It's Thanksgiving (Cena de accion de gracias) Sunday and we are so thankful to be here. We have settled in to a routine and although it is not as busy as Cheryl would perhaps like it, it is a privilege to learn how to live in a new culture and an education to see how life proceeds effectively in different parts of the world. I can say that my suspicion that sometimes the "old ways" still work the best is being confirmed down here. Horses mow the grass around town; all spare deadfall or pieces of wood are used for cooking; all that are needed for a day's work are a machete and a shovel; chicken cut up, floured and fried over an open fire beats barbequed chicken breasts; walking with a huge bowl on your head is better than hauling a bag; bicycles hold two or three people for eco-friendly transportation; clothes scrubbed outside on a metal washboard are cleaner than those washed in a washing machine; geckos are better than Raid.
On the other hand, we are very thankful for the Internet, which has been more reliable than expected, and our computers which have been working faithfully.We are also tickled with our Spanish tutor, Magna, who greets us each Tuesday and Friday with a huge smile and liberally sprinkles our lessons with 'perfecto!' even though we feel quite inadequate. One of her approaches is to help us build sentences with all new vocabulary words so that we can have longer natural conversations. Example: "Why is it not possible for you to give me an explanation like that?" Por que no es posible para usted darme un explicacion asi?
Kim surprised us last week with a new responsibility. We had told her we were going to do our vegetable & fruit shopping Monday mornings as fresh truckloads are brought in. So she asked whether we would also purchase what was on the mission's grocery list for the week! Of course we would do our best, so off we went armed with a list of items in Spanish, some of which we couldn't identify. We started with Pedro, Kim's vegetable man on the street and started reading off items but soon handed the list to him. However, it took awhile to figure out that he didn't have all the items needed because all his deliveries hadn't come yet. Among the two of us, Pedro, his wife, and Lydia whom we had brought along, we managed to get almost everything on the list. Next stop - the meat market. Purchases of 5 chickens, ground beef, and Salsa Lizano went smoothly and before we were finished there, Pedro ran up with 10 pounds of green beans. Third stop - the fish market/coconut stand. All we had to buy there were 4 ground coconuts and got to watch with delight as he retrieved coconuts from the trunk of his car, split them in two with a machete, poured out the liquid, and ground the meat out of the half shell with an electric grinder. Cool. We couldn't resist getting one ground for ourselves, which we have been adding to ice cream, fruit salad and a deadly coconut curry chicken dish. We also checked out his fish options and he promised to make a small bag of 2 fillets for us the next day. Last stop - another vegetable/fruit stand to buy cilantro, watermelon, and a package of soup base (to be used later in the week by the cooking teacher for a stingray and fish dish). At the same time, we purchased our own fruits and vegetables, returning back to the ministry centre with everything on the lists. Kim has now assigned us this job until the end of school. We are happy to be able to take tasks like this off of Kim's plate.
We did cook a Thanksgiving dinner here for Kim, Juan and Lydia. The stuffed chicken roasted beautifully on the barbeque but I put too much salt and spice in the dressing. Had to substitute ice cream for pumpkin pie but were happy to have friends to fellowship with in our little suite. We trust all of you are having a blessed Thanksgiving weekend - talk to you soon. Adios for now!
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| Just outside our gate this morning. Down here horses roam free beside roads, downtown or in open areas. |
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| Cheryl's work station at home. Creating a final exam. |
Kim surprised us last week with a new responsibility. We had told her we were going to do our vegetable & fruit shopping Monday mornings as fresh truckloads are brought in. So she asked whether we would also purchase what was on the mission's grocery list for the week! Of course we would do our best, so off we went armed with a list of items in Spanish, some of which we couldn't identify. We started with Pedro, Kim's vegetable man on the street and started reading off items but soon handed the list to him. However, it took awhile to figure out that he didn't have all the items needed because all his deliveries hadn't come yet. Among the two of us, Pedro, his wife, and Lydia whom we had brought along, we managed to get almost everything on the list. Next stop - the meat market. Purchases of 5 chickens, ground beef, and Salsa Lizano went smoothly and before we were finished there, Pedro ran up with 10 pounds of green beans. Third stop - the fish market/coconut stand. All we had to buy there were 4 ground coconuts and got to watch with delight as he retrieved coconuts from the trunk of his car, split them in two with a machete, poured out the liquid, and ground the meat out of the half shell with an electric grinder. Cool. We couldn't resist getting one ground for ourselves, which we have been adding to ice cream, fruit salad and a deadly coconut curry chicken dish. We also checked out his fish options and he promised to make a small bag of 2 fillets for us the next day. Last stop - another vegetable/fruit stand to buy cilantro, watermelon, and a package of soup base (to be used later in the week by the cooking teacher for a stingray and fish dish). At the same time, we purchased our own fruits and vegetables, returning back to the ministry centre with everything on the lists. Kim has now assigned us this job until the end of school. We are happy to be able to take tasks like this off of Kim's plate.
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| Edie is our go to veggie lady. |
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| Stuffed and trussed and ready to go in the bbq. |
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| Juan and Lydia at our Thanksgiving meal. |
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