The fair!

Hello again. I decided that instead of only using the blog space to talk about what´s been difficult here, I might as well include some of the really fun stuff going on as well. That way you all will be more inspired to visit and also less worried about me down here!

These past ten days there has been a big fair celebrating the patron saint of La Campa. While no one is very sure about what San Matias (the saint) actually did during his life, the celebration is certainly epic. It started February 15th with a Catholic mass where they lowered the statue of San Matias and put him in front of the church. Then the vendors started filling up the formerly sleepy streets of La Campa, selling everything from plastic toys to coconut candy to second-hand clothes and shoes. There are food stands, gambling tables, and my personal favorite, a mass of 16 fussball tables. While there are 2 or 3 vendor booths that are local, most come from cities a bit farther away. At night, more people flood the streets doing a little shopping and mostly people watching. The vendors sleep in the stands—they just lower tarp over all sides to create a little hut.

The biggest days of the fair are last night and today. Yesterday I had a long day involving hitchiking to bring a volunteer´s pets to the veterinarian, tranquilizing the dog and cat, and having all of Honduras wonder what the crazy gringa girls were doing with a cat in a cage and a dog on a leash (here dogs and cats and pretty much street animals, vermin that people rarely look after). Anyway, after that long day I didn´t think I had enough energy to make it to the fair. But I did go and it was awesome!

At night, the fair gets exciting. I mean, when you live in the campo, getting to see a bunch of people and games at night is the equivalent of clubbing. People are dressed to the nines, sparkly jewelry and hair gel (for men) galore. The main attraction centered around a tradition of an iguana and bull dance. There was an old man dancing around with a fake iguana around his neck and a cardboard-box bull covered with firecrackers. The bull started running into the crowd, the firecrackers exploding and making him increasingly agitated. I don’t like loud bangs, but I had a great time running away from the bull costume´s explosive bursts.

Afterwards, I meandered over to the fussball area and duly noted that this was Man´s territory. I didn´t see a single girl or woman near the premise. I happened to spot a couple of my guy neighbors, two local teachers, and convinced them to play. We were quite the spectacle! A couple hours later (midnight at this point), I dragged myself away from the table and walked home. Completely exhausted but completely wired. I was giddy all night. I guess Peace Corps makes a night of fussball the biggest thrill of my life.