February 24, 2011 (After dinner Travelogue)
So dinner was breaded Lagostino (Jumbo Prawns), papas (French fries) and a Columbian variety of coleslaw which included papaya, cantaloupe and pineapple along with their requisite habanero sauce. Not bad. I took a walk around the compound and discovered the swimming pool (Very nice!), gym (too full of muscle bound Columbians) and a bit of forest which moved with toads among the leafy floor. I also noticed a ball game going on and a flock of large bats the size of frisbees hunting for moths and mosquitos among the lights. Oh and several wild cats, gaunt and sickly looking roam the compound as well as at the smelter where I work. There are also flocks of small parrots and lovebirds everywhere and in the evening, they sing beautifully with a choir of crickets backing them up.
There is a fish market along the side of the narrow road north of town. A large muddy river flows through this valley taking a wide bend when it hits town and fishermen line the bank throwing their nets and using lines. The fish are laid out on wooden benches and people are haggling for their dinner.
It gets very humid during the day raising to a crescendo just before the evening thunder storms. The word around camp is that this is the most lightning prone area in the continent and judging by the lightning rods on all four corners of every building, they are probably right.
I sent my laundry away today and minutes ago, two older tiny indigenous women knocked on my door, one in tears as the other showed me my new dress shirt with the tail ripped for about 8” of its length. Despite the loss, I said “De Nada” (Don’t worry about it) and they both started crying. I said I brought a needle and thread and will sew it up myself and you could see the weight of the world come off their shoulders. Poor ladies.
I went to my Doctor somewhere in the eleven days it took to organize this trip and despite showing him a list of 8 or 9 different immunizations that I required, he said that by the time they kicked in, I would be headed back. He did offer me a fast-tracked malaria treatment though the side effects included severe illness for a week. So… being an adventurous man, I came au natural. That said, I killed my 1st mosquito tonight as she sampled my blood type on my leg. I may have to break out the deet yet!
