We got on the bus and headed to the jungle stopping at the Hummingbird Guest House. It turned out to be another unique experience. A clearing had been cut in the middle of the jungle by a group of mostly Californians who lived there at various times for various amounts of time ...basically communal style. They worked & ate together and made joint decisions on what to do with the property. They had planted many trees and flowering bushes that all produced something edible and had gardens and chickens. It was pretty basic living with shared outhouses & showers. I am not sure what the attraction was. We walked the land that was encircled by a clear, fast running creek. We rode to the village with one couple but there seemed to be nothing happening there...or would be happening. A bit farther up the road, what seemed to be a mirage was actually a real ice cream stand...they had Coke Light too...I got one of each! The ice cream was made fresh daily by the Mechannites--they were Mennonites that used mechanical equipment. Great fine!!! Unfortunately some nasty biting sand flies (we call no see-ums) found us and we itched lots. Next a.m. we waited in what looked like the middle of no where for one & a half hours for the bus. We felt like Steve Martin in The Jerk. The bus finally did come and we headed for Dangariga passing by acres of orange trees that produce not the picture perfect ones we buy in the states...but rather greenish-blackish ones that taste delicious. We got to Dangariga and found Ruthie's --our hotel. Lonely Planet--our guide book...sure let us astray on this one! A dump...but it seemed all the ones nearby were the same so we just bit our tongues, scratched our bites & made the best of it. The beach we were on was covered with litter & the water was as muddy as the Mississippi. We walked around town...everything was pretty run down. We did enjoy going to the Garifuna museum. We were the only ones there and the guide unlocked a gate to allow us in & relocked it as soon as we entered it. We'd been told this town was unsafe...guess this was proof. Our guide was of Garifuna descent and spoke from her heart as she explained each exhibit. The Garifuna is a mix between the Black Caribs & slaves from a slave ship that shipwrecked on the island of St. Vincent. Later the British deported them in chains to Honduras & some made it to this area. They remain a people who hold fast to their traditions.
