Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Time to leave for Panama City and then back to North America!
Well, it is time to go already! Luis and I are all packed and ready to go! In a couple of minutes we will be out the door. I feel sad hearing the lovely birds and even the roosters crowing outside. I know I am going to miss them. I have had a wonderful time here with Luis and I have been happy to share the adventure with family and friends through this blog! We are about to make the 6 hour trip to Panama City, back through the mountains and winding roads. Then we are staying over night at Luis Aunt Claudia's house and then Wednesday morning we catch our plane back!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
La Frontera
Today we went to the border of Costa Rica! There was a long mall with discount stores selling clothing, furniture, electronics, pretty much all kinds of stuff. On one side Panama and on the other side you could exit right into Costa Rica. Of course I was looking for differences. I was only able to see a few things during such a short visit. The road was different. It looked rougher and was full of shells!
The houses were built differently. They were smaller and more rectangular. Tidy little houses with neatly slanted roofs. Maybe I imagined it but the people walking around looked a bit different.
We stopped at what Luis' mom called a ¨Tica Tienda.¨ People in Costa Rica are often called ¨Ticos¨ instead of Costarricenses. It was a big grocery store connected to some other shops including a little snack bar and a veterinary supply store. Luis, Rosalina, and I went in to scope out Costa Rican cookies and came out with three types. Jose, Luis' father, stayed outside at the snack bar to drink a squirt soda from a glass bottle and talk to two young Panamanian girls who were working there. We joined him for a refreshing soda. The Panamanian girls said that their water supply came from Panama and their electricity from Costa Rica. While we were drinking our sodas we heard the desperate mew of a little innocent kitten. She looked like a fuzzy Arthur type. Her eyes were blue, and were taking in everything with the vulnerability of a baby, looking up at us on her wobbly kitten legs. I felt so many emotions at once seeing the kitten. I knew I couldn't leave the kitten standing on the sidewalk. I even got as far as thinking I could bring the kitten home, or at least find a home for it. But, luckilly the kitten only stood there for a moment before a tall skinny Costa Rican girl in jeans came and scooped her up in one hand and set her back in the veterinary store from where she had escaped through the open gate.
We came back to David and we just finished dinner. Usually dinner and all meals here are served I guess ¨family style.¨ Everyone has their own plate and there are bowls and plates with different things on them. Usually a giant bowl of rice, a green salad, maybe some tomato slices, some fish, sometimes boiled or fried bananas, some meat, and a bottle of hot sauce.
Angela comes on weekday mornings. She prepares breakfast and lunch and then Rosalina makes dinner and the food on weekends. Every day we have had papaya for breakfast. Angela will make eggs and fried tortillas for us and we'll have our own pot of Panamanian coffee. Usually Luis' parents have already eaten by the time Luis and I wake up. Angela comes in to talk to us while we eat. The other day she brought her daughter in to work with her to meet us. She had chubby cheeks. She looked like a teenage version of Angela and had a friendly smile like hers.
Tonight we ate pasta with tomatos, onions, and tuna prepared by Luis, with salad, and hot sauce on the side. Of course there was also a bowl of rice. Luis' father mixed rice into his spaghetti. A Panamanian meal isn't really complete without rice.
I can hear a gentle chorus of insects right now through the open window. It has been warm lately. I have been so happy here, and seeing all the trees and plants and sunlight has made me feel so good. If I see a field of pineapples growing, I think, somehow they look happy as if they are thinking ¨Wow! I am a pineapple! Gee! It's good to be a pineapple!¨ Trees and vines and cows all seem to smile as if its just good to be what they are.
The houses were built differently. They were smaller and more rectangular. Tidy little houses with neatly slanted roofs. Maybe I imagined it but the people walking around looked a bit different.
We stopped at what Luis' mom called a ¨Tica Tienda.¨ People in Costa Rica are often called ¨Ticos¨ instead of Costarricenses. It was a big grocery store connected to some other shops including a little snack bar and a veterinary supply store. Luis, Rosalina, and I went in to scope out Costa Rican cookies and came out with three types. Jose, Luis' father, stayed outside at the snack bar to drink a squirt soda from a glass bottle and talk to two young Panamanian girls who were working there. We joined him for a refreshing soda. The Panamanian girls said that their water supply came from Panama and their electricity from Costa Rica. While we were drinking our sodas we heard the desperate mew of a little innocent kitten. She looked like a fuzzy Arthur type. Her eyes were blue, and were taking in everything with the vulnerability of a baby, looking up at us on her wobbly kitten legs. I felt so many emotions at once seeing the kitten. I knew I couldn't leave the kitten standing on the sidewalk. I even got as far as thinking I could bring the kitten home, or at least find a home for it. But, luckilly the kitten only stood there for a moment before a tall skinny Costa Rican girl in jeans came and scooped her up in one hand and set her back in the veterinary store from where she had escaped through the open gate.
We came back to David and we just finished dinner. Usually dinner and all meals here are served I guess ¨family style.¨ Everyone has their own plate and there are bowls and plates with different things on them. Usually a giant bowl of rice, a green salad, maybe some tomato slices, some fish, sometimes boiled or fried bananas, some meat, and a bottle of hot sauce.
Angela comes on weekday mornings. She prepares breakfast and lunch and then Rosalina makes dinner and the food on weekends. Every day we have had papaya for breakfast. Angela will make eggs and fried tortillas for us and we'll have our own pot of Panamanian coffee. Usually Luis' parents have already eaten by the time Luis and I wake up. Angela comes in to talk to us while we eat. The other day she brought her daughter in to work with her to meet us. She had chubby cheeks. She looked like a teenage version of Angela and had a friendly smile like hers.
Tonight we ate pasta with tomatos, onions, and tuna prepared by Luis, with salad, and hot sauce on the side. Of course there was also a bowl of rice. Luis' father mixed rice into his spaghetti. A Panamanian meal isn't really complete without rice.
I can hear a gentle chorus of insects right now through the open window. It has been warm lately. I have been so happy here, and seeing all the trees and plants and sunlight has made me feel so good. If I see a field of pineapples growing, I think, somehow they look happy as if they are thinking ¨Wow! I am a pineapple! Gee! It's good to be a pineapple!¨ Trees and vines and cows all seem to smile as if its just good to be what they are.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Baseball
It is evening and Luis and his Mom and Dad are watching the Chiriqui baseball team on television. Luis father has the sound turned down and he's listening to the radio announcer describe the game as he watches it. He claims the radio announcer is ahead of the television! I don't know how he can understand what the announcer is saying! To me it just sounds like ¨brrr.mrr..grr..mrrr!¨haha
Firecrackers are going off outside. Maybe they are leftovers from New Years Eve.
This evening Luis and I drove Mariela and Mariel to the bus station to catch the overnight bus to Panama city. Mariel plans to study all the way. They brought back a backpack full of groceries that you just can't get in Panama City including rice that costs about half the price! In a couple of days we will be taking the same trip to Panama City for our flight back.
Tonight we ate cheese sandwiches for dinner. Mariela bought me a cream horn at the grocery store. It was tasty and extreme and filled with vanilla cream. Mariela loves treats I wasn't surprised she had no appetite for dinner.
Well I am losing a bit of momentum on this blog, but I will write a couple of entries more if I can and some pictures.
Luis and I say hello!
Firecrackers are going off outside. Maybe they are leftovers from New Years Eve.
This evening Luis and I drove Mariela and Mariel to the bus station to catch the overnight bus to Panama city. Mariel plans to study all the way. They brought back a backpack full of groceries that you just can't get in Panama City including rice that costs about half the price! In a couple of days we will be taking the same trip to Panama City for our flight back.
Tonight we ate cheese sandwiches for dinner. Mariela bought me a cream horn at the grocery store. It was tasty and extreme and filled with vanilla cream. Mariela loves treats I wasn't surprised she had no appetite for dinner.
Well I am losing a bit of momentum on this blog, but I will write a couple of entries more if I can and some pictures.
Luis and I say hello!
Everybody Must Get Bitten!
Imagine these lyrics to the music of Bob Dylan's ¨Everybody Must get stoned¨ to understand how I feel about the insects in Panama!The lyrics fit well, especially the part about how they come back again!:
Well, they'll bite ya when you're trying to be so good,They'll bite ya just a-like they said they would.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to go home.Then they'll bite ya when you're there all alone.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite ya when you're walkin' 'long the street.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to keep your seat.They'll bite ya when you're walkin' on the floor.They'll bite ya when you're walkin' to the door.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
They'll bite ya when you're at the breakfast table.They'll bite ya when you are young and able.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to make a buck.They'll bite ya and then they'll say, "good luck."Tell ya what, I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite you and say that it's the end.Then they'll bite you and then they'll come back again.They'll bite you when you're riding in your car.They'll bite you when you're playing your guitar.Yes, but I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite you when you walk all alone.They'll bite you when you are walking home.They'll Bite you and then say you are brave.They'll bite you when you are set down in your grave.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite ya when you're trying to be so good,They'll bite ya just a-like they said they would.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to go home.Then they'll bite ya when you're there all alone.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite ya when you're walkin' 'long the street.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to keep your seat.They'll bite ya when you're walkin' on the floor.They'll bite ya when you're walkin' to the door.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
They'll bite ya when you're at the breakfast table.They'll bite ya when you are young and able.They'll bite ya when you're tryin' to make a buck.They'll bite ya and then they'll say, "good luck."Tell ya what, I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite you and say that it's the end.Then they'll bite you and then they'll come back again.They'll bite you when you're riding in your car.They'll bite you when you're playing your guitar.Yes, but I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Well, they'll bite you when you walk all alone.They'll bite you when you are walking home.They'll Bite you and then say you are brave.They'll bite you when you are set down in your grave.But I would not feel so all alone,Everybody must get bitten.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Here is a New Years Day Entry!
Well, hello! It is 2009! Happy New Year! Last night was really exciting! A lot of Luis' mother's family live in the surrounding houses in this area. When the clock struck midnight (and a little before) fireworks started exploding everywhere. Everyone came out of their houses and started hugging and kissing and saying ¨Feliz año nuevo!¨ I could see fireworks over the tops of all the houses and people up and down the street were setting them off. One kid was setting off fireworks from the house next door. It was a little too close for comfort, but exciting all the same.
This morning Luis' father came to wake us up. Luis can sleep through anything, so of course I was the one to meet him at the door. He came to wake us up to tell us that we had a visitor. It was their family friend, Max. Max is also a singer although he says he isn't very good. When someone called to ask if I might sing at a wedding. Luis' mother asked Max how much I should charge, because Max also sings at weddings. Max, a very funny character said,
¨I don't know probably a lot. I am not very good. When I sing at weddings I am just happy to get some food!¨
We all laughed over that. We have had other visitors for New years as well. Rosalina's cousin Mariela and her 17 year old daughter, Mariel, have been staying for a couple of nights. Yesterday Mariel spent most of the day in a hammock studying outside. She has an important test coming up for medical school.
This morning Luis' good friend Samuel came over with his wife and his parents. This was my first time meeting Samuel and I liked him very much. All of this happened before I was even dressed. I came out dressed in my aqua colored butterfly pajamas from Luis' Mom. Although the pajama shirt says ¨Social Butterfly¨ on the front, I felt pretty shy!
Panama is a VERY social place. People receive their identity mostly from their family or at least I think it has a larger influence. For example many people, even friends have referred to Luis by his last name all his life and this is customary. People often live very close to their families. But, there are positives and negatives. Luis describes his family situation as ¨kind of like Seinfeld.¨ People just pop into his parents house without knocking. It is a sort of ¨open door policy.¨ This struck me as different from what I am used to and a little bit exhausting. I would describe the social visits that happen especially during the holidays as something out of a Jane Austen novel. Like the surprise visits this morning. People come on these surprise visits all the time and some times stay for hours! Luis' mother knows everybody in town I think!
Well, I am going to end this entry with a story I have been meaning to write about salsa dancing! There are still so many to write and not much time. I am starting to feel sad about leaving. I have enjoyed this time so much and I have been treated very well by Luis' family. I know that Luis' is sad as well. He has enjoyed his vacation and he has a lot of work and stress waiting for him in Montreal. However, we still have a few more days here and it is a new year now. We have to think positively about the exciting things ahead however scary they might seem!
At this point I have been to three salsa dancing classes and one regular aerobic dancing class with Luis' Mom. We went to Luis' Mom's friend Gina's dancing and excercise studio. A gentleman named Danny teaches the class every week. The teaching was very one on one and there were only 3 or 4 people in the class each time. I was very grateful for everything I had learned from Sam, my movement teacher at McGill. Some singers have had a lot of training in dance. I am not one of those singers. I love dancing, but following steps can be a challenge! I am starting to really reinforce what I figured out over time in Sam's movement class. The key to dancing is to keep a tall elegant posture, smile, and stop thinking so much! It is also more fun that way. The music was very loud.
When I started thinking too much it became a problem for Danny. He even attempted to speak English to me, pulling on my hands roughly shouting ¨No! I commando!¨
It is amazing how the brain works and I have been thinking a lot about learning lately. When I am practicing speaking Spanish and I am concentrating and focusing for a good portion of the day, I get so frustrated, because at a certain point in the day no matter how hard I try my brain just shuts down and I can't do anymore. What I have noticed though is that the more often I let myself get to that point the faster I learn. After a night of sleep I am good to go! I read an article in a science magazine Luis had, that said studies have shown the brain actually needs time to process what it has learned. We are very active in our dreams, and while we are dreaming we continue to learn and rehearse whatever we are weakest in. That's why each time I came back to the dance class it was a little easier!
Danny says that it is as important to know how to dance as it is to know how to swim. Well I am comforted that Luis can't swim. I know he can learn! I think I danced pretty well for someone who didn't grow up with salsa.
I love salsa music. It is so much fun. I hope I will continue to enjoy it. Luis' Mom has this awesome and funny cd of salsa music from a Japanese band. They are called ¨The Orchestra of Light.¨ The music is great. One song sums it up about salsa and all music ¨La salsa no tiene fronteras!¨ ¨Salsa has no borders!¨
This morning Luis' father came to wake us up. Luis can sleep through anything, so of course I was the one to meet him at the door. He came to wake us up to tell us that we had a visitor. It was their family friend, Max. Max is also a singer although he says he isn't very good. When someone called to ask if I might sing at a wedding. Luis' mother asked Max how much I should charge, because Max also sings at weddings. Max, a very funny character said,
¨I don't know probably a lot. I am not very good. When I sing at weddings I am just happy to get some food!¨
We all laughed over that. We have had other visitors for New years as well. Rosalina's cousin Mariela and her 17 year old daughter, Mariel, have been staying for a couple of nights. Yesterday Mariel spent most of the day in a hammock studying outside. She has an important test coming up for medical school.
This morning Luis' good friend Samuel came over with his wife and his parents. This was my first time meeting Samuel and I liked him very much. All of this happened before I was even dressed. I came out dressed in my aqua colored butterfly pajamas from Luis' Mom. Although the pajama shirt says ¨Social Butterfly¨ on the front, I felt pretty shy!
Panama is a VERY social place. People receive their identity mostly from their family or at least I think it has a larger influence. For example many people, even friends have referred to Luis by his last name all his life and this is customary. People often live very close to their families. But, there are positives and negatives. Luis describes his family situation as ¨kind of like Seinfeld.¨ People just pop into his parents house without knocking. It is a sort of ¨open door policy.¨ This struck me as different from what I am used to and a little bit exhausting. I would describe the social visits that happen especially during the holidays as something out of a Jane Austen novel. Like the surprise visits this morning. People come on these surprise visits all the time and some times stay for hours! Luis' mother knows everybody in town I think!
Well, I am going to end this entry with a story I have been meaning to write about salsa dancing! There are still so many to write and not much time. I am starting to feel sad about leaving. I have enjoyed this time so much and I have been treated very well by Luis' family. I know that Luis' is sad as well. He has enjoyed his vacation and he has a lot of work and stress waiting for him in Montreal. However, we still have a few more days here and it is a new year now. We have to think positively about the exciting things ahead however scary they might seem!
At this point I have been to three salsa dancing classes and one regular aerobic dancing class with Luis' Mom. We went to Luis' Mom's friend Gina's dancing and excercise studio. A gentleman named Danny teaches the class every week. The teaching was very one on one and there were only 3 or 4 people in the class each time. I was very grateful for everything I had learned from Sam, my movement teacher at McGill. Some singers have had a lot of training in dance. I am not one of those singers. I love dancing, but following steps can be a challenge! I am starting to really reinforce what I figured out over time in Sam's movement class. The key to dancing is to keep a tall elegant posture, smile, and stop thinking so much! It is also more fun that way. The music was very loud.
When I started thinking too much it became a problem for Danny. He even attempted to speak English to me, pulling on my hands roughly shouting ¨No! I commando!¨
It is amazing how the brain works and I have been thinking a lot about learning lately. When I am practicing speaking Spanish and I am concentrating and focusing for a good portion of the day, I get so frustrated, because at a certain point in the day no matter how hard I try my brain just shuts down and I can't do anymore. What I have noticed though is that the more often I let myself get to that point the faster I learn. After a night of sleep I am good to go! I read an article in a science magazine Luis had, that said studies have shown the brain actually needs time to process what it has learned. We are very active in our dreams, and while we are dreaming we continue to learn and rehearse whatever we are weakest in. That's why each time I came back to the dance class it was a little easier!
Danny says that it is as important to know how to dance as it is to know how to swim. Well I am comforted that Luis can't swim. I know he can learn! I think I danced pretty well for someone who didn't grow up with salsa.
I love salsa music. It is so much fun. I hope I will continue to enjoy it. Luis' Mom has this awesome and funny cd of salsa music from a Japanese band. They are called ¨The Orchestra of Light.¨ The music is great. One song sums it up about salsa and all music ¨La salsa no tiene fronteras!¨ ¨Salsa has no borders!¨
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