I would miss, I really don't. Maybe I did at first, I can't remember now. Some essential things, like good bread, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, and good yogurt, I now make my own or at least a close approximation.

Just as you can find Asian or Latino markets in much of the US, we have our own import stores here in La Ceiba. Fiesta and D'Todo carry a lot of gringo favorites Both stores have expanded recently so I guess there is a big market for that kind of thing. The shoppers are not only gringos, that's for sure.

Some of the missed things may surprise you

I'll sheepishly admit that I've always been a McDonald's quarter-pounder fan. La Ceiba doesn't have a McDonald's and I felt deprived. On the rare occasions that we went to San Pedro Sula, we HAD to go to McDonald's. Sadly, either Honduran McDonalds are not up-to-snuff or my tastes have changed. It was so disappointing that we don't even bother to go there any more.

Some of the things that I missed in the beginning are the strangest things − foods that most people would never think about missing. I never thought I would miss them but I did.

Tuna sandwiches and dill relish. Oh, we have tuna here but for the first 4 years all I could find was tuna mush packed in oil. I'm a tunafish snob and have to have solid white tuna packed in water. I tried to adapt and tried some of the cheaper ones. Yuck. I told El Jefe they looked like pre-chewed tuna.

After a few years, one of the gas stations started sporadically selling the 'good' tuna. We would feel like we'd struck gold and stock up buying 8 or 10 cans at a time. The price was like gold, too. Now, seven years later, good tuna can be found most of the time and I've lost interest. Don't need it anymore. Baleadas are the new tuna sandwiches for me.

Dill relish is a rarity in La Ceiba. A variety of brands of sweet relish can always be had. In the first 5 years, I found dill relish twice (an apparent ordering error on the part of the store owners) and foolishly did not stock up. Now it is a permanent entry on my San Pedro shopping list, where dill relish apparently is not outlawed. I don't use a lot of relish (tartar sauce, hot dogs, and tuna sandwiches), so 2 or 3 jars usually last a year.

When you finally find it

Since the CAFTA treaty was signed (whether this is a coincidence or not, I really don't know), we began seeing more US food products. That's nice, but sometimes they just seem so expensive that I don't buy them. Other times I'm happy to see whatever it is and buy it, but it isn't like I've been pining away for it.

But when you finally find something you missed − MmmMmmMmm − it is better than ever! You enjoy it all that much more.

We make the occasional trip to San Pedro Sula and Pricesmart where we are able to find tender steaks and a larger variety of spices. We've found a meat market in La Ceiba (Piara) which has better meat and will cut to order. We also occasionally ask a friend to bring some spices or other things that would be nice to have.

I'm sitting here trying to think of what food items I really, really miss and oddly, I can't think of anything right now.

When a cup is not a cup

When is a cup not a cup?

When the measuring cup is made in China!

I broke the handle off my old 4-cup plastic measuring cup. I used this large one quite a bit, to measure beans or pasta and to mix up liquid ingredients so I had to get a replacement right away.

I bought this one at Paiz grocery store. They actually had two different styles which appeared so different in size that I was a little suspicious about their accuracy from the beginning.

One day I was trying to figure out how to mark the measurements on my rain gauge. I discovered that the glass container isn't completely level on the inside bottom − something I didn't notice when I bought it. :-/ I was thinking that if I could figure a standard measurement for an inch of rain, I could pour that amount in and mark a line for the first inch, half inch, etc.

Like, for example, if I determined that one cup of water added exactly an inch to the container at a higher level, I could pour in one cup and mark that first line even if it measured more or less than an inch with the ruler. After the first inch, an inch of liquid is an inch of rain. Does that make any sense? I'm probably not explaining it very well. Theoretically, I think it SHOULD work since the sides of the container are perfectly vertical.

Anyway, I played and played and played with that thing and it never came out the same. I thought I was losing my mind. I would add exactly one inch to the container and then check the measuring cup to see exactly how many cups I added. I tried it over and over again. It never seemed to come out the same.

Finally I checked the accuracy of the new measuring cup by filling it from a Pyrex measuring cup to see if one cup was really one cup. It wasn't! The first cup is actually 1 1/4 cups, while the rest measure exactly one cup each.

Real life shopping conversations

To expand on the previous article about frustrating shopping experiences, I thought I would provide some real life shopping conversations that seem to have been burned into my brain.

Here is an experience in a sewing supply store which illustrates the "20 questions" style of finding what you need. I need a zipper for a cushion cover, so I ask "Do you have a 36" black zipper?"

No. (The no is spoken with a definite period at the end. As if, "end of conversation − period!" and the clerk is looking around for the next customer.)

Do you have a 36" zipper in any color?
No.

Do you have a 32" black zipper?
No. (Again with the period.)

Do you have a 28"?
No. (And starting to act impatient.)

Do you have a 24"? (thinking that was as small as I could possibly go and still be able to shove the cushion inside the cover.)
No.

Me, heartbroken, but thinking maybe I could sew in two zippers, to open at the middle. "Well, what is the longest black zipper that you have?"

30"

"........Uh, okay, I'll take it."

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The "no hay" (there aren't any) style of customer service

Can you help me find crema dulce (sweet cream)?
No. We don't sell it.
Oh, wait. There it is, 60 cartons of it, right behind you.

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Do you have white bathroom caulk?
No.
Oh, look! I see it now, just right there to your left.

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Do you sell xxxxxx?
No.
Oh, how wonderful. Here is the exact one I need on the counter.

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Do you have these blue flip-flops in size 7?
No, but look at these pink high heels in size 5.

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At the non-drug "drug store" Fedco:
When are you going to get some more Tums?
What are Tums?
Explanation that they are antacid pills.
No, we don't sell any medicines here.
But I've bought them here before.
No, you are wrong.
But I know that I've bought them here. Are you not going to sell them anymore?
No. We've never sold sell medicine.
Manager, who overheard the conversation: We should get more Tums next week.

Please, please take my money

I'm finished shopping, here are all my purchases. I'm ready to pay.
"You can't. You have to wait until the cashier comes back.... Uhhh, maybe an hour."

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I'm finished shopping, here are all my purchases. I'm ready to pay.
"You can't. The system is down."

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I'm finished shopping, here are all my purchases. I'm ready to pay.
"You can't pay until the manager comes back. ....Uhhh, I don't know. You could come back tomorrow."

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Thank you for your purchase, but guess what?

Oh, you know those items that you just ordered and paid thousands for? Well, fíjese que*, it turns out that we don't have them after all. You'll have to buy something else because we don't give refunds.

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(Funny story: The first time I went shopping for zippers, I couldn't remember the word in Spanish. I found one on the counter, picked it up and carried it to the clerk. I said in Spanish, "Excuse me. I can't remember. What is this called in Spanish?" He leaned over the counter, and very slowly and carefully enunciated, "Zeee-per." )

* Fíjese que is an expression that means something like "note that ....", or "pay attention that ...." In English, we might say, "Look, ...." or "The truth is that ....". Some people start virtually every sentence with it for some unknown reason, kind of like the English speakers who pepper everything they say with "you know."

I've noticed it is especially used when the thing the person is about to tell you is the exact opposite of what he or she told you earlier. The best translation by a gringa that I ever read was "Look, everything that comes out of my mouth after the words 'fíjese que' is a lie but I really, really want you to believe it." I pay extra attention whenever the words 'fijise que' are thrown into a conversation. ;-)

Honduran business practices

New strip mall, La Ceiba, Honduras

I have never been a shopper. I used to make lists and put it off as long as I could and then would hit 12 stores in one day to get it over with. It's just not something that I particularly enjoyed and even less so now in La Ceiba, Honduras.

It is just so hard to spend money in La Ceiba. Oh, not everywhere, sure. Some stores are nice, well-enough stocked (by Central American standards), and the employees are helpful. But those are the exceptions, not the rule.

More often, you just can't find what you are looking for. If the store is stocked with items to sell, no one knows the price or it's not in the system (if they have a system) so they can't/won't sell it to you. This is not a rare occurrence. It happens All. The. Time. It even happened to me once trying to buy a friggin' candy bar at a gas station. I hadn't had a candy bar in ages, and I was really craving that Almond Joy bar. No one was authorized to 'guess' whether that candy bar cost the same as all the other same-size, same-brand candy bars. So no sale. Tough luck.

The same thing has happened a number of times with very expensive things like furniture as well. You leave your phone number, they promise to call, you take your pile of cash back home with you, and wait for them to call with a price. Futile. It will never happen. Would you believe that we once were ready to spend more than L.100,000 but the business apparently didn't want to waste L.20 to call us back? That is the impression we got anyway.

The Honduran Yahoo groups that I read receive numerous requests for information about various hotels, car rentals, shipping companies, and other businesses. "Have they gone out of business?" "Does anyone have a current phone number or email?" "Why don't they answer my email?" "Is their phone disconnected?" "They don't return my calls!" Yes, it is true that we have our share of electrical/internet/phone disturbances, but when a person says that they have been trying to get in contact for a month, that excuse just doesn't cut it. Do they just not want the business? It kind of seems that way sometimes.

Some businessmen might think that it is a good idea to stock the store with hot-sellers that everyone wants. But what a drag that is! More work, you gotta order more, then you have more work selling the items. Better to just keep the old dusty things on the shelf that no one wants. And then raise the prices on those old things because you aren't making enough profit.

More examples

One hardware store is stocked with a zillion kinds of locks, but has one style that sells like hot cakes. A whole case! Just like that! "When are you going to get more of those?" "We're not. We sold them all."

More than once, I've seen just the thing that I was looking for locked up with all the 'expensive' things in a display case. "I'll take that one, please." "You can't. I don't have the key."

Experience with an electrical store with a branch in La Ceiba and the main store in San Pedro Sula: The style of outlets and switches we want to buy for our home construction are sold in the San Pedro store but not the La Ceiba store. We ask if they could order them for us from San Pedro (2 1/2 hours away). Naturally we'll pay in advance and be completely at your mercy as to when or whether you will actually ever order them or not. We'll gladly pay the shipping cost − even though they will arrive on the store's truck with the weekly stock from San Pedro so it doesn't really cost any more − but that's okay, because that is the politica (policy). This was a high dollar order (around L.25,000 lempiras, as I recall). "Nope. We don't sell that style here in La Ceiba."

Experience with a tile store, same situation, one in La Ceiba, bigger one in San Pedro: Both stores carry the same exact ceramic tile that we want, but the price is 30% higher in La Ceiba. We ask if they (La Ceiba) can do better on the price. No. We point out that we can go to San Pedro and buy the same tile cheaper, including paying for the gas to get there. No. We point out that they'll lose the profit if we buy it in San Pedro. No. That's the politica. So we order the tile by phone from San Pedro, transfer the money (about L.15,000) to San Pedro pay for it, and pick up the tile the next week at the La Ceiba store. We still saved about 25%, even though we had to pay for shipping. Not only that, but the La Ceiba store employees had to unload our items from the delivery truck and load up our car for free.

Does it make good business sense? I think not.

Standard practice when working up restaurant menus is to put every wonderful thing that you've ever eaten on the menu. Also put on the menu all the desserts that you would sell, that is if you were planning on serving desserts, which you aren't. Then buy chuletas, chicken, and bananas and tell everyone "no hay" (there aren't any) when they ask for anything else.

Okay, on the other hand, recently I've seen improvements in service and availability. Lately I've been shopping at a store where one of the clerks treats me like I'm her most valued customer even though I spent a total of maybe $10 there. She remembers my name. She never tires of pulling things out for me to look at. If El Jefe goes, she asks where I am. If I go, she asks where El Jefe is. I ENJOY going to that store! In fact, good, friendly service has paid off − I recently spent thousands there on curtain fabric.

There are a few places − and not coincidentally they are usually owned by non-Ceibeños or are branches of larger San Pedro stores − where the service is everything that you could want or expect in the US and maybe more. Thank God! These places are restoring my faith. I used to just dread shopping anywhere.

I'm hoping that these newer stores will put some pressure on the old-timers to change some of their practices or at least train their employees a little better.

Honestly, I'm not the only gringa who has wondered, "Why doesn't anyone want to take my money? I'm ready to buy!"


Tomorrow: Some real life shopping conversations

La Gringa picks the lemons

Limones indios, small but sweet

I have a real knack for picking out lemons. Not the fruit. You know: the 'lemons'. Those stinkin' products where I could have selected 15 other brands, some even cheaper, but no, I had to have the lemon.

Case in point: My Maytag Neptune washer/dryer combo. Isn't Maytag known for reliability and quality? What about that lonely Maytag repairman that I've seen on TV all my life? Wasn't this one of the most expensive models at the time? Take a look at this report! Is that incredible or what? It was so bad that there was a class action suit against Maytag.

Next example: My gorgeous, very expensive Fisher-Paykel dishwasher that made my life easier...for about 6 months. I now have the most expensive dish DRAINER in the world. The parts are hard to get in the US. Can you imagine getting them here in La Ceiba? We can't even find a hose for it. It turns out that this lovely appliance has some decidedly lemony features as well, like a $400 control board that goes out.

After those two big goofs, I learned my lesson and started researching purchases on the internet. I'm not sure if that helps either.

I ordered a new Logictech wireless mouse a couple of months ago. I really like it...except that the friggin' batteries last four days! How can that be? I turn it off at night. Some of the reviewers said their batteries lasted for months!

Let's not even talk about the stock market. I've been paralyzed with fear watching my stocks go up and down and back up again. Most of my moves have been wrong or at the wrong time, so I just watch it and do nothing.

I'm so jealous when I read reviews that say, "I didn't like it so I took it back." We don't have that luxury here. Virtually no company takes anything back for any reason. You buy it, it's yours, no matter if the darn thing is broken when you bought it. Most companies don't warranty their products outside of the US and Canada, so there is no satisfaction there. Sending something back and forth to the US for warranty service is usually cost prohibitive.

So, now when it comes to buying a new appliance or computer or even a mouse, for God's sake!, I over-evaluate. I read the opinions on Amazon, New Egg, Shopping.com, and every other site I can find. Even though a product can get tons of rave reviews, it seems that there are always some who say "It's crap. Don't buy it." which just adds to my confusion.

I don't trust my judgment at all anymore. Sometimes I really think that if my inclination is to buy Product A, I should actually buy Product B just because I'm usually wrong.

I probably still would not have my new laptop if a nice computer geek hadn't written me to recommend one (Toshiba) and a place to buy it. And even then, there were six Toshiba models in my price range, so I sent him the list and asked him "which one?"

I'm driving El Jefe crazy. It's just that purchase decisions in the US are provisional − you can change your mind, but here in Honduras, they are so permanent!

You get what you pay for

Spiffy new flip-flops
Not so spiffy crooked toes ;-0

We were out one night after Carnaval was over, but the achines* (street vendors) were still there. I needed a pair of flip-flops so we stopped to take a look at one vendor's stall. The selection was pretty shabby − everything from China, I think, and their extra special quality for the third-world to boot. I only found one decent pair in my size: Those sparkly, spangly ones in the photo above.

The price was right. I took that photo a few weeks ago to brag to you about spending L.20 (US $1.06) for a pair of flip-flops. Hah! The joke was on me. The shoes actually cost a dollar per day, because that is exactly how long they lasted! I wore them one day plus two hours the next day. The soles weren't even dirty yet.


I'm going to glue them to see if I can get another week or so out of them. Right now I'm back to wearing my shabby ones.



* Achines is related to the word achinado which means oriental. Not that the vendors were oriental, just the junk they sell.

Benjamin, the coconut shell jewelry vendor

Benjamin and his handmade coconut shell jewelry

While we were in Parque Central the other day, this Garífuna jewelry seller saw me taking photos and waved me over. He held up his display of coconut shell jewelry for me to see. I reached up to my ear and waggled my dangly coconut shell earrings to show that I already had some. In fact, I have several that El Jefe bought for me. I like them.

But the vendor started saying that his were better so to appease him, I took a look. He said, "Look how thick mine are. Yours are thin. Mine are better." I really didn't need any more earrings, but he showed me some that are made from the coconut seed − or other palm seeds, I didn't quite catch that.

The seeds are quite thick and a lighter color than the coconut shell earrings. They are polished very smooth and cut in half. These were carved to sort of look like a leaf. I asked, "Cuanto cuesta?" and he said, "L.50." (US $2.65) I nicely explained with a smile, "But I live in La Ceiba. I'm not a tourist." and he quickly said, "Oh, well, then it will be L.40." (US $2.12) (All this in Spanish.)

So I decided to get them. Meanwhile, El Jefe strolled up and the guy pulled a matching necklace out of his pocket and said, "You should get this for her, too." El Jefe inspected it and tried it on me and decided he liked it, so we got the whole set.

The necklace is made with a cord which is knotted in two places. This allows you to lengthen it to get it over your head and then adjust it to whatever length you like. It's simple but clever.

Then he showed us some rings and key chains, explaining that you could put the key chain ring on your finger to carry your keys so you don't lose them. He also showed how he soldered the loop so it wouldn't break. He was proud of his quality and workmanship. We bought a couple of key chains, too.

The vendor's name is Benjamin. He speaks Spanish, Garífuna, English (very well), and a little French. I had to admire the guy! El Jefe told him that I would write about him on the internet. He explained that he spends part of the day in the park (this was around lunchtime), part on the street, and part on the beach. He also gave lengthy directions to his house in case anyone couldn't find him, but we were completely lost after the first 2-3 turns.

I don't know what kind of metal the earring hooks are made of, but, though I'm extremely allergic to many kinds of metal, these don't bother me at all. I doubt that they are sterling silver, but maybe they are. Whatever the metal is, it must be hypoallergenic. What a bonus for inexpensive jewelry.

So, if you come to La Ceiba, look for Benjamin and buy some of his jewelry. His prices are reasonable (go ahead and pay the "tourist price". It's fair.) and the jewelry is nice, not to mention a conversation piece to have authentic hand-made Garífuna jewelry made from coconut shells or palm seeds. The jewelry would make interesting, inexpensive souvenirs to take home for your friends.


Benjamin receives the rare La Gringa thumbs up!



The following photos are of my other coco shell earrings.

The bottom pair are made of something else. I'm not sure what it is.

The photo below shows the back of the shells.

The good old days and now

Gas prices, August 2007, La Ceiba, Honduras

I took this photo last August to shock you readers with how much we were paying for gas. I never got around to posting it and then gas prices were going up each week so it was outdated information. Prices in Lempiras will give you sticker shock, won't they? These translate to US $2.89 for diesel, $3.34 for regular, and $3.54 for super. Now, look at this:


Sorry about the glare. It was nighttime. That is L.63.35 for "Plus" which may be a code name for regular and L.77.61 for premium or US $3.35 and $4.10, respectively. These are a couple of weeks old. Premium is now L.86 (US $4.55), regular is L.73 (US $3.86), and diesel is L.84 (US $4.44). The Honduran government subsidizes regular gasoline, therefore the big difference in cost between regular and premium. The subsidy is a very bad idea in my opinion, but that is a whole other topic. I don't understand why diesel, which previously cost significantly less than regular, now costs almost as much as premium. Anyone know?

In addition to obscene prices, we had some gas shortages, diesel outages, and some of the stations for a time limited purchases to L.200 (about 3 gallons of regular or 2 1/2 gallons of super). The supply returned to normal after a couple of weeks. Honduras has recently gotten a BIG fuel shipment from Tío Chávez in Venezuela on a special credit deal so we'll be paying for that gas for the next 25 years! I'm not sure that is a good idea and it may have put Honduras in violation of some World Bank agreements which limit the amount of debt Honduras can contract.


I've seen on CNN that gas is averaging around $4 per gallon in the U.S. and much higher in California. Here was our total for that fill up a few weeks ago. Even though you are paying almost as much as we are in Honduras, imagine someone telling you, "That'll be eleven hundred and forty point twenty for your fill up, sir." Now that is sticker shock!

I think about that every time that I want to ask El Jefe to drive me around some of the new colonias to take photos of the houses.

Send Puffs

Great new Kleenex box design

They just don't make Kleenex like they used to, do they? Or do we just get inferior Central American quality Kleenex here? Triple hoja, my ---, well, you'll just have to guess what I was going type in there. (Triple hoja = triple sheet) I'm getting one good blow per tissue and sometimes blow right through it.

I've always been a Puffs person. Puffs are much softer and stronger, too. Puffs are the rare find here in La Ceiba however. The grocery stores never carry them. For the past six months or so, the only import store that has them once in a blue moon has only been carrying the lotion impregnated Puffs. I don't like those greasy tissues at all.

Oops, I forgot to even mention that El Jefe has THE cold, too, and kindly shared it with me. We've emptied out about four boxes of tissues so far.

The only redeeming factor of the Kleenex is this new box design (photo above). So cool! I can't tell you how much pleasure it gives me, even though each box only holds about 25 tissues and costs twice as much. I plan to refill it with Puffs if I can ever find some again. Does that sound cheap?

We want what we want when we want it

La Gringa's 'Mexican' potatoes, no problems finding these ingredients

I was inspired to write this article after reading Grocery List by my friend Billie in San Miguel Allende, Mexico. Billie is a wonderful person (I can just tell from reading her Billieblog) and an excellent cook (ditto) and photographer. She wrote an article about the grocery things that she can't find in Mexico after receiving a question from a reader − the little things that are important to her and her husband and sometimes necessary for a certain recipe.

Everyone has those things that they miss or need for a recipe, at least upon occasion. That's why ethnic markets pop up in the states wherever the ethnic population is large enough to support them. We might love the food where we are but we all want our own stuff once in awhile! There's nothing wrong with that and it's true for every culture.

I read several Mexican expatriate blogs and being not such a wonderful person as Billie and quite often gripey about the food and grocery items available here in Honduras, I am usually a little jealous of the stores and selections that I read about in many parts of Mexico.

Well, guess what? Nah-nah-nah! I was amazed to discover that we have some of the things in La Ceiba that Billie can't find in expatriate-laden San Miguel. Her article really surprised me and made me stop and think that I really am grateful for the improvement in the variety of products in La Ceiba in the past six years.

I left a comment for Billie (trying not to gloat too much over the availability of dried cherries in La Ceiba), and as I was writing, another thought struck me:

"One thing nice about living here is when can you remember ever having a happy day in the US because you found chicken broth or Kosher dill pickles in the store? We learn to appreciate the little things, don't we?"

I know that I tend to be too negative and I really, really try to work on that. Part of the problem is my culture! Don't all U.S. Americans want what they want, when they want, at a price they like, and served promptly with a smile? Sure we do. Ask anyone from another country. ;-)

Besides, as I've said in the past, the blogicito is a place where I can get these negative thoughts out of my system and subject you poor readers to them instead of El Jefe. And I have an inkling that some of you expats like to read my rants so that you don't have to write them on your blogs or because you like to know that you aren't alone. ;-D

I'll never be as nice and calm and accepting a person as Billie. You should know, however, that I have mellowed by about 50%, but I'll never be Honduran-mellow, I'm sure of that. Anyway, I'm going to try to be a better person and look at the bright side more. I hope you don't get bored.


P.S: I'm still not there yet! This is an article that I drafted a few weeks ago.

P.S.S: Just to keep it real: Two days ago there was no sugar available in the stores here in La Ceiba, Honduras, a sugar-producing country!


Photos: 'Mexican' potatoes sautéed in olive oil with chunks of chiles (peppers) and onions, seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, and a pinch of cayenne pepper. I cook these on the stove or in the oven, depending upon what the main course is.

'Italian' frittata: Cubed browned potatoes, peppers, mushrooms (twice a year find in La Ceiba), onions, and left-over turkey sautéed and then cooked in an omelet base, finished off with a sprinkle of cheese melted in the oven. You can put anything in a frittata and they are great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner.

'Chinese' food: Stir fried chunks of chicken, broccoli, snow peas, carrots, peppers, and onions, seasoned with soy sauce, Hoisin sauce, Chinese 5-spice powder (brought from the U.S.), served over rice. Here again, this is a dish you can make with whatever meat or veggies you have available.

On the road to shopping again

My goodies from San Pedro Sula

Subtitled: It's Christmas again at La Gringa's house!


We made another pleasant trip to San Pedro Sula again last week. The second in two weeks. We had a bit of a scare in that the river where the temporary bridge was located was really high and fierce. The sheet metal covering holes in the temporary bridge didn't do anything to reassure us.

You'll probably laugh at this, but we opened the windows and unhooked our seat belts for escape purposes just in case. As we were passing the bridge we saw that the scaffolding around the new part being built had washed away. We breathed a sigh of relief when we were on the other side.

We got to San Pedro late, as usual. Darn! Sears only had one of those towels that I wanted and I couldn't find a yogurt maker. Other than that it was a great trip. I just couldn't take take photos in the stores as we were pressed for time. I'm not sure if they would allow it but I didn't even ask. I can tell you that for the most part, the stores looked just like in the U.S.

We were thinking of buying a flat screen television. Before you start thinking that we are extravagant, our main TV is from 1991! It's been resurrected three times by a Honduran repairman, but the picture is dark and not very good. We ended up not buying one even though Diunsa had some good sales prices. Oh, I guess it is still extravagant since the new one probably won't last 17 years like the last one. That's probably why we didn't buy it. Maybe they will go on sale again this summer.

I bought some fabrics − there is a ton of sewing in my near future − and a lot of groceries. We went to Los Andes Commissary for a quick look for whole wheat flour and found all the stuff in the photo above, plus more that I forgot to put in the photo.

There are things in these photos that I have not seen in six and a half years! Fillo dough! Spring roll wrappers! Dill relish! Scallops! Dill! Semolina flour! Bread flour! Frozen peas! U.S. export quality rib eye steaks! Can you tell I'm excited?

Most exciting find of all: I found this 5 lb. bag of wild rice for L.149 (US $7.88). Compare that with the 4 oz. box in La Ceiba for L.162 (US $8.57)! That is just evil. El Jefe had never seen black rice before and was pretty skeptical. He liked it, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't ask me to cook it for his family some time just to shock them.

My refrigerator and freezer are both stuffed to the gills. I was going to make some whole wheat bread today until I remembered that there is no room to store it in the freezer.

I'll be going back to that store at least every couple of months, for sure. I didn't even buy everything I wanted just because I was worried about having space for it. Some of the things I bought aren't things that I pine for or even think about, but when I saw them, my mind said "I WANT THAT!" Polish sausage, Italian sausage, Oscar Mayer hard salami were some of those things.

The La Ceiba grocery stores have been out of real Parmesan cheese for at least 4 months. Honduran Parmesan cheese smells like dirty tennis shoes and that Kraft powdered stuff is unacceptable. I have found canned chicken broth here but the last time was in 2006. I do make my own but it's nice not to have to all the time.

Oh, I was dancing for joy in that store. Now I have to go look up those recipes that I've been skipping over because the ingredients weren't available.

To top off a good shopping day, we stopped at Tre Fratelli's, an Italian restaurant for dinner. I had smoked chicken ravioli with a basil-jalapeño sauce. Yummy-spicy! El Jefe had a mixed seafood fettuccine which was really good also and came with a ton of seafood. A lesser man couldn't have finished the whole thing. ;-P We were served some homemade bread which I swear tasted exactly like my homemade herb bread. I also had my first chocolate mousse in 7 years. It was like a long-awaited sexual experience. I still get shivers thinking about it. Tre Fratelli's gets two thumbs up from us.

Years ago we made many trips to San Pedro, but they were usually to buy construction materials so we would spend most or all of our time in ferreterías (hardware stores). Boring! Not to mention that to order, pay for, and pick up even a bag of nails in a hardware store takes about 2 1/2 hours. Each trip, I would make a list and plan to check out a grocery store or look for furniture or fabric stores, and each trip we would run out of time. Then after the house was completed, for one reason or another we couldn't leave it. Then for the last couple of years we've had car problems and were afraid to take it on a long trip. No more! Now it's my turn. I'm going back no matter what.

We feel like country hicks going to the Big Apple when we go to San Pedro. It's always fun. We often mention that we are from La Ceiba and people are almost always very nice. That fact sometimes helps us when we say that we have to drive aaaall the way back to La Ceiba tonight and could they possibly get something for us a little quicker? ;-)

After that was the long drive home. I offered to drive, but El Jefe said no. "What's the matter? Don't you trust my driving?" "Well, frankly, no, I don't." I laughed because that was fine by me! I wasn't looking forward to the long, hard drive late at night.

I turned on my seat heater for the second time in 7 years, covered up with a blanket (yes, it was a cold night!), and promptly fell to sleep for almost the entire trip. What a guy! It's nice to have a macho man around.

This was our first meal afterward. Parmesan-crusted tilapia with tarter sauce made with dill and dill relish, wild rice, peas, and an egg roll with plum sauce. Of course, it was way too much and El Jefe had the rest for lunch the next day.

Why La Gringa didn't get her new jammies

Carrion clothing store

This was the checkout "line" in Carrion, one of the nicer department stores in La Ceiba a few days before Christmas. After shopping and trying on clothes for hours, the only thing I found was a nice, soft pair of pajamas. When I saw the 50 people or so waiting to pay, I decided I didn't want the pjs that much after all. ;-(

After Christmas shopping in San Pedro Sula

Some of my goodies

We had a really nice day yesterday! We took a little trip to San Pedro Sula to check out the after Christmas sales and to try once again to look for furniture for our sala principal (living room).

San Pedro is about 110 miles from our house and the trip usually takes about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, depending upon how many times we stop. El Jefe informed me we were NOT stopping for photos or we wouldn't get there until the stores closed (since we already had a late start) so I had to settle for video out the passenger window at 60 mph.
I have no idea what I'll do with 15 minutes of that video. If I slow it down so you won't be dizzy, I guess it will be about 30 minutes of video and who has the patience for that? I think you might enjoy parts of it, though, as the videos show what the real Honduras looks like so I may try to put together some pieces of it.

The highway is in amazingly good shape right now, except for one bridge which was out. Apparently it fell down and they have built a temporary one lane bridge in the meantime, with traffic directors whose idea of fair is that each side has to wait 15 minutes at a time for their turn. The road was great other than that, a couple of potholes that would probably rip the tire off your car if you didn't see them, and two towns that have a series of killer speed bumps.

The photos below show the broken bridge if you look past the blurry trellis in the foreground.









I never get tired of watching the view along the way. I used to take along something to read but found that I never did read. Sometimes I help with the driving, but usually El Jefe likes to do that himself.

First we went to Diunsa which is a nice Target-like store. They have fantastic sales of 30% off EVERYTHING in the store, 40%-50% off some items. Diunsa has some nice quality things, Cuisinart, KitchenAid, Mikasa, for example, and I'm pretty sure every toy in world. El Jefe made the mistake of leaving me alone in Diunsa (He knows about my kitchen-stuff addiction! It's not MY fault!) while he took care of something else. Most of the stuff in the photo above is from Diunsa.

I really don't know how their prices compare with U.S. prices. It may be that the appliances (large and small) are a little more expensive than the U.S. but it is a moot point for us. I saw 4 1/2 quart Kitchen Aid mixers for L.9,200 (US $545 with tax!). Many things seem a bargain, though. The cobalt blue glass plates in the photo hardly cost more than a package of paper plates!

We went to Sears looking for lawn mower wheels − no luck there − but I did find some towels that go perfectly with our weirdly colored dusty orange bathroom. I only bought two towels and four hand towels because I wasn't sure if they would match or not. Now I'm itching to go back for more because they look fantastic. If I live to be 100, I'll probably never find more towels, other than white, that work in that bathroom.
This grill is what El Jefe wanted from Sears! No, he didn't get it. That L.49,990 price in lempiras will definitely give you sticker shock!
We went furniture shopping and found some nice stores. Finally, after all these years, we found some furniture for our sala principal. You can't imagine what a thrill that is for us! I've been looking for some casual rattan furniture that wasn't complete weird-styled junk and finally I found it! It's even made in Honduras. I'm so happy and just hope that the orange in the fabrics goes with the orange walls. Why I didn't think to take my paint and tile samples, I have no idea.

We also bought two rattan chairs and an ottoman for our bedroom. Again, the problem with picking out a fabric! Jeesh! I know better than that, but I'll be content to recover the cushions if the color doesn't work in our purple (!) bedroom. El Jefe thought everything was too expensive. The prices did seem expensive compared to some of the other stores with more formal, ornate furniture, but that isn't the style that we wanted. I suggested that we could continue looking for another 5 years to see if we found something nice at a better price....so he decided that we should get it. He was able to get the price reduced even more over the already reduced end-of-year price.

The furniture won't be delivered for a week or so, so I'll be posting photos later on. I didn't even think to take a photo in the store. I was completely out of blogger-mode yesterday!

We also went to PriceSmart to stock up on some things that we can't get here. It was literally minutes before they were closing so I didn't get to pace the whole store like I usually do.

We only made it to about half of the stores we wanted to go to. That happens every time we go to San Pedro. We really need two days there, but with the animals to tend to, we really can't stay overnight.

We arrived home after 1 a.m. As we opened the driveway gate, Chloe came happily running out with the newspaper in her mouth! It arrives around 8 a.m., so I guess she was waiting all that time to get her reward! We laughed so hard about that. The chihuahuas were crying because they aren't used to being out-door dogs − daytime is one thing but staying out on a cool night? Sleeping on the cold ceramic tile instead of a fluffy warm pillow? They were appalled to receive such treatment, not to mention that it appeared that Chloe had eaten all of their food as well as her own just to show them that she could.

We fell into bed without even unloading the car, hoping to be able to sleep in in the morning. Today was trash day, though. Our trash receptacle is right outside our bedroom window and the trash man had a brand new fire-engine style horn to show off at 7 a.m.! Only in Honduras. ;-)