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Before arriving at San Pedro Sula I did my research to know what I could do and visit while there. The best I can say is that it didn’t turn out to be too promising. Apparently, this city is just a transit hub and travelers flee from it as soon as they can. This was my condition.
San Pedro Sula was my entry point, but I didn’t want to escape it on the first bus I could catch. Well, sort of.
After my misadventure in Tela, I decided to taste and explore San Pedro Sula to see what this city offers, instead of fleeing to avoid it in its entirety.
I gave it a chance, without much success.
As expected, I didn’t find anything particular to do while in the city -sights, attractions, etc… you know, the things you usually find at other destinations- other than a typical and simplistic cathedral. Not bad, it is a good example of Central American Colonial architecture, but is there something else San Pedro Sula has to offer?
I honestly felt a little bit disappointed and even thought of fleeing in an instant.
I sat in the park in front of the cathedral and that’s where I decided to stop looking for things to do and just sit there and enjoy the day, as locals do.
And that’s what I did, and I think it was the time I enjoyed the most while in San Pedro Sula.
It was a Sunday; the plaza was full of people -playing, reading, relaxing, and catching the most welcoming breeze under the high 90-degree weather. The plaza is nothing out of the ordinary; just a typical Latin main square with the church on one side, the city hall on the opposite side, and institutional buildings in between.
I must have spent over an hour sitting there. With the exception of an American couple, I saw no other tourists walking around the area. Then, one of the coolest things I saw was the “International Theater Day Parade” (I had no idea this existed).
It caught my attention as I heard the marching band playing System of a Down‘s “Disorder”. Now, that is the coolest thing!
I made my way to see the small parade up close and to snap a few shots. It might not have been the biggest or most elaborate parade I’ve ever seen, but it totally gave me a better feel of my time in San Pedro.
After that, I decided to walk along the street markets. They are dirty, smelly, and somewhat chaotic. Even though I didn’t buy anything, I found the small shops along the railway to be the most interesting ones.
They are stick-built with spare and reused materials that give them that fragile look, as they will fall all over you by just touching them.
Right next to the shady markets is where all the “mini chicken buses” stop. Instead of taking a taxi to get back to la Posada (the hostel), I decided to hop on one of those 6 lempiras ($0.33) minibusses. I had time to kill, so why not spend it roaming around.
I was a cool and adrenaline-filled ride, but totally unsafe. The driver took sharp turns at ridiculous speeds and had no mercy against anything, or anyone on the road. This is Honduras! Still, I enjoyed it and got safe to my hostel.
While I had a nice time in San Pedro Sula, I think this is one of those places where I could say, “it’s nice I went there, but I don’t see myself going back”.
Have you visited a city like this?
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