Well, we got ripped off in the food department today. No pizza. We walked up the hill, up numerous steps (which, with toddlers can be a hassle) and over to where we ate last week to find nothing. Just a bunch of punk kids getting their spoiled butt tennis lessons. We were all disappointed. There pizza isn't even that good, but it would have been better than going back to the restaraunt again. But we did, and ordered more of the same food. It's funny, they claim they have about six places to eat here, but I am pretty stinkin' sure that they have only one kitchen for all of them. And we can order off the same menus in each. So I only count one place to eat. And the first week there was an ice cream stand here, too. The last three days we have looked forward to getting ice cream, but for some reason they close shop at 6:30, or in today's case, they don't even open. There seems to be no real rhyme or reason to anything here. So after we did eat at the "I'm sick of everything" restaraunt, we walked around a bit when all of a sudden I noticed that THERE IS A PIZZA PLACE RIGHT BY GOLF COURSE!!! Too late for us tonight, but I asked and they will be open tomorrow. So...pizza tomorrow.
Shirley and I did get to try out the goggles today. I had the hardest time convincing her to tighten hers up so that water would not leak in. She finally did when Janine encouraged her to do so, but she would not venture out any more than she has since our stay here began. I even tried to tell her that I learned to swim at 8, but she didn't want to hear it.---on a separate note, all those people that Janine told that what I do is "not swimming"...I am doing better, I am swimming...so don't listen to what she says re: my swimming---Anyhow, Andres was doing much better, letting me hold him on his back in the water. He had a good pool day and had a lot of fun sort of floating around. I think it will be Janine's turn with Shirley tomorrow, as she has brought the boys back for their naps a couple days in a row now. Shirley will be happy with that, as she likes to have Mami at the pool with her more than Papi. She always wants to leave a few minutes after Janine and the boys do, but I remind her that the boys need to nap so we should stay longer. I might go out in the morning so I can swim around without worrying about watching the kids, though, so I can get more exercise; I have loved swimming around.
A note about dinner: neither of the boys like vegetables (I know, weird, kids not liking vegetables), but we can often slip peas and carrots and green beans in with their rice and chicken. Anyhow, I spooned a bit into Juan's mouth tonight, a healthy mix of rice and chicken and minimal veggies. He proceeded to spit out the one and only pea that was in the mix, without spitting anything else out at all and without skipping a beat! It was incredible, to be honest, that he could do that with such grace, ease, and elegance...if spitting peas out of a mixed spoonful of food were an olympic sport, he would be wearing a gold medal, or at least some old school gold chains, right now!
Man, some of the kids here are annoying. Today at the pool we mostly had it to ourselves until a particular family unit came down. The boy immediately began to ruin our (Shirley and me) time together, as we were throwing balls back and forth from the bit to little pools. Anyhow, this kid starts chucking our toys around as if they were his, all the while his parents watching, not doing a thing about it. Instead, they decide to go play in the deeper pool, PDA beyond what I wanted to be a part of, so I moved to play in the little pool with Shirley. Well, this kid thinks it is funny to spit water at me...not once, not twice, but three times. I look around for his parents, who, by all appearances, are involved in a greco-roman wrestling match in the other pool. (side note: the woman's laugh sounded a lot like Jokey Smurf...which freaked me out a bit). Anyhow, I kept telling this kid to buzz off in English, knowing he didn't understand anything I was saying. We left a short while later, me, annoyed with this kid, and Shirley wanting to hang out with Mami.
The kids were having fun tonight, dancing to songs, relaxing, and mostly have gone to bed without incident. Hopefully they are getting more comfortable with the routine, although as I write this, Janine darts off to the room...oh, she returns with a Spanish/English picture book to work on with Shirley. They have had some "school" time together, which is good. I am very curious to see how our kids will interact with the kids from the neighborhood and with Primo Joel. I think the time we spend with them looking at pictures from home and having "school" time will ease that transition. I am so glad that Janine is so good at that kind of stuff with the kids, because I am not. I am good at teasing, making them cry, and giving baths. Also at making faces and throwing them in the air, which sometimes leads to the crying.
I am starting to smell funny. Our laundry did not come back today and my last plain white t-shirt is getting ripe. Again, the inconsistency of this place is incredible. The meals, the coffee, the places to eat, the laundry...it is kind of crazy. I am hoping that I get a fresh t-shirt tomorrow, and I am pretty sure that all in the room are hoping for the same thing. I am also hoping for a miracle with the coffee...
Anyhow, I have hogged this enough, I should probably let someone else use it. I will go to bed earlier tonight, after spending time in the book "What is the What" by Dave Eggers. I encourage you all to read it, as it deals with one man's journey as a Sudanese refugee...it is heartbreaking at times. Check your local library for a copy.
I hope all is well for you all. I look forward to hearing from you and the world outside...
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