Honduran Unrest: an Insider's Perspective, Part 3

By Amy E. Robertson

I got back to Tegucigalpa, quite uneventfully, a week ago. A year ago my return to “Tegus” from the U.S. had coincided with the re-opening of the Toncontín airport after a month’s closure. The flight had been greeted by airport staff handing out glasses of white wine and chocolate-covered strawberries. Although the airport has closed only for a few days during the current political crisis, I had delayed my return home by a week, and felt just as happy as I had the year before about being back in Honduras. My flight wasn’t entirely without thrills – while waiting in the immigration line, I realized that Porfirio “Pepe” Lobo, one of the candidates for the November presidential elections, had been on my plane. I hadn’t even noticed in Houston when we boarded. more >>

My Favorite U.S. City: Davis, CA

By Nikki Goth Itoi

It’s 10 p.m. on a Monday night in July. The temperature is a balmy 95 degrees, and I’m standing on the corner of F and 3rd streets, which are closed to traffic. Most of the resident student population has gone home for the summer, but a small crowd has gathered to cheer for the group of pro cyclists who are zipping around an eight-block loop in the Davis Twilight Criterium series. DJ music blares from speakers at a nearby restaurant. An Amtrak train whistles, announcing its presence at the station a few blocks away.

This is Davis, California—population 64,000—bike-crazed, green, and family-friendly to the extreme. With its red double-decker buses, 100 miles of bike paths, and thriving mom-and-pop stores, Davis could stand in for a European university town like Tübingen. The University of California at Davis draws students from all over the world, and its massive performing arts center hosts everyone from Yo Yo Ma to the Estonian National Symphony. more >>