Well good way to learn about health care here in Costa Rica. I broke a tooth! Tommy took me to his dentist on Thursday and he and I decided there was no way it could be saved. (The dentist in the States who did a root canal on it did not put a post in it and the tooth cracked!) Anyway - he suggested that since he has an oral surgeon who comes to his office on Fridays that it would be best to come back and let him take care of it. I was so scared but Tommy drove me all the way back on Friday (It's about a 30 minute drive) and the oral surgeon pulled the tooth. Let me just say, "I'm so impressed!" Now I've been to the dentist all my life (have terrible teeth) and this guy was great! One shot of novocaine and ZAP! - tooth pulled! No pain - no gas or valium or any other drugs! And now for the great part - he only charged $75.00!!!!! The dentist charged me nothing on Thursday! Unbelieveable!!! He gave me a prescription for pain meds - I took one when I got home (Not because I was in pain but just because he said to) and rested the rest of the day!!! I just had to share this experience!
Now I feel great (after a Red Bull for breakfast) and I'm about to take my first official "tour" of the farm! We have a group of about 20 touristas coming to visit this morning at 9:00 a.m. and it's 8:30 a.m. Hasta manana! Love and peace to all reading this!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Ca'n't sleep!
Don't know why - but it's 6:09 a.m. and I'm wide awake! Could it be that I've caught up on all my sleep??? Cecilia comes this morning to clean (so it must be Tuesday)! Tommy and I are going out for breakfast so we'll be out of her way. I'm hoping we'll go to the school and find out more about when classes start. I'm so ready to start "living" here and without the language it is just not possible. There is a lady who works here on the farm with Tommy who is Dutch but speaks several languages (has her PhD in Botany!) and she asked me if I felt "left out" when she and Tommy are speaking! I wanted to say, "Speak in English and I won't feel that way!!!" Duh! Being a sweet Southern girl I chose not to say anything!!!
The workers have had a 3-day weekend and will return to work today - some kind of national holiday. His plants were closed also so not many phone calls, etc. We went out to dinner on Friday night (to the same Spanish restaurant we went to the night before I left last time I was here). It was wonderful knowing that this time I wasn't leaving. We then worked in the yard around the house and stayed on the farm all weekend (to avoid the craziness of the locals on holiday). A young couple (who used to work here on the farm) stopped by on Saturday evening with their 3-year-old son to bring Tommy a palm plant that he does not have here on the farm. How nice is that? PLUS - she speaks English (from Minnesota). Her family moved here to Costa Rica and she has lived here for about 18 years and married a Tico (Costa Rican). She is an artist and has painted here with the artist from France who lived here on the farm when she lived here!! She has offered to come to the farm and teach me a little about using the dyes here and at the same time help me with the language! Pretty cool - huh??
People "drop in" here on the farm the way we used to do when I was growing up in a small town. Tommy says it's just by word-of-mouth. It is usually students who are backbacking who are interested in eco permaculture (or saving the earth)! It's wonderful though - it's so nice to know that there are actually young people out there wanting to know more about how to live in this world without doing harm to living things. Tommy has organized or planned tours of the farm but oftentimes they just show up to see the work he is doing here - it's so exciting! This next Saturday will be my first "official" tour with a group of tourists. After the tour is over I plan on serving warm gingersnaps with green tea to the group at the house - IF my baking skills improve here!!! (Having a little problem with the altitude!) It's always something, huh??? Well, that's just life on the farm!
Well the sun is rising now. I'm sitting at a desk in front of a window overlooking jungle and the light is bouncing off the different colors of green. There are squirrels (A little different, they're red and their tails look longer) and gorgeous birds playing outside. I just love this place! Think I'll go wake my "honey" and get this day started!!! Have a great day...Love to all who read this!
The workers have had a 3-day weekend and will return to work today - some kind of national holiday. His plants were closed also so not many phone calls, etc. We went out to dinner on Friday night (to the same Spanish restaurant we went to the night before I left last time I was here). It was wonderful knowing that this time I wasn't leaving. We then worked in the yard around the house and stayed on the farm all weekend (to avoid the craziness of the locals on holiday). A young couple (who used to work here on the farm) stopped by on Saturday evening with their 3-year-old son to bring Tommy a palm plant that he does not have here on the farm. How nice is that? PLUS - she speaks English (from Minnesota). Her family moved here to Costa Rica and she has lived here for about 18 years and married a Tico (Costa Rican). She is an artist and has painted here with the artist from France who lived here on the farm when she lived here!! She has offered to come to the farm and teach me a little about using the dyes here and at the same time help me with the language! Pretty cool - huh??
People "drop in" here on the farm the way we used to do when I was growing up in a small town. Tommy says it's just by word-of-mouth. It is usually students who are backbacking who are interested in eco permaculture (or saving the earth)! It's wonderful though - it's so nice to know that there are actually young people out there wanting to know more about how to live in this world without doing harm to living things. Tommy has organized or planned tours of the farm but oftentimes they just show up to see the work he is doing here - it's so exciting! This next Saturday will be my first "official" tour with a group of tourists. After the tour is over I plan on serving warm gingersnaps with green tea to the group at the house - IF my baking skills improve here!!! (Having a little problem with the altitude!) It's always something, huh??? Well, that's just life on the farm!
Well the sun is rising now. I'm sitting at a desk in front of a window overlooking jungle and the light is bouncing off the different colors of green. There are squirrels (A little different, they're red and their tails look longer) and gorgeous birds playing outside. I just love this place! Think I'll go wake my "honey" and get this day started!!! Have a great day...Love to all who read this!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
First 10 Days...
I arrived here in CR on Tues., July 12, during the rainy season - very interesting. The first thing I noticed was that my hair suddenly went from bone straight to curly - it just doesn't dry! You do not want to put a hair dryer to it 'cause you sweat so much that your hair stays wet and don't dare try to straighten it with a flat iron - oh no - you don't want to do that! You will hear it singe!!!! So, just twirl it around your fingers and enjoy the curls! It rained every afternoon and evening the first week I was here but now we're having "Indian Summer" - absolutely gorgeous days!!!! This supposedly will last for a couple of weeks. You wouldn't believe it - the air is so clean and the skies so clear! This morning it felt like a spring day in Texas when you get to open the windows and not have to use the air conditioning. We sleep in every morning ('cause we can!) and I have decided that tomorrow I need to get up early and walk the farm to see what it looks like that time of day! I have a feeling it's gonna be wonderful. This evening when we walked I so wished I had my camera with me! The evening sunlight coming through the trees and plants was crazy beautiful!
We decided that I should probably start Spanish school around Aug 1!!! Tommy says I'll probably go about 4 hours a day and sleep the rest of the day - he seems to think it will tax my brain! Ya' think??? Being 63 and learning a new language is gonna be a trip!!! Speaking of trips, I gotta learn how to get to school and get back to the farm!!! So, that means I should start driving here pretty soon - It's been real nice having a driver but I'm thinkin' I may have to take the bull by the horns (so to speak) and hit the road real soon! Look out Costa Rica, there's a new girl in town!!
I'm so excited and happy about my new life here in the most beautiful place with the most wonderful man who is tells me, "you're still new here" as an excuse for me being an idiot! I don't speak in public, I don't drive, I can't read the newspaper, I don't understand the money/prices so I'm constantly asking him, "what's that" (for example, I thought the trash containers out in front of everyone's house was a smoker 'cause they use those black oil drums cut in half to put their trash in so the dogs don't get into it. I said, "so I guess they barbecue a lot here, huh? He didn't have a clue where that comment came from!!!) I feel like I'm in a dream sort of - not being able to speak! I wake up and don't even know what day it is 'cause it doesn't matter!!! Is that crazy or what??? I finally decided that the only way I'll know is that the cleaning lady (Cecelia) comes on Tuesday and Friday - Tommy says that's the only way he knows - unbelievable! Speaking of Cecelia - I won't go into how we first met (something to do with her not knocking on the bedroom door and me getting dressed! :( Anyway... Tommy says I run a "tight ship" and he could probably let her go!!! Whoa.............I don't think so!!! I mean I need her - seriously! There's so much to do here on the farm with 2 houses and a tree house plus gardening, plus learning Spanish! Stay tuned...I'll let you know how it all works out but for now I'm off to have desert with "my honey"!!! Buenos noches!
We decided that I should probably start Spanish school around Aug 1!!! Tommy says I'll probably go about 4 hours a day and sleep the rest of the day - he seems to think it will tax my brain! Ya' think??? Being 63 and learning a new language is gonna be a trip!!! Speaking of trips, I gotta learn how to get to school and get back to the farm!!! So, that means I should start driving here pretty soon - It's been real nice having a driver but I'm thinkin' I may have to take the bull by the horns (so to speak) and hit the road real soon! Look out Costa Rica, there's a new girl in town!!
I'm so excited and happy about my new life here in the most beautiful place with the most wonderful man who is tells me, "you're still new here" as an excuse for me being an idiot! I don't speak in public, I don't drive, I can't read the newspaper, I don't understand the money/prices so I'm constantly asking him, "what's that" (for example, I thought the trash containers out in front of everyone's house was a smoker 'cause they use those black oil drums cut in half to put their trash in so the dogs don't get into it. I said, "so I guess they barbecue a lot here, huh? He didn't have a clue where that comment came from!!!) I feel like I'm in a dream sort of - not being able to speak! I wake up and don't even know what day it is 'cause it doesn't matter!!! Is that crazy or what??? I finally decided that the only way I'll know is that the cleaning lady (Cecelia) comes on Tuesday and Friday - Tommy says that's the only way he knows - unbelievable! Speaking of Cecelia - I won't go into how we first met (something to do with her not knocking on the bedroom door and me getting dressed! :( Anyway... Tommy says I run a "tight ship" and he could probably let her go!!! Whoa.............I don't think so!!! I mean I need her - seriously! There's so much to do here on the farm with 2 houses and a tree house plus gardening, plus learning Spanish! Stay tuned...I'll let you know how it all works out but for now I'm off to have desert with "my honey"!!! Buenos noches!
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