Honduras: A Country of Culture

In Honduras, one could experience the vacation of a lifetime without spending your life savings. According to “The Lonely Planet,” a person can spend only twenty-five dollars a day for food and a place to rest your head. From coral reefs to Copan Ruins, there are so many beautiful and exciting things to see across the republic. The republic gets a negative reputation due to its high crime levels that are largely advertised across various news outlets. However, there are so many beautiful things to see and do safely within Honduras.

To begin, an interesting fact about Honduras that most people do not know is that it is a republic. A republic is a place where the citizens are able to elect their officials and have a president rather than a monarch. Honduras is filled with wonderful culture and its source is its capital, Tegucigalpa. The capital is located on hilly terrain etched within the mountainside at an elevation of 3,200 feet.

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The vibrant city of Tegucigalpa was founded in 1578 and was made the capital of Honduras in 1938 (from Britannica.com). In the capital, there are so many things to see and do. Such as the Museo para la Identidad Nacional where one can learn all about the nation’s history. Another notable attraction is the Parque Naciones Unidas El Picacho where one can hike into and through the beautiful trees of of the national park (From lonelyplanet.com). A large monument that is seen as a staple of the beautiful city is the National University of Honduras.

This 18th-century cathedral houses the presidential and the legislative buildings. With all of these positives of their beautiful capital, there are some negatives as well. Tegucigalpa is one of the few capitals without a railroad. This makes trading and shipping goods and supplies very difficult. As a solution an airport was built in Toncontin, but it does not help much. The airport is small and insufficient for the task at hand (from the lonely planet.com). Despite this negative the capital is a wonderful and exciting place with many wonderful things to see and do.

Another wonderful thing about Honduras is it’s history. The history of Honduras is exciting and interesting. The Republic of Honduras is an independent country which often refers to themselves as a state. It is located in western Central America and is bordered by the Gulf of Honduras and the Caribbean Sea, the Pacific Ocean, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. The city of Copán is located in western Honduras, close to the Guatemalan border. There one can find a major Mayan kingdom, which has helped shape Honduras into what it is today. The ancient kingdom is named Xukpi, which means Corner-Bundle. The beautiful kingdom thrived from the 400 AD to 800 AD.

After 800 AD the Maya civilization fell, and became engulfed by the jungle. Later it was found by the spanish and was adopted by the spanish empire. The spanish ruled over Honduras for 300 years and then Honduras became a state of Central America in 1821. Then nineteen years later, became an independent republic. A war that shaped the history of Honduras and its love for fútbol was the Football war of 1969 which was fought with El Salvador. It lasted about 100 days. The war was caused by border disputes and class tensions and was sparked by the 1970 Mexico City World Cup. Another monumental moment was during the 1980s.

Honduras was used by anti-Sandinista contras to fight the Nicaraguan government. They were an ally to El Salvador who was fighting against the leftist guerrillas who were civilians who use raids ambushes and sabotage to fight back. Unfortunately due to Honduras’ location they have been strongly affected by hurricanes. A major hurricane named Fifi caused severe damage on September 18th and 19th, in 1974. Just a few years later in 1998 Hurricane Mitch devastated the country and wrecked its economy. Just seven years later in 2005 more hurricanes wrecked the country. Honduras was hit by three major hurricanes, one right after the other. Hurricane Beta, Hurricane Katrina, and Hurricane Wilma (hondurasinformation.com). These three hurricanes left many of the country’s crops in ruin. Although these hurricanes hurt the economy, Honduras worked very hard to rebuild and make their country better than before, shaping their history one day at a time.

Lastly, ever country has one thing that makes them so special. Honduras is set apart thanks to its many wonderful festivals. One of its major festivals is “Semana Santa.” Semana Santa translates to Easter week in english and that is exactly what it is. The festival is a multi-day celebration of Easter just like we celebrate in the United States. However, they celebrate with parades and reenactments of the life of Jesus Christ. Another wonderful festival is Feria de San Isidro which translates to Fair of San Isidro. This festival or fair attracts over a quarter of million Hondurans to La Ceiba every year. The celebration is very similar to a New Orleans Mardi Gras with lively street-pageantry. The National Garifuna Festival is a huge celebration not only to Hondurans, but people from Belize and Guatemala as well. The festival is held every third weekend in july and is celebrating with lots of dancing and drinking(iexplore.com). This plenty of festivals makes Honduras an even better place to live and visit.

To conclude, Honduras is a wonderful place to explore. Its capital Tegucigalpa holds the Museo para la Identidad Nacional, the Parque Naciones Unidas El Picacho, and the National University of Honduras enriching so much of Honduras’s culture. The history of the country is great and rich. From wars to natural disasters Honduras has always remained strong within itself. Lastly, the country’s wonderful and exciting festivals unite Honduras and its surrounding countries for an awesome celebrations all throughout the year. As Honduras’s national anthem states, “Your flag is heavenly light,” that leads one on their most exciting adventure yet (nationalanthems.info).

Works Cited

1. “Honduras.” Nationalanthems.info, 13 Oct. 2014, www.nationalanthems.info/hn.htm.
2. “Honduras Holidays and Festivals.” Adventure Tourism - Experiential Travel Guides, www.iexplore.com/articles/travel-guides/central-and-south-america/honduras/festivals-and-events.
3. “Honduras Information.” Honduras Information, 25 Sept. 2012, hondurasinformation.com/.
4. Lonely Planet. “Top Things to Do in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.” Lonely Planet, www.lonelyplanet.com/honduras/tegucigalpa/top-things-to-do/a/poi/358466.
5. R, J. Roberto Moncada, et al. “Honduras.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 13 Sept. 2018, www.britannica.com/place/Honduras.