Those Rainy Caribbean Days

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  Cocles, Limón, Costa Rica
Wednesday, December 29, 2010

For the first couple of months here in Puerto Viejo all I ever knew were cloudless, sunny days with immensely-blue skies and tranquil, calm waters. Most people believed that there wouldn't be a rainy season this year but instead of not arriving at all, it was on "Tico time" and came later than expected, really picking up towards the end of the year. Since I had moved to my new beach-side cabina and switched my daily routine around- the beach, a book, a bit of surf, a swim here and there, and of course a few cold beers- I wasn't sure what to do once the rains began. The month of December only saw a handful of sunny days. Needless to say,  I have had quite a large gap to fill where once the beach comprised the first six hours of each day. 

So what have I been up to?

Most of the past month has been spent on my 10' X 8' front porch. I feel like a hermit if I stay in the bed (or indoors for that matter) for too long, so I have stuck to the porch, sheltered from the rains but still outdoors, either in my hammock or in a chair at the table. Naturally I have read quite a bit, trading two old books once I'm done with them with a new one from one of the book shops in town. I have worked on a bit of artwork in my free time as well, working in my sketchbook, painting pieces of driftwood that I occasionally collect, or painting signs for Veronica's Place restaurant in exchange for the occasional free meal. And I have been embroidering. Yes, embroidering. A friend of mine recently taught me a basic stitch- the outlying stitch- and I learned quickly, enjoying being able to work with my hands as well as pass the time. Since then I have been embroidering designs on anything I can get my hands on: West African symbols on a hand-made pouch, Aribic designs on another, A peace sign on the back pocket of some linen shorts, the outline of Africa on some pants, a bird on a hat of mine...the list goes on and on. Of course my coworkers just roll their eyes when they see a new design on a random piece of fabric but it's something I enjoy doing, and during these long, rainy days, what else is going on?

My next goal is to learn a couple of designs for making bracelets, a popular trade down here, as well to learn how to crochet so I can begin to make small bags and pouches. Surely my grandma will be proud of me. Next thing you know I'll be eating  ginger snaps and sipping tea with the old ladies at the monthly book club meeting! 

For now I'll just take a nap in the hammock as I dream of sunnier days. La vida es sencilla, ¿no?

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Home-made vase along with a hand painted sign	Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Rahim	Random? Yes.	"Gye Nyame" Except for God
"Denkyem" Crocodile	Peace for Africa	Peace

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