I realized today that I have not shared a lot of general knowledge about Honduras with you fine folks. So, although it has been nearly a year since I got here, I am going to educate you on some general Honduras trivia.

• Honduras is the second poorest country in Central America, behind Nicaragua.
• Honduras is the second most populated country in Central America, behind Guatemala.
• San Pedro Sula is the second most dangerous city in Latin America, behind Caracas, Venezuela.
• Roatan boasts the second largest barrier reef in the world, behind the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.

• Honduras is the most culturally diverse country in Central America, with 10 distinct native ethnic groups.
• Honduras is the only country in Central America whose volcanoes are all dormant.
• While it may rain cats and dogs in some places, in the department of Yoro it rains fish at least once a year. For real. There are different theories as to where the fish come from and how they turn into precipitation. According to local legend, many years ago an old Spanish priest prayed for a miracle to help feed the poor of this country, and God answered by showering the village with fish.

• The national tree of Honduras is the pine tree. Mom thought I was being sarcastic when I told her that, but it is true. Even though it is tropical here, it is also very mountainous.
• The national flower of Honduras is the orchid.
• The national bird of Honduras is the scarlet macaw.
• The flag of Honduras is three horizontal stripes, blue on top and bottom, with white in the middle. There are five blue stars in the middle stripe representing the five countries that used to be part of the Central American Union: Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Costa Rica.
• Honduras is Spanish for "depths". Apparently Christopher Columbus sailed into a bay to escape a terrible storm and consequently discovered the country that we now know and love. Supposedly he said something along the lines of "Thank you God for saving us from those depths" which, roughly translated into Spanish, goes "Gracias a Dios somethingsomethingsomething esas honduras." (cut me some slack, I am still learning)

I will be doing a separate post on the national anthem, because it is really interesting. But for now, you at least know some fun facts about the Honduras. And knowing is half the battle.