Shoe Shiners (rather belated)

This is about 2 months later than it should be, but I’ve bene having some annoying camera/computer problems that kept me from posting.

Before I left for the DR, my brother convinced me to get a pair of Skechers that are basically leather sneakers. Great idea. I so enjoyed getting my shoes shined. Now that I’m back in the U.S., I am faced with the decision between paying $10 at an airport for a shoe shine or having dull, lifeless shoes.
In the DR, shoe shines were 15 pesos, about 50 cents. Cheap. But still quality. I walked up to a shoe shiner at “Nueve,” a big intersection on the north west side of Santo Domingo, and they would jump out of their seat, and I would sit down. I was impressed that they went over each shoe twice, ending with a snap shine that impressed the other people in my group.
But nothing prepared me for the Honduran shoe shine. I paid 20 lempiras, about a dollar. I felt slightly ripped off, until the shoe shiner got working. My shoe laces were out in seconds, and I had sock guards protecting my socks from the 13 different liquids being thrown at my shoes. I just sat there, reading a newspaper, and when I looked down, my shoes absolutely gleamed.
I really wish there were some 7 year old shoe shiners hanging around the park here…

Photos: Shoe before, Shoe after, and the shoe shining booths in San Pedro Sula

Posted in D.R. 2007, Honduras 2007, old blog

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