intriguing, unexpected things happen every day on Isla...one just never knows
... and sometimes, nothing happens & just 'being' is good too;
But as Isla goers know, every stay on Isla is memorable.
I think he discovered a lot of personalities & friends this time, and he himself is a one of a kind friend.
We welcome him back next year!
and as he signs off on every email he sends....
'every day help a little, learn a little, have a little fun'
words to live by...
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Jan 22
Well, that was interesting. I did my morning walk con camcorder, recording the beautiful park at Punta Sur and some of the more interesting Casas on the way back. Had Gouda cheese and a cinnamon roll for breakfast, read in “Your Body Has a Mind of Its Own” for a while and then grabbed my Eng/Span dictionary and headed down to Maria’s seashell stand for some Spanish practice. Maria has a stand in front of the shanty town along the coastal road. I bought some shells there the other day and took the opportunity to get in a little Spanish practice. She speaks almost no English, but by and by we came to an agreement that I would go to her stand Sunday morning where we would sit on her ratty old couch and commence to learn each other’s language. I gifted her my pocket Eng/Span dictionary and I used a much bigger one (Hey, I’m a teacher). Getting going was awkward and slow, but gradually more and more learning was happening. My Spanish is poco y mal (small & bad), but it is way better than Maria’s English. After an hour or so I was quite pleased with how it was going. The following conversation was all in Spanish: Maria said, “Puedo tener su numero de telephono en Weesconsin?” I think you can figure that one out. I did. Oh, crap, where is this going? Luckily, a customer came by, she was distracted for several minutes and when she returned the question had evaporated. So I quickly move our conversation along, sort of how a football team hurries into the next play before the opposing coach can throw the red flag and ask for a review. A little later I told Maria that I was going to watch some American football on TV this afternoon. Where? she asked. At my house. Oh, I like American football. Oh, boy. So I told her that I might go to Sancochos bar in town and watch it there. Oh, so you will drink beer there? Yes. I like beer, too, can I go with you to watch football? No. After a discrete delay, I excused myself and headed home. So ends my latest effort to practice Spanish conversation.
Jan 23
Had my own little tailgate party on BoB’s back seat. Watched both football games. First time theTV has been on in a week. No matter when I go to bed I wake up between 6 and 6:30 every morning. A few time in previous weeks we have seen the local police parked somewhere along the coastal road, lights flashing , occasionally stopping someone briefly and then sending them on their way. Well, last night they set up shop right next to Casa Colibri. About 7:00 pm the red & blue lights started flashing and they were still flashing when I went to bed at 10:30. ….. “It’s windy” is not something anyone bothers to say here. The wind off the Caribbean is borderline relentless, somewhere between 5 and 15 mph. Today I will shop for a gift for Karen and put together a slide show for the gang at Caribou Coffee and maybe shovel a little dirt just for the hell of it. Oh, yeh, Maria knocked on my door about 7 last night. “Are you going to come for Spanish practice tomorrow?” Through a barely open door I said no and sent her on her way.
Jan 24
Yesterday afternoon I snuggled into the hammock style chair hanging on the front porch and let myself “just be”. It was very relaxing to sway slowly in the breeze looking out over the blue-green water of the Caribbean . To just be is to let go of all the usual human thoughts and feelings and ideas. Just be part of what’s there right now. Don’t try to analyze it. Don’t even let your mind go to appreciation or enjoyment. Still your mind. It’s not as easy as it sounds, but it’s well worth doing. After a while I achieved just be-ing and in that state of mind as I watched the waves roll in and heard them splash on the shore, I experienced a vague, primal feeling, something very fundamental, like a hazy memory from a billion years ago, the details of which have long since evaporated and only the feeling remains. It was not a good feeling or a bad one; it had no emotional content at all, just a very primal feeling. What is the source? Oh, I’d give worlds to know.
Today I will take the bed linen and towels to the lavandaria and pick up some trash bags. And I will finish the slide show for the coffee gang. Last night at the lavish spa just up the road I met a couple from Kansas City , here for a week. We were there just for a drink and a great view of the sunset, and the three of us were the only people there. Business is slow on Isla. We chatted for quite a while.
Jan 25
Well, this is my last day on Isla, probably for another year. My week alone here has been both interesting and enjoyable. I got to know at least a little bit some full time, experienced Islanders, Linda, Vivien of Qubano, Roger the jeweler, Brad & Tiffany of Barlitos, Gregory. I did some mundane chores like taking laundry to the lavandaria, dropping off trash, fixing a dead golf cart in the dark (Yes, again, Steve!). I feel less a tourist and a little more a part of the island culture now. I walked the shore for a while this morning. Last night I took Linda & her mom out for dinner. Linda will take me to the dock tomorrow and will then keep Sauers’ cart until they return. I wanted to try Tiburon, one of the seaside restaurants that caters more to the locals than to tourists, but they were closed, so we ended up in centro at a tiny Italian restaurant run by a stereotypical, full-figured, jolly Italian woman. She schmoozed us and joked with us, smiling and laughing through her Italian accent. When we finished she was concerned that we enjoyed her cooking and she scolded Iris for not finishing her meal. Her cooking was good, especially the Tiramasu – easily the best I have ever had. I gave her a hug for the dessert; she laughed and hugged me into those big Italian mama boobs. I am beginning to feel like this is a second home for me. I am ready to go home, but I already look forward to returning to Isla next year.
PS
Good Lord! I just had a beer at ten o’clock in the morning. I guess it is time to go home.
Well, I thought I was done, but I have to tell you about Dave & SherryAnn, the couple from Kansas City that I met two nights ago at the swanky spa near here. I went there to have a drink and watch the sunset and so did they. We all sat in the chaise lounges looking out over the water and we chatted for an hour or so. It is the high season and we were the only three customers in the place which gives you some idea of the business climate on Isla right now. Turns out they are staying at Punta Sur Villas, not 100 yards from Sauers’ place. Nice people, easy to know. After dark we all went home. About 4 pm today I heard someone call my name from outside. It was Dave, with a beer in his hand and one in his pocket. I popped a Negra Modelo and we sat on the porch and got to know each other a little more. During the conversation Dave wondered aloud if I wanted to hang out with them for another sunset. Sure. He was curious about how Sandy died so I told him. (his journal from a year ago relates to this--ks)
About 5 pm I chauffeured them out to Tiberon Restaurant where we had a drink and watched the sun disappear behind a huge bank of dense clouds. When I delivered them back to their quarters SherryAnn gave me a big hug and Dave went to his room to get some U.S. cash and brought it down to Casa Colibri where I exchanged it for my extra pesos. While he was here he expressed considerable appreciation for my company. They were uncommonly nice to me. There, now I’m really done.
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