QUE UN TORMENTO!!!

There was a huge storm, they said had nothing to do with hurricane Felix but I think different…when I saw the news and the satellite images of where the hurricane was going, some of it did pass right over us. We didn’t experience any wind, just an enormous down pour and extremely loud thunder. We are off the coastline therefore we become part of a storm that would have been in the ocean only. Anyway, Eduardo and I were sitting at the dinner table drinking some afternoon coffee…it really was raining hard and with a metal roof, it was very very loud. The thunder rumbled through the house , I think the thunder cloud was directly above us. Right after that, we heard the loudest thing BAM!!! Lightning struck down on top of our house, it sounded like someone fired a gunshot. I am sure the look on my face was comical because I was sure we were all done for!!! Even Eduardo was a little scared. We turned off and unplugged everything and just sat and watched it come down. Last night was the same, well the thunder wasn’t so loud but the rain was. My blankets were a huge mess today because of my tossing and turning through the night. It was the first night that I didn’t sleep well.

On another scary note, Ingrid (my “mom”) may have Dengre (not sure how to spell it but that is how it sounds), which you cannot vaccinate for and you get from mosquitoes. To say the least, I am nervous. Apparently it is much more dangerous for kids and older adults, but when young people get it, it just becomes a large inconvenience. You have to go to the doc constantly to monitor your blood pressure and “plaques” I don’t know what they mean by that, I am guessing it is either platelets or white blood cell (which is what I think it is…but who knows). She is up and down; the antibiotics she is on are very strong and usually knock her down pretty hard. Luckily her parents live here too…I would feel weird, like I should take care of her…Not that Alvaro isn’t doing a good job, he is….but you know! I would feel like I had to fill a slot! But no, I am right there with Alex, just one of the kids! Hee hee.

I have been watching movies in Spanish in the afternoon when I don’t want to read Spanish…. I watched 13 going on 30, my best friends wedding, liar liar, closer and some Greys Anatomy. Normally I ignore the Spanish because I know all the words in English. That’s bad! One good thing is that I am understanding almost everything that Alex says, and he does speak very fast especially for a 4 year old. That has to mean something. He actually calls me Jillian, and quite well. I think he is learning English from Dora the Explorer. The Dora in the US speaks a lot of Spanish and I hear Dora speaking English here too. I should watch more of the little kid shows, they would most likely be easier to understand than CNN in espanol. BABY STEPS!

The weather just said that the rain is supposed to continue for the whole night. Que Bueno…not!!!

This weekend, a few of us want to go visit Jaco, really it isn’t an interesting place for me to go, I have heard that it is very Americanized but people flock there for the surf. The reason I want to go is because I heard they have sushi! Of course there isn’t sushi in Puntarenas…it makes not sense to me, a huge amount of fish are caught right here…hence the lovely fishy smell in some spots of the Punta!

Friday my culture professor is taking our class to an Island called Isla Venado. It is very small and very poor. We are to buy something to give to the kids. They get very excited when the gringos come because they always get treats. I think I am going to take them some apples…sorry, no candy…I don’t know how the dental system is there at Venado Island!!! Anyhow we are going to stay overnight in really crummy cabins I guess. The professor says he will make up for it, he is cooking us dinner…it sounds like he will be making shrimp and fish and soup and salad! I am excited for that. I really don’t know what to expect from the island….the poverty is suppose to be a little unsettling…but definitely unforgettable. He lights up like a Christmas tree when he talks about the people of the island. His name is Arturo and he really is an amazing teacher. I wish he taught in the US. I have tico professors, I am happy about that. I had also heard that other professors from other places take sabbatical to come teach at USAC locations around the world to teach their area of speciality. I am not sure if our USAC program has all Ticos or no…can’t say for sure. Anyway, the point is that I will have new pics up next week from the weekend.