AUTHOR: Nancy TITLE: Guatemala & Honduras DATE: 1/31/2009 06:33:00 PM ----- BODY:
Hi all,

We finally made it to Copan Ruinas, Honduras, but it was quite a trip. We had e-mailed Don Udo yesterday and he assured us that if we left by 8am we would be here by 1pm and could rest up at his hotel before our 5pm meeting with the Rotarians. I was excited to see Rena again as we had enjoyed her so much last time we visited, and also I had hoped to pick up a few items in her lovely art gallery. We were hoping to connect with the Rotarians to tell them more about our idea of a stove factory for Ecocinas in Honduras.

Well, here is what actually happened....we left Antigua after saying goodbye to Marco Tulio and wishing him well. We drove as far as Guatemala City and found our way around the ring road towards Copan...and then the fun began. We were stopped in traffic for nearly an hour just trying to reach the edge of town. AND THEN...Gustavo asked a policeman why everything was so backed up. Well, it seems that this was the annual pilgramage of 40,000 motorcyclists to Esquipulas....just over the border from Copan Ruinas, and there was no other way to get there! So, instead of a five hour trip, we had an EIGHT hour car ride...not even stopping for lunch as every coffee shop was filled with motorcyclists!

We arrived at 4pm, checked into Don Udo's hotel and barely had time to spiff a bit before the first Rotarian arrived at 5. Anyway, we exchanged Rotary gifts, Gustavo demonstrated the stove, we showed the video, and then the cooks from Don Udo's kitchen got involved. They cooked not only tortillas but wonderful churasco. The cooks were delighted with the stove, cooked our subsequent dinner on it and asked Gustavo how they could be the first to get the demonstration stoves. Not only that, but some local missionaries were here who have been working with stove projects for about eight years, and are DELIGHTED that our stove doesn't have need for a chimney. They say that chimneys choke and become unusable in two months and the people just go on using the stoves with the house filling with smoke. One fellow who lives next door to a place that sells chimneys hasn't even bothered to replace his.

At the end of the meeting I asked Don Udo, who is the Rotary Club secretary this year, what would be the next step. He said he was thrilled with the idea of having something here in Copan Ruinas that the people could actually do other than make crafts, and he thought that a stove factory was a wonderful idea. He will meet with the other Rotarians and if they approve, he will send some people to the factory in El Salvador to buy about 20 prototype stoves. Those will be distributed and if people like them, then they will propose starting factories, backed by Rotarians, as a project for all of Honduras.

This evening we walked to the plaza and to Rena's little bed and breakfast and art gallery. It's the place where Ethan, Gustavo, Ken and I stopped for "liquados" on our first visit, and it's what started this whole adventure. Here we were just kicking back visiting the ruins as a break in our "stoving" when one of the local businessmen asked what a StoveTeam was, We were exhausted and just wanted a liquado, but he sent Rena to talk to us about our stove.

She just walked up to us and introduced herself and said she was a Rotarian and wanted to know about this stove that didn't produce smoke. Again, it's just this streak of good luck that has been following us from the very beginning...and all we're trying to do is keep little kids from being burned and in so doing, change the world.

Nancy

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