pipa for you. pipa for me

the coconut tree is my new favorite invention of god's. not only are they beautiful as they wrap the beaches, but i can walk up to any tree, anywhere down here and, with my trusty machete, whack a little pipa(young coconut) or three off for my beloved and myself.my machete technique improves daily. i have promised ken to keep both my thumbs. i'm tellin' ya'll this stuff's almost as good as a route 44 cherry limeade... its meat, juice, and milk are chock full of electrolytes, minerals, and other life givers. pacific islanders call it the treee of life. not only does this little tree feed and provide income for a 1/3 of the world population, it also contains healing qualities in its oil.oh, yeah...it's self propogating.that's right, a coconut hits the ground and without much effort sends roots down and sprouts up. how else do you reproduce all alone on those deserted islands? people, this technique is wasted on us. still takes two to tango.

birds in paradise

There are so many beautiful birds here! Ticos (locals) keep parakeets and parrots as pets in the yard. Hummingbirds seem practically common, as they flit around from flower to flower in the yard. Unfortunately it is also common for the birds to fly straight into the glass windows, as they see the reflection of the jungle and think there is wide open flight space. Yesterday this little green bird lay stunned on the ground for awhile and it eventually hopped to its feet and onto this flower I extended towards it. Eventually it flew off. Last night we saw a flock of parrots flying from tree to tree, looking for the perfect perch for the night. Aaron saw a toucan a couple of days ago, and we are looking forward to more sightings, as our new rule is "Don't leave the house without the binoculars".

futbol frenzy

costa ricans, like most countries south of the border are nutty for soccer. its on little junked out televisions with any kind of rabbit ears coming out the top that will provide enough reception to yell for their favorite team. our little village, ojochal, is no different in its enthusiasm. the second evening of our living here brought us across a night game between ojochal and a neighboring community. although, the town has sporatic electricity through out most of it, the field was lit up with cheap lights on telephone poles. there is also a smaller covered field, so practice can still happen despite the rain...another testament to their love of the game. so we yelled for ojochal along with the drunks under the shelter that's set up between the field and the town grocery. this seems to be most hoppin' joint in town. at any hour after sundown, you will see a steady stream of jovial men(only men) moving between the grocery store buying pilsen or imperial(the only two beers that exist in costa rica- for they are costa rican beers) and the rain shelter. bikes, motorcycles, 4wheelers, trucks, and rubber boots are pulled up beside this odd little social mecca, rain or shine.
after our ojochal's noble loss, we were headed up the winding,muddy, hole- filled road that leads to our house. our head lights came upon a place in the road that was extra messy and a hand came up followed, weakly, by a head. luckily the condition of the roads are so poor you are forced to move slowly because there was no other way of seeing this man lying inthe mud in the dark. through jake's spanish and both of our support, we surmised this dude had broken his ankle inthe dark and was waiting inthe middle of the road for his friend's to return. he was mad with pain as we got him off to the side. a truck load of partying soccerplayers came by and tried to help only to be pushed away(rudely i thought) by this guy's "friends" who had shown up. they quickly loaded him in and drove off into the night. we followed soon after. the hill is now affectionately called hill of the broken leg. another night in the life.

Immersion into the New

Shouting out to all our friends and family over the sound of pouring rain on the roof. We're living the good life in Costa Rica. We've been here since October 12th and have had some incredible adventures already. We flew into San Jose, C.R. and immersed ourselves in the city for a couple of days until our friends Jake and Julia met up with us. The Central Market was our favorite place.
Pungent, fragrant, flavor, noise, crowded, dirt floor, raw meat, chicken feet, spices in every earthern hue, leather shoes, piles of fruit, spray painted blue flora next to vibrant ginger blossoms and cascading birds of paradise...chihuahuas in cages...the stench of piss....the freshness of cold blood sausage... aluminum cups adorned with roses...blocks of cheese....cones of sugar...heaps of empty straw Christmas mangers...open armed virgen Mary....wide eyed wise men...bundled chamomile...herbs and potions bottled and hanging in rainbows...clatter and clamor of the lunch crowd...cacaphony of conversations...synching with the blink of christmas lights...reflecting in mirrors...the energy and pulse conjuring the magic and madness of a carnival...
Our awe, amazement & curiosity propelled us down narrow crowded corridors, around in circles...our appreciation for this scene saturating and blurring our senses.